 Welcome to the Hindu News Analysis by Shankar Ayes Academy. These are the list of news articles chosen for today's discussion. We are given along with the page numbers of different editions. The link for the handwritten notes in PDF format and the time stamping for the discussed articles are provided in the description box as well as in the comment section for the benefit of mobile phone viewers. Let us now move on to the analysis of the first news article. This article is about the significance of fair and equal access to the Supreme Court. See, due to the pandemic the Supreme Court has shifted to virtual hearings instead of physical hearings and according to the author this is a welcome move because it is made accessing the Supreme Court easier for the people in the country and also it opened new avenues for litigants and lawyers across India to approach the Supreme Court with relative ease through technology. The syllabus covered by this article is given below for your reference. See, even at the time the Constitution was being debated by the Constituent Assembly, the geographical access to the Supreme Court was marked as a concern and some members in the Constituent Assembly believed that the geographical location that was fixed to be Delhi of the Supreme Court will limit access to it but we are embedded curled drafting committee was of the view that the Supreme Court must have a specified place of sitting and according to the committee such a place of sitting would actually help the litigants to know where to go and whom to approach for justice. However the framers of the Constitution agreed that the volume of litigation from different parts of the country may require the Supreme Court to increase its reach. So in recognition of this demand the Constitution empowered the Chief Justice to hold sittings of the Supreme Court through circular benches in places other than Delhi as well and however despite an increasing case load and repeated request by the litigants and governments the successor Chief Justices have refused to invoke this constitutional power. Now let's see why Supreme Court access is important. See, India has got a unified single pyramidal structure of the judicial system so all types of cases can potentially make their way to the Supreme Court irrespective of the place of origin. So this is one of the strength of a judicial system but by having the Supreme Court exclusively at Delhi we are actually hindering this effective structure of judiciary. So the author here illustrates the above hurdle by citing a report that was published by the Centre for Policy Research. According to this report a disproportionately high number of cases filed in Supreme Court originated in the high courts that are closer to Delhi. For instance cases from states like West Bengal, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh which collectively account for around a fifth of India's total population contributes to less than 10% of Supreme Court's cases. Contrarily on the other hand almost 18% of all the cases in the Supreme Court originate from states like Punjab and Haryana. See these states are with less than 5% of the total population's share. So we can see that the geographical constraints here play a huge role in accessing the Supreme Court. In addition to that geographical constraints have also made the Supreme Court the domain offers select few lawyers in and around Delhi and this has increased the monetary cost for the expenses for the litigants. See without the option of a local advocate of the choice these litigants have no other option than to choose from what the bar in Delhi offers both in terms of quality as well as in terms of costs and expenses. Now finally with the pandemic going on the Supreme Court has got no other choice but to accept virtual hearings. See these virtual hearings have actually helped litigants to overcome the physical and geographical constraints and also they have opened the Supreme Court to advocates all over India because litigants now have got the option to engage a local lawyer of their own choice and convenience including the same lawyer who argued the case before the lower court. Now according to the author the virtual hearings may not be a perfect alternative but such imperfections must be preferred over a denial of the right to access justice itself because each person in India has got the right to access the corridors of the Supreme Court and only when this right is effectively provided we can say that the Supreme Court has fulfilled its constitutional promise. Remember these virtual hearings will help the Supreme Court in providing fair and equal access to justice and also in fulfilling its constitutional promise. So the author concludes by saying that in addition to the virtual hearings more circuit benches of the Supreme Court are also required to aid the fair and equal access to justice. Also know that many law commission and parliamentary committees have also recommended circuit benches of the Supreme Court to be set up all around the country. So with this we have come to the end of this particular news article. Let's move on to the next news discussion. Now let us take up this editorial article which was written by a former director to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. Here the author talks about the inequities in the climate treaty which is heavily biased towards the developed nations. So in this context let's first have a brief understanding about climate change and then about the climate treaty and then finally we will see some important points mentioned by the author in this editorial. The syllabus covered by this news article is given below. First let us have a brief understanding about climate change. See climate change or the change in climate describes a change in the average conditions such as that of temperature and rainfall in a region over a long period of time. And there are many direct and indirect effects of this climate change and almost everything in this world are affected by the climate change in some way or the other. But some of the important effects of this climate change includes that of warming temperatures and changes in precipitation, the rise in sea levels, the shrink in mountain glaciers and then weather related natural disasters, the decreased food security, health hazards etc. See the cause of this current climate change is largely due to human activity like that of burning fossil fuels like natural gas, oil and coal. Now to combat this human induced climate change 195 nations across the globe in 2015 they participated in the 21st conference of the parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change or the UNFCCC in that was held in Paris. And these nations negotiated and they formed the Paris climate agreement and the important aims of this agreement was to keep the rise in global temperature below 2 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial level and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius and the parties also agreed for long term goals for adaptation. Now with this information let's see what the author has got to say. See we know that more than 120 countries in the world have attained independence in the 1940s. So prior to independence they were exploited tremendously by the colonial powers and these colonial powers were the main reason for the deterioration of environment and global climate from 1750 AD till 1940s. And these powers by causing significant damage to the environment they managed in becoming the advanced nations in the world through industrialization and moreover according to the author a sharp increase in global temperature was evident only after the 1981. So when viewed from this perspective there was little contribution from the developing countries for this increase and this is because their industrialization and urbanization had yet to begin by this time. Now let's see what are the inequities with respect to the climate treaty. First and foremost it should be noted that the Paris agreement explicitly recognizes that peaking of emissions will take longer for developing countries and it is to be achieved through sustainable development and efforts to eradicate poverty. Here when we say peaking it means emissions reach the highest point and subsequently fall. So according to the author this in itself is a bias towards the developed nations because they already developed their economy in a unsustainable manner and now they are forcing the developing countries to cut emissions and to develop sustainably. Now say for example India is currently under pressure to stop using coal even though the US currently uses more coal when compared to India. Second we should know that our annual emissions make India the fourth largest emitter in the world but you should also note that India contributes a mere 3% to global emissions when compared to 26% of the US and 13% of China. Thirdly the author notes that the climate negotiations has got a longer term goals but without a proper strategy to achieve them. Now here strategy includes the finance and technology transport to adapt to and mitigate the climate change. Now here the focus of the negotiation is on costs and effects of climate change like that of emissions of carbon dioxide and increase in global temperature and you're not focusing on the solutions and this requires an analysis of drivers trends and patterns of resource use. Fourthly the developing countries are forced to cap their emissions and are too by achieving reasonable levels of well-being rather than comparable levels of well-being. See this means the developed nations are ignorant about the development of middle income and low income countries. Here the author opines that the rising prosperity of the world's poor does not endanger the planet but the challenge is to change the wasteful behavior in the west. For example the consumption of meat contributes to a third of global emissions. See Indians eat just four kilogram a year compared with around 68 kilogram per person for the European Union and twice that in the United States wherein a third of the food is wasted by the households. Then the author moves this focus to the concept of net zero emissions which is present in climate treaty. Now here net zero emission means that all man-made greenhouse gas emissions must be removed from the atmosphere through reduction measures thus reducing the earth's net climate balance. So this way the humankind would be carbon neutral and also the global temperature would stabilize and in order to achieve this net zero emissions we should sacrifice our infrastructure development. Why? Because more than half global cumulative emissions arose from infrastructure which is essential for urban well-being. For example there is no substitute to cement, steel and construction material and the production and consumption would cause significant amount of emissions. Now here the author notes that for developed countries peaking of emissions came some 20 years after infrastructure saturation levels were reached but that is not the case with the developing nations because it requires more time for their infrastructure developments. So according to the author this concept of net zero emissions could be disastrous when it comes to developing nations like India. This is because much of the future emissions in India will come from infrastructure, buildings and industry. Now with this information let's see what the author has got to say or what the author suggests in this regard. See first of all according to the author the Paris agreement should be reframed in order to accommodate the concern of developing nations. For example rethinking should be done on the concept of sustainable development for those countries with per capita emissions below the global average and secondly the verifiable measure should be well-being within ecological limits and third the international cooperation should center on sharing technology of electric vehicles and hydrogen as a fuel. See this is because they are the most effective response to climate change. So with this we have come to the end of this news analysis let's move on to the next news article. Now look at this article this article says that President Ramnath Coven had appointed Justice Envy Ramana as the 48th Chief Justice of India with effect from April 24th and know that the incumbent Chief Justice of India had recommended Justice Ramana the senior most judge of the top court for appointment as the next Chief Justice of India in a letter addressed to the Ministry of Law and Justice. So in this context let us discuss in detail about the appointment of the CJI. Know that the Chief Justice of India and the judges of the Supreme Court are appointed by the President under Clause 2 of Article 124 of the Indian Constitution. See Article 124 is about the establishment and constitution of the Supreme Court. Originally the strength of the Supreme Court was fixed at eight which includes one Chief Justice and seven other judges. However at present the maximum strength of Supreme Court is said to be 34 including one Chief Justice and 33 other judges. Now on coming to the appointment to the office of the Chief Justice of India he or she should be the senior most judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office and the Union Minister of Law and Justice would at the appropriate time seek the recommendation of the outgoing Chief Justice of India for the appointment of the next CJI and whenever there is any doubt about the fitness of the senior most judge to hold the office of the CJI then consultation with other judges as envisaged in Article 124 Clause 2 of the Constitution would be made. After receipt of the recommendation of the Chief Justice of India the Union Minister will put up the recommendation to the Prime Minister who will in turn will advise the President in the matter of appointment. Now let us understand how judges of the Supreme Court are appointed. See whenever a vacancy is expected to arise in the office of a judge of the Supreme Court then this Chief Justice of India will initiate a proposal and Chief Justice of India's recommendation will be forwarded to the Union Minister of Law and Justice in order to fill up the vacancy. Here the opinion of the Chief Justice of India should be formed in consultation with a Collegium of the four senior most Pusne judges of the Supreme Court and if the successor Chief Justice of India is not one of the four senior most Pusne judges then he would be made part of the Collegium as he should have a hand in selection of judges who will function during his term as Chief Justice of India. Apart from this the Chief Justice of India would ascertain the views of the senior most judge in the Supreme Court who hails from the High Court from where the person recommended comes and after receipt of the final recommendation of the Chief Justice of India the Union Minister will put up the recommendation to the Prime Minister who will in turn advise the President in matter of appointment. So this is all about the appointment of judges. So with this we have come to the end of this news article so let's now move on to the next part of the discussion. This news article is regarding the recently released World Economic Outlook by the IMF or the International Monetary Fund. So in this context let us discuss in detail about IMF the highlights of the latest World Economic Outlook report and also the Global Financial Stability Report. The syllabus relevant for this article is highlighted below for your reference. See the International Monetary Fund or the IMF promotes international financial stability and monetary cooperation. It also facilitates international trade. It promotes employment and sustainable economic growth and helps to reduce the global poverty. Note that the IMF is governed by and accountable to its 190 member countries. Note that IMF was conceived in July 1944 at the United Nations Bretton Woods Conference in the US and the 44 countries and attendants they sought to build a framework for international economic cooperation and they also wanted to avoid repeating the competitive currency devaluations that contributed to the great depression of the 1930s. So we can say that IMF's primary mission is to ensure the stability of the international monetary system that is the system of exchange rates and international payments that enables countries and their citizens to transact with each other and also know that providing loans to member countries that are experiencing actual or potential balance of payments problems is a core responsibility of the IMF and in such case individual country adjustment programs are designed in close cooperation with the IMF and they are supported by the IMF financing and this ongoing financial support will be dependent on effective implementation of these adjustments and also remember this IMF provides technical assistance and training to help member countries to build better economic institutions and to strengthen the related human capacities and this includes designing and implementing more effective policies for transaction and administration and also expenditure management etc. In order to maintain stability and to prevent crisis in the international monetary system the IMF monitors member country policies and it also monitors national regional and global economic and financial developments through a formal system known as surveillance and the IMF also provides advice to member countries and promotes policies designed to foster economic stability and also to reduce the vulnerability to economic and financial crisis and thereby to raise the living standards. In addition to that IMF also provides periodic assessments of global prospects in its world economic outlook. See this world economic outlook presents the IMF staff economists analysis of the global economic developments during the near and medium term and it is usually published twice in a year in the months of April and October and apart from this IMF also publishes the world economic outlook update twice a year in the months of January and July. On coming to the global financial stability report this report provides an assessment of the global financial system and markets and it addresses the emerging market financing in a global context. The report also draws out the financial ramifications of economic imbalances that are highlighted by the IMF's world economic outlook. So having done with all this information now let's discuss the recently released world economic outlook managing divergent recoveries. See according to this report the global prospects remains highly uncertain one year into the pandemic and economic recoveries are diverging across countries and sectors thereby reflecting the variation in pandemic induced disruptions and also the extent of policy support. The outlook says that the global growth is projected at 6 percent in 2021 and moderating to 4.4 percent in 2022 and this projections for 2021 and 2022 are stronger compared to the projections of October 2020's world economic outlook. This upward revision reflects the additional fiscal support in a few large economies, the anticipated vaccine powered recovery the second half of 2021 and also the continued adaptation of economic activity to subdued mobility. So as per this world economic outlook India is projected to grow at 12.5 percent in the current financial year and at 6.9 percent in the next financial year and this is found to be the highest among the emerging countries. So with this information let's move on to the next news article. Now let us take up this news article which talks about forest fires which is occurring in Nepal. As per the news more than 2,700 wildfires have been reported in Nepal since November 14 2020. So in this context let us have a brief understanding about forest fires, their causes and consequences. See during summer when there is no rain for months the forests become littered with dry leaves and winches and these could burst into flames ignited by the slightest spark which leads to forest fires and these forest fires can destroy the vegetation cover and the biodiversity of the region. See these forest fires are caused by both natural as well as man-made causes. When you take natural causes it includes lightning which set trees on fire but however rain extinguishes such fires without causing much damage and also high atmospheric temperatures and dryness offer favorable circumstance for a fire to start. On coming to man-made causes it includes sources of fire like naked flame, cigarette, electric spark or any other source of ignition which comes into contact with inflammable material and now let's see some types of forest fire. The first is surface fire. See a forest fire may burn primarily as a surface fire that spreads along the ground and another type of forest fire is underground fire. See these are fires of low intensity and they consume the organic matter beneath and the surface litter of forest floor. Usually these fires spread entirely underground and they burn for some meters below the surface and they spread very slowly and therefore it becomes very hard to detect and control such type of fires and also they may continue to burn for months and destroy the vegetative cover of the soil. The third one is ground fire. See these fires are fires in the sub-surface organic fuels such as duff layers under forest stands and also note that there is no clear distinction between the underground and ground fires. Another type of fire is a crown fire. It is one in which the crown of trees and shrubs burn often sustained by a surface fire and note that the crown fire are particularly very dangerous in the case of a coniferous forest because the resinous material burn furiously and then comes fire storms. Note that it is the most rapidly spreading forest fire. See as the fire burns heat rises and hair rushes in causing the fire to grow and more air makes the fire spin violently like a storm and usually temperatures inside such storms can reach around 2000 degree Fahrenheit. Now having done with the types of forest fires let's now talk about the preparedness and mitigation measures of government. See the best way to control a forest fire is to prevent it from spreading which can be done by creating fire breaks. A method used to prevent the fire breaking into forest from one compartment to another is through the means of forest fire line that is forest litter present along the forest boundary are removed in order to prevent the fire from getting spread it and now some of the important precautions against forest fires includes keeping the source of fire separated from combustible and inflammable material and by keeping the source of fire under watch and control and also by adopting safe practices in areas near forest and also by incorporating fire reducing and firefighting techniques and equipment. This news article states that the railways had completed the arch closure of Chenna bridge. See this Chenna bridge is currently the world's highest railway bridge and it is constructed over river Chenna and that's why it's called as Chenna bridge and this bridge is a part of the Udampur Srinagar-Baramulla railing project which aims to connect the Kashmir Valley to the rest of the nation and the bridge has got a length of 1315 meters and it is found to be at 359 meters above the riverbed level and the bridge is said to be 35 meters higher when compared to that of the Eiffel tower in Paris. Also know that the bridge can withstand high wind speed of up to 266 kilometer per hour and it is suitable for minus 10 degrees Celsius to 40 degrees Celsius temperature. So in this context let's have some vital information about river Chenna. See this river Chenna originates from Lahore valley of Imachal Pradesh and from there the river flows with steep bed slopes in the mountain reaches. Also know that this river has got abundant discharge throughout the year. This Chenna river is also called as Chandra Baga. See this is because the Chenna river is formed from the merging of two streams namely the Chandra and the Baga and this Chandra stream it originates from the southwest phase of Barilaccha pass and the Baga originates from the northwest phase of Barilaccha pass in the Imalayan canton of Lahore and Spiti valley and on looking at its tribute trees this Chenna river has got six important tribute trees and they are Mearnala, Bhattnala, Marusudar and Ants and also Neeru and Thavi. So among the six tributaries Mearnala, Bhattnala, Marusudar and the Ants are tributaries received on the right bank whereas the Neeru and the Thavi are its major left bank tributaries and also remember the Marusudar is the biggest tributary of this Chenna river. Know that the Chenna river flows in two regions in India one is Imachal Pradesh and the other one is Jammu and Kashmir. See after reaching Aknur in Jammu this river will enter into Pakistan and the total length of the river in India that is from the confluence of Chandra and Baga to Aknur is found to be about 504 km and when you take in the case of India the watershed of this Chenna basin covers parts of Imachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir. So with this we've come to the end of this discussion so in this analysis we saw about the Chenna bridge and the Chenna river. With this let us now move on to the practice question discussion. Consider the following statements about river Chenna. Statement one it flows only in India. Statement two it is also called as Chandra Baga and statement three it originates in the state of Rajasthan. So which of the above statement or statements are correct? See when you look at statement one it says that the river Chenna flows only in India is incorrect because the river also flows into Pakistan and statement two which says that river Chenna is also called as Chandra Baga is actually correct because the river starts from the confluence or merger of two streams Chandra and Baga and therefore it is called as Chandra Baga and when you take statement three this statement is incorrect because the river Chenna does not originate in Rajasthan but rather it originates in Imachal Pradesh. Since the question wants us to identify the right statement the correct answer is option B that is two only. Consider the following statements with reference to forest fires. Statement one underground forest fires spread very slowly and they are very hard to detect and control. Statement two a fire line is a practice of burning a strip of vegetation and clearing the land to stop flames from spreading into forest. Based on the discussion we can find that both statement one and two are correct because as per statement one underground fires of low intensity which usually spread entirely underground and burned for some meters below the surface and usually the rate at which they spread is very slow and therefore it becomes really hard to detect and control such type of fires. Similarly when you take statement two it talks about one of the mitigation measures of the government to control the spread of fire which is achieved by the forest fire line that is the practice of burning a strip of vegetation and clearing the land to stop the flames from spreading into forest. So since the question wants us to identify the right answer the correct option is option C that is both one and two. With reference to the appointment of the Chief Justice of India consider the following statements. Statement one the Chief Justice of India is appointed by the President under article 123 of the Constitution. Statement two the upcoming Chief Justice of India should be the senior most judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office. As statement three the Union Minister of Law and Justice would seek the recommendation of the outgoing Chief Justice of India for the appointment of the next Chief Justice of India. So which of the following statements given above is so are correct. See based on the discussion when you look at the three statements you can find that statement two and statement three is relevant when it comes to the appointment of the Chief Justice of India that is both the statements are correct. But when you look at statement one which says that the appointment is done under article 123 of the Indian Constitution is wrong because the Chief Justice of India is appointed by the President under article 124 of the Constitution and not 123. See this article 123 is not connected to the appointment of the Chief Justice of India but rather it is about the power of the President to promulgate ordinances during recess of Parliament. So since the question wants us to identify the right option the correct answer is option B that is two and three only. Consider the following reports global financial stability report world development report ease of doing business world economic outlook which of the above reports are released by the international monetary fund. So based on the discussion you can identify that global financial stability report and the world economic outlook are the reports that were released by the international monetary fund and therefore the right answer is option D that is one and four only. When you take the case of world development report and ease of doing business report they both are released by the world bank and not IMF. So the right option is option D that is one and four only. The list of main's practice question is displayed here. You can write your answers and post them in the comment section below. With this we have come to the end of today's hinder news analysis. If you like the video don't forget to like comment and share and do subscribe to Shankar Aya's academy youtube channel for more updates regarding UPSC civil services preparation.