 Dear viewers, a very important announcement regarding target prelims 2020 series. As you are all aware that we have launched the target 2020 prelims series aimed at simplifying your current affairs preparation for the upcoming 2020 prelims exam. The series was launched to cover 10 months of current affairs that is from July 2019 to April 2020. As promised, all the 10 videos were delivered in an efficient, effective and time-bound manner and all the videos are already available in our YouTube channel. But due to the change in schedule of prelims exam, we are receiving numerous requests from our viewers to cover the additional months that are from May 2020 to August 2020. In this regard, we are clarifying that we are unable to do additional months because of prevailing lockdown restrictions. But for the benefit of aspirants, Shankar A's academy has launched limited, exclusive 5 current-affired tests covering the current affairs of May 2020 to August 2020 at just 1000 rupees. Further, the top 3 merit students in each of the 5 monthly current-affired tests will be given 100% fee reimbursement that is 1000 rupees. So in total, 15 candidates will be awarded 100% fee reimbursement. And not just that, for the benefit of aspirants, the students who subscribe for 5 monthly current-affired tests will get a complimentary subscription of additional 13 tests free of cost. The 13 tests consist of 8 GS full mock tests, 3 CSAT full mock tests and 2 more exclusive current-affired tests covering current affairs from June 2019 to March 2020. The registration link for a prelims current-affired test series is given in the description as well as in the comment section. With this, let us start our today's Hindu news analysis. The list of topics chosen for today's discussion along with the page numbers is given here for your reference. The first news article of today's discussion is here. Let us take up this news article for discussion from page 1 of today's newspaper. The news article talks about the national register of citizens that is the NRC. See, it's been almost a year since the updated NRC was published in Assam. So in this updated NRC, more than 19 lakh people were excluded from the final list. And most of them haven't received the rejection slips citing why they were left out. So without the rejection slip, they cannot approach a foreigner's tribunal to appeal against the exclusion of them in NRC. So in this context, let us revisit some important facts related to NRC. See, firstly under Citizenship Act of 1955, the central government may compulsorily register every citizen of India and issue national identity cards. And the act also provides for central government maintaining a national register of Indian citizens. So NRC is the register which contains the names of Indian citizens. The NRC was prepared for the first time after the conduct of census of 1951. So this register covers each and every person enumerated during 1951 census. As we all know, recently the NRC was updated for the state of Assam. The objective of updating NRC is to segregate Indian citizens living in Assam from those who had illegally entered the state from neighboring countries like Bangladesh. So why was the NRC updated only for the state of Assam? This is because Assam witnessed massive illegal migration from Bangladesh during 1971 Independence War of Bangladesh. So because of this widespread illegal migration, it resulted in demographic change in state of Assam. This led to huge protests and finally the Assam Accord was signed in 1985 between government of India, state government of Assam and the leaders of Assam movement. So one of the provisions in this agreement is to find out the illegal migrants of Bangladesh and report them back to their country. And to identify the illegal migrants, the cut-off date is midnight of 24th March of 1971. So whoever entered after this date will be reported back to Bangladesh. But government hasn't moved forward with updating NRC until 2009 or 2010. But based on a 2009 case, the Supreme Court asked the state government to start the process of updating NRC. In accordance with it, the exercise began in 2015 and the final list of NRC was published on 31st August 2019 that is exactly a year ago. Out of 3.3 tour applicants, 3.11 crore figured in the final list which means around 19 lakh residents were not included in the updated NRC. So what is the future of these 19 lakh residents? See these 19 lakh residents can appeal their exclusion in foreigners tribunals. So these are the appeal authorities. So whose name is missing in NRC they can appeal to foreigners tribunal. Know that these foreigners tribunals are set up under foreigners order of 1964. The objective of this tribunal is to identify whether a person is foreigner or not. And these tribunals have the powers of civil court while trying a suit under CPC that is Code of Civil Procedure of 1908. But problem here is even after a year of updating the NRC, the rejection slips were not issued to many of these 19 lakh people. See according to centers SOP that is standard operating procedures, a rejected person would have 120 days from the date of receiving the rejection slip to approach foreigners tribunal. But unfortunately due to many issues, the rejection slips were not issued to many of excluded people. So without these slips they cannot approach foreigners tribunals. Because of this reason, this news article is titled 19 lakh NRC excluded stuck in limbo. So they have to wait until the rejection slips are issued and only then they can approach foreigners tribunal. So this is all about the discussion of this news article. Let us move on to next news article discussion. Next let us take up this news article. In this news article, the BJP's general secretary talks about India joining the regional comprehensive economic partnership that is a free trade agreement. We all know that in November 2019, the prime minister announced that India would drop out of RCEP negotiations. So in this context, the BJP's general secretary has suggested that the government could show some flexibility on the issue of joining the RCEP. So in this context, let us have a brief recap on the events related to RCEP. See the idea of RCEP was announced by ASEAN group that is Association of Southeast Asian Nations in the year 2012. See it is a proposed free trade agreement between 10 ASEAN countries with its six free trade agreement partners. So ASEAN is already having FTS with six countries which are India, China, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea. Now ASEAN proposed a free trade area between all the 16 countries that is 10 ASEAN countries and six free trade partners. So for this agreement, the negotiations began in the year 2013 and if this RCEP comes into force, it will be considered as the world's biggest free trade agreement. This is because RCEP includes countries that make up 45 percent of world population and our GDP makes up of 33 percent of world's GDP. And the trade happens between RCEP partners is at least 28 percent of global trade. So therefore, you can understand that RCEP is one of the most important proposed free trade agreements in the 21st century. So talking about areas covered under RCEP negotiations, it includes trade in goods as well as in services, investments, economic and technical cooperation, intellectual property, competition, dispute settlement, e-commerce, small and medium enterprises, etc. So it means it covers almost all the economic areas of interest. As said before, India pulled out of RCEP negotiations in 2019 November. Why? It is because India is concerned about getting swamped by the imports under the agreement. These imports are detrimental to domestic industry and agriculture. So there was a lot of opposition from farmers and corporate sector. So to avoid this problem, India had a set of demands. First and foremost is a mechanism to avoid a sudden surge in imports from China, like a peace clause wherein FTA won't be applicable for few goods from certain countries. It means we can block a few set of goods from China for example. This is to protect our domestic industry. Secondly, India demanded for shifting the base year for tariff cuts from 2014 to 2019. And third one, India demanded for stricter rules of origin to prevent dumping from China. In this context, we should know that China may root its products through other nations to be dumped in India. So India asked for stricter rules of origin. As these demands are not met in the negotiations of RCEP, India pulled out of this proposed free trade agreement. And in many cases, officials of the government said that the window for RCEP negotiations for India is still open and India may reconsider in the future. Even the ASEAN countries also maintained a similar stand and they are expecting India to come back to RCEP negotiations. So this is all about the discussion of this news article wherein we had a brief recap of RCEP. In exam point of view, know what are the countries of this pact and what are all included in the negotiations. Let us move on to next news article discussion. Let us take up this comment column from editorial page written by former US diplomat. In this column, the author analyzes the favorable and unfavorable points for India in attracting foreign companies. The author also highlights why China is able to retain foreign companies despite there is increase of antipathy or antagonism towards China. In this analysis, we will discuss these aspects with the view to attract more foreign companies to our country. Before going further, the relevant syllabus is given here for your reference. If you see in the last few years, we have been hearing two important news in connection with Indian economy. The first one, Indian economy is in slowdown. Second one, the private investments are falling. And both these challenges were aggravated by unexpected COVID-19 pandemic. So in this juncture where Indian economy is further slipping down, it becomes very important for us to attract foreign companies their capital as they can contribute to economic growth and job creation. So in this context, the prime minister has informed foreign companies that there is no better time than the present to invest in India because we are giving a lot of incentives, tax cuts, and we are in the process of developing land banks, etc. But the question is, are we really in a good position to make advantage of international reactions against China? This is what is discussed by the other in this column. First, let us see the favorable points for India in attracting foreign companies and foreign direct investments to our country. See, India's identity as a democratic country is one of its strongest selling points. The advantage of democratic governance provide a favorable contrast to China. As we all know, China is not a democratic country and there are a lot of curbs on individual's freedom as well as liberty. And not just that, Chinese government is also accused of stealing industrial secrets of foreign companies. Here, unlike China, Indian government is not involved in stealing industrial secrets. Further, the presence of open and vibrant press, independent judiciary are two more qualities that make India a favorable destination for foreign companies. But despite these positives, the author states that the US companies that leave China may not choose India as a relocation destination. Despite the global antipathy, antagonism towards China because of its handling of the pandemic, stealing data of foreign companies, not many companies are leaving China. This is because of the established industrial base, technical expertise, and high presence of skilled labour in China. In all these aspects, India lacks behind China. So, such an established manufacture base allows innovations to move quickly from prototype to final product. And even those companies which are leaving China may also see other Asian countries and even countries outside Asia as more competitive or more favorable than India. At this crucial point, to ensure that India remains a favorable relocation destination, India should convince the foreign players that it offers the benefits of China with even more fewer risks. The author also mentions that the taxation policies on foreign e-commerce companies and education providers appears to be disadvantageous to foreign investors. For example, in India, there are two types of models in e-commerce. One is marketplace model and inventory model. Marketplace means Flipkart, Amazon, where they provide a platform for sellers to sell their products. In inventory model of e-commerce, the inventory or stock of entire goods and services sold in that website is owned by e-commerce entity. For example, you have platforms like Mintra, Epmi.com, wherein the entire stock they are selling is owned by the e-commerce company itself. Only in inventory models, as of now, the foreign direct investment is allowed and in marketplace model, the foreign direct investment is not allowed. If such policies continue, foreign players will stay away. So, the government has to ensure that while making India a favorable destination to invest and make profits, the profit should not go to counter to domestic producers and industries. So, these are some of the unfavorable points for India in attracting foreign companies and their investment. Now, let us see the suggestions given by the author to improve India's position in attracting foreign companies. First, India has to make its specialized industrial zones as massive as having collocating companies and factories. Such zones should have logistics, even research and universities. So, expanding the industrial zones, special economic zones, as well as national investment and manufacturing zones is one step which India can take. Then, India must increase the budget to create such zones. It is opined that the budget of India in this regard is too small. Then, the author is calling for World Trade Organization consistent industrial basis in India. We are saying WTO consistent industrial basis because recently, WTO ruled against the special economic zones of India. It says that they are not consistent with the WTO's policies. And this ruling will be appealed by India. So, we have to wait and see what happens in the final judgment. So, here author says that India should review its support for export promotion and make these bases WTO consistent. When these economic zones are WTO consistent, more foreign companies will show interest to invest in these zones. Then, India should focus on development in Indian states that have already demonstrated the ability to produce and export in key sectors. For example, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, etc. Then, India may build new industrial centers with an ion geography. For example, linking the southern part of India to supply chains in Southeast Asia. The ports of Vishakapatnam and Chennai are very helpful in linking southern part of India to Southeast Asia. Another major requirement is economic openness. Here, economic openness refers to putting adequate resources into states which are not led by ruling party at the center. For example, if you take the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra, Telangana, the ruling governments are local parties and are different from ruling party at the center. By investing in such states, India can showcase its economic openness and unwavering support no matter who is in power at the center. For example, Andhra Pradesh leads the country in ease of doing business. If central government gives much incentives and adequate resources to states like Andhra Pradesh, it shows that the government's policies are consistent with the economic realities. This will boost and motivate investors and instill confidence in them to invest in our country. Then, other calls for the appointment of high-level body in Prime Minister's office. This is to ensure the proposed economic policy changes are consistent with the goal of attracting foreign investment. Then, India needs a foreign investment policy framework which is transparent, consistent, and predictable. If you recollect three days back when we are talking about agriculture reforms, we said the same thing on that day, that agree reforms should be transparent, consistent, and predictable. When they are consistent and predictable, foreign investors will have the confidence to invest. We are saying the same thing but with respect to foreign direct investment. So, these are some of the important points with reference to analysis of this news article. Now, let us move on to next news article discussion. This news article is about the damage caused by the floods in Odisha. The news article says that over 14 lakh people were affected due to floods in five river systems of Odisha. So, in this context, let us discuss in detail the important river systems in the eastern state of Odisha. The relevant syllabus is given here for your reference. See, firstly, know that there are four groups of rivers flowing through Odisha into the Bay of Bengal. They are the first one rivers that have a source outside the state, for example, Subarnaka, Brahmani, Mahanadi, etc. And second group includes rivers having a source inside the state, for example, Buddha Balanga, Baitarani, Salandi, Rishikuliya, etc. And third group of rivers are which having a source inside the Odisha but flow through other states. The rivers like Bahuda, Vamsadara, Nagavalli, these originate in Odisha but they finally move to Andhra Pradesh and merge into Bay of Bengal. And there is a fourth group which includes rivers having a source inside Odisha but tributary to these rivers flow through other states. For example, Machkand, Sileru, Kolab, the Indravati, etc. So, these are the four groups of river systems in Odisha. In today's discussion, let us see few of the important rivers flowing across the Odisha. First one, obviously, the longest river of Odisha which is Mahanadi. It is major river of Odisha and sixth largest in India. It originates from Amerkantak Hills of Buster Plattu in Raipo that is in Chattisgarh. The length is about 850 kilometers. The major tributaries of this river are Ib, Zira, Ong, Tel, Brutang, Manjuri, etc. And these tributaries like Ib, Tel are very important in exam perspective. And know that Mahanadi is one of the most flood-causing rivers in India. There are total of five river basin states of Mahanadi which include Chattisgarh, Odisha, Jharkand, Maharashtra and Madhya Perish. Next important river in Odisha is Burha Balanga or Buddha Balanga. Hope I am pronouncing this right. It is east flowing river in the northern part of Odisha. This is a flashy river. So, what do we mean by flashy rivers? See, in flashy rivers, the flood rises and recedes in a very short period of one or two days. It means the rivers cause floods suddenly and also recedes almost in the no time. So, such rivers are called flashy rivers. The tributaries of this river are Soun, Gangadhar, Katra, etc. You can see the basin of this river in Odisha in the map given here. And next important river is Bramhani. It originates as two major rivers, Sankh and Koyal from the Chota Nagpur Plateau of Jharkand. So, these two rivers join near Rorkela in Odisha to form the river Bramhani. So, this river flows through eastern guards into the coastal plains and enters into Bay of Bengal. This river enters into Bay of Bengal along with a combined mouth with the Mahanadi, which is known as Damra. The basin of Bramhani covers areas of Jharkand, Madhya Padesh and Odisha. The major tributaries of this river are Sankh, Koyal, Gohera and Tikra. Next, let us see about the Baitarni river. It originates from Gunasika Hills in Odisha and around 360 kilometers long. It enters into Bay of Bengal after joining the Bramhani river. The important tributaries are Diyo, Kanjari, Kuse and Salandi. And next important river is Subarnaika, which is one of the longest east flowing interstate rivers. It covers areas of Jharkand, Odisha and West Bengal. This river originates in Ranchi district of Jharkand at an elevation of 600 meters. The total length of this river is around 390 kilometers. The principal tributaries of this river are Kanchi, Karkai and Karkari. And there are few other important rivers in Odisha like Vamsadara, Rishikulia, Indravathi, Kolab, etc. We will see about them in coming days in relevant news article discussion. So this is all about the discussion of the different river systems. The displayed practice question will be discussed at the end of session. Let us move on to next news article discussion. Next, let us take up this news article titled, Guni Names Council for Peace Deal with Taliban. According to this news article, the Afghanistan's president has appointed a council for national reconciliation, which will have final say on whether the government will sign a peace deal with Taliban or not. So in this context, let us have a brief discussion on Afghan peace deal and India's interests in Afghanistan. See, after 9 by 11 attacks in America, the US led a military campaign against Al Qaeda and Taliban government, which harbored and supported Osama bin Laden, who was the mastermind in 9 by 11 attacks in America. Immediately after US attacked Afghanistan, Taliban were removed from the power. However, they turned into an insurgent force and continued deadly attacks against both US bases as well as Afghan government. This led to serious human rights violations and also destabilized subsequent Afghanistan governments. So since 2001, US is fighting a war in Afghanistan, which is often termed as endless war. Because of this war, US armies suffered around 2400 casualties and spent more than 137 billion dollars in Afghanistan. And finally, the US realized that Taliban insurgency could not be defeated as long as it enjoyed safe havens in Pakistan. See, we all know that Taliban enjoys safe havens in Pakistan. Even the Osama bin Laden was captured and killed in Pakistan. So because of this reason, the US changed track and sought Pakistan's help to get the Taliban to the negotiating table. The negotiations which began in September 2018 in Doha of Qatar ended with an agreement called Afghan peace deal. In February of this year, US and Taliban signed this deal as a first step towards an intra-Afghan peace deal. So what does this peace deal say? Firstly, it says that the Afghanistan soil should not be used by any group against the security of US and its allies. And it also says that America will with it drew its forces from Afghanistan. The US also promised to proportionately reduce the number of other international forces in Afghanistan. And it also promised to release the prisoners of both sides. Thirdly, the UN and US sanctions on Taliban leaders will also be removed according to this deal. Finally, both sides promised to support intra-Afghan peace talks. So this was the deal signed by Taliban and US in February 2020. But concerns here are, the Afghan government is not included in the peace deal. And not just that, India, which is active contributor to Afghanistan, is also not included in the peace deal. And a group was set up in United Nations to support peace process in Afghanistan, which is called 6 plus 2 plus 1 group. Six years stands for neighboring countries which are China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. These are the neighboring countries of Afghanistan. And two includes two global players, which are US and Russia. And one here means Afghanistan itself. So this group was set up to look after the, to support the peace process in Afghanistan. And even here also, India is not included. Even though India shares border with Afghanistan, as of now the border area is in Pakistan occupied Kashmir. So technically, we are not having border with Afghanistan as of now. So we are not included in this process. And not just that, there are many concerns with respect to this peace deal for India. Firstly, the legitimate Afghan government is not included, with which India is enjoying a good friendly relations as well as strategic partnership. Secondly, the provisions of deal give too much of concessions to Taliban. For example, release of prisoners as well as removing the sanctions on Taliban leaders are not good for global peace. We also know that Taliban is known for a strict imposition of religious laws, radical form of Islamism and even denying women's right to education, etc. And even women are banished from public life, several schools were shut down and even minorities are highly discriminated. So if Taliban is going to rule Afghanistan, it is very unlikely to respect civil liberties. So this may further lead to a lot of human right violations, which we are already seeing in West Asia like Syria, etc. And not just that, Taliban is very close to Pakistan and Pakistan's ISI. So if Taliban is coming to power in Afghanistan, it means all the India's interests in Afghanistan will be completely undermined. And India sees Afghanistan as a gateway to Central Asia. Currently, we are using Iran-Afghanistan route to reach Central Asia by passing Pakistan. So if Afghanistan goes into hands of Taliban, the aspirations of India with respect to Central Asia will be highly affected. So what India needs is a stable and democratic government in Afghanistan. And even India does not recognize the Taliban as a legitimate stakeholder in Afghanistan. The one reason is, it is a terrorist organization as well as it hijacked an Indian flight in 1999. This led to the release of Masood Azhar, a terrorist responsible for parliament attack in 2001, Pathan Court in 2016 and even Pulwama attack of 2019. So Indian Taliban does not enjoy good relations. So if Taliban is ruling Afghanistan, it means India's security interests will be completely compromised. So India should work with like-minded countries and ensure that either Taliban or Afghanistan soil will not act detrimental to India's interests. So this is all about discussion of this news article. Let us move on to practice questions discussion session. First question, which of the following correctly relates to the term BIPOC, often seen in news? See, this question is framed based on this news article. See, the BIPOC is the abbreviated form of black indigenous and people of other color. This term gained much importance on the internet when the Black Lives Matter movement grew in the wake of George Floyd's death in the US. As you all know, a black person was killed in the US by a police officer when he was pinned down on the road. Since then, the internet is flooded with hashtag called Black Lives Matter and this term BIPOC, which stands for black indigenous and people of other color also gain traction on the internet. So the correct answer for this question is option B, that is protests against racial discrimination in US. Next, Kandamal Haladi, which received G.I. tag recently, is natively cultivated in the state of. Four options are given here, Odisha, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana. The correct answer is option A, Odisha. See, know that this Kandamal Haladi is an organic turmeric cultivated in the Kandamal district of Odisha. It received G.I. tag last year, but the news article says that due to COVID-19 and unscrupulous traders, the farmers are not getting good price. The significance of this turmeric is it is a pure organic product. The tribals around the Kandamal district grow the tuber without applying any fertilizers or pesticides. The aromatic value and golden yellow color of Kandamal Haladi make it stand out from the rest of the turmerics in the country. The correct answer is option A, Odisha. Next question, consider the following rivers. Five rivers are given here, Bramhani, Nagavalli, Vamsadara, Kolab, Subarnaika. Which of the above rivers have catchment areas in Odisha? So, we have to find out which of the given rivers are having catchment areas in the state of Odisha. As you can see in this picture, all the given rivers like Bramhani, Nagavalli, Vamsadara, Kolab and Subarnaika have catchment areas in the state of Odisha. So, the correct answer is option B, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Next, consider the following statements with reference to regional comprehensive economic partnership, that is RCEP. Two statements are given here and we should identify the correct statements. Statement one, it is a proposed free trade agreement between 10 ASEAN countries with its six free trade agreement partners, which includes India, China, Australia, New Zealand, Japan and USA. The statement one is incorrect. This is because the USA is not part of RCEP negotiations. It is the agreement between 10 ASEAN countries and six free trade agreement partners, which are India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. It is not USA, it is South Korea. Statement two, the RCEP negotiations included trade in both goods and services. Yes, the statement is correct. It also includes investments, intellectual property, etc. Therefore, statement one is incorrect. Statement two is correct. Since we are supposed to identify correct statements, the correct answer is option B, 2 only. Next question, consider the following statements. Statement one, the central government is empowered by Citizenship Act of 1955 to issue national identity card to every citizen of India and to maintain a national register of Indian citizens. Yes, this statement is correct. The Citizenship Act 1955 empowers the union government to give identity cards to its citizens as well as to maintain a national register of Indian citizens. Statement two, at present, foreigners tribunals under the foreigners tribunals order 1964 are functioning only in Assam and West Bengal. This statement is incorrect because as of now, the tribunals are functioning only in the state of Assam. So, the correct answer is option A, 1 only. Next question, consider the following countries Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, China, India, Kazakhstan, which of these countries share border with Afghanistan. As you can see in this picture, Afghanistan is bordered by Iran in the southwest, Turkmenistan in the west, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan in the north, China and India in the northeast, east and south by Pakistan. So, if you know that India is having border with Afghanistan, you can arrive at the answer that is option D, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. But the part of India which is having border with Afghanistan is currently under Pakistan occupation that is POK. So, the correct answer is option D, 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. The Kazakhstan does not share border with Afghanistan. Next question, consider the following statements with reference to recently concluded US Taliban peace agreement. Statement one, the agreement was signed with the concurrence of current government of Afghanistan. This statement is incorrect because the agreement did not include the current ruling government of Afghanistan. Therefore, statement one is incorrect. Statement two, according to the agreement, the US recognized Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan as a state. Statement two is also incorrect. It is because in the deal the US specifically mentions that it does not recognize the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, which is popularly called as Taliban as a state. So, both statements are incorrect. Therefore, the correct answer is option D, neither one nor two. Let us take one main question. Do you agree with the view that India is not a favorable relocation destination for foreign companies that consider relocating from China? This is a 10 marks question, and so the word limit is 150. Please write the answer and post it in the comment section. We will get back to you with necessary feedback within reasonable time frame. With this, we conclude today's news analysis. If you find this session resourceful, click on the like button, show your appreciation in the comment section and don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel.