 Good evening aspirants, welcome to daily news analysis brought to you by Shankara IS Academy. Today's date is 16th December 2023. Displayed here are the list of topics we are going to see today. Now without wasting any time let us get into the discussion. Look at this news article. It reports that Indian railways is planning to raise the transport of coal through rail by at least 400 million tons in next 8 years. The news article further railways is facing congestion and logistical challenges in achieving this goal. So this is the crux of the article given here. In this context let us learn about the types of coal and its distribution. First let us see some basics about coal. Coal is a black or brown sedimentary rock. It is composed mostly of carbon and hydrocarbon. The coal contains huge energy that can be released through combustion process, that is through burning process. Coal is mostly burned for fuel and also used to generate electricity. Currently coal is the largest source of energy for generating electricity in the world. Here note that coal is classified as a fossil fuel and fossil fuels are formed from remains of ancient organisms. Under high pressure and high temperature the organic matter in the dead organisms get slowly converted into the coal. So this is how coal was formed. Now with this basics let us see the types of coal and its distribution. Here note that coal is classified based on the amount of carbon content present in it. There are four major types of coal, anthracite, bituminous, lignite and peat. Now let us see them one by one. First one is anthracite coal. It is the best quality coal with carbon content up to 80 to 95 percentage. They are also called as carboniferous coal. In India we have only very limited anthracite coal deposits and it is mostly found in Jammu and Kashmir region. Secondly, bituminous coal. The carbon content in bituminous coal varies from 40 to 80 percent. It is also called gondwana coal. Note that about 80 percentage of coal deposits in India is bituminous type. States such as Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Chattisgarh, Mathya Pradesh have deposits of bituminous. Thirdly let us take the lignite. Lignite is a brown rock also called as brown coal. Lignite coal is a low grade coal and its carbon content is about 25 to 35 percentage. It retains more moisture than other types of coal and this makes it expensive and dangerous to mine, store and transport. In India the tertiary lignite coal is mainly found in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry and Gujarat. The last one is peat coal. It is the lowest grade coal. It has a lot of moisture and impurities. So when we burn peat it leaves a lot of ash behind. In India peat is found in Nilgiri Hills, Geelam valley in Jammu and Kashmir. So this is all about the types of coal and its distribution. With this let us conclude this discussion. Now let us move to the next topic. Look at this editorial article. This article is speaking about India-Omen relationship. Today the Sultan of Oman is visiting India on a state visit. This is his first visit to India after becoming Sultan of Oman in January 2020. Earlier in February 2018 our Prime Minister Modi has visited Oman. During such visits many key agreements on trade, defence and security were agreed between India and Oman. This made a milestone in diplomatic relations between the two countries. As I said that the Sultan of Oman is visiting India today. So we can expect some key developments and agreements between India and Oman. This article here discusses the areas of cooperation between India and Oman. So in this discussion we shall see this relationship in detail. The formal diplomatic relations between India and Oman were established in 1955. The relationship was upgraded to a strategic partnership in 2008. Here note that Oman is an absolute monarchial country led by a Sultan. This means that Oman is ruled by hereditary monarchs called Sultans. Now let us see in brief about the location of Oman. Oman is located on the southeastern edge of Arabian peninsula. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen and it shares maritime borders with Iran and Pakistan. Oman is open to Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman. Now coming back to India-Oman relations. Oman is the closest partner to India. Around 7 lakh Indian people are residing at Oman. So at the people to people level, Indian women enjoy close ties. Here note that Oman is an integral part of all important groupings in Arab region. It forms part of Gulf Cooperation Organization of Islamic Cooperation and Arab League. So the ability of Oman to manage power games in Arab region makes it vitally important to India. Now let us see the economic and trade relations between India and Oman. In last year the bilateral trade between two countries reached around 12 billion US dollars. India's major exports to Oman include textiles, chemicals, iron and steel, tea, coffee, spices, rice and meat products. India's major imports from Oman include urea, LNG, polypropylene, lubricating oil, dates, chromite ore etc. Here note that in 2022 India was the second largest market for Oman's crude oil exports after China. Apart from trade there are over 6000 India Oman joint ventures in Oman. Also note that in October 2022 Indian Oman launched Rupee debit card in Oman. It was a major boost to India's initiative of promoting digital public infrastructure in the world. Apart from this there is also a proposal for laying 1400 kilometer long deep sea pipeline from Oman to India for the transfer of gas. So this is all about the trade and economic ties. Now coming to the defence relations. See Oman is the first Gulf country where all the three wings of India's defence forces held joint exercises. Let us see the names of defence exercises. The joint military exercise is termed as al-Najjah. The joint air force exercise is called as eastern bridge and the joint naval exercise is termed as nasim al-bar. Remember these names, this will be very useful for all the exams. Apart from holding military exercises an Indian naval ship has been stationed in the Gulf of Oman for anti-piracy operations since 2012. Then in recent years both countries have cooperated in ensuring maritime security in Indian Ocean region. Also note that in 2019 during Persian Gulf crisis Indian Navy launched Operation Sankalp and this was to ensure the safe passage of Indian ships from the coast of Oman. So this is all regarding India-Oman relationship. Now let us move to the next topic. Take a look at this editorial article. The author of the article analyzes the reasons for recent Chennai threats. So in the news article discussion let us understand some of the important points given in the news article using our mains answer writing approach. Now this is the question, account for the huge flooding of million cities in India including the smart ones like Hyderabad and Pune suggest lasting remedial measures. So this question was asked in mains examination 2020. It comes under GS paper 3 under the syllabus of disaster management. Firstly understand the demand of the question. The keyword in the question is account for. When the keyword account for is used you have to give reasons or causes of something. Here you have to write the causes of urban flooding in India. Secondly the question asks you to suggest lasting solutions or measures to address the urban flooding. Remember you should not give temporary solutions for urban flooding. So this is how we are going to address this question. In the introduction part we are going to write about what is the basics of urban flooding. You can also write about the basic definition of urban flooding. Urban flooding is accumulation of water in an area either by direct rainfall or through spill of huge amount of water from water bodies beyond normal limits. It leads to temporary relocation of people, damage to city communities, deterioration of water quality and risk of epidemics. Over the past several years there is increasing trend of urban flood disasters in India whereby major cities in India have been severely affected. So this is how you can write the introduction part. Now moving on to the body of the answer. Here you can split the body of the answer into two parts. Firstly we are going to write about the reasons for urban flooding. Then we have to suggest some permanent solutions for this issue. So first let us list out the reasons for urban flooding in India. The first reason is meteorological factor. See Indian meteorological department's data revealed that in past century that is from 1901 to 2015 there has been a rise in widespread extreme rainfall events across Indian subcontinent. It is increased by three fold. So this results in occasional high intensity cyclones from Arabian Sea to western coast and Bay of Bengal to eastern coast. So this results in heavy rains lasting for at least two to three days which when spread over larger region cause flash floods. So this is the first reason of urban flooding. The second reason is hydrological factors. See the flood risk arises when the surface runoff is more than the infiltration rate. This causes over bank flow of channel networks leading to urban floods. The coastal areas of India particularly the eastern coast experience storm surges during cyclones. Here storm surges are nothing but abnormal rise in sea level caused by cyclonic winds. This storm surges along with the high tides can end it low lying coastal areas. This causes flooding in urban zones present along the coast. The occurrence of high tides impedes the drainage in the coastal cities as well. Thirdly you can write about anthropogenic causes. Firstly unplanned urbanization. It is a key issue of urban flooding. Pollution of natural urban water bodies and converting them for development purpose has increased the risk of flood. Secondly encroachments are also a major problem in many cities and towns. Increased urbanization causes significant changes to natural watershed conditions. As a result of this the capacity of natural drains decreases resulting in enormous flooding. Thirdly the cities are becoming increasingly impervious to water due to increasing built up area and the nature of materials used. The hard and non-porous construction material makes the soil impervious. So it alters the natural drainage routes and aids quick inundation of water in cities. Finally inadequate drainage infrastructure is also a reason. See cities like Hyderabad Mumbai rely on a century-old drainage system covering only a small part of core city. In last 20 years Indian cities have grown main fold with the original built up area. But the drainage system has not been developed so this remains as a concern and leads to urban flooding. So you can write these points in the first part of your answer. Now moving on to the second part of the answer. Here you have to suggest some of the permanent solution to the management of urban flooding. Firstly you have to write about the national disaster management guidelines to create national hydro-material network. This network provides early warning and should use Doppler weather radars to cover all urban areas in the country. It should act as an inventory of existing stormwater drainage system. Secondly utilizing international best practices. For example implementing mobile walls like in Germany and sponge cities like in China these concepts involve replacing concrete pavements with the porous pavements to ensure better filtration. Thirdly protection of wetlands. See urban flooding may increase if the wetlands are not protected around the cities. The center for science and environment has recommended strong laws to protect urban lakes, their catchment and feeder channels. So this should be implemented strictly. Fourthly creating water sensitive urban design. These methods take into consideration the topography, the types of surfaces, natural drainage and leave very less impact on the environment. Promoting suitable use of land is also a way out. Low-lying areas in cities have to be reserved for parks and other low-impact human activities. Encroachments in natural drainage should also be restricted. Clearance of riverbeds and proper implementation of coastal regulation zone rules should be given priority. Apart from this planting drought-resistant and flood-resistant trees in vulnerable areas also helps. Finally different government scheme can be converged. For example Airtel Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation, National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana, Smart Cities Mission. These can be converged to create a better plan for urban conservation. So you can write these points in the second part of your answer. Finally we have come to the conclusion overburdened drainage, unregulated construction and no regard for natural topography. And these all make urban floods a man-made disaster. India has to learn its lessons from recent floods in Assam, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. Addressing the underlying causes and taking immediate effective measures is most important to tackle and overcome the floods and its devastation. So in this way you can conclude the answer and in this discussion we have seen what are the reasons for urban flooding and what can be done to prevent the urban flooding. So with this let us conclude this discussion and move to the next topic. Have a look at this news article. President of Venezuela and President of Guyana has decided to held talks to resolve the long-standing dispute over oil-rich region. They decided not to use military force to settle the dispute. So in this context let us understand the dispute between Venezuela and Guyana. See Venezuela is a country on the northern coast of South America. It is bounded by Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean on the north, Guyana to the east, Colombia to the southwest and Brazil to the south. So this is where the Guyana is and this is where Venezuela. Venezuela is a presidential republic so the head of the government is either directly or indirectly elected by the people and Venezuela will hold the presidential election in 2024. So the border dispute of Guyana and Venezuela is brought into limelight to distract the voters. Now talking about the border dispute, Venezuela-Guyana border dispute is about the ownership of Esquibo region which is an oil-rich region in between these two countries. Like all border disputes this one also dates back to colonial era. In 19th century both Venezuela and Guyana were colonies of Spain and Britain respectively. The border between two territories that is the Venezuela controlled by Spanish and Guyana controlled by British was settled through an 1899 orbital award and this is known as Paris arbitration. According to the award, this Esquibo region which is an oil-rich region was granted to Guyana. But Venezuela opposed this agreement. Venezuela argued that it was not part of 1899 agreement and it was illegal imposition by colonial powers. So Venezuela argued that this Esquibo region belongs to Venezuela. Over the years the efforts have been made to find a resolution through diplomatic and international forums. United Nations also played a role in mitigating the issue between two countries to find a peaceful solution. However dispute remains unresolved causing tensions between Venezuela and Guyana. The presence of these oil resources had added complexity to the dispute as both countries are seeking their rights and claims in the region. So we have to wait and see what will happen on this issue. So this is all about the discussion now let us move to the next topic. Look at this news article. Yesterday the national company law appellate tribunal refused to stay the proposed merger between Zee Entertainment Enterprises and Sony. Earlier two finance entities named Axis Finance, an IDBI bank has challenged the merger in NCLAT. They said that Zee Entertainment had given guarantee for loans that they had given to private entity. So the finance entity said that they would not be able to recover the loan from Zee Entertainment. So they approached the NCLAT to stay the proposed merger between Zee Entertainment and Sony. However national company law appellate tribunal refused to stay the merger. So this is the crux of the news article. Now in this discussion let us understand some points about national company law appellate tribunal. National company law appellate tribunal was constituted in 2016. It was set up under Companies Act 2013. So it is a statutory body. The NCLAT was constituted with the purpose of hearing appeals against orders of national company law tribunal. This means that NCLAT functions as an appellate tribunal. Here appellate tribunal means a special court or tribunal that is formed to reconsider a decision made by another court or tribunal. As we saw just now NCLAT hears appeals against the order of NCLT. Now what does NCLT do? National company law tribunal. It was constituted in 2016 under Companies Act 2013. The NCLT was formed to deal with corporate disputes that are of civil in nature. It also adjugates the cases related to insolvency and liquidation of corporate companies under insolvency and bankruptcy code 2016. See if any party is aggrieved by the orders of NCLT then they may approach the NCLAT for appeal. Now talking about the functions of NCLAT. National company law appellate tribunal also functions as an appellate tribunal under Competition Act 2002. It hears and disposes of appeals against decisions or orders passed by Competition Commission of India. And finally NCLAT functions as appellate tribunal to hear and dispose of appeals against the orders of National Financial Reporting Authority, NFRA. So these are all some important functions performed by NCLAT. Here note that if any person is not satisfied with the orders of NCLAT they can appeal to the Supreme Court. The person has to approach the Supreme Court within 60 days from the date of order given by NCLAT. Now finally let us see the composition of NCLAT. NCLAT consists of a chairperson, judicial and technical members. They are approved with a tenure of five years. The chairperson and judicial members are appointed after consultation with Chief Justice of India whereas the technical members are appointed on recommendation of a selection committee and the selection committee consists of four members. They include Chief Justice of India, Senior Judge of Supreme Court, Secretary of Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Secretary to Ministry of Law and Justice. So these four members comprise a selection committee and this selection committee appoints a technical member to NCLAT. Now talking about the qualification of the members. The chairperson shall be a former or presiding judge of Supreme Court or Chief Justice of High Court. Then the technical members must possess special knowledge in industrial finance, industrial management, industrial reconstruction, investment and accountancy. The technical member should also have a professional experience of not less than 25 years. So these are the qualifications of the members appointed for NCLAT. So this is all we have to know about NCLAT and National Compagny Law Tribunal. Now we have come to the Prelims Practice Question Discussion. Look at the first question. It is about National Compagny Law Appliate Tribunal. Look at the first statement. It is a statutory body established under Company SAC 2013. Yes this statement is correct. It hears and disposes of appeals against the order passed by Competition Commission of India. Yes this statement is also correct. So the correct answer is Option C both 1 and 2. Now look at the second question. Consider the following countries Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Yemen, Bahrain. How many of the above countries share land borders with women? The correct answer is Option B only three. See this map. Women share land borders with Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. And it shares maritime borders with Iran and Pakistan. So only three countries given here share land borders with women. Now coming to the third question. Consider the following carbon dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, oxides of sulphur. Which of the above are emitted from coal combustion at thermal power plants? The correct answer is Option D all the three. The combustion of coal in coal fired thermal power plants releases harmful gases like sulphur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds. So all these are released from thermal coal power plants. Now coming to the fourth question. What is the primary cause of Venezuela-Gayana dispute which is recently seen in the news? So the correct answer is Option C competing territorial claims. So both Venezuela and Guyana are competing for Esquibo region which is an oil-rich region. So the dispute is related to territorial claims. So the correct answer is Option C. With this we have come to the end of the discussion. If you like the video please share it with your friends and don't forget to subscribe to Shankara IS YouTube channel. Thank you.