 A very good evening aspirants. Welcome to Hindu news analysis brought to you by Shankar IAS Academy. Today is 22nd February 2022. The list of articles we are going to discuss today is displayed on the screen. You can go through it. Let's start our discussion. Take a look at this news article. See this news article in particular discusses the issues surrounding MGNREGA budget estimation. The article has also argued that the center's approach has weakened the very foundation of employment guarantee as a legal rate. This is the cracks of the news article given here. In this context, let's quickly go through what is MGNREGA and we shall also see some of the important points mentioned in the news article. Before that the syllabus relevant to this news article is highlighted here for your reference. You can go through it. See the MGNREGA which is the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act is an Indian legislation enacted on August 25, 2005. The MGNREGA provides a legal guarantee for 100 days of employment in every financial year to adult members of any rural household and they must be willing to do public work related unskilled manual work at the statutory minimum wage. That is, they should be ready to do unskilled manual work. Note that the Ministry of Rural Development is monitoring the entire implementation of this scheme in association with the state governments. See this act was introduced with an aim of improving the purchasing power of rural people. Primarily, it provides semi-skilled or unskilled work to people living below poverty line in rural India and it attempts to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor in the country. Kindly note that roughly one-third of the stipulated workforce must be women. Now, the debate here is about the disappointing allocation for MGNREGA in fiscal year 2022-23 budget. See, many organizations such as the All India Kishan Sabha and NSM have raised concerns about the inadequacy of the fund. That is the inadequacy of the amount. See, despite widespread support for increased budgetary allocations for MGNREGA, real allocations have been far lower and wholly inadequate to meet the needs. As a result of this constant lack of funding, MGNREGA has become synonymous with deficits for state governments. MGNREGA has also become synonymous with long delays in salary payments, a drop in work provided in the last two quarters of fiscal years and huge pending dues at the end of fiscal years. See, for example, in fiscal year 2021-22, a tracker released by the People's Action for Employment Guarantee that is PAEG showed that the initial amount allocated was nearly exhausted by September and many states were running a negative balance. And for fiscal year 2022-23, PAEG has recommended a minimal allocation of 2.64 lakh crore and NSM has recommended 3.64 lakh crore, but the government has allocated only 73,000 crore. Apart from this, in its recent statement, NSM has argued that this amount provides for only 16 days of employment to all the active job-guard holding households. Now, why is the government's allocation so much lower than what the state government's request and what civil society groups advocate? To know that, we must have a closer look at how the government calculates person days, especially a closer look at the center's MGNREGA budget estimation in fiscal year 2021-22 shed some light on it. See, among other things, the budget calculation depends on two important variables. They are the projected person days for the coming year and the wage rates. See, the projected person days are the total number of days of work expected for the year. See, the district program coordinator is in charge of calculating person days and reporting it to the state. The state then compiles the entire state's estimated demand and submits it to the center for approval. For example, the MGNREGA MIS report includes the center's authorized monthly predictions as well as the actual person days generated. When we have a closer examination of these numbers for the previous two years, it reveals some anomalies. See, in fiscal year 2019-20 and 2020-21, the number of person days generated in quarter 4 was approximately 18.4 percent more than in quarter 3. However, the estimated person days for quarter 4 in fiscal year 2021-22 proved to be much fewer than those for quarter 3. Now, the problem here is how they arrived at these numbers. See, fiscal year 2020-21 was an unusual year because the epidemic and the accompanying lockdown measures resulted in dramatically higher MGNREGA job demand. See, work demand continued to be high in fiscal year 2021-22 as well, showing that the rural population was still relying on MGNREGA for their livelihood. And if that is the case, there seems to be no clarity on how this projection was arrived at. Given previous trends and given that with the harvest concluding MGNREGA work has traditionally picked up in quarter 4. Now, see as budget allocations are based on projected person days, underestimated projections will lead to inadequate allocation. And the low allocation for fiscal year 2022-23 is also most likely the result of artificially low person day predictions. Now, looking at the next variable, that is the wage rates. See, official MGNREGA wages are also being used to keep the budget under control. Under MGNREGA Act, it is clear that the wage renumeration cannot be lower than the minimum wage in each state. And despite this mandate, the wage remuneration is much lower than the minimum wage in most of the states. And by doing this, as per the article, the central government not only violate the provision of the Act, but also violates the fundamental rights of MGNREGA workers. So, to conclude, MGNREGA considers employment guarantee as a legal right. Every rural household can demand work up to 100 days every year, and the government has to provide for it. And as and when demand arises, the government must fulfill it. In this context, seeing the budget allocation as a limit on the amount of work that can be provided undermines the scheme's core principle. For example, less than 5% of the household active this year have completed 100 days of work. While the initial budget allocation is required, MGNREGA funds must be regularly replenished by supplementary grants provided based on actual work demand in each state. In that line, the center's approach to estimating projections and keeping the wages illegally low has eroded the very premise of MGNREGA. That's all regarding this news article. Now let's have a quick recap. We have seen that MGNREGA provides a legal guarantee for 100 days of employment in every financial year to adult members of any rural household, and they should be willing to do unskilled manual work at the statutory minimum wage. We have also seen that roughly one-third of the stipulated workforce must be women. Then we saw, for fiscal year 2022-23, PAEG has recommended a minimal allocation of 2.64 lakh crore, and NSM has recommended 3.64 lakh crore, but the government has actually allocated only 73,000 crore. And the reason for low allocation for fiscal year 2022-23 is most likely the result of artificially low person day predictions. Then we concluded by saying that MGNREGA considers employment guarantee as a legal rate, and every rural household can demand work up to 100 days every year and the government has to provide for it. And that's all regarding this news article. Now we will move on to next news article discussion. Look at this news article. This news article talks about a suspected rhino poacher who was recently arrested from Kerala. He escaped from police custody by jumping into the Brahmaputra river in Assam with his handcuffs on. See, search operations are underway to locate him. In this context, let's learn about Indian rhinos in detail. See, rhinos are universally recognized by their massive bodies, stumpy legs and either one or two dermal horns. They are renowned for having poor eyesight, but the senses of smell and hearing are well developed. Note that international trade in rhino horn has been banned under sites, that is convention on international trade in endangered species of fauna and flora. Now we will see about the threats. See, some of the threats for rhinos includes habitat loss, agricultural expansion, human settlements, road projects and dam construction. Especially in Southeast Asia and India, human populations are rising and forests are degraded or destroyed. Asian rhinos mainly survive in isolated areas in small populations that are at greater risk from inbreeding, natural disasters and disease. See, there are five species of rhinos. Each one has different characteristics, behaviors and personalities. They are Sumatran rhino, Javan rhino, Black rhino, White rhino and Greater One-horned rhino. In this session, we will discuss about Indian rhinos. See, the greater One-horned rhino or Indian rhino is the largest of the rhino species. It is found only in the Indian subcontinent. Once it was spread across the entire northern part of the Indian subcontinent, but now rhino populations have gone down as they were hunted for sport or killed as agricultural pests. This pushed the species very close to extinction and by the start of the 20th century, only 200 wild Greater One-horned rhinos remained. See, the recovery of the Greater One-horned rhino is among the greatest conservation success stories in Asia. Thanks to strict protection and management from Indian and Nepalese wildlife authorities, due to their efforts, the Greater One-horned rhino was brought back from the brink. Today, populations have increased to around 3700 rhinos in Northeastern India and the Terai grassland of Nepal. The Greater One-horned rhino is identified by a single black horn about 8 to 25 inches long and a gray brown hide with skin folds. It gives rhinos an armor-plated appearance. The species is solitary except when adult males or rhinos nearing adulthood gather at valleys or to graze. They primarily graze with a diet consisting almost entirely of grasses as well as leaves, branches of scrubs and trees, fruits and aquatic plants. See, the habitats includes tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas and scrublands. Now, the important point to note here is that the IUCN status of one-horned rhino is vulnerable. It is also protected under appendix 1 of sites. Also, it is listed in schedule 1 of Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. Now, we will do a quick recap. See, rhinos are universally recognized by their massive bodies, stumpy legs and either one or two dermal horns. They are renowned for having poor eyesight. But their senses of smell and hearing are well developed. We have also seen that the Greater One-horned rhino or the Indian rhino is the largest of the rhino species and it is found only in the Indian subcontinent. Then, we have discussed about the habitats. The habitats includes tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas and scrublands. Then, we have concluded the discussion with the conservation status of rhinos. That is, the IUCN status of one-horned rhinos is vulnerable. It is also protected under appendix 1 of sites. And it is listed in schedule 1 of Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. And that's all regarding this news article. We will move on to the next news article discussion. See this news article here. This news article says that the police personnel have no right to unilaterally dictate the time when roadside eateries, hotels and restaurants should be open or closed. If the police do so, they are infringing upon the constitutional right of the owners to carry on their business as per the law. Also, the fundamental right of the consumers to eat food, which is a part and parcel of the right to life under article 21 of the constitution is violated. The high court says that only government shall fix the timings by taking into consideration the needs of those who worked at odd hours. This is the crux of this article. In this context, let's learn about article 21 of the Indian constitution. We know that the fundamental rights are enshrined in part 3 of Indian constitution from article 12 to 35. Now with regards to fundamental rights, the famous of our constitution derived inspiration from the Bill of Rights of Constitution of USA. See, part 3 of the constitution is described as the Magna Katha of India. Why? Because it contains a very long and comprehensive list of justiciable fundamental rights. Now let's discuss about article 21 which comes under this part 3 that is the fundamental rights. Article 21 talks about protection of life and personal liberty. See, in simple words, article 21 declares that no person shall be deprived of her life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law. And the important point to note here is that this right is available both to citizens as well as non-citizens. See, in the famous Gopalan case of 1950, the Supreme Court has taken a narrow interpretation of article 21. It held that the protection under article 21 is available only against arbitrary executive action and not against arbitrary legislative action. This means that the state can deprive the right to life and personal liberty of a person based on a law. And this is because of the expression procedure established by law in article 21, which is different from the expression due process of law contained in the American Constitution. Hence, the validity of a law that has prescribed a procedure cannot be questioned on the ground that the law is unreasonable and just or unfair. Secondly, the Supreme Court held that the personal liberty means only liberty relating to the person or body of the individual. But in Manaka case of 1978, the Supreme Court overruled its judgment in the Gopalan case by taking a wider interpretation of article 21. Therefore, it ruled that the right to life and personal liberty of a person can be deprived by a law provided that the procedure prescribed by that law is reasonable, fair and just. In other words, it has introduced the American expression of due process of law. In effect to this judgment, the protection under article 21 should be available not only against arbitrary executive action, but also against arbitrary legislative action. Further, the Court held that the right to life as embodied in article 21 is not merely confined to animal existence or survival, but it includes within its ambit the right to live with human dignity and all those aspects of life which go on to make a man's life meaningful, complete and worth living. It also ruled that the expression personal liberty in article 21 is of the widest amplitude and it covers a variety of rights that constitutes the personal liberties of a man. See the Supreme Court has also reaffirmed its judgment in the Manaka case in the subsequent cases. It has declared these following rights as part of article 21. Kindly go through these rights. Any rights here can be asked as a statement in the preliminary examination. Now let's have a quick recap. We have seen about article 21 which comes under part 3 of the Constitution which is the fundamental rights. Article 21 talks about protection to life and personal liberty. It declass that no person shall be deprived of her right or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law and this right is available to both citizens as well as non-citizens. We have also seen that in Manaka case of 1978, the Supreme Court has taken a wider interpretation of article 21. It has introduced the American expression which is the due process of law and finally we have also listed out many rights which are part of article 21. And that's all about this news article. Now let's move on to next news article discussion. Look at this news article. This news article talks about the need for a fresh delimitation exercise of local bodies. This is because of the uneven size of municipal corporations and that of the words. So in this context we will discuss about the delimitation commission, its composition and its function. See delimitation literally means the act or process of fixing limits or boundaries of territorial constituency in a country. It is also fixing limits or boundaries of a province having a legislative body. The job of delimitation is assigned to a high power body in India. Such a body is known as delimitation commission or a boundary commission. Know that delimitation is a bureaucratic process. According to article 82 of the constitution, parliament enacts a delimitation act after a census that is held every 10 years, following which the union government constitutes a delimitation commission. In India such delimitation commission have been constituted 4 times. That is in 1952 under the delimitation commission act of 1952. In 1963 under the delimitation commission act of 1962 and in 1973 under delimitation act of 1972 and finally in 2002 under the delimitation act of 2002. See the important point to note here is that the delimitation commission of India is a statutory body. That is it is not a constitutional body. It is established by the central government under the provisions of a law enacted by the parliament. Now let's discuss about the composition of the commission. See it consists of the chairman who is either serving or a retired judge of the supreme court for a period of two years. The other member include the election commissioner of India and the election commissioners of the state and union territories concerned. Having discussed the composition now we will see its function. See its main function is to demarcate the boundaries of the parliamentary and assembly constituencies in the country. The delimitation commission of India is a high powered body. So the orders of the commission have the force of law. So it cannot be called in question before any court. See the copies of the orders of the commission are laid before the house of the people and state legislative assembly respectively. But note here that no modification are permissible on the orders of the commission. See under article 82 of the constitution the parliament by law enacts a delimitation act after every census. After the commencement of the act the central government constitute a delimitation commission. Now this delimitation commission demarcates the boundaries of the parliamentary constituencies as per provisions of the delimitation act. Note that the present delimitation of constituencies has been done on the basis of 2001 census figures under the provisions of delimitation act of 2002. This delimitation commission of 2002 was mainly formed to address the uneven growth of population in different constituencies in different parts of the country as well as within the same state. Also the delimitation commission of 2002 was formed to address the problem due to continuous migration of people or electorate from one place to other especially from rural areas to urban areas. Because these problems resulted in different sizes of electoral constituencies even within the same state. Note that the constitution of India was specifically amended in 2002. This amendment specified not to have delimitation of constituencies till the first census after 2026. Therefore the present constituencies carved out on the basis of 2001 census shall continue to be in operation till the first census after 2026. What have we seen so far? We have seen that according to article 82 of the constitution parliament enacts a delimitation act after a census that is held every 10 years following which the union government constitutes a delimitation commission. The delimitation commission of India is a statutory body and it is not a constitutional body. We have then seen that it consists of the chairman who is either serving or retired judge of the supreme court who is appointed for a period of 2 years. The orders of the commission that is the delimitation commission have the force of law. So it cannot be called in question before any court. Then we have seen that the present constituencies carved out on the basis of 2001 census will be in operation till the first census after 2026. And that is all regarding this news article. Now we will move on to the next news article discussion. Take a look at this news article. See this news article talks about a red petition that leaked that there was rampant distribution of cash to voters by almost all parties. While hearing the case the Madras High Court ordered that the results of Coimbatore corporation election shall be subject to further orders by the court. The court also issued a notice to the Tamil Nadu state election commission and requested information on the actions done in response to the complaints. This is the essence of this news article. So in this background let's understand in brief about the state election commission in Prilim's perspective. See the state election commission has been interested with the function of conducting free fair and impartial elections to the local bodies in the state. And the state government is required to appoint a state election commissioner who would be responsible for conducting elections to the Panjaitraj institutions. To be specific as per article 243k1 a state election commissioner is to be appointed by the governor. And article 243k2 states that subject to the provision of any law made by the legislature of a state the condition of service and tenure of office of state election commissioner will be determined by the governor. Note that the state election commissioner shall not be removed from the office except in like manner and on the like grounds as a judge of a high court. See an important point to be noted here is that the state election commissioners work independently of the election commission of India and each has its own sphere of operation. Here I have given some of the functions of the state election commission you can go through it and that's all regarding the news articles discussion now we will move on to the next part of our discussion that is preliminary practice questions. Now look at the first question consider the following about the delimitation commission it is also known as a boundary commission in India delimitation commission have been constituted eight times which of the statements given above are correct. See the first statement is correct because we have seen in our discussion that the delimitation commission is also known as boundary commission and regarding statement two it is incorrect because in India delimitation commission have been constituted four times that is in 1952, 1962, 1972 and 2002. Since the question demands for correct statements our answer is option A one only. Now look at the second question consider the following statements with reference to state election commissioner his conditions of service and tenure of the office shall also be determined by the governor and statement two he shall not be removed from the office except in the manner and on the grounds prescribed for the removal of judge of the state high court and you have to find the correct statements. See here both the statements are correct we have seen that the state election commission consists of a state election commissioner who is to be appointed by the governor and his conditions of service and tenure of office shall also be determined by the governor and we discussed that he shall not be removed from the office except in the manner and on the grounds prescribed for the removal of a judge of the state high court. Now note here that the judge of a state high court can be removed from the office by the president on the recommendation of the parliament this means that a state election commissioner cannot be removed by the governor though he is appointed by him. So here our correct answer is option C both one and two. Now look at this question it is regarding rhinos first statement there are seven species and the second statement jaavan rhino is listed as critically endangered by IUCN. Now regarding the third statement greater one-horned rhino is one of the largest of the rhino species and you have to find the incorrect statement see statement one it is incorrect because there are five species of rhinos and not seven and what are these five species they are sumatran rhino jaavan rhino black rhino white rhino and greater one-horned rhino. So coming back to statement two it is correct because jaavan rhino is listed as critically endangered by IUCN and statement three it is also correct we have also seen this in our discussion right greater one-horned rhino is one of the largest of the rhino species since the question demands for incorrect statements the answer is option A one only and look at our last question this is a very easy question which among the following articles of the Indian constitution talks about the right against solitary confinement article 19 article 29 article 31 and article 21 take this as a quiz question for you find the answer and post it in the comment section the main question is displayed here write the answer and post it in the comment section if you like the video hit the like button post your comments and share the video with your friends and don't forget to subscribe Shankar IAS Academy YouTube channel thanks for watching