 Good evening aspirants. Welcome to the Hindu news analysis session where Shankara's Academy dated 22 May 2021. The list of topics for today's discussion is given for your reference along with the page numbers in various editions of the newspaper. Before discussing the articles, let us see few important preliminary questions asked in the year 2020. Moving to the first question, in the context of India, which one of the following is the characteristic appropriate for bureaucracy? The options given are option A, an agency for widening the scope of parliamentary democracy, option B, an agency for strengthening the structure of federalism, option C, an agency for facilitating political stability and economic growth, option D, an agency for the implementation of public policy. First of all, know that executive organ of the government includes the prime minister, the ministers and a large organization called the bureaucracy or the administrative machinery. See, to underline the difference between this administrative machinery and the military service, it is also described as civil services. See, the administrative machinery is staffed by trained and skilled officers who work as permanent employees of the government. Also know that they are assigned the task of assisting the ministers in formulating policies along with implementing these policies. Hence the option D is the correct answer. In addition to this, let us also see about bureaucracy in brief and also discuss the other options given. See, in a democracy, the elected representatives and the ministers are in charge of government, whereas the administration is under the direct control and supervision of the elected ministers. Additionally, in the parliamentary system, the legislature also exercises control over the administration. Hence the administrative officers cannot act in violation of the policies adopted by the legislature. Also know that it is the responsibility of the minister to retain political control over the administration. This is to say that the bureaucracy is expected to be politically neutral and it also will not take any political position on policy matters. Hence the first option which says that the bureaucracy is an agency for widening the scope of political democracy is wrong because bureaucracy has no direct role in dynamics of parliamentary democracy. Moving with it, the Indian bureaucracy also consists of all India services. See, this all India service promotes unitary spirit. Hence the second option which says that the agency for strengthening the structure of federalism is now the correct option. Now we are left with two options. See, option 4 is more appropriate than option C as the bureaucracy does not have any direct role in ensuring political stability, whereas the primary responsibility of the administrative machinery is to faithfully and efficiently participate in drafting the policies and an implementation of it. Hence option D, an agency for implementation of public policy is the right answer. Moving to the second question. If another global financial crisis happens in the near future, which of the following action or policies are most likely to give some immunity to India? The statements given are statement 1, not depending on short term foreign borrowing, statement 2, opening up to more foreign banks, statement 3, maintaining full capital account convertibility. Select the correct answer using the code given below. Option A, one only, option B, one and two only, option C, three only, option D, one, two and three. See, the global financial crisis refers to a period of extreme stress in global financial markets and banking systems. See, this was witnessed during the years of 2007 and 2009 where a downturn in US housing market was a catalyst for a financial crisis that spread from the United States to rest of the world. This happened because of the linkages in global financial system. Now let us understand the concept by considering the statements one by one. See, the first statement is about short term foreign borrowings. Know that the short term debt have to be returned at a shorter interval. See, this renders an economy vulnerable if the economy is already facing an economic crisis as it has an obligation to return. So, the ideal scenario is not to depend upon the short term debt during a crisis. Also know that the lesser exposure to the foreign financial market is likely to give some immunity to India. Hence, the statement one is correct. Now, considering the second statement, see, opening up to more foreign banks is not a good idea during a crisis because it will increase the country's dependency on foreign banks and also it leads to enhanced exposure to the global economy and hence an increased risk is associated with it. Hence, opening up to more foreign banks is not a good idea. Now, eliminate the second option. So, the answer should be either option A or option C. Before concluding with the answer, now look at the third statement. It is about the capital account convertibility. See, capital account convertibility is the freedom to convert domestic currency into foreign currency and vice versa with respect to capital account transaction of the balance of payments account. See, the capital account convertibility would mean that there is no restriction on conversion of the domestic currency into a foreign currency. And it is also recognized that the capital flows are sensitive to macroeconomic conditions and hence maintaining full capital account convertibility is a risky policy. As a result of this full capital account convertibility, the foreign investors can withdraw all the money at once which is also called as capital flight which is very much riskier. Also, in addition to it, this capital account convertibility increases the vulnerability of the domestic economy to external economic shocks. Hence, the third statement is incorrect. We can conclude that answer for this question is option A one only. Which of the following are the reasons or factors for exposure to benzene pollution? Statement one, automobile exhaust. Statement two, tobacco smoke. Statement three, wood burning. Statement four, varnished wooden furniture. Statement five, using products made of polyurethane. Select the correct answer using the code given below. The options given are option A one, two and three only. Option B two and four only. Option C one, three and four only. Option D one, two, three, four and five. First of all, know that benzene is a chemical that is colorless or light yellow liquid at room temperature. It also has a sweet order and is highly flammable. See, benzene is formed from both the natural process and also through the human activities and benzene is also a natural part of crude oil, gasoline and cigarette smoke. In addition to that, some industries use benzene to make other chemicals that are used to make plastics, resins, nylons and synthetic fibers. Also know that benzene is used to make some types of lubricants, rubbers, dyes, detergent, drugs and also includes pesticides making. Now, let us discuss the benzene pollution and its effect. See, the major effect of benzene from long-term exposure is on the blood and this causes harmful effect on the bone marrow and can cause a decrease in red blood cells ultimately leading to anemia. It can also cause excessive bleeding and can affect the immune system thereby increasing the chance for infection. Now, let us know about the source of benzene pollution. As said earlier, it is formed through natural process. See, the natural source of benzene includes volcanoes and forest fires. Know that the benzene occurs naturally in crude petroleum at levels up to 4 gram per litre and human activities using petroleum lead to exposure of benzene pollution. See, areas of heavy traffic, gas stations and areas near industrial sources may also have the higher air levels of benzene. In addition to it, cigarette smoking and second-hand smoke including wood burning are important source of exposure to benzene. See, cigarette smoke accounts for almost half of the exposure to benzene in the United States as per the reports. Hence, the statements 2 and 3 are correct. Note that a major source of exposure for the general population is from the vehicle exhaust and here the benzene is mostly produced by chemical reactions occurring during combustion of petrol in the engine. Hence, the statement 1 is correct. Now, moving to the other statements. See, the source of benzene pollution is also from wood finishers that contains and emits various chemicals. For example, paints and some wood treatments can contain formaldehyde, acetone, trimethylbenzene, etc. Considering the last statement in the question, know that during the fires, polyurethane forms burn rapidly and produce 10 smokes, toxic gases and intense heat. This smoke emitted contains chemicals such as toluene, benzene, etc. Hence, all the given statements are correct. The answer for this question is option D, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Now, let us move to the article's discussion. The first topic is regarding personal guarantees liable for corporate debt, says the Supreme Court. In a significant development, the Supreme Court has upheld the provisions of insolvency and bankruptcy code 2016 which applies to personal guarantees of corporate debtors. See, the bench dismissed the petition challenging a 2019 notification of the centre and the insolvency and the bankruptcy rules of the year 2019. In this context, let us discuss in detail about the significance of the judgement. The syllabus covered under this topic's discussion is given for the reference and the aspirants can have a look at it. Now, going back to the article. First, let us understand what a personal guarantee is. See, to secure loans easily and effectively and to showcase their intent to repay bank dues on time, the promoters of some of the big business houses submit a personal guarantee to the lenders. It is a sort of like assurance from the owners or the owners of a company that the money is borrowed by their company for various purposes shall be repaid on time as per the agreed schedule. Know that a personal guarantee is most likely to be furnished by a promoter or promoter entity with the bank's demand for collateral which equals the risk they are taking by lending to the firm. Now, the verdict says that the individual guarantors to corporate loans will also undergo insolvency proceedings along with the firms under the insolvency and bankruptcy code. This makes sure that the guarantors will not be absolved of liabilities even after resolution plans to revive the sick companies are approved. See, as per the IBC, personal guarantor means an individual who is the surety in the contract of guarantee to a corporate debtor. Also know that the lenders had in the past filed bankruptcy cases against the promoters of alleged delinquent companies. This includes Reliance Group's Anil Ambani, Devan Housing, Finance Corporation Limited's Kapil Vadawan and many others. As we said, the verdict upholds Centres 2019 notification thereby bringing personal guarantors of corporate debtors under the net of the IBC. This assumes significance in a view of the fact that various high-profile industrialists may now face insolvency proceedings along with their debt-treated firms under the insolvency and bankruptcy code. So, from now on, if a corporate debtor faces insolvency proceedings, then the same proceedings can be triggered against the individual guarantors too. By this, the top code also permitted simultaneous insolvency proceedings against the corporate guarantors before the National Company Law Tribunals. Here, we must know about Section 60 of IBC which deals with adjudicating authority for corporate persons. See, the Section 60 of the subsection 2 clearly says that where a corporate insolvency resolution process of a corporate debtor is pending before a National Company Law Tribunal, an application relating to the insolvency resolution of a personal guarantor of such corporate debtor shall be filed before such NCLT. And the aspirants can also have a look at the image that is given for your reference more about adjudicating authority for corporate persons. See, the side-by-side bankruptcy proceedings before the same forum for both the corporate debtors and their personal guarantors would help the NCLT too. Side-by-side bankruptcy proceedings would also facilitate the committee of creditors to frame realistic plans keeping in mind the prospect of realizing some part of the creditors' views from personal guarantors. Finally, with this, let us discuss in brief about the National Company Law Tribunal. See, the National Company Law Tribunal was established under Section 408 of Companies Act 2013. See, it was established for adjudication of corporate civil disputes under two legislation. One, the Companies Act of 2013 and the other is insolvency and bankruptcy code of the year 2016. In addition to it, the NCLT that is the National Company Law Tribunal is a specialist body with both judicial and technical members. It adjudicates the issue of non-payment of dues by the companies to its creditors. Alongside, the party dissatisfied with the judgment of NCLT can also approach the Appellate Tribunal which is nothing but the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal. Know that this National Company Law Appellate Tribunal was constituted under the Section 410 of the Companies Act 2013. So, we can say that both the National Company Law Tribunal as well as the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal are statutory bodies. With this, we have come to the end of this topic discussion. Now, let us move to the next topic. Now, our next discussion is going to be based on the article RBI to pay Rs.99,222 crore surplus to Centre. See, this article talks about the recently approved economic capital framework. And the Reserve Bank of India's board has approved a significantly higher than expected surplus of Rs.99,222 crore transfer to the government for the 9-month period from July 2020 to March 2021. In addition to it, it also announced that from the year 2021 to 2022, it will move to an April to March accounting year from July to June accounting year that is currently in operation. So, in this light, let us see some important points from the article and also the economic concepts in relevance to it. The syllabus covered by the news article is given for your reference and the aspirants can have a look at it. Now, coming back to the article. See, this surplus economic capital framework of Rs.99,222 crore was approved by having in mind the expected shortfalls in tax collection due to the severe second wave of COVID-19 which has forced lockdown in several states. See, an economic capital is a measure of risk in terms of capital. To be more specific, it is the amount of capital that an organization needs to ensure in order to stay solvent given its risk profile. Coming to the economic capital framework, see, the RBI has developed an economic capital framework to provide an objective rule-based and a transparent methodology for determining the appropriate level of risk provisions. Note that this is made by the RBI using the section 47 of the Reserve Bank of India Act of 1934. Note that this framework was developed in the year 2014 to 15, but however it was formally operationalized only in the year 2015 to 2016. As per this provision, the central bank is required to pay balance of its profits to the central government after making provisions for bad and doubtful debts, depression in the assets and contribution to the staffs. As per the news, this approved surplus likely reflects the central bank's higher income from their open market operation as well as receipts from foreign exchange sales. Now, let us know about the open market operation in brief. Note that open market operations is a sale and purchase of government securities and tertiary bills by the RBI. See, the objective of the open market operation is to regulate the money supply in the economy with an objective to adjust the liquidity conditions in the market on a durable basis. And also, this open market operation minimizes the impact on the interest rate and the inflation rate levels. To understand better, when the RBI feels that there is excess liquidity in the market, for example, it resorts to a sale of securities thereby sucking out the rupee liquidity in the market. Similarly, when the liquidity conditions are very tight, in that instance, RBI may buy securities from the market thereby releasing liquidity in the market and know that RBI carries out the open market operation to commercial banks and does not directly deal with the public. Now, let us know about the sources of income for the RBI. Firstly, the dated government securities in which the RBI purchases such government securities thereby getting the interest income from the government. See, the dated government securities are those securities whose original maturity date is more than one year and offers an interest rate on the face value. The other source is the foreign exchange. See, the foreign exchange refers to trading in currencies from different countries against each other. Note that dealing in foreign exchange market may contribute to RBI's profits. For instance, RBI may buy dollars cheaply and sell them here in the future to increase their profits. In addition to this, the article also mentions about the RBI's decision to maintain a contingency risk buffer at 5.50% in line with the recommendations of Pimal Jalan Committee. See, the Reserve Bank of India in consultation with the central government had constituted a committee chaired by Bimal Jalan to review the current economic capital framework in the year 2018. As we saw earlier, the economic capital framework provides a methodology for determining the appropriate level of risk provisions and the profits that are to be distributed under section 47 of the RBI Act of 1934. Note that the risk provision comprises of contingency fund and asset development fund. See, the contingency fund refers to the funds that are kept for emergencies or unexpected outflows. These are mainly to be used as a resilience to economic crisis. And coming to the asset development fund, see, the asset development funds are the amount set aside for investments in subsidiaries and internal capital expenditure. Remember, the risk provisioning made from economic capital to cover monetary, fiscal stability, credit and operation risks are cumulatively referred as the contingency risk buffer. See, the committee also recommended that the current surplus distribution policy targets should also include realized equity in addition to the total economic capital. This realized equity is a form of contingency fund for meeting all the risks or losses primarily built upon from retained earnings. And as per the committee's recommendation, the size of this realized equity in the form of contingent risk buffer must be maintained between 5.5% to 6.5% of the RBI's balance sheet. So, with this, we have come to the end of the topic's discussion. So, in this discussion, we saw some key economic concepts like economic capital framework, open market operation, foreign exchange and the contingent risk buffer. With these information in mind, let us move to the next part of the discussion. Now, moving to next topic, monsoon reaches Andaman and Nikobaar. See, as the title denotes, the article talks about the findings related to Indian monsoon. So, in this light, let us discuss in brief about monsoon. The syllabus covered under this topic discussion is given for your reference. Now, let us go back to the article. See, the word monsoon derived from the Arabic word monsoon literally means season. Basically, monsoon or seasonal winds that reverse their direction according to change in season. And this is the reason why they are called periodic winds. Coming to Indian monsoon, India has a hot monsoonal climate, which is the prevalent climate in South and Southeast Asia. This type of climate in India is the characteristic of regions where the sun, during its seasonal movement across the equator, produces differential heating between the adjacent latitude builds of the Earth's surface. This happens irrespective of whether that surface is a land or water surface. If you see, the Indian monsoon is the most powerful among the monsoons of the world due to various reasons. Let us see the list of reasons. First one, it has a favorable geographical locations at the southern edge of the Asian continent. And the topic of cancer is passing through the Indian subcontinent. Also know that India is covered by the vast Indian ocean lying to its south. And the strong, lancy thermal contrast, especially during summer, is another most important reason for the powerful monsoon in Indian subcontinent. Also, because of the presence of Himalayan mountain barriers along its northern boundaries, the Indian monsoon is the most powerful among the monsoons of the world. All these contributes to two different monsoon patterns. Know that they are the northeast monsoon and the southwest monsoons. Our discussion today will primarily focus on the southwest monsoon. First, let us begin with the onset period and the coverage. Also, kindly follow the map as I explained. See, the period of June to September is referred to as the southwest monsoon period in our country. The southwest monsoon period is the principal rainy season for the Indian subcontinent as well. This is because the summer monsoon period is where whole country receives nearly 75% of its rainfall during this period. We so info that it is the major source of rain for our country and it also plays a major role in our economies. See, southwest monsoon sits in over the extreme southwestern tip of the peninsula by the end of May month. The onset of monsoon is characterized by a sudden spot of rainfall activity. See, it progresses inland in stages and covers the entire country by the middle of July. And know that the monsoon starts retrieving from the extreme northwest by the beginning of the September month, progressively receding southwards. The notable feature here is that Tamil Nadu that is considered as a rain shadow region as it lies on the eastern side of the western guard. This takes us the question as to why this time of the year? Why not the other months doesn't witness any monsoon period? Let us know some important details to understand that. We know that during April month it is a summer season and the sun shines vertically over the tropic of cancer and so the large landmass in the north of Indian Ocean gets intensively heated. This causes the formation of an intense low pressure in the northwestern part of the subcontinent. Know that the pressure in the Indian Ocean in the south of the landmass is high at that same time of the same period. And as the water gets heated slowly, the low pressure cell in the landmass attracts the southeast trade across the equatorial region. This southwest monsoon may thus be seen as a continuation of the southeast trades deflected towards the Indian subcontinent after crossing the equator. Hence these winds cross the equator between 40 degree east and 60 degree east longitudes due to the northward shift of the ITCZ. Now let us quickly refresh what is ITCZ. The intertropical convergent zone or the ITCZ is a region that circles the earth near the equator. See it exists because of the convergence of trade winds. In case of the northern hemisphere, the northeast trade winds converge with southeast trade winds from the southern hemisphere. The point at which the trade with converge forces the air up into the atmosphere forming this intertropical convergent zone. Another important feature about ITCZ is that it follows the sun and in that the position varies seasonally. Also note that the ITCZ moves in the northern hemisphere during the summer season and places itself in the south of the northern hemisphere during the winter season. Therefore, this ITCZ is responsible for the wet and dry seasons in the tropics. And note that it is over the Indian subcontinent that the northward fluctuations is highest due to the excessive heating of the vast landmass. Coming back to the monsoon again. With that, the southwest monsoon sits in over the Kerala coast by the 1st of June or by the end of May and moves swiftly to reach Mumbai and Kolkata between 10th and 13th of June. By mid-July, the southwest monsoon engulfs the entire continent. Now let us see how it manifests. See this monsoon with its onset as two rain bearing system. First, it originates in the Bay of Bengal causing rainfall over the plains of North India. Second is the Arabian Sea current of the southwest monsoon which brings rain to the west coast of India. See the monsoon winds originating over the Arabian Sea further split into three branches. Please follow the map as I explained. The first branch is where it is obstructed by the western guards. These winds climb the slopes of the western guards from 900 to 1200 meters where they become cool and as a result the windward side of the western coastal plain receives very high rainfall ranging between 250 to 400 centimeters. After crossing the western guard, these winds descent and gets heated up. This reduces the humidity in the wind and as a result these winds cause little rainfall east of the western guards. This region of the lower rainfall is also known as the rain shadow region. Another branch of Arabian Sea monsoon strikes the coast north of Mumbai. Moving along the Narmada and Tappi river valley, these winds cause rainfall in the extensive areas of central India. In addition to it, the Chotanakur Plateau gets 15 centimeter rainfall from this part of the branch. Thereafter they enter the Ganga plains and mingle with the Bay of Bengal branch. We shall later see about the Bay of Bengal branch. Now let us see the third branch of the monsoon winds originating over the Arabian Sea. See the third branch of this monsoon winds strikes the Saurashtra Peninsula and the Kutch region. It then passes over the west Rajasthan and along the Aravilles causing only a scanty rainfall over the region. In Punjab and Ariana, it too joins the Bay of Bengal branch. These two branches reinforced by each other cause rain in the western Himalayas. Now let us look into the Bay of Bengal branch. See this branch strikes the coast of Myanmar and part of the southeast Bangladesh. But the Arakhan Hills along the coast of Myanmar deflects a large portion of this branch towards the Indian subcontinent. As a result, the monsoon enters West Bengal and Bangladesh from south and southeast instead of from the southwestern direction directly. From here, this branch splits into two under the influence of Himalayas. Each one branch moves westward along the Ganga plains reaching as far as the Punjab plains whereas the other branch moves up to Brahmabutra valley in the north and the northeast causing widespread rains. Note that its sub-branch strikes the Garo and Kasi Hills of Meghalaya where the place Mohsindram receives the highest average rainfall in the world. As we saw already, Tamil Nadu will be in the rain shadow region of southwest monsoon. Apart from this, many theories have been put forward to explain monsoon. For the Ellino and Laanina along with Indian Ocean Dipole influence the Indian monsoon. We also saw about this in April 14th discussion. Kindly refer to the discussion dated April 14th so that it could be very easy for the aspirants to understand. With this, we have come to the end of this topic discussion. Now, let us move to the next topic. Moving to the next article 13 Nuxals killed in Maharashtra. See, this news article says that the C-60 commandos of the Maharashtra Police has killed 13 Nuxals in an encounter. In this context, let us discuss in detail about Nuxalism in India, its origins and the measures taken by the government, etc. See, the term Nuxal derived from the name of the village Nuxalbari in West Bengal is where the movement had its origin. The Nuxals are considered far-left radical communists supportive of Maoist political sentiments and ideology. Their origin can be traced to the split in 1967 of the Communist Party of India, Marxist, leading to the formation of CPI, Marxist, Leninist. Also note that they have been declared as a terrorist organization under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act of India 1967. In addition to it, the Maoist movement highlights India's interior weaknesses which makes India also vulnerable to external threats. Former Prime Minister of India Dr. Manmohun Singh has described the fight with the Maoist insurgents as India's biggest internal security challenge. And also, according to the Home Ministry, over 3000 people have been killed in the Maoist conflict since the year 2008. See, the Maoists assert that they are defending the rights of the marginalized, especially the poor, landless, Dalits and tribal indigenous communities. And as a result, they called for a revolution demanding a radical restructuring of social, political and economic order. You have to know that the main reason for the growth of Nuxalism is the lack of human development in India's rural and tribal areas. In addition, often local elites are engaged in exploiting, harassing and even torturing the tribal population. This is why Nuxalites receive most support from Dalits and Adivasis. Hence, as a response, the government has enacted several laws to curb this Nuxalism where the rehabilitation and resettlement policy of 2007 that aims to minimize the displacement of people and to promote non-displacing or at least displacing alternatives is one of them. In addition to it, the Schedule Tribes and other traditional Forest Welles Act of 2006 recognizes the right of the Schedule Tribes and Forest Welles who have been living in forest for years. See, the problem of Nuxalism calls for a three-pronged solution, namely the social and economic development, multilateral dialogue and military force. As the Nuxalites are fueled by discontent from the marginalized and the poor, a large percentage of national budget must be allocated to addressing the needs of these regions. Secondly, the government should initiate sincere dialogue with these marginalized groups and the Nuxalites as well as these state leaders. Currently, the main instrument employed by the government to address the Nuxalite threat is the increasing use of military. While some military forces still needed to combat against the Maoist guerrillas, it should not be the only solution. Also know that the growing Nuxalite insurgency also reflect a flowing the federal structure as the law and order is seen as the state responsibility. So, we can conclude that the central government and the states need to cooperate together to solve this internal security threat. With this, we have come to the end of this topic discussion. Now, let us move to the next topic. The next news article covers Supreme Court grants bail to YSRCP MP Raju. Now, look at this news article. This news article talks about the Supreme Court decision to grant bail to the MP and a vocal critic of the Anthapadesh government. He was accused of the grounds of sedition for hate speeches against certain communities. So, in this regard, let us learn some information about sedition and its related aspects. See, sedition in simple words is the offense of organizing or engaging opposition to the government through speech or writing. Know that section 124A of the Indian Penal Code 1860 deals with this sedition. According to it, whoever by words either spoken or written or otherwise attempts to bring in hatred or contempt or even excite disaffection towards the government established by law shall be punished under this sedition act. See, the perpetrator shall be punished with imprisonment for life to which a fine may be added or with imprisonment which may extend to three years with or without fine. Apart from the Indian Penal Code, even section 95 of Code of Criminal Procedures of 1974 empowers the government to forfeit any publication if it is found to be inappropriate and know that sedition is the first crown of such forfeiture. Note that this sedition law was brought into colonial India by the British government to curb those activities of the Indian population that could criticize the misgovernance by them. And also, one of the dominant purpose of section 124A was to strengthen the colonial government and to suppress the voice of the Indian people. Apart from the Indian Penal Code, even the UPA Act which is called as the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act criminalizes events or actions aimed against the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of the nation. Further, the prevention of insults to National Honours Act 1971 also curbs the right to free speech and expression if it violates the dignity of the nation. Now, let us see in brief about some important Code judgments in this regard. See, even initially, sedition was not accepted to the framers of the constitution. See, this sedition could be used as a weapon to restrict the freedom of speech and expression, but it remained as it is in the Penal Statute post-independence. Note that, even after independence, this section was considered for the first time in the case of Ramesh Thapar v. state of Madras. The use of sedition is nothing but the continuation of the colonial policy that is being inviting criticisms from various sections of the community. Also know that, in various cases, the Supreme Court declared that unless the freedom of speech and expression threatened the security of or tend to over through the state, any law imposing restriction upon the same would not fall within the purview of Article 19 of the Constitution. In addition to this case, some of the most important Code judgments include Kedarnath Singh v. state of Bihar case, Pulvan Singh v. state of Punjab, etc. We shall discuss about these cases in further discussions when we come across this news continuously. So, with these information in mind, let us move on to the next part of the discussion. The last topic for today's discussion, a green warrior to the core is no more. This news article talks about the demise of famed environmental activist Sundar Lal Bahugura, who led the Chipko movement from the forefront. As we pay respect to this great Gandhian on his demise, let us discuss about the Chipko movement. See, Chipko movement is also called Chipko Andolan. It is a non-violent, social and ecological movement by rural villages, particularly women in our country. Let us understand the backstory first. See, after the 1963 war, there was a massive felling of trees and deforestation in the hills. With the trees becoming few and far, the village people who rely mainly on the forest resource for their sustenance found it difficult to spend enormous time and energy in collecting the necessary fuel and fodder. Also, the rural people would sometime go to a distance of at least 5 kilometers to collect the necessary supplies. With the denuding forest, there was also a danger of devastating floods and landslides submerging the houses, crops and affecting the movement of the people. Also, the irrigation facilities were affected. All this culminated in the movement called the Chipko movement. See, it has the origin in the 1970s, aimed at protecting trees and forest slated for government-backed logging in the then Uttar Pradesh. Now the region is the Uttarakhand and the movement started in April 1973, where the first Chipko protest occurred near the village of Mandal in the Upper Alaknanda valley and then later on it quickly spread throughout the Indian side of Himalayas. And if you see the Hindi word Chipko means to hug or to cling to, which reflects the demonstrators act of embracing the trees to impede the loggers. And one of the most important notable feature is that the huge participation of women as a primary face in the movement. So, it is extolled as a popular eco-feminist movement. In these years, Chipko had acquired many facets, primarily as a conservation endure by the poor, a struggle for local control of natural resources and even as an effort by women to protect the environment. It is indeed irreplaceable loss for the environmental orientation of the nation. And we end this topic discussion on Chipko by conveying our condolences and respect to the activists. Now, with this topic's discussion, let us move to the prelims practice questions. First question, consider the following statements regarding insolvency and bankruptcy code 2016. The statements given are statement one, as per the code, a personal guarantor is an individual who is the surety in the contract of guarantee to a corporate debtor. Statement two, in case of a corporate insolvency, the creditors cannot approach the national company law tribunal against the personal guarantors. Which of the statements given above is or are correct? Option A, one only. Option B, two only. Option C, both one and two. Option D, neither one nor two. See, from our discussion, it is clear that statement one is correct. As per the code, a personal guarantor is an individual who is the surety in the contract of guarantee to a corporate debtor. See, this is the reason why even Supreme Court gave a judgment where individual guarantees to corporate loans will also undergo insolvency proceedings along with firms under the insolvency and bankruptcy code. Now, let us move to the second statement. See, second statement says, in case of corporate insolvency, the creditors cannot approach the NCLT against the personal guarantors. See, previously we discussed section 60 of subsection 2 of IBC says, where a corporate insolvency resolution process of a corporate debtor is pending before the national company law tribunal and application relating to the insolvency resolution of a personal guarantor of corporate debt shall be filed before such NCLT. Also, the Supreme Court upheld the provision of IBC 2016 which applies to personal guarantors of corporate debtors. So, the second statement is incorrect. Hence, the answer for this question is option A, one only. Second question, see this question is related to the contingent risk buffer as we have discussed earlier. Let us move to the question. Question one, consider the following statement. Statement one, asset development fund refers to the fund kept for emergencies or unexpected outflows, mainly the economic crisis. Statement two, contingency fund is the amount set aside for investments in subsidiaries and internal capital expenditure. Which of the following statement given above is or are correct? Option A, one only, option B, two only, option C, both one and two, option D, neither one nor two. See, contingency funds are those that are kept for emergencies or unexpected outflows, mainly to prevent economic crisis. Whereas, the asset development fund which is the part of contingent risk buffer is the amount set aside for investments in subsidiaries and internal capital expenditure. See, the statements given here are interchanged. That is the explanation given in the first statement is about contingency fund and the second statement is about the asset development fund. So, the question asked here is which of the statements are incorrect? So, both one and two are incorrect. The answer for this question is option C, both one and two. See, this is very easy question. Let us see if you can answer. Question, consider the following statements. Statement one, section 124A of Indian Penal Code 1860 deals with the laws of sedition. Statement two, the laws keep a check on anti-national, sessionist and terrorist elements that can hamper the public order and inside violence and induce enmity. Statement three, it was brought into colonial India by the British to curb those activities of Indian population that could criticize the miscovenants by the crown. Which of the statements given above is so or correct? The options given are option A, one only, option B, two and three only, option C, one and three only, option D, one, two and three. See, as we have discussed earlier, section 124A of the IPC is invoked to punish those who attempt to bring into hatred or contempt or excite disaffection towards the government. Hence, the first statement is correct. Coming to the second statement, the law keeps a check on anti-national, sessionist and terrorist element is also the correct statement. See, this is the reason why the country continues to keep this law in force so that any future attempt to disturb unity and integrity of the nation can be rightly challenged. The third statement is that it was brought into colonial India by the British to curb those activities of Indian population that could criticize the miscovenants by the crown. The fourth statement is also the correct statement. Hence, based on our discussions earlier itself, we can conclude that the answer for this question is option D, one, two and three only. Now, let us move to the last question. This is a simple question. See, consider the following statements about Chipko movement. Statement one, Chipko movement traces its origin to 1970s. Statement two, it is looked at as a feminist movement. Which of the above statement is or are incorrect? Options given are option A, one only, option B, two only, option C, both one and two, option D, neither one nor two. See, as we saw in the discussion, Chipko movement saw its genesis in the year 1970 and with the first movement being in the year 1973. Also, it saw a large amount of women gaining the color of a feminist movement. You have to know that this is one of the important features of this movement where the participation was enormously by the women community and hence both the given statements are correct. But the question asked is which of the above statement are incorrect? Hence, neither one nor two are incorrect. The answer for this question is option D. These are few main questions that are given for your practice and you may write and post them in the comment section for peer review. That's it for today's discussion. If you like the video, kindly press the like button, comment, share and subscribe to Shankariya's Academy for further updates. Thank you.