 A very good evening aspirants, welcome to the Hindu newspaper analysis brought to you by Shankarai's academy. Today's date is 8th of October 2022 and the articles displayed here are the list of news articles that we are going to discuss today. So without much delay let's get into the first news article discussion. Now take a look at this news article. See this news article deals with World Bank's projections about Indian economy. The article reports that the World Bank has lowered the growth rate projection of Indian economy due to larger global downturn. Here note that initially World Bank had projected a growth rate of 8% for Indian economy which was lowered in June to 7.5% and now it is further lowered to 6.5%. That is why it has made news. So in this context let us learn about World Bank in preroll's perspective. Now let's see about the term World Bank. See World Bank is an international organization that offers financial assistance to developing nations to fight poverty. So the mission of the World Bank is to increase the income of the poorest 40% of people present in every country. Now moving on to the history of World Bank. See the World Bank was founded in the year 1944 as part of the Britain Woods Agreement during the last stages of the Second World War. Here note that as part of this agreement both International Monetary Fund that is IMF and the Bank for International Reconstruction and Development that is IBRD both were established. Now this IBRD was soon called as the World Bank. Today it has expanded to a closely associated group of five developed institutions. Let us see about them one by one. As you can see in this image the first one is the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development that is IBRD. The second one is International Development Agency that is IDA. See these two institutions focuses mainly on working with the developing states governments. Third institution of World Bank is International Finance Corporation that is IFC. See IFC is the largest global development institution which primarily focused on the private sector. It finances investments to the private sector in the developing countries. Ok. So here IBRD and IDA they focus on working with the developing states governments and this institution IFC they finance investments to the private sector in the developing countries. Now coming to the fourth and fifth institutions they are Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency that is MIGA and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes which is ICSID. Now remember the last three institutions of the World Bank mentioned here works with the mandate of strengthening the private sector in the developing countries. So this is about the five institutions of World Bank. Now in the prelims perspective what you have to notice about the membership status of India in all these five institutions. See India is not a member of International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes that is ICSID but it holds membership in all the other four World Bank institutions. So with this understanding let us see some of the reports released by World Bank. See ease of doing business and world development report where the major reports published by World Bank. Here note that ease of doing business report was recently discontinued by the World Bank alleging malpractices in the ranking. Ok. So with this we came to the end of this discussion. See in this discussion we saw about World Bank, we saw about its objective, we saw about five institutions associated with it. We saw that IBRD and IDA they focuses on working with developing states governments and then we saw that IFC, MIGA, ICSID all the three they work with a mandate of strengthening the private sector in the developing countries. Then we saw about the membership status of India in all these institutions. We saw that India is not a member of International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes that is ICSID. Then we saw about some of the reports released by World Bank. So these learnt points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now have a look at this news article. See this news article talks about the Konda ready tribes. See the people of this tribe they believe that bamboo shoots are highly nutritious. So what they do is they hand a garland of bamboo shoots to the roofs of their dwellings and they dry them for a week and after a week or whenever the shoots are fully dried the families store them for conception till the next monsoon. So here it is clear that the dried bamboo shoots are a part of their diet during the monsoon. Now if you are asking me how it is included in their diet see the dried bamboo shoots are either boiled and used in the preparation of a variety of dishes such as mixed vegetable curry and dal or the dried shoots is stored in powder form. Okay now here comes another question why bamboo shoots are given much importance. See it is because it improves their immunity against viral fevers and in the view of bamboo shoots nutritious value even the non-tripes have started consuming them. So that is why bamboo shoots are made as an integral part of their food chart for generations. Remember they collect the shoots both for own conception and for sale. I hope you know that bamboo shoots are classified as minor forest produce and the tribal people they have the right to exploit its commercial value for their livelihood. Remember that also must be sustainable in nature. So this is the entire crux of the news article given here. So in this context let us understand some of the important facts about the kondaredi tribes. See kondaredi tribes is one of the ancient tribes in India and they are one of the most backward tribal groups in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. So where do they live? See they are living on the hilly terrains of bison hills which spread in east and west godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh that is they live along the banks of river godavari and the kondaredis they normally speak in Telangu with outsiders. So what is their occupation? See this tribe resides near hill and rivers settlements so their main occupation is agriculture. In kondaredi group all the participants were found to be farmers and their main occupation was cultivation of tobacco and other grains. They cultivate the crops in a distinct way called podu. Here podu is another name for splash and burn agriculture. I hope you all know about slash and burn agriculture. Slash and burn is nothing but a technique in which farmers they clear a patch of land and produce cereals and other food crops to sustain their family. So whenever the soil fertility decreases the farmer ships and clears a fresh patch of land for cultivation. See this type of shifting allows nature to replenish the fertility of the soil through natural processes and the land productivity in this type of agriculture is low as the farmer does not use fertilizers or other modern imports. As you know it is known by different names in different parts of the country and the people of this kondaredi tribes they call it as podu. And remember at present the population is only in hundreds and livelihood is dependent on the forest products like honey gathering the medicinal plants leaves roots and so on. Now what about their festival and worship? See they follow a very ancient pattern of life. So the tribal people worship gods of nature and every family has their family god or goddesses. The household put up a long pole in front of the house and tie some neem branches to it and worship us. Then they celebrate the festivals during the change of the seasons especially mamidi panduga is one of the most important festivals. This mamidi panduga is the festival of mangoes and some of other important festivals are gongura panduga and pachcha panduga. So during these festival celebrations all gather together and share their happy moments with each other. Remember this gongura panduga is a harvest festival which falls in september and during this festival kondaredis they offer vegetables to their deities and note that these kondaredi tribes have also been recognized as primitive tribal group that is now they are called as particularly vulnerable tribal groups that is why learning about kondaredis are very very important and these kondaredis are known for their eco-friendly practices like use of household articles made of bamboo, bottle god and seeds. So that's all about this news article discussion. In this news article discussion we saw in detail about this article which talks about the nutritious diet of kondaredi tribes along with that we also saw some of the important details about kondaredi tribes. So with these learnt points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now take a look at this news article. See this news article talks about a big cat that was released into an undisclosed destination in the Periyat Tihar reserve. See this big cat forayed into the Nayama card and east Kadalur areas of Munar and it has killed 10 head of cattle. So that is why it is a news. So in this context let us learn some of the facts about Periyat Tihar reserve in Prilam's perspective. See Periyat Tihar reserve or Periyat Sanctuary is the oldest wildlife sanctuary in Kerala. It is also credited with having the largest protected area. Remember this Periyat Tihar reserve gets its name from the river Periyar. This river has its origin deep inside the reserve. So now talking about its location, see it falls in the district of Idiqui and Patanam Thitta in Kerala and it is saddled in the southern region of western Ghats. Remember it was declared as Sanctuary during 1950 and it was declared as Tihar reserve during 1978. Now some of the major rivers that flow through this reserve are Mullaayar and Periyar. So with this basic understanding now let us see some of the important facts about the flora in the region. See the sanctuary comprises tropical evergreen, semi-evergreen, moist, deserious forest and grasslands and about 1066 species of flowering plants grow in the sanctuary. Of this about 516 are endemic to the western Ghats. See the sanctuary is also a repository of medicinal plants of about 300. Some of them which are endemic to the region includes Susaigam, Periyarenesis which is a tree, Habinaria, Perianesis which is an orchid and Mukuna, Prurians, Tecadianses which is a climber. So this is about the flora part. Now talking about the fauna. See the reserve supports mammals like Tihar, Elephant, Lion-tailed, Makakue, Nilgreet, Thar etc. And it supports birds like Dutters, Cormorants, Kingfishers and the Great Malaba, Hornbill and Racket-tailed Drongoes. See knowing about the names of the birds will help you in problems because nowadays UPSC is giving a particular name and asking what this name refers to. So that is why I am spelling out the name of the bird which is found in the region. Remember it also supports reptiles like monitor lizards, pythons, king cobra etc. So having done with the flora and fauna part, now let us see the tribals residing inside the reserve. See there are six tribal communities nestled inside the reserve. They include Manas, Pallians, Malayarayans, Mala, Pandarams, Uralis and Ulladans. So these are all very important facts that you have to make note of with respect to Periyava Tihar reserve. So in this news article discussion we saw about the location of the Tihar reserve. We saw when it was declared as a sanctuary and when it was declared as a Tihar reserve. Then we saw some of the facts about the flora and we saw about the fauna in the region. Then finally we saw about the tribal residing in the reserve. So these learnt points and now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now take a look at this main page article. It talks about the ban of gambling and games of chance by the Tamil Nadu government. It also reports that the decision was taken based on a special committee recommendation by Justice K. Chandru. Through this discussion we will be seeing about the difference between game of skill and game of chance and we will also see about judiciary's take on this particular issue. So to begin with firstly let us understand the difference between the game of skill and game of chance. Now talking about game of skill see these are games which involves the participants primarily betting on their skill levels to emerge victorious. This can be best explained by taking the example of the game Dream Levin. See many of you might have played this game or at least heard about it. In this particular type of game a participant uses his knowledge of the game to select players who are capable of performing well on the given day. So here you can clearly see that this process involves the skill set of the person predicting the performance of the player. This can be done only after analyzing their previous performances. So it needs specific skill sets which have to be honed to continuously win. So this is an example of game of skill. Now coming to the game of chance see this particular type of game primarily involves an element of luck. Take for example lottery. See participants in this game only need to buy the tickets. This does not need any special skilling right. Any person can do that and here the winners are also chosen randomly. So this is an example of game of chance. I hope you can understand the difference between game of skill and game of chance. So here we can come to a conclusion that luck is the major fact which distinguishes game of skill and that of chance. So now coming to the article here note that through an ordinance Tamil Nadu government has banned the game of chance and gambling. And through the same ordinance the government is trying to regulate games of skill. See previously also the Tamil Nadu government banned gambling in the year 2021. It was a blanket ban which banned all type of games including game of skills. But this ban was revoked by an order of Madras High Court and the order held that a blanket ban on games of skill was against the spirit of article 19 1 G which allows citizens to practice any profession or to carry on any occupation trade or business. See this ruling followed the verdicts of the Karnataka and Kerala High Courts. Note that all the three high courts they have upheld supreme court doctrine that says games of skill and games of chance are two distinct legal concepts of constitutional significance. And it also says that the game of skills are legitimate business activities protected by the fundamental rights under article 19 1 G. Okay so now you can understand what the ordinance of Tamil Nadu government is trying to do. The ordinance of Tamil Nadu government has just banned the game of chance and gambling. And it is trying to regulate games of skill. It is because a ban on game of skill is against the spirit of article 19 1 G which allows citizens to practice any profession or to carry out any occupation. Okay now let us see the reasons behind the ban of these games by the Tamil Nadu government. See many social activists, government officials and those in law enforcement believe that online games like rummy and poker are addictive in nature. And when such games are played with monetary stakes they are leading to depression mounting depths and suicides. Reportedly there have been many instances where youngsters faced with mounting depths due to losses in online games and they have committed other crimes like theft and murder. Also these online games are susceptible to manipulation by the website operating such games. See here there are possibilities that users are not playing such games against other players right. There might be an automatic machine or boats which is playing against them. We really don't know about that because we are playing on the online. So here there is no fair opportunity for an ordinary user to win the game which is very tricky. Okay so these are all some of the reasons to ban the gaming. Now let us see the downside or the disadvantages of the ban. See in a country like India enforcement of ban without a proper regulatory system is an issue right. So here just enforcing the ban is alone not enough. Government have to strive for stronger regulatory systems and that will yield the positive result. Other than this the shifting of users to gray or illegal offshore based online gaming apps will happen. See this results in loss of tax revenue for the state and job opportunities for locals and apart from this users will be unable to avail remedies for any unfair behavior or refusal to withdraw winnings by the illegal gambling businesses. So these are all some of the problems which needs to be addressed by the government while implementing this ban. Now talking about the ordinance. See for the purpose of regulation of online games the ordinance has proposed the creation of the online gaming authority. This authority will be headed by a retired officer who was of the rank of chief secretary. Okay the body will have four members including a retired police officer who held a post not below that of inspector general then it will have experts in information technology and online gaming and then eminent psychologist. So we have to wait and watch about what this authority is going to reform. So that's all about this news article. See in this news article discussion we saw in detail about what is game of skill and what is game of chance. Then we saw about the judiciary stake on this particular issue then we saw about some of the reasons behind the ban of these games. We also discussed about the negative side of banning the games and finally we ended our discussion by seeing about the online gaming authority which is an welcome move. So with these learned points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now have a look at this news article. See this news article talks about e-rupee. Now e-rupee is in news because the RBI said it will soon commence the pilot introduction of e-rupee and this e-rupee will be used for specific use cases. RBI believes that this e-rupee will bolster India's digital economy it will make payment system more efficient and it will help in checking money laundering. Okay so this is the crux of the news article given here. In this context let us understand about this e-rupee its purpose its advantages and disadvantages. See make note of this very important since we are transferring into and digital economy knowing about this is very very important that is why we have chosen this news article. First of all let us see what is this e-rupee. See e-rupee is similar to sovereign paper currency but it takes a different form that's it okay. Remember it is exchangeable at par with the existing currency. It will be accepted as a medium of payment legal tender and a safe store of value and note that this e-rupee is relevant to the RBI's concept note on central bank digital currency or CBDC. So now what is this CBDC? See CBDC or central bank digital currency is a legal tender and the issuer here is the Reserve Bank of India. See as I already said RBI CBDC is an electronic record or digital token of India so it will serve as an official currency which fulfills the basic functions as a medium of exchange unit of account store of value and standard of deferred payment okay. Now according to RBI CBDC is same as currency issued by a central bank but it takes a different form rather than a paper. So to conclude it is a sovereign currency in an electronic form and the most important point that you have to note here is see usually currency in circulation will appear as liability on central bank's balance sheet. Likewise this CBDC will also appear as a liability on central bank's balance sheet and according to the RBI e-rupee can be structured as token based or account based. So what does that mean? See a token based CBDC is a barrier instrument like bank notes that is whoever holds the tokens at a given point in time would be presumed to own them and this can be used for general purposes or retail. See an account based system would require maintenance of record of balances and transactions of all holders of the CBDC and it should indicate the ownership of the monetary balances. So here this type of system is used for wholesale purposes. So to sum up in a token based CBDC the person receiving a token will verify that his ownership of the token is genuine whereas in an account based CBDC an intermediary verifies the identity of an account holder. So now let us see how the features of CBDC is advantageous. See CBDC will be made exchangeable at par with cash. So it helps in reducing the cost of cash. Secondly CBDC will help improve the speed of transactions. This is because it will significantly bring down time taken for cross-border transactions and make transaction real-time. So we can say CBDC will have cost and distributional efficiency. Thirdly CBDC will eliminate the need for interbank settlement. So it helps in improving the cross-border transactions. So introducing CBDC will help in bringing settlement efficiency and finally CBDCs will provide users with a sovereign option. So it is safe when compared to other less safe digital instruments. One important point to be noted is the blockchain technology that is to be used in RBI plant CBDC. See blockchain technology is present everywhere with potential far beyond just digital currency. Also it helps in removing the need for intermediaries in various processes. So it creates a transparent fast and efficient system. Since CBDC uses this blockchain technology we can expect CBDC with its high liquidity scalability acceptance ease of transaction with anonymity to help faster settlement and transactions. So now coming to the disadvantages. See it may be at the risk of having some cyber attacks. Then it may cause duplication where the same rupee transferred to multiple people. This is because of the offline transaction. So for this the RBI must apply some limits or use some other technologies to address this duplication issue. Despite all these disadvantages this rupee which is issued by RBI and distributed by commercial banks will further bolster digital economy of India. So that's all about this news article discussion. In this news article discussion we saw in detail about what is this e rupee. Then we saw what is this CBDC or central bank digital currency. Then we saw how it works and we ended our discussion by seeing some of its advantages and disadvantages. So these learnt points now let us move on to the next part of the news article discussion which is the preliminary practice question discussion. Now look at this first question with reference to World Bank consider the following statements. Statement one it was established along with IMF according to the Britain Woods Agreement in 1944. Statement two World Trade Organization is a part of World Bank Group which of the statements given above is a raw correct. Option A one only option B two only option C both one and two and option D neither one nor two. See the correct answer for the question is option A one only statement one is correct because World Bank was established along with IMF in accordance to the Britain Woods Agreement in 1944. So this statement is correct now statement two is incorrect because World Trade Organization is not a part of the World Bank. It is a separate international organization which looks after the global system of trade rules and helps developing country build their trade capacity. Also know this fact headquarters of World Bank is located in Washington DC while the headquarters of United Nations is located in New York. So the correct answer for the question is option A one only. Now look at the second question this second question is about E rupee consider the following statements regarding E rupee. Statement one it is launched by National Payments Corporation of India NPCI. Statement two it comes under the RBA's concept note on Central Bank Digital Currency or CBDC. So you have to choose the correct answer. See the correct answer for the question is option B two only first statement is incorrect because E rupee is to be launched by RBA on pilot basis. But you have to know about another E rupee which is launched by National Payments Corporation of India that is NPCI. See both are different don't confuse it with each other. See it was established with collaboration with the Department of Financial Services Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and National Health Authority. Okay. So what is this E rupee it is basically a digital voucher in which a beneficiary gets on his phone in the form of SMS or QR code. See it is a prepaid voucher in which he or she can go and read him at any centre that accepts it. Okay. So here NPCI has partnered with 11 banks for E rupee transactions and the acquiring apps or Barrett Pay, BIM, Baroda Merchant Pay, Pine Labs, PNB Merchant Pay and Yono SPI Merchant Pay. Okay. More banks and acquiring apps are expected to join the E rupee initiative soon. Now second statement is actually correct. Yes this E rupee comes under the RBA's concept note on central bank digital currency or CBDC. But this E rupee which is even purpose specific digital voucher is a person specific. Okay. So it does not come under CBDC concept. Have this clarity and to know more about this E rupee do watch the Hindu newspaper analysis dated on August 8, 2021. Okay. Now moving on the question displayed here is the quiz question for you today. Just go through the question, try to answer the question and post the correct answer in the comment section. So the question displayed here is the main question for you today. Just go through the question, write an answer and post it in the comment section. So with this we came to the end of the news article discussion. If you like the video, hit like, do comment and don't forget to subscribe to Shankara IS Academy YouTube channel. Thank you for listening.