 A very good evening aspirants. Welcome to the Hindu newspaper analysis brought to you by Shankarai's academy for the day 15th of April 2022. So these are the list of news articles chosen for today's discussion. We have five different news articles for today's discussion. In this first news article discussion, we will be discussing about the current situation which is prevailing in Sri Lanka with respect to forest reserves. In the second news article discussion, we will be discussing about Bihu dance in Pralams perspective. Thirdly, we will be seeing about El Nino which is an important topic. Fourthly, we will be discussing about an editorial article which is related to stubble burning. We will be seeing what is stubble burning, some of the impacts caused by the stubble burning and some of the suggestions given by the author to overcome the issue. And finally, we will be ending our discussion by discussing about an important article regarding Gatka skills. So now without wasting much time, let us move on to the first news article discussion. Today let us start our discussion with this news article discussion. See this news article talks about the sovereign debt crisis of Sri Lanka because recently Sri Lanka decided to default on all its foreign debt. So today let us understand what is sovereign debt and the reason behind Sri Lanka's situation. Before that the syllabus relevant to this article is highlighted here for your reference. Just go through it. See any government needs money to carry out its day to day business. It needs money to service the schemes and programs of the government to provide salary etc. When government spends the amount more than what it receives, it leads to fiscal deficit or budgetary deficit. We know that right because here spending is more than revenue. Now this deficit is financed by means of three ways generally. They are taxation, borrowing or by printing money. And when they rely on borrowing it gives rise to what is called government debt. Now government debt is also called the sovereign debt or public debt. So it refers to the obligation of the government to pay the amount it borrowed at some future time. It is also known as national debt to indicate that this debt is owned by national governments and it is different from the public debt of state and local government bodies. Note that if the government continues to borrow year after year it leads to the accumulation of debt. This means the government has to pay more and more by way of interest. So these interest payments themselves also contribute to the debt. But does that mean governments should not borrow? No, they can borrow because it is an important way for government to finance investments in growth and development. But what they have to ensure is they are able to continue servicing their debt and that their debt burden remains sustainable. Otherwise it will lead to debt distress which may threaten macroeconomic stability of the country and it will set back a country's development for years. So have this basic understanding. Now this government debt is classified in many ways and by depending on the location of the debt it can be classified as internal debt and external debt. So as their name indicates internal debt is the debt held by the government within the government's jurisdiction. On the other hand external debt is held by foreign jurisdiction. In this way such a debt can be denominated in the domestic currency as well as in the foreign currency. Today we are going to focus on external government debt only. So pay attention to the news article discussion. See this debt arises due to the borrowing from foreign lenders like multilateral agencies such as IMF, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Asian Development Bank etc. It also originates from official bilateral agencies and borrowings from international capital markets. Here often the loans from multilateral institutions are long-term and largely or concessional terms. See these external liabilities or regardless of currency of denomination for example in India external debt is predominantly borrowed in US dollars, yen etc. This means the borrowing is in the foreign currency and this is an issue. Why because here the repayment should also be in that foreign currency. So the government should have enough of that foreign currency in its foreign exchange reserves. This is what is going on in Sri Lanka. See Sri Lanka's foreign debt is 51 billion dollars. This includes borrowing from foreign governments also. 10% of 51 billion dollars is owed to China which is its largest bilateral lender. Sri Lanka also owes to Japan and India. Overall 3 to 7 billion dollars is due to be paid by this year itself. But the question here is does Sri Lanka have that much required foreign currency in its forex reserves? No. As of March Sri Lanka's forex reserves stood at 1.9 billion dollars only. Due to this only now Sri Lanka has announced that it is defaulting the debt. See this is called sovereign default. Sovereign default means a nation has failed to repay its external debt. But why Sri Lanka's foreign reserves are this much low? What are the reasons behind it? We have to know about it right? Let's see the one by one. First is because like the debt in local currency, debt in foreign denominated currency cannot be handled. In case the debt is in local currency, the bank ask their central bank to create fresh local money. By using this they can repay the debt. But a country cannot print a foreign currency right? So this is the first reason. Now this is why here other means are required. While they governments rely on foreign currency flowing into Sri Lanka in the form of foreign investment or payments received in exchange for the export of various goods and services. These increases the flow of that foreign currency which in turn helps to build up their foreign reserves. But we know that foreign investments and export of goods and services affected by the pandemic and the following lockdowns right? So pandemic is the second reason. Similarly the pandemic also affected tourism sector of Sri Lanka. We know that Sri Lanka depends heavily on its tourism sector to bring in the foreign exchange. So this is the third reason. Another reason is in 2021 Sri Lanka government fixed the exchange rate of the Sri Lankan rupee against the US dollar. It banned trading of Sri Lankan rupee at a rate above 200 rupees to an American dollar. This was way before the actual market price of the dollar. So this pushed traders to black market and caused a drop in the supply of US dollars in the forex market. So these are the reasons for Sri Lanka's current scenario. Now to overcome the situation Sri Lanka is relying again on borrowing only because borrowing to finance the debt is also a measured. In this manner Sri Lanka government has asked aid from IMF and other countries like India and China. India already agreed to offer additional financial assistance of 2 billion dollars to Sri Lanka. But Sri Lanka has to overcome many other issues to come out of this economic crisis. So that is all you have to know from this news article discussion. In this discussion we saw about what is external debt then we saw can governments borrow money or not. Finally we ended the discussion by seeing some of the important points like the reasons behind Sri Lanka's low forex reserves. So with these learned points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Our next news article discussion is based on this picture. See it depicts women performing Bihu dance as part of the Rongali Bihu festival. So taking this as an opportunity let us learn about Bihu dance in Praline's perspective. See Bihu dance is Assam's most popular folk dance. It is one of the most colorful folk dance of India. So Bihu dance is a traditional heritage of Assam. It is performed mostly during the annual Bihu festival which is celebrated around April. See there are three Bihu festivals in the state namely Rongali Bihu, Kongali Bihu and Bohal Bihu. But the dance which is performed during Rongali Bihu expresses the joy on the arrival of the spring. The festival helps to strengthen the unity and diversity among the people of Assam. See as per Assam's history the first ever Bihu dance performance was done in 1694. It was when the Ahom King, Rutra Singha invited Bihu dances on the special occasion of Rongali Bihu. Now note that the dance is performed by both men and women. It is characterized by brisk dance steps and rapid hand movements. The dancers perform in a circle. It starts with a slower tempo and gradually gains momentum. This dance has been an integral part of the culture of various ethnic groups in Assam like the Dioris, Sonowal, Kacharis, Moran, Borahis and others. Now coming to the entire part, see that dancers adorn the women traditional Mekela Chador during their performance. Here Mekela is a cylindrically shaped outfit worn on the lower half of the body. Then Chador is draped like a shawl to cover the upper half as you can see in this image. Performers also wear a kind of headgear which is known as Giti Ghee. And the men wear a Doti, Gomacha which is a towel, Chapkan which is the shirt. That is usually made from Muka silk. See the Muka silk is exclusively produced in Assam. The men performance also wear ethnic heavy jewelry and beautify their hair with colorful flowers. In this way the dance has been noted for maintaining authenticity. At the same time the dance also displays the traditional Assamese handlooms and handicrafts in their beauty and glory. The dance is accompanied by musical instruments like Dole, Penpa, Gagana or Gogona, Bani or Flute etc. One important feature of this dance is no religion is celebrated in the Bihu dance. So everybody can participate equally. Also love is celebrated in the Bihu songs and dances in a decent way. Due to the beauty of this dance this dance was performed at the London Olympics in 2012. So that's all you have to know about this Bihu dance. In this news article discussion we briefly saw about some of the important facts that you have to remember for your preliminary exam relating to Bihu dance. So with these learned points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Look at this news article. This article states that the Indian Meteorological Department that is IMD forecasted a normal southwest monsoon for this year also. A monsoon is considered normal when rainfall falls between 96% and 104% of the long period average. That is LPA. Here LPA of rainfall is nothing but the rainfall recorded over a particular region for a given interval like month or season or it is an average over a long period like 30 years, 50 years etc. Now LPA for India has been downgraded to 87 cm in 2022 from 88 cm in 2018 and the IMD also said that an El Nino is not expected this year. So this is the cracks of the news article given here. In this context let us learn about El Nino in Prillin's perspective. See weather conditions in India are influenced by El Nino which causes widespread floodings and droughts in tropical region of the world. El Nino is a complex weather system that appears once every 3 to 7 years. See El Nino is nothing but a narrow warm current which sometimes appears off the coast of Peru in South America. It is temporary replacement of the cold Peru current which normally flows along this coast. During an El Nino event the prevailing trade winds weaken and the equatorial counter currents strengthen. This causes warm surface water from the Indonesian region to flow eastwards displacing the cold water of the humboldt current which in turn leads to disruption of the temperature and moisture regime. Sometimes becoming more intense it increases the surface water temperature of the sea by 10 degrees Celsius. This warming of tropical Pacific water affects the global pattern of pressure and wind systems including the monsoon winds in the Indian Ocean. So this is how actually El Nino works. Now El Nino actually results in three conditions. Firstly the distortion of equatorial atmospheric circulation. Secondly irregularities in the evaporation of seawater. Thirdly reduction in the amount of plankton which further reduces the number of fish in the sea. Also note that the word El Nino means child Christ because this current appears around Christmas in December. See December is a summer month in Peru which is located in southern hemisphere. El Nino is used in India for forecasting long range monsoon rainfall. It is believed that the severest drought of 1987 over India was caused by El Nino. That's all regarding this news article discussion. In this news article discussion we saw about El Nino. We saw about the mechanism of El Nino. So with these learn points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now take a look at this editorial article. See this news article talks about the issues created by Stubble Bernie especially in Delhi and Punjab. See the major issue that we are talking about is the air pollution created due to this stubble burning. See due to this stubble burning Delhi and Punjab faces not only environmental issues but it also faces economic losses as well. For example take the year 2019 during that year Delhi and Punjab together faced economic losses estimated to be approximately 18000 crore rupees and this is majorly due to worsening air pollution. And since both Delhi and Punjab are currently under the rule of Amartmi party that is AAP there can be a collaboration for clean air so that both states can ensure improvements in citizen well-being and labour productivity. So this is the cracks of the news article given here. In this context let us learn what is stubble burning and issues surrounding it. Then let us discuss the suggestions given by author to overcome the issues. So that the syllabus relevant to this article is highlighted here for your reference. Just go through it. Now let us start our discussion with what is stubble burning. See stubble or Parali burning is a method of removing paddy crop procedures from the field. This is done to sow wheat from the last week of September to November. See in simple words stubble burning is a process of setting on fire to the star stubble left after the harvesting of grains like paddy, wheat etc. It is usually required in area which uses the combined harvesting method and leaves crop residues behind. Here combined harvesting method is a key invention that saves cost and time for farmers. The machine used in this process is called combined harvesting. What does it do? It simply combines the three major harvesting operations that is reaping, threshing and winnowing into a single process. And remember the paddy stubble burning is practiced mainly in the endogostic lines of Punjab, Haryana and UP. This is to clear the fields for rabbi crop sowing. The paddy crop is harvested between the first and last week of October in Punjab and Haryana. After this period the farmers sow the wheat crop from the first week of November until the middle of December. Now let us know the reason for using this stubble burning method in farmers perspective. See the major reason behind the stubble burning is the short time available between the rice harvesting and the sowing of wheat. This is because the delay in sowing wheat affects the wheat crop. See between the harvesting of the paddy crop and the sowing of the next crop only a 2 to 3 weeks time window is left. So the farmers do stubble burning to prepare the land for the next cultivation. That is the remains of crops like straw which remains in the field as residue after harvesting is burnt. Also note that stubble burning is considered one of the cheapest methods to clean the field after the harvesting season. These are the major reasons given by farmers for using stubble burning. Now having seen about what is stubble burning now let us see some impacts created by this method. Firstly the process of burning farm residue is one of the major causes of air pollution. That too in parts of North India like Delhi and Punjab it is deteriorating the air quality. When it combines with vehicular emission it affects the air quality index that is AQI especially in the national capital region or NCR. When you ask why it is causing air pollution? The answer is the toxic pollutants emitted by stubble burning in the atmosphere. What are all the pollutants it is emitting? See it emits harmful gases like carbon monoxide that is CO, methane CH4, carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, volatile organic compounds VOC etc. See these pollutants disperse in the surroundings and eventually affect air quality and people's health by forming a thick blanket of smoke. Okay? Second it affects the soil fertility. How? See when the husk is burned on the ground the soil becomes less fertile and it's nutrients are destroyed. So this is how it affects the soil fertility. Third issue is the heat penetration. See the stubble burning generates heat that penetrates into the soil. This causes an increase in erosion loss of useful microbes and moisture. So far we saw about what is stubble burning and we also saw what are all the impacts caused by stubble burning. Now let us see some of the solutions or suggestions given by the author to solve these issues. Here the author specifically addresses the measure that has to be taken by the Delhi and Punjab government. Okay? The first solution is to have a common understanding of sources of pollution. This has to be achieved by both the states. This can be done by sitting aside their disagreements and having a talk to sort out the issues. Second solution is to create platforms for knowledge exchange. See a common knowledge center can be set up. This set up can facilitate cross learning on possible solutions to developmental challenges in both the states. Now how will this be a solution? See the information on air quality levels and source assessment studies are crucial in developing long term strategies for pollution mitigation. Okay? Third solution is collaboration to execute proven solutions. Here the author suggests the collaboration of the two states to co-design solutions that would improve air quality. They can jointly create a task force. In this task force experts from state run institutions will be present so that they can pilot these solutions and assess their impact. For example take the PUSA bio decomposer that was developed by the Indian Agricultural Research Institute. See this is a solution given by the Delhi government to stubble burning. But it has received mixed reviews from farmers. This is because the decomposer only makes sense for early maturing varieties of paddy. Then even with the decomposer stubble would take between 25 to 35 days to decompose. Thus it is of little use in high bond districts where late maturing paddy varieties are dominant. So here collaboration to execute proven solutions would ensure wide acceptance of the proposed solution. The next solution is to create a market for diversified crop products. See by shifting away from the paddy wheat cycle is a sure short solution to stubble burning. This can be done through crop diversification but the lack of an assured market for agricultural products other than wheat and paddy has acted as a deterrent. Finally both state government should assert the need for extending inter-state cooperation to other states. This cooperation should be especially with the Indo-Gangetic Plains in different inter-state forums. One such forum is the Northern Zonal Council. This has representation from Chandigarh, Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Jamun, Kashmir and Ladakh. Both Delhi and Punjab must use this platform to highlight the need for coordination with neighboring states to elevate the pollution crisis. Thus the state governments should first focus on identifying clear metrics. This is to evolve their performance in the coming years. Then with the collaborative plan of action the yard can be made clean. So that's all about this news article discussion. In this news article discussion, firstly we saw about what is stubble burning. Stubble burning is nothing but a process of setting on fire to the straw stubble which was left after the harvesting of grains like paddy or wheat. Then we saw the reason for using this stubble burning. The first reason is that there is short time available between the rice harvesting and the sowing of wheat. Secondly, this method is considered as one of the cheapest method to clean the field after the harvesting season. So these are the two reasons why stubble burning is dominant. And then we saw some of the impacts caused by this stubble burning. In that we saw about stubble burning causing air pollution, especially stubble burning emitting toxic pollutants into the atmosphere. We saw about that. Then we saw about impacts to the soil fertility. Then we saw about issues like heat penetration. Then we finally ended our discussion by seeing some of the suggestions given by the author. The first suggestion is to have a common understanding of source of pollution. Second solution is to create a platform for knowledge exchange. Thirdly, there should be a collaboration to execute proven solutions. Fourthly, getting rid of this paddy wheat cycle by crop diversification. And finally, both state governments should assert the need for extending interstate cooperation to other states. So with these learnt points, now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now for our final discussion, let us take up this news article. In this context, let us discuss about the Gadka art form in Pralim's perspective. First of all, what is Gadka? See, Gadka is an ancient martial art. It has been thoroughly battle-tested. It has existed in Northern India for many thousands of years. It is considered to be one of the most advanced martial arts in India. It is considered to be one of the most advanced martial arts in India. It is considered to be one of the most advanced martial arts in India. It is considered to be a spiritual as well as physical exercise. Both these aspects of the person are developed to a high level during the learning phase in this ancient art. Although it uses the sword as its primary weapon, many other weapons are available to the Gadka master. Now let us have a brief about its history. See, Gadka is a Punjabi word which literally translates to wooden sticks. The wooden sticks are used instead of swords. Gadka uses the sword as the main weapon amongst others. This art has been passed down generation and preserved in Sikh history. See, Guru Har Gobind Singh who is the sixth Sikh Guru used to carry two swords, Miri and Piri. Here, Miri means strength and Piri means spirituality. It is a form that can only be used to defend yourself because only when all other means have failed. The people who played or called Nihang or armed Sikh warrior during the 16th and 17th century, Gadka was extensively used by Sikh warriors. This is to defend themselves from Mohals and their atrocities. Guru Gobind Singh is known as the greatest Gadka warrior of all times. The Sikhs have been responsible for this early art ensuring its survival despite mass persecution of the native population in India by foreign invaders like the Mohals and others for many hundreds of years. Now, talking about modern day Gadka practice, see the Gadka practice that we see today was developed in the early 19th century. It has been developed into the traditional rasmi and sports which is called Kale style. Gadka sport formal rules were drafted in 1936. Interestingly enough, Punjab University Patiala is the only place which offers a one year diploma course in mastering this art form. Also note that, Punjab Government has now officially recognized Gadka as a sport in its policy and the players enjoy the 3% age quota during admission as do the players of other sports. Apart from this, make note of this, Gadka is an integral and entertaining part of many Sikh festivals, processions and Gurudwara's. This is especially posed its revival and formulation by the International Gadka Federation in 1987. Today it is a proper sport planned at the national level after the formation of Gadka Federation in 2008. It is a mark of the preservation and propelling of a dyeing yet a fine form of martial arts from the medieval times encasing, upholding and safeguarding our rich culture and history. So that's all I have to know about Gadka. Gadka is nothing but an ancient martial art which has been thoroughly battle tested. It has existed in Northern India for many thousands of years. It is considered to be a spiritual as well as a physical exercise. So with these learnt points, now let us move on to the next segment of the news article discussion which is nothing but the preliminary practice questions. Now look at this first question. This question is about El Nino. Consider the following statements with reference to El Nino. Statement 1, El Nino is a climate pattern that describes the cooling of surface ocean waters along the tropical west coast of South America. Statement 2, it decreases the temperature of water on the Peruvian coast by 10 degrees Celsius which of the above statements is or correct. So I have to choose the correct answer here. Option A1 only, option B2 only, option C both 1 and 2 and option D neither 1 nor 2. See the correct answer for the question is option D neither 1 nor 2. First statement is wrong because El Nino is a narrow warm current which sometimes appears off the coast of Peru in South America. It is a temporary replacement of the cold Peru current which normally flows along this coast. So statement 1 is incorrect. Now moving on to statement 2. See sometimes becoming more intense, it actually increases the surface water temperature of the sea by 10 degrees Celsius. It has now decreased the temperature of water on Peruvian coast by 10 degrees Celsius. So second statement is also incorrect here. So the correct answer for this question is option D neither 1 nor 2. Now moving on to the second question, this question is about Bihu dance. With reference to the famous Bihu dance which of the following statements is correct. Statement 1. It is a century old living tradition of Vaishnavates of Assam. Statement 2. The attires of performers are usually made from Muga silk. Statement 3. Chambals are the only musical instruments used in the performance. Select the correct answer from the codes given below. Option A option B 2 only. Option C 1 2 1 3 and option D none of the above. See the correct answer here is option B 2 only. See even though it is from Assam as we saw in the discussion the dance and festival does not celebrate any particular religion. So statement 1 is incorrect. Now moving on to statement 2. Statement 2 is correct. We saw this in our discussion itself right. Now moving on statement 3 is incorrect because it involves any musical instruments like dole, penpa, gagana or gogona, banihi that is flute etc. So the correct answer for this question is option B 2 only. Now look at this third question. This question is the quiz question for you today. Let me read out the question in the context of art forms which of the following paths is or are correctly matched. On the left hand side odds are given and on the right hand side odds are given. You have to select the correct answer from the codes given below. Option A 1 only, option B 2 and 3 only, option C 1 and 2 only and option D 1, 2 and 3. So try to find the answer and post the answer in the comment section. So displayed here are the main questions for today's discussion. Just go through it, write an answer and post it in the comment section. With this we came to the end of the news article discussion. If you like the video, like, comment and share and do subscribe to Shankarai's Academy YouTube channel. Thank you.