INDEX

PAGE
SL.NO. TITLE
NO.

EPW – AUGUST 2017

1 SECTION 498A OF IPC 3

2 DALIT PROTESTS - UNA MODEL 3
3 MAJULI ISLAND - THE TRAGEDY OF HAZARD 4
IDENTIFICATION

4 MENTAL HEALTH IN INDIA 6

5 MAHARASHTRA’S LAW ON SOCIAL BOYCOTT 7
6 BARRIERS TO ART ADHERENCE 8
7 RIGHT TO SAFE ABORTION 10
8 BIG DATA ANALYTICS 11
9 CAN INDIA BE CONSIDERED AN EMERGING GREAT 12
POWER?

10 MANIFESTATIONS OF PATRIARCHY 14
11 WILL DETAINING CHILDREN ENSURE LEARNING? 15
12 INDIA’S SLIP ON GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX 16
13 KERALA’S POOR PERFORMANCE IN 18
SWACHH SURVEKSHAN, 2017
14 MACHIL ENCOUNTER CASE 20
 EPW – AUGUST 2017
1. SECTION 498A OF IPC
Why in news?
The Supreme Court has charged of ―misuse‖ of the
provision of Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code
(IPC) in the Rajesh Sharma and Ors v State of UP and
Anr case.
What is 498A?
 It states that husband or relative of husband
subjecting a woman to cruelty shall be pun-
ished with imprisonment for a term which may
extend to three years and shall also be liable to
fine.
 It was introduced in 1983 because provisions
of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 were
considered not strong enough to prevent the
torture and even death of young women over
dowry and other demands.
What was Court’s rationale?
 Data from the NCRB shows that the conviction
rate was only 14.4% for cases under this
section in 2012.
 The Court appears to have concluded that this
indicates a high incidence of ―false‖ cases.
 To check this, it has ordered all states to set up
three-member Family Welfare Committees
(FWCs) at the district leve.
 FWCs will be the first stop for any woman who
wishes to file a criminal complaint against
members of her family under Section 498A.
 It will comprise of para legal volunteers/social
workers/retired persons/wives of working
officers/other citizens.
 FWCs will present a report to the police within
one month and only after that can the police
proceed.
What are the shortcomings?
 The very presumption that women’s
complaints are not genuine and need an
additional filter goes against the basic purpose
of the act.
 The low rate of conviction is not at all unusual
for other crimes.
 The Court appears not to have considered what
during one month period to the woman who
has complained.
 The assumption that the ―civil society‖
committee is above biases, cannot be bribed
and nudged is flawed.
What should be done?
 One reason 498A has become controversial is
because of the power it puts in the hands of the
police.
 But the Supreme Court has already passed an
order checking these powers.
 In 2014, it ordered that under 498A arrests
should only be made after the police can satisfy
a magistrate.
 The real challenge is that, in spite of the power,
women who turn to the police are repeatedly
let down.
 From poor investigation into the crime to
unconvincing arguments by the prosecution in
court, the chances of establishing guilt are
almost an insurmountable challenge in the
majority of cases.
 Further now, woman should not be compelled
to compromise in the interests of ―saving‖ the
family.
2. DALIT PROTESTS - UNA MODEL
Why in news?
Dalits in Gujarat had taken a seven-day march in
observance of the first anniversary of the Una atrocity.
What happened in Una?
 Una is a small town in Gir Somnath district of
Gujarat.
  Four Dalit youths were mercilessly flogged by
upper-caste cow vigilantes in July 2016 for
their occupation of dragging and flaying dead
cattle.
 This spread indignation among Dalits and gave
rise to a spontaneous protest movement.
What is Una Model of protests?
 The agitation did not follow the usual route of
lamenting, protesting, or begging for justice
from the state.
 Instead the participants declared that the
Dalits would give up their traditional caste
vocations and in return demanded five acres of
land.
 They threw corpses of dead cattle in the
compound of the district collectorate office.
 The administration immediately undertook
measurement and release of 300 acres of land
to entitled Dalits.
 Una Dalit Atyachar Ladat Samiti an outfit
formed to further the Una struggle organised a
grand assembly of Dalits calling for an end of
their social discrimination, oppression and
political apathy.
 Nearly 20,000 Dalits pledged in the name of
Ambedkar that they would give up their dirty
caste vocations and instead, demanded jobs
and land for rehabilitation.
 It was followed by a 10-day-long march from
Ahmedabad to Una in August 2016.
 The changed tone of Una forced the chief
minister to resign and the PM to criticise the
self-appointed gau rakshaks.
What was the strategy?
 The strategy here is they took tone of economic
route to dignity instead of an emotional one.
 It has discarded the abstract cultural argument
for dignity and linked it to the livelihood issues
of the vast Dalit masses.
 They demanded dignity along with secure
livelihoods.
 They understood that unless Dalits transcend
castes and forge a class unity with other
marginalised people, their struggle can never
reach fruition.
 Hence the struggle, though was mainly focused
on the immediate issues concerning Dalits, it
avoided a sectarian attitude and tried to
include other oppressed classes.
3. MAJULI ISLAND - THE TRAGEDY
OF HAZARD IDENTIFICATION
What is the issue?
 Thousands of inhabitants of Majuli Island have
lost their homes as well as agricultural lands.
 Yet, here have been no compensations from
the State Disaster Response Fund
(SDRF)/National Disaster Response Fund
(NDRF).
Where is Majuli?
 Majuli is a riverine island on the Brahmaputra
River in Assam.
 It is formed by the Brahmaputra river in the
south and the Kherkutia Xuti, an anabranch of
the Brahmaputra, joined by the Subansiri
River in the north.
 It is also the 1st island district of the country
and considered to be a cultural heritage site in
India.
What is the reason for the current
disaster?
 In 1950, a powerful earthquake struck the
Brahmaputra Valley in Assam.
  It de-stabilised the channel of Brahmaputra. expenditure for providing relief to the victims
of –
 Since then, the river has continuously been
shifting its course and the island has been
facing soil erosion at an alarming rate.

 In 1950, when the Assam earthquake struck

the Brahmaputra Valley, the area of Majuli was
almost 1,250 sq km.

 As per the Census of India, 2011 the area of

Majuli is estimated to be around 584.38 sq km.
Is this classification justified?
 This enormous loss of land has badly affected
 A natural hazard can be defined as any
the agricultural communities of Majuli.
biological, geological, meteorological or
hydrological phenomenon that may cause
disaster.

 Thus, it can be any potential or existing

condition that may cause harm to people or
damage to property or the environment.

 Similarly, natural disasters are defined as

sudden events caused by natural and
environmental factors that lead to a loss of
human life or property, or both.
 But in the above period only around 10% of the  In terms of suddenness, erosion is periodic,
affected families have been relocated and but it is no more periodic, or no less sudden
resettled. than floods.

 The rest have been forced to leave the island in  Every year, Brahmaputra floods the plains of
search of better opportunities. Assam, and the receding water erodes land on

 Those who are unable to move out of the island both the banks of the river.
live as internally-displaced persons.  In addition to this, the continuous shifting of

 They find work as agricultural labourers under the course of the Brahmaputra also leads to the

an arrangement in which the labourers are erosion of land.

paid half the produce of land and the owner  Therefore, logically, if floods are a natural
keeps the remaining half. disaster, so should erosion.

 Those who lost their lands have not been What should be done?
receiving any compensation from the
 From the above discussion, it is clear that the
government.
listing of hazards in the NDRF and SDRF
Why were they not given compensation? guidelines are arbitrary.
 This is because the guidelines of NDRF/SDRF  These guidelines need to be revised, following
do not consider riverbank erosion as a natural an academic consensus.
disaster.
 A more rational classification of hazards based
 The guidelines issued in 2015 list out that the on their causation factors—geological,
fund can only be used for meeting the hydrological, meteorological, etc—needs to be
adopted.
 4. MENTAL HEALTH IN INDIA  Review mechanism - The Mental Health
Act (1987) was enforced in 1993, thus
What is the issue?
replacing the Indian Lunacy Act (1912).
The article focuses on reducing the treatment gap in
 Since then, a number of programmes, policies,
India and offers data specific to the country and its
and legislative initiatives have been
political, social, cultural, and economic context.
undertaken..
What is the status of Mental Health in
 But the focus is always on framing new
India? programmes and policies.
 In India, the prevalence of mental illness is  Little attention is paid to reporting the
estimated at around 7.3% of the general successes or failures of previous initiatives.
population and at 26.7% among the elderly.
 Narrow Approach - Mental healthcare
 The prevalence of mental illness in rural and initiatives in India also focus on a narrow
urban India is estimated at 70.5 and 73 per biomedical approach that tends to ignore
thousand respectively. sociocultural explanations for the occurrence
 Neuropsychiatric illness in India accounts for of mental illness.
10.8% of the global occurrence of mental  These initiatives also miss out on psychiatric
illness. pluralism, or the availability of various
 Unipolar depression was the cause for roughly traditional and religious resources.
12 million disability-adjusted life years  Data from other countries suggest that a
(DALYs) in 2010 and 8,100 deaths in 2008. partnership between psychiatrists and
 Anxiety disorders accounted for nearly four traditional healers could prove beneficial for
million DALYs in 2010 (World Health patients.
Organization 2004).  Currently, mental healthcare is considered and
 The prevalence of serious mental illnesses is treated as any other public health issue in
estimated at around 6.5% (Institute of Health India.
Metrics and Evaluation 2013).  Infrastructure - Inadequate infrastructure
 The major problem that exists in Indian and the scarcity of healthcare professionals in
mental healthcare is the treatment gap i.e the India contribute to wide treatment gaps in
number of individuals with an illness who mental healthcare.
need treatment but do not receive it.  Statistics suggest that there are fewer
What are the reasons for treatment gap? psychiatrists than the requirement for the
Indian population.

 The unpopularity of psychiatry stems from a

limited curriculum in medical colleges and a
view among medical students that psychiatry
is a difficult and non-scientific discipline.

 Stigma - Individuals with mental illnesses

suffer from social stigma in India.

 Cost - The economic burden of mental illness

contributes significantly to the treatment gap
in India.
  The costs of long-term treatment, including 5. MAHARASHTRA’S LAW ON
consultation and medication costs, travelling
SOCIAL BOYCOTT
costs to treatment centres all contribute
substantially to the economic burden of mental Why in news?
illness. Government of Maharashtra published and brought
into force the Maharashtra Protection of People from
Social Boycott (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal)
Act, 2016.

Why are Khap Panchayats detrimental?

 They act as parallel systems of justice

dispensation that derive their authority from
tradition, respect for ―public‖ (mob) sentiment
or the autonomy of community logic.

 Such systems abound in the state and the

How to reduce the Treatment Gap? country—which makes it justifiable for groups
to assume the responsibility, nay duty, to take
 Make mental health treatment accessible in
up the flag of protection and conservation of
primary care.
tradition.
 Make psychotropic drugs readily available.
 In a democracy, no caste, community, religion
 Shift care away from institutions and towards or tribe can command such powers over
community care. individuals of their own group or on others.
 Educate the public. What are the highlights of the act?
 Involve family, communities, and consumers.  It is an important step in arresting the abuse of
Community-based care could provide power by in-group elites.
substantial benefits to patients and families by
 It defines social boycott as any intra-
providing affordable healthcare services,
community act that-
thereby reducing the economic burden of
mental illness 1. creates impediments in the observance
of social or religious customs,
 Establish separate national mental health
obstructs marriages or funerals by
programmes.
community rites, ostracises socially or
 Increase and improve training of mental commercially,
health professionals.
2. denies access to public services or
 Increase links with other governmental and places of worship, incites severing of
non-governmental institutions. It is crucial to ties, segregates children,
reconsider the definitions of mental illness in
3. discriminates on the basis of
Persons with Disabilities Act, The Census of
―morality, social acceptance, political
India and NSSO.
inclination, sexuality,‖ etc;
 Provide monitoring of the mental health
4. forces or obstructs the wearing of a
system with quality indicators.
particular dress or use of language or
 Support more research. similar acts, culminating in social
boycott.
  It also makes void all the rulings of social
boycott made before the passing of the act and
places the burden of proof on the accused.
 It defines caste panchayats as a registered or
non-registered body from any community
which regulates or controls personal and social
behaviour and collectively resolves or decides
any disputes amongst members through oral
or written dictums.
What are the shortcomings?
 The act’s sole focus on the phenomenon of
social boycott, is limiting because it is not the
only lever on which the power of caste
panchayats is hinged.
 Identifying caste panchayats by the nature of
their crimes rather than the kind of power they
exercise, which can always be modified into a
benign settlement with the law, is a challenge
the act has receded from.
 Ordering killings, making women prove purity
of character by publicly asking them to put
their body parts through fire, ruling marriages
of underage girls to their rapists, prohibiting
and often breaking consent marriages outside
caste, asking for proofs of consummation,
closing avenues of livelihood in the village, not
allowing passage on public property, not
allowing children to intermingle, not allowing
families to seek marriage proposals from
within the community, denying medical help,
monetary penalties, etc, are only some
examples of the punishments delivered by
these gaavkis.
 Government dealt with caste panchayats as a
mere law and order problem and the bill
drafted and passed from the home and
judiciary department.
 This has led to the failure of integrating
important aspects of how both caste and caste
panchayats work, which can severely curtail
the realisation of the act’s goals.
 Three examples can be stated in this relation.
 The act has no provision for special protection
or compensation and rehabilitation of the
victims of inter-caste marriages, which is a
major issue with respect to caste panchayats.
 Some communities like the Pardhi tribe are
unable to acquire any proof of identification,
including their community identity, given that
acquiring any proof of identity requires a proof
of residence, land records, etc.
 Such communities rely solely on their caste
panchayats for resolving disputes as even filing
a FIR would require community identification.
 The act makes no special provisions for them.
 The protection to victims and witnesses which
becomes all the more important as the act
makes the crime both compoundable and
bailable.
 In a situation where the domination of
panchayat leaders extends from the realm of
economic to the social sphere, it is likely that a
variety of intimidation and pressure tactics will
be used on the complainants.
 The act has also reduced the maximum
punishment from seven to up to three years of
imprisonment.
 The provision of speedy trial within six months
in the draft bill has also been removed from
the act.
6. BARRIERS TO ART ADHERENCE
What is the issue?
 Research suggests that adherence to treatment
of HIV should be greater than 95% for
maximum benefit.
 However, observation at one of India’s 355
ART centres identified several barriers to
adherence, including shortage of drugs and
CD4 test kits.
What is ART?
 It is the combination of several antiretroviral
medicines used to slow the rate at which HIV
makes copies of itself/multiplies in the body.
  The National AIDS Control Organization
(NACO) initiated free ART services in India in
2004 under the National AIDS Control
Programme (NACP).
 As of 2015, around 355 ART
functioned across the country.
 ART centres are assigned four
functions—medical, psychological, social and
programmatic .
What is the significance of Adherence?
 Adherence to medication means that a person
has to take the prescribed pills and follow a
consistent schedule and dietary advice.
 People living with HIV (PLWH)
sustainable adherence in order to suppress the
HIV and maintain immunity of the body.
 Adherence to ART has considerably decreased
the mortality and morbidity rate worldwide
(Turner 2012).
What are the reasons for low adherence?
 Economic Constraints - The relationship
between poverty and HIV is bi-directional—
poverty increases the risk of HIV, and HIV
enhances poverty.
 NACO provides free medication, yet most
people attending these clinics are financially
unstable, and work as daily wage labourers.
 They suffer a loss of daily income in order to
visit ART centres, which results in an
additional financial burden.
 Availability of CD4 Test Kits - CD4 tests
are conducted to find out the count of CD4 T
lymphocytes in a blood sample.
 These cells are responsible for maintaining
immunity of the body.
 The HIV care provider recommends the CD4
test, generally once every three to nine
months, depending on the health status of the
patient.
 An appropriate number of CD4 test kits are
required to monitor all people in ART Centres.
 But mostly either the test kit is unavailable, or
there is an absence of technicians to take blood
samples.
 Shortage of medicines - ARV drugs are
centres expensive and the GOI bears this expense.
 When there is a shortage of drugs, medicines
major are issued for a limited number of days, or
people are asked to come back the following
day.
 This breaks the adherence.
 Lack of transportation - ART centres are
located at district hospitals and are often quite
distant from the patient’s place of residence.
need  Some PLWH have to change three to four
modes of transportation and walk miles to
reach the ART centre. Others have to begin
their journey early in the morning in order to
reach the centre by noon, and then have to
travel the same distance back.
 Hence distance to clinic and transportation
becomes major barriers to retention in care in
a wide variety of settings in Africa and Asia.
 Infrastructure at ART centres - NACO’s
operational guidelines state -
1. There should be adequate area where
patients and accompanying persons
can wait and where group counselling
can also be conducted.
2. Television and other audio-visual
facilities should be installed here for
educational purposes.
3. Attention should be paid to avoid the
air borne infection by adequate
ventilation/windows, etc. (NACO
2012: 9)
 Yet ART centres lack even primary facilities
like seating, drinking water and hygienic toilet
facilities.
 This discourages people from attending ART
clinics.
 Stigma and discrimination - PLWH tend
to keep their visits to ART clinics secret,
 because of which they are often not able to
take the treatment seriously.
7. RIGHT TO SAFE ABORTION
Why in news?
A 10-year-old victim of rape delivered a baby girl after
being denied permission to abort by the court.
Why was the girl denied permission?
 The girl was assaulted by her uncle.
 The child has had a surgery performed three
years ago at the for a hole in the heart.
 The parents had concern overs her health
given the history of cardiac surgery.
 So they approached first the Chandigarh High
Court to grant her permission to abort when
she was 26 weeks pregnant.
 On being denied they approached the Supreme
Court which also denied based on expert
Medical Opinion
What are the clinical issues?
 At the age of 10, an average Indian female
child will weigh 30 kg and be 140 cm tall.
 The maternal height of less than 145 cm
obstructs labour and increases the risk of a
bladder wall fistula during delivery.
 It is not likely that this child can have a vaginal
delivery without causing serious trauma to the
perineum and pelvic floor muscles.
 The foetus may also be growth retarded and of
a low birth weight.
 Delivery via a caesarean section is a major
surgery requiring anaesthesia.
 When the parents first approached HC, the
foetus would have weighed around 760 gm and
the termination could have taken place
vaginally, using medical abortion pills.
 The abortion would have posed much less risk
to the girl than a delivery by surgical
intervention in terms of anaesthesia, major
abdominal surgery, complications, blood loss
and wound healing.
What are the shortcomings of existing
legality?
 The Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP)
Act has set a gestation age limit of 20 weeks.
 However, it does allow the termination of a
pregnancy at any time if the opinion is formed,
in good faith that this is necessary to save the
life of the pregnant woman.
 MTP Act is needed only because the Indian
Penal Code (IPC) Sections 312–316 states that
whoever voluntarily causes a woman with child
to miscarry shall be punished with
imprisonment of three years, if such
miscarriage be not caused in good faith for the
purpose of saving the life of the woman.
 A woman who causes herself to miscarry, is
within the meaning of this section.
 By this explanation, every woman who self-
medicates using medical abortion pills (even if
very safely) is liable for prosecution under the
IPC.
 If Sections 312 to 316 were to be removed from
the IPC then all abortion procedures would be
under the purview of medical guidelines
similar to the way in which other surgical and
medical procedures are.
 India does not have a separate law for open
heart surgery or bariatric surgery or
endoscopy.
 These are left to the domains of those who
have specialised clinical training.
 There is no doubt that this brings in issues of
self-regulation and accountability by medical
professionals but those are in dire need of
being addressed beyond the ambit of the
abortion service provision alone.
 Some are of the view that pregnancy that
progressed beyond 20 weeks need to consider
the ―rights of the unborn child.‖
 The applicability of this should be considered
in case of extreme conditions like Rape.
  Medical education in India is based on a
biomedical curative model that does not
include sensitisation or orientation on issues
and rights based on gender.
What should be done?
 Safe abortion is not only about terminating an
unwanted pregnancy.
 It is also one of the critical life-saving/life
changing episodes in the life cycle of a woman,
and part of the continuum of her sexual and
reproductive health and rights.
 The need of the hour is to have a forum or at
least discussions among stakeholders around
the issues of viability versus choice.
 The conversation around abortion rights
should be placed within the context of
women’s sexuality, patriarchy and gender
equality.
 The public sector should be made more
accountable for providing abortion services
and private sector should be better regulated.
 Investment should be made in training of
healthcare providers, in the pre-service years
and beyond, to ensure gender and rights
sensitisation.
 It is unacceptable that a girl or a woman to
suffer grievous physical or mental harm
because she was unable to access a timely,
sensitive and safe abortion service.
 While there had not been any formal
conscientious objection concerns in India thus
far, we need to anticipate the need to put in
place guidelines and protocols to guard
women’s right to safe abortion.
8. BIG DATA ANALYTICS
What is the issue?
 Massive data sets are transforming everything.
 With large data sets, it is all too easy to find
rare statistical anomalies and to confuse them
with real phenomena.
 Questions of privacy arises in an increasingly
―dataficated‖ world.
What is big data analytics?
 Big data is a term for data sets that are so large
or complex that traditional data processing
application software is inadequate to deal with
them.
 Big data analytics is the big data to uncover
hidden patterns, unknown correlations,
market trends, customer preferences and other
useful informations.
How related are big data and statistics?
 Philosophically, statistics and big data are
unified by a common goal i.e to understand the
world through numbers.
 However, the difference lies in their approach.
 Big data is acquired by the huge volume, wide
variety in terms of number of variables, high
velocity and haphazard manner.
 This is in direct conflict with statistics.
 Big data has an ―include everything‖ approach
where N=all.
 Google Translate, which operates by
statistically analysing hundreds of millions of
translated documents and looking for patterns
it can copy, is a successful model of Big Data
Analytics.
What are the problems with big data?
 By including everything, the quality of data
takes a backseat.
 Problems may become worse instead of
disappearing in massive data sets.
 With a huge number of variables, ―multiple
comparisons‖ are more likely to yield false
positive findings/spurious correlations.
 It is assumed that with enough data, numbers
start speaking for themselves and the
correlation is sufficient to tell us everything we
want to know.
  This argument also fails if the environment
from which the data is
suddenly/abruptly changes.
 e.g The misestimation of the prevalence of
influenza by Google Flu Trends—an algorithm
based on search data—provides a case in point.
 Many of these big data challenges are seen at
the interface of statistics and computer
science.
 Thus, embracing statistical thinking
certainly be crucial to resolving many of the
issues, if not all.
How is privacy affected by Big Data?
 Generally, the privacy preservation model for
the data generated by the government through
large-scale surveys is simple and has been
effective.
 It includes mainly de-identification, that is,
removal of formal identifier.
 e.g Unit-level data cannot be produced as
evidence in any court of law.
 But the relentless drive to amass more
information makes it vulnerable.
 The high-dimensional data sets may contain so
many data points about an individual that each
record is likely to be unique.
 Thus, quasi identifiers can be found even if
direct identifiers are rigorously removed from
the data set.
 Data over-collection in itself
considered a violation of privacy as the
individuals are not fully
anticipated/unanticipated usage of data.
 Combining and analysing data from various
sources together, using data mining or other
techniques, may lead to easy reidentification.
 Also, privacy may be at risk if an adequate
security system (encryption, firewall, etc) is
not in place.
How to prevent it?
obtained
 Differential privacy is a recently developed
technique that protects the privacy through
intermediary software between the analyst and
the database.
 The software adds some noise in the data in
response to a query in proportion to the
evaluated privacy risk.
 Further, the emergence of cloud computing
will can be considered as a new computing
archetype that can provide improved services
on demand at a minimal cost.
 Technology such as Oblivious RAM (ORAM)
has been found promising in protecting
privacy in the cloud.
 The ―loss of privacy‖ argument is also
inconsistent with our behaviour of voluntarily
sacrificing our privacy by ignoring notices,
about consent regarding the use of our data,
while downloading software/apps.
9. CAN INDIA BE CONSIDERED AN
EMERGING GREAT POWER?
What is the issue?
 India strives to make its way to the top of the
global power structure.
 A range of debates on the parameters that
define great power status to understand
India’s current position in the international
order are examined.
may be What are the criteria?
 The term ―great power‖ has been common in
aware of
diplomatic parlance since at least the mid-18th
century.
 It nearly disappeared during the Cold War,
when it was replaced by discussions focused on
―super powers.‖
 This is because the material capabilities of the
US and the USSR outpaced those ranked right
after them by such a huge margin.
 During World War II, the global political
system was multipolar, with the US.
  However, by the time of the Cold War, even
those who staunchly opposed the superpowers
recognised that the international order was
characterised by bipolarity.
 Today, the world is considered unipolar, with
the US being the superpower and China, the
European Union, Japan, and Russia being the
four great powers.
 Some scholars also consider India to be an
emerging great power.
 Neo-realists define great powers by primarily
focussing on security as means for power and
survival, neo-liberals accord primacy to
cooperation and the state’s performance in
multilateral and transnational institutions.
 Another theoretical framework combines both
the traditional ―hard‖ dimensions of power,
such as military and economic capabilities,
with ―softer‖ elements like domestic political
stability and competence.
What is the capability of India?
 Undoubtedly, India’s material strength in the
South Asian region is preponderant in terms of
its economic growth and military capabilities.
 On account of its demographic dividend,
military strength, and economic growth, India
ranks higher than its competitors.
 In 2007, Goldman Sachs predicted a pace of
growth that would enable India to overtake
Japan in terms of gross domestic product
(GDP) by 2030 and the US by the following
decade.
 In January 2016, the World Bank declared
India to be the fastest growing economy with a
GDP of 7.7%, growing 4% faster than China.
 In terms of its GDP, placed 3rd after the US
and China.
What are the impediments?
 India still grapples domestically with perennial
disadvantages.
 On the scale of economic freedom, India ranks
104th, while US comes 4th.
 India scores 22.2 percentile on a scale of 100
for political stability and it is at the bottom of
the scale used for business and financial
freedoms.
 Its weakness lies in the non-material, ―softer‖
dimensions of power, such as corruption,
political instability, etc.
 It is still considered a ―limited hegemon‖
because of its failure to take up responsibilities
and share the ―global burden‖.
 India had successfully amended its position as
a ―veto-player‖ in the international
negotiations, but has been unsuccessful as an
―agenda-setter.‖
 India’s reluctance to take on international
responsibility at the United Nations (UN) or
even in the World Trade Organization has
proven its inefficiency and inability to be the
―supplier of global public goods.‖
 Further, it has remained unwilling to take on
binding commitments on climate change
negotiations.
 Similarly, India is keen on UN Security Council
membership, but its traditional interpretations
of sovereignty make it cautious about
interventionism.
What should be done?
 India as an ―emerging power‖ faces many
challenges of poverty, internal conflicts,
political instability in the domestic and
regional ambit, as well as economic and
security issues in the global realm.
 Hence, India’s preoccupation ought to be
directed at reforming the market structure,
developing infrastructure to hasten growth of
the manufacturing sector at the domestic level.
 Such economic agendas call for significant
changes in the domestic sphere: allocation of
more funds to the social sector, job creation for
the unemployed youth, health and sanitary
issues, and an inclusive development agenda.
  Only an inclusive and all-round developmental  The Kerala High Court annulled her marriage
agenda can allow India’s inclusion in the ―great and granted custody to her parents.
power‖ club in a true sense.
 Subsequently SC order NIA to investigate the
 At the same time, in the path to become a great legitimacy of a marriage.
power India should not compromise on its
What are the implications?
Indian identity.
 This has disappointed those who considered
 India’s identity is constitutive of three
the judiciary as the last standing pillar
features:
upholding constitutional values and protecting
1. Civilisational Exceptionalism, which is women’s freedoms.
non-aggressive, non-interventionist,
 By whipping up conspiratorial fervour, the
secular and democratic;
courts have nullified her fundamental right to
2. Post-Colonial Nationalism life and freedom of association.
interspersed with economic
 Repeated statements made by the courts and
independence, strategic autonomy,
her parents have infantilised her and rejected
and normative foreign policy &
her ability to take her own decisions.
3. A Secular Democratic Tradition, as a
 Meant to protect women’s freedoms, the courts
nation privileging democratic
have unwittingly conferred a punishment on
governance more in the present than
Hadiya through confinement under parental
the past.
custody.
10. MANIFESTATIONS OF
 She has been barred from contacting her
PATRIARCHY husband and has had to give up her
Why in news? professional practice.

The Supreme Court involved the National  Supreme Court’s order to the investigate is in
Investigation Agency to investigate the legitimacy of a no way contingent on Hadiya’s confinement
marriage involving religious conversion in Kerela. and hence, the Court has denied her both
agency and dignity.
What is the case about?
 Previous cases of so-called Love Jihad were
 Hadiya was born a Hindu.
premised on familiar notions of love being a
 She got attracted to Islam in the course of her state of ecstasy, naiveté and audacity.
interactions with Muslim peers.
 However, Hadiya’s case is not.
 She decided to convert to Islam against the will
 She had registered herself on a Muslim
of her parents and lived independently under
matrimonial website post conversion, where
her new identity as Hadiya.
she met Jahan, a young professional working
 The courts rejected two habeas corpus in Saudi Arabia, and decided to marry him.
petitions by her father and endorsed her right
 This is what baffles many. Why would a
to take life-altering decisions.
woman in her right mind go against the grain
 However, this changed when Hadiya got of societal norms and take such risks? The
married to Jahan. answer may be a damning one;

 She was illegally confined in her natal home  Many women nowadays seek mobility, making
after her consensual marriage to an adult life choices starkly different and radical from
male. that approved by the family.
  This has become a source of contestations  No class is specified after which detention will
among families from small towns and cities in be legal, implying that children can be held
Kerala, West Bengal, Karnataka and Uttar back from the entry level itself.
Pradesh where its been manifested a s the anti-
What are the implications?
Love Jihad armies and anti-Romeo squads.
 This is a regressive step.
 It may also be that Jahan is indeed
sympathetic to or an outright supporter of the  No questions are raised about the quality of
Islamic State just as he may be perfectly schooling.
patriarchal in his sensibilities too.  It is based on the assumption that children are
What should be done? responsible for failing in examinations.

 Hadiya case may just be a fallout of excessive  It is further linked to two more assumptions

feminist dependence on the judiciary. that fear of repeating a grade will make
students more serious about studying and that
 Judicial activism cannot take the place of
the grade repetition will lead to positive
grass-roots struggles, mass mobilisation and
outcomes.
initiating critical dialogue with communities to
effect changes from within.  There is no research to support this
hypothesis.
 All these efforts must go hand-in-hand to
ensure greater security, not surveillance, of  But there are enough studies to show how this

women. damages the self-image and morale of

students, eventually even forcing some to quit.

 The change could could particularly result in

11. WILL DETAINING CHILDREN students from socially, economically and
ENSURE LEARNING? culturally disadvantaged communities
struggling and suffering humiliation in
Why in news?
schools, and eventually dropping out.
An amendment bill to scrap the NDP in schools till
 It is not difficult to comprehend the reasons
Class VIII under the Right to Education (RtE) Act was
for children being unable to learn and project
recently cleared by the union cabinet.
their learning in desirable ways.
What was the proposal?
 An uninspiring curriculum, substandard
 Under the existing provisions of the RtE Act, textbooks, poorly-trained teachers and frugal
students are automatically promoted to the infrastructure are undoubtedly the real
next class till Class VIII. impediments in children’s learning.

 This provision, popularly called the NDP, was  The NDP was primarily meant to facilitate
hailed by most educationists and practitioners retention of children in schools for at least
as being the most progressive component of eight years and not necessarily to assess how
the RtE Act. much they learn.

 The present bill proposes an enabling  The latter is a separate issue that must also be
provision that will allow state governments to addressed.
detain students in Class V and Class VIII, if
 Moreover board examinations which are now
they fail in the year-end exam.
going to be introduced as early as Class V will
 They will be given a second chance before they further reinforce the belief that teaching–
are detained. learning–assessing remain restricted to mere
 transmission of content, rote memorisation
and mechanical reproduction of that content.
12. INDIA’S SLIP ON GLOBAL HUNGER
INDEX
 This is a slip in India’s rank with respect to
GHI 2014 as well as GHI 2008 that were at 55
and 66 (out of 120 countries) respectively.
What are the reasons for the slip?

 The central reason for this slip is the

What is the issue?
reformulation of GHI starting 2015, in which
After witnessing an improvement from 2008 to 2014,
India’s score was 29.
India’s rank on The Global Hunger Index (GHI)
 The formula for calculation was expanded to
slipped in 2016.
encompass the multidimensional character of
What is GHI? malnutrition and the indicator of the
 It is a tool designed to comprehensively underweight among children was replaced by
measure and track hunger globally, regionally, those of the stunted and the wasted among the
and by country. children.

 It is calculated each year, by the International  As a result, the GHI scores of several countries,
Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). including India, have deteriorated.

 An increase in a country's GHI score indicates

that the hunger situation is worsening, while a
decrease in the score indicates an
improvement in the hunger situation.

 The current scores are based on four

component indicators-
 If observed carefully, it is India’s disappointing
1. Undernourishment - the proportion of
performance on child stunting and wasting
undernourished people as a percentage of
that particularly accounts for its higher GHI
the population
score.
2. Child wasting - the proportion of  With underweight as the malnutrition
children under the age of five who suffer component in GHI, India witnessed some
from wasting improvement in its ranking on GHI between

3. Child stunting - the proportion of 2008 and 2014, as the country considerably

children under the age of 5 who suffer reduced its proportion of children who were

from stunting & underweight.

 However, the incidence of stunting (and even

4. Child mortality - the mortality rate of
wasting) among children has witnessed
children under the age of 5
relatively much smaller decline during the last
What are the findings of GHI 2016? decade.
 It reinstates India’s abysmal status on
malnutrition.

 India is ranked 97 out of 118 countries.

 This indicates serious levels of nutritional

deprivation among its children.
  Gender is recognised as a crucial link in  Thus, political commitment is necessary along
malnutrition (stunting and wasting in with inter-sectoral and intergovernmental
particular) outcomes. coordination and partnership.

 Greater incidence of child malnutrition in  Although many states have been able to curb
India is largely attributed in the literature to their levels of child malnutrition, six states in
rigid gendered norms and low status of India still have more than 40% of their
women. children as stunted.

 However, on gendered indicators, India  Three of these states, namely Uttar Pradesh,
continues to fare much behind its Bihar, and Jharkhand are at an alarming state
counterparts. of child malnutrition with a little less than half
of their children being stunted.

 The contribution of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar to

India’s stunted children is particularly striking
at around 21.5% and 11% as against their share
in population at around 16.5% and 8.6%
respectively.

 The incidence of low birth weight at 28% over

2008–12 in India is significantly high as
compared to its counterparts.

 This does not only indicate the potential threat

to child nutrition but also the neglect maternal
health continues to face.

 Adult female literacy as a percentage of male

literacy in India is 67.5%, while countries with
improved nutrition scenario have 95% of their
adult women as literates.

 Youth literacy rate for females at 74.4% is not  So to reduce stunting in India, the six states,
as dismal, yet considerably behind what has particularly, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, deserve
been attained by the listed countries. special attention.
What should be done?  There is a lack of financial resource with state
 If gender is considered as the central node in governments, which is one of the central
dealing with child malnutrition, then it is factors responsible for below optimal
difficult to abate stunting in the near future. performance of the Integrated Child
Development Services (ICDS).
 With increased level of awareness associated
with female education, immediate  Due to this, inconsistency in disbursement of
improvement in factors like dietary practices monthly allocations to ICDS centres in
underlying the incidence of wasting may be villages.
witnessed.  Presently, the ICDS is run with both centre
 Tackling malnutrition requires a consideration and state contributions and its coverage is not
of the political economy and creation of an universal.
enabling environment.  The cost sharing formula may be altered at
least for these critical states, and the number
 of ICDS centres for a given population should
be increased so that eligible beneficiaries are
not filtered out.
13. KERALA’S POOR PERFORMANCE
IN SWACHH SURVEKSHAN, 2017
What is the issue?
 The Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD),
Government of India, initiated the Swachh
Survekshan 2017 to study the progress of the
Swachh Bharat Mission.
 About 434 cities participated in this survey in
2017, including the nine cities of Kerala.
 All these cities in Kerala have performed
poorly in the ranking by their cleanliness and
sanitation status.
 The nodal agency for sanitation in Kerala
mentioned that the parameters used in the
survey to evaluate performance did not reflect
Kerala’s decentralised method of solid waste
management.
What is the centralised method?
 The dominant system of municipal solid waste
management in India is a centralised system.
 In this, local governments collect waste from
the city and transport it to a centralised waste
processing plant before the final disposal
through landfilling.
 The role of the households in the centralised
waste management system is limited to
segregation of waste at the source.
What is the decentralised method?
 The victims of the open dumping of waste
demanded in Kerala the closure of landfill sites
and experts from civil society suggested a
sustainable decentralised system.
 As a result, in 2014, the Government of
Kerala’s Suchitwa Mission directed the local
governments to implement decentralised
waste management and provided technical and
financial support.
 A decentralised model of solid waste
management refers to the treatment of solid
waste at its source.
 Households play a substantial role in waste
segregation, treatment and final disposal.
 The government promotes smaller
technologies, like pipe compost and biogas
plants.
 In this method, there is no need to collect
waste from each household and transport it for
treatment every day.
 Therefore, the role of the local government in a
decentralised solid waste management system
is limited to creating awareness in society and
supporting households with the use of
available smaller technologies.
 At the community level, in a few towns, local
government promotes aerobic bin clusters to
collect and compost the segregated waste.
 Currently, decentralised waste management is
in its initial phases of implementation in towns
in Kerala.
Did this method affect the rankings of
the cities?
 The methodology of the survey is trifurcated
and the marks are allocated as follows –
1. 45% for municipal documentation,
2. 25% for independent observation and
3. 30% for direct citizen feedback
 Five parameters of evaluation used in the
survey are –
 1. Municipal solid waste (MSW)  This means that either the waste management
collection and transportation is poor in these cities or they lack proper
2. MSW processing and disposal documentation. Therefore, to argue that the
reason behind the dismal ranking of cities in
3. Open defecation free toilets
Kerala is due to the difference in parameters of
4. Capacity building & evaluation, at least in the case of solid waste
5. Information, education, and management, is not reasonable.
communication. What are the other observations?
 The methodology, especially to evaluate MSW  In the other parameters, like open defecation-
management, was designed for a centralised free status, Kerala’s performance is better.
waste management system, which was evident
 Independent Observation involved the
from the results of the cleanest cities.
assessor, who visited the site to gather
 The evaluation in solid waste management was information and collected data by using
mainly based on the percentage of the door-to- independent validation and observation.
door waste collection, its transportation with
 Kerala’s towns performed well in this category
global positioning system (GPS)/radio
and were almost equal to that of some of the
frequency identification (RFID)-based tracking
first 100 ranked cities.
technologies for monitoring, and its treatment
before final disposal.  Waste produced in most households in Kerala
is treated on their premises as most of them
 As decentralised waste management does not
are independent houses.
require door-to-door waste collection and
transportation, the evaluation of a  This has reflected in the perceived cleanliness
decentralised system with the current of the city in Kerala under independent
parameters would be difficult. observation.

 Among the nine cities that participated in the  Ideally, Alappuzha should top the cities under
survey (Table 1), six of them (Kozhikode, independent observation because of the
Kochi, Guruvayur, Palakkad, Kannur and perceived successful implementation of
Kollam) continue to use a centralised waste decentralised waste management.
management system.
 The evaluation here, however, suggests a
 Therefore, assessment based on the given lacuna in the implementation of decentralised
parameters should not be an issue. waste management, which needs to be noticed.

 The limited door-to-door waste collection and  Citizen Feedback - Citizen feedback in the
lack of a GPS/RFID-based transportation survey reveals the satisfaction level of citizens
system are major reasons for falling short in on sanitation and waste management
the municipal documentation parameter of the strategies existing in a place.
survey.
 In the places where the transition to
 The districts of Thrissur, Thiruvananthapuram decentralised waste management is underway,
and Alappuzha have transitioned to citizen dissatisfaction is mainly due to the lack
decentralised waste management. of awareness, lack of technical knowledge to
carry out source treatment, and the non-
 Urban local governments with centralised
availability of technical services when
waste treatment facilities, like Kollam and
required.
Kannur, are positioned behind Thrissur
Municipal Corporation.
 14.MACHIL ENCOUNTER CASE
What is the issue?  Section 125 of the Army Act, 1950 allows it to

 It is generally perceived that AFSPA gives choose between a regular criminal court and

impunity to the army personnel in conflict court martial.

areas.  Similarly, Courts need sanction for the

 The Machil encounter case proves that, in prosecution of army personnel.

actuality, it is the Army Act and sections of the  Section 45(1) (CrPC) - No member of the
CrPC along with various government orders armed forces of the union shall be arrested for
that give full cover to erring army officers. anything done or purported to be done by him

What is the case about? in the discharge of his official duties except
after obtaining the consent of the central
 The case involves killing of three civilians in government.
Kashmir’s Kupwara district in 2010 by naming
 Section 197(2) CrPC - No court shall take
them "Pakistani infiltrators".
cognisance of any offence alleged to have been
 Later findings showed that it was a staged committed by any member of the armed forces
encounter case. of the union while acting or purporting to act
 These three men were lured by an army source in the discharge of his official duty, except with
to Machil near the Line of Control (LoC) on the the previous sanction of the central
pretext of giving them jobs. government.

 An army court martial awarded life  Interestingly so far the AFSPA has not been
imprisonment to 5 army personnel involved. invoked as there seems to be no need as the
Army Act covering its interests.
 It was widely welcomed in Kashmir Valley as it
seemingly reversed the practice of defending  Ironically, erring army personnel choose the
the human rights violations of the army. civil courts when it comes to accidents, as they
fear stern punishment from army courts on
 The hopes were short-lived as the Armed
grounds of violating discipline.
Forces Tribunal (AFT) suspended the
imprisonment sentence and granted bail to all  Another biggest hurdle against the basic
the five. principle of justice in cases of human rights
violations by the armed forces’ personnel is
 AFT’s suspension showed complete disregard
that both the Army and Border Security Force
towards the findings of the J&K police, the
(BSF) Acts are silent about the right to defence
army court of inquiry and the court martial.
of the victims in army courts.
What provides immunity to security
 There is absolutely no provision for the victims
personnel?
to plead their case.
 The power to choose the course of inquiry i.e
 It is only when court-martials are replaced by
either by holding a court martial or being tried
an open, transparent and fair trial in a regular
in a civil court has been vested with the army.
independent court system, can the victims of
 This has played a significant role in thwarting armed forces atrocities in Kashmir can be
justice in such cases. ensured of justice.