Comprehensive News Analysis - 12 November 2016

Useful News Articles

A. GS1 Related

Nothing here today folks!

B. GS2 Related

India signs landmark civil nuclear deal with Japan

Category: Bilateral

Topic: India – Japan

Key Points:

India signed a landmark civilian nuclear deal with Japan during the annual bilateral summit-2016 held in Prime Minister Narendra Modi after signing the deal which marked the high point of the ongoing visit to Japan described it as a historic step.

The deal is significant as it will help guarantee Japan’s continued support to India’s civil nuclear programme. Apart from the Russian reactors, the planned nuclear reactors with France and the U.S. depend on Japanese parts. The deal is also likely to revitalise Japanese nuclear majors that are yet to recover from the setback of the Fukushima accident.

The nuclear deal which will help India access Japan’s nuclear market had been under negotiation for 6 years and was firmed up during the 2015 visit of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to India when the principles of the agreement were frozen. However, the final seal on the text had to wait legislative clearance from Japan, which has 13 civil nuclear agreements with countries such as France and the U.S.

The deal would allow Japan to export nuclear technology to India, making it the first non-NPT signatory to have such a deal with Japan. Japan is a major player in the nuclear energy market and an atomic deal with it will make it easier for US-based nuclear plant makers Westinghouse Electric Corporation and GE Energy Inc to set up atomic plants in India as both these conglomerates have Japanese investments. The last stage of negotiations was keenly watched due to a nullification clause which seeks automatic cancellation of the deal if India resorts to nuclear testing.

Negotiations which began in 2010 during the UPA government were stuck on India’s non-NPT status as Japan sought assurances that the deal would be used for peaceful purposes. There was political resistance in Japan, the only country to suffer atomic bombings during World War II against a nuclear deal with India, particularly after the disaster at the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant in 2011.

Note – India and Japan also signed 9 agreements including one on cooperation between ISRO and JAXA in outer space. Another MoU that was signed covered investment in infrastructure projects in railways and transport terminals.

Centre unveils steps to boost Cyber security

Category: Centre’s programs and policies

Topic: Cyber-security

Key Points:

The government announced a slew of measures to strengthen cyber security in India, including that all organisations having a significant IT infrastructure will need to appoint cyber security officers & efforts to strengthen Cert-IN, the government’s cyber security arm.

The Ministry of Communications has approved 26 new posts. State Certs are being planned by Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Kerala and Jharkhand. Also, 3 sectoral Certs in power sector – generation, transmission and distribution, have been set up, in addition to the banking one.

The Ministry of communications said a National cyber coordination center is being set up to provide near real time situational awareness and rapid response at a cost of Rs 985 crore. This project will be completed in 5 years.

World Bank asks India, Pak to agree to mediation in Hydel projects

Category: Bilateral

Topic: India – Pakistan

Key Points:

The World Bank has urged India and Pakistan to agree to mediation on how to proceed in their dispute over 2 hydropower dam projects in Jammu and Kashmir. Replying to a strong statement from India that the World Bank, a signatory to the Indus Waters Treaty 1960, was favouring Pakistan by going ahead with an arbitration process, the Bank said it had gone ahead with both countries’ requests.

The dispute is over the Kishenganga (330 MW) and Ratle (850 MW) hydel plants India is constructing on the Kishenganga and Chenab rivers.

Important first step taken to resolve fisheries conflict

Category: Bilateral

Topic: India – Sri Lanka

Key Points:

Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera said India realised the dangers of bottom-trawling, but the 2 countries should work out a win-win situation for poor fishermen on both sides of the Palk Bay. The minister had called for a ban on bottom-trawling, citing its adverse impact on marine ecosystems.

The Joint Working Group – JWG that the neighbours have set up, following the high-level talks in New Delhi recently, will meet in Colombo early January, 2017 to take discussions forward.

C. GS3 Related

EU said Expiry of investment pacts will hurt FDI into India

Category: Indian Economy – Foreign Investment

Topic: Bilateral Investment Treaties

Key Points:

European Commission said India’s separate Bilateral Investment Treaties – BIT with 23 European Union (EU) member countries will soon expire one after the other and the absence of an investment protection pact will hurt Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from EU to India.

The European Commission, therefore, wants India to agree to extend the expiry date of these BITs till an India-EU BIT is in place. Pointing out that the expiry of these BITs will begin with the one with the Netherlands shortly, the Commission said such a situation will create a legal vacuum something that is troubling European companies looking to make huge investments in India.

European Commission further said the lack of a BIT adds to the risk premium and increases the cost of funds for investors, a situation that would result in European companies deciding to invest lesser in India than earlier planned. The easiest way to address this issue is to prolong the legal validity of the existing BITs till an India-EU BIT is in place. The Commission has conveyed this to the Indian government.

INS Vikramaditya completes first refit in Kochi

Category: Defense

Topic: Navy

Key Points:

The aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya has successfully completed its first routine maintenance, a 43-day short refit, at the Cochin Shipyard, and is at a high level of operational competence and preparedness. The maiden dry-docking of the vessel after its induction into the Navy in November, 2013, had put to rest apprehensions about the feasibility of carrying out its first cycle of underwater maintenance within India.

The ship arrived in Kochi in early September, and was dry-docked at Cochin Shipyard on September 23, 2016 close on the heels of the soon-to-be-retired aircraft carrier INS Viraat was undocked following its decommissioning refit.

The Naval authorities said the vessel added a great national capability, enhancing the image of the Navy. All systems, including the long range surface to air missile (LR-SAM), the close-in weapon system (CIWS), the main gun were all in place and the process of exploiting the capabilities of the carrier and its air arm had come a long way with the ship’s company and the systems integrating well.

D. GS4 Related

Nothing here today folks!

E. Important Editorials: A Quick Glance

The Hindu

Punjab’s legislative adventurism

Key Points:

There was never any doubt that Punjab’s legislative adventurism in enacting a law in 2004 to terminate all previous agreements on sharing the waters of the Ravi and the Beas with its neighbours would not survive judicial scrutiny. Answering a Presidential reference on the validity of Punjab’s action, the Supreme Court has declared the State’s law illegal.

It has ruled that Punjab reneged on its solemn promises by terminating its 1981 agreement with Haryana and Rajasthan to discharge itself of the obligation to construct the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal. Its objective was to overcome the 2004 decree passed by the Supreme Court directing it to complete the canal work expeditiously.

The court’s reasoning draws from previous verdicts relating to the Cauvery and Mullaperiyar disputes, reiterating the principle that “a State cannot, through legislation, do an act in conflict with the judgment of the highest court which has attained finality.” It is another matter if legislation takes the form of a validating Act to cure specific illegalities or one that removes the basis for a particular verdict.

The verdict by a five-member Bench is a timely reminder that it would be destructive of the rule of law and federalism if a State were to be allowed to usurp judicial powers by nullifying a verdict that has rendered findings on both fact and law.

As Punjab heads for the Assembly election, this issue has already led to posturing by all major parties on which among them is the best protector of the State’s interests. This attitude leads to a disturbing tendency among States to be judges in their own cause, especially when it comes to water disputes. Political parties in power increasingly resort to legislation or Assembly resolutions rather than negotiation.

The Opposition parties collaborate in this with equal zeal, lest they be seen to be wanting in passion for the cause. Punjab may well have had legitimate grievances, historically, in the sharing of waters. This was, in fact, the reason the Rajiv-Longowal accord of 1985 contained clauses relating to river-water sharing too. Earlier, differences were first settled by a notification by the Centre in 1976. When the matter led to litigation, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi brokered an agreement in 1981.

In effect, the present arrangements, which Punjab seeks to wriggle out of, are backed by three agreements. The Supreme Court ruled against Punjab in 2002 as well as in 2004. The State’s obligation to allow the completion of the SYL Link Canal, so that Haryana can utilise the share of water allocated to it, cannot be frustrated any more. If Punjab feels aggrieved, there may be scope for negotiation and conciliation even now, but it cannot take action unilaterally.

F. Concepts-in-News: Related Concepts to Revise/Learn:

G. Fun with Practice Questions 🙂

Question 1.Recently India has signed landmark civil nuclear deal

a) Japan b) USA c) China d) France

Question 2.Indus water treaty is between-

a) India&Pakistan b) India&Srilanka c) India&Bangladesh d) India&Nepal

Question 3.Cyber security in india comes under

Ministry of Communication and Information Technology.
Ministry of defense
Ministry of information & broadcasting

a) (i) only b) (i) and (ii) only c) (ii) and (iii) only d) All 3

Question 4.Which of the following is not a tributary of Indus?

a) Chenab b) Ravi c) Satluj d) Ghaghara

Question 5.Which among the following is the largest source of electricity in india?

a) thermal b) hydroelectric c) solar d)nuclear

Check Your Answers

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