1)Maareech –Advanced Torpedo Defence System of Indian Navy :-
- SMB (Seakeeping and Manoeuvring Basin) facility is one of its kind in the country, set up as a joint effort of DRDO and Indian Navy. The facility puts India among the few nations in the world having the capability to undertake comprehensive hydrodynamic model testing of naval platforms and weapon systems. SMB would help to design and build state-of-the-art naval combatants such as submarines, ships, torpedoes, etc.
- Maareech, a joint project of Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory (NPOL), Kochi and NSTL, Visakhapatnam is a state-of-the-art indigenous system for torpedo detection and countermeasures. This system offers a complete solution to detect and locate the incoming torpedo and to apply countermeasures to protect naval platform against torpedo attack. Two production grade Maareech systems have been developed and user evaluation trials completed onboard two Indian Navy ships.
2)Children’s day and Legacy of Nehru:-
Nehru was the foremost architect of India, his contribution is unparalleled from bringing India out of the clutch of Colonial masters to an Independent India as we see today. His policy of non-alignment has created the necessary space for our foreign policy makers. His intellect of not giving into any particular power bloc in his heydays , gave India its Independent foreign policy. As he wisely said , the modern temples of India are not the one people go to pray ,but the one where people go to work – He saw the Industry as the temple of modern India. His achievements are well-known and so his philosophy. He is best described by the foremost architect of Singapore – Lee Kuan Yew , who observed that ” Nehru is the demigod who chose not to be a dictator” . As the nation celebrates his birthday, we have complied the saying of the first Prime minister of this great country :-
- On life:- “Life is like a game of cards. The hand you are dealt is determinism; the way you play it is free will.”
- On Peace :- “Peace is not a relationship of nations. It is a condition of mind brought about by a serenity of soul. Peace is not merely the absence of war. It is also a state of mind. Lasting peace can come only to peaceful people”
- On Capitalism :- “The forces in a capitalist society, if left unchecked, tend to make the rich richer and the poor poorer.”
- On Culture :- “Culture is the widening of the mind and of the spirit“
- On Democracy :- “Democracy is good. I say this because other systems are worse”
- Empowering People :- “The man who has gotten everything he wants is all in favor of peace and order.”
- On Democracy and Adult franchise:-
In 1951 Dec 20th, Nehru, while campaigning for the first democratic elections in India, took a short break to address a UNESCO symposium in Delhi. Although he believed democracy was the best form of governance, while speaking at the symposium he wondered loud…
“The quality of men who are selected by these modern democratic methods of adult franchise gradually deteriorates because of lack of thinking and the noise of propaganda….He[the voter] reacts to sound and to the din, he reacts to repetition and he produces either a dictator or a dumb politician who is insensitive. Such a politician can stand all the din in the world and still remain standing on his two feet and, therefore, he gets selected in the end because the others have collapsed because of the din ”
3)Rajiv Khel Abhiyan:-
It is a centrally sponsored scheme. It was launched in 2014 in place of erstwhile Panchayat Yuva Krida aur Khel Abhiyan (PYKKA).
Objective :-
- To provide universal access to sports in rural areas and promote sports culture among both boys and girls.
- To harness available and potential sporting talent among rural youth, through a well-designed competition structure from the block level.
- To put in place an effective mechanism to identify and nurture sporting talent in rural areas.
News:- Karwar district in Karnataka is gearing up to host various games under the State-level Rajiv Gandhi Khel Abhiyan. State-level competitions in Kho Kho, Kabaddi, Judo and Table Tennis will be conducted under the scheme.
4)Terrorist Strike at Paris:-
A set of shootings and explosions hit Paris late on Friday, killing at least 129 people and injuring more than 350 in one of the city’s densest districts on a Friday night. The identity of the terrorists and their motives are still unknown; ISIS claimed responsibility, but the veracity of the group’s claim is unclear
ISIS claimed responsibility for the attacks, citing France’s “crusader campaign” in an apparent reference to the country’s role in air strikes against the group in Syria and Iraq. But the veracity of the claim remains unclear, although President Hollande blamed ISIS, as well.
5) Transparency International :-
Note:- This institution and its ranking has been mentioned by Prime Minister of India in his Wembley Stadium address while in UK visit.
Transparency International (TI) is a non-governmental organization that monitors and publicizes corporate and political corruption in international development. Originally founded in Germany in May 1993 as a not-for-profit organization, Transparency International is now an international non-governmental organization.
It publishes an annual Global Corruption Barometer and Corruption Perceptions Index, a comparative listing of corruption worldwide
India’s Ranking :-
Corruption Perceptions Index (2014) Rank: 85 /175
Significance:- India is ranked less corrupt than China in 18 Years.India jumped 10 places to rank 85 out of 175 countries and China dropped 20 places to rank 100, according to Wall Street Journal.
Criticism :- This being a NGO , it’s ranking was challenged from time to time and criticized for having vested interest.
Analysis:- Though the index is a good news for India, yet , the ranking by NGO instead of a governmental platform such World Bank should be treated with due care and due diligence.And this principle of caution applies for any other NGO as they are not inter-governmental engagements.
Recent Posts
- In the Large States category (overall), Chhattisgarh ranks 1st, followed by Odisha and Telangana, whereas, towards the bottom are Maharashtra at 16th, Assam at 17th and Gujarat at 18th. Gujarat is one State that has seen startling performance ranking 5th in the PAI 2021 Index outperforming traditionally good performing States like Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, but ranks last in terms of Delta
- In the Small States category (overall), Nagaland tops, followed by Mizoram and Tripura. Towards the tail end of the overall Delta ranking is Uttarakhand (9th), Arunachal Pradesh (10th) and Meghalaya (11th). Nagaland despite being a poor performer in the PAI 2021 Index has come out to be the top performer in Delta, similarly, Mizoram’s performance in Delta is also reflected in it’s ranking in the PAI 2021 Index
- In terms of Equity, in the Large States category, Chhattisgarh has the best Delta rate on Equity indicators, this is also reflected in the performance of Chhattisgarh in the Equity Pillar where it ranks 4th. Following Chhattisgarh is Odisha ranking 2nd in Delta-Equity ranking, but ranks 17th in the Equity Pillar of PAI 2021. Telangana ranks 3rd in Delta-Equity ranking even though it is not a top performer in this Pillar in the overall PAI 2021 Index. Jharkhand (16th), Uttar Pradesh (17th) and Assam (18th) rank at the bottom with Uttar Pradesh’s performance in line with the PAI 2021 Index
- Odisha and Nagaland have shown the best year-on-year improvement under 12 Key Development indicators.
- In the 60:40 division States, the top three performers are Kerala, Goa and Tamil Nadu and, the bottom three performers are Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bihar.
- In the 90:10 division States, the top three performers were Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and Mizoram; and, the bottom three performers are Manipur, Assam and Meghalaya.
- Among the 60:40 division States, Orissa, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh are the top three performers and Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Delhi appear as the bottom three performers.
- Among the 90:10 division States, the top three performers are Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland; and, the bottom three performers are Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh
- Among the 60:40 division States, Goa, West Bengal and Delhi appear as the top three performers and Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Bihar appear as the bottom three performers.
- Among the 90:10 division States, Mizoram, Himachal Pradesh and Tripura were the top three performers and Jammu & Kashmir, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh were the bottom three performers
- West Bengal, Bihar and Tamil Nadu were the top three States amongst the 60:40 division States; while Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan appeared as the bottom three performers
- In the case of 90:10 division States, Mizoram, Assam and Tripura were the top three performers and Nagaland, Jammu & Kashmir and Uttarakhand featured as the bottom three
- Among the 60:40 division States, the top three performers are Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa and the bottom three performers are Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Goa
- In the 90:10 division States, the top three performers are Mizoram, Sikkim and Nagaland and the bottom three performers are Manipur and Assam
In a diverse country like India, where each State is socially, culturally, economically, and politically distinct, measuring Governance becomes increasingly tricky. The Public Affairs Index (PAI 2021) is a scientifically rigorous, data-based framework that measures the quality of governance at the Sub-national level and ranks the States and Union Territories (UTs) of India on a Composite Index (CI).
States are classified into two categories – Large and Small – using population as the criteria.
In PAI 2021, PAC defined three significant pillars that embody Governance – Growth, Equity, and Sustainability. Each of the three Pillars is circumscribed by five governance praxis Themes.
The themes include – Voice and Accountability, Government Effectiveness, Rule of Law, Regulatory Quality and Control of Corruption.
At the bottom of the pyramid, 43 component indicators are mapped to 14 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that are relevant to the States and UTs.
This forms the foundation of the conceptual framework of PAI 2021. The choice of the 43 indicators that go into the calculation of the CI were dictated by the objective of uncovering the complexity and multidimensional character of development governance
The Equity Principle
The Equity Pillar of the PAI 2021 Index analyses the inclusiveness impact at the Sub-national level in the country; inclusiveness in terms of the welfare of a society that depends primarily on establishing that all people feel that they have a say in the governance and are not excluded from the mainstream policy framework.
This requires all individuals and communities, but particularly the most vulnerable, to have an opportunity to improve or maintain their wellbeing. This chapter of PAI 2021 reflects the performance of States and UTs during the pandemic and questions the governance infrastructure in the country, analysing the effectiveness of schemes and the general livelihood of the people in terms of Equity.
Growth and its Discontents
Growth in its multidimensional form encompasses the essence of access to and the availability and optimal utilisation of resources. By resources, PAI 2021 refer to human resources, infrastructure and the budgetary allocations. Capacity building of an economy cannot take place if all the key players of growth do not drive development. The multiplier effects of better health care, improved educational outcomes, increased capital accumulation and lower unemployment levels contribute magnificently in the growth and development of the States.
The Pursuit Of Sustainability
The Sustainability Pillar analyses the access to and usage of resources that has an impact on environment, economy and humankind. The Pillar subsumes two themes and uses seven indicators to measure the effectiveness of government efforts with regards to Sustainability.
The Curious Case Of The Delta
The Delta Analysis presents the results on the State performance on year-on-year improvement. The rankings are measured as the Delta value over the last five to 10 years of data available for 12 Key Development Indicators (KDI). In PAI 2021, 12 indicators across the three Pillars of Equity (five indicators), Growth (five indicators) and Sustainability (two indicators). These KDIs are the outcome indicators crucial to assess Human Development. The Performance in the Delta Analysis is then compared to the Overall PAI 2021 Index.
Key Findings:-
In the Scheme of Things
The Scheme Analysis adds an additional dimension to ranking of the States on their governance. It attempts to complement the Governance Model by trying to understand the developmental activities undertaken by State Governments in the form of schemes. It also tries to understand whether better performance of States in schemes reflect in better governance.
The Centrally Sponsored schemes that were analysed are National Health Mission (NHM), Umbrella Integrated Child Development Services scheme (ICDS), Mahatma Gandh National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (SmSA) and MidDay Meal Scheme (MDMS).
National Health Mission (NHM)
INTEGRATED CHILD DEVELOPMENT SERVICES (ICDS)
MID- DAY MEAL SCHEME (MDMS)
SAMAGRA SHIKSHA ABHIYAN (SMSA)
MAHATMA GANDHI NATIONAL RURAL EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE SCHEME (MGNREGS)