📰 Ready to join dialogue with India: Pak. Army
Its chiefs have shied away from talks when a civilian government wields power
•The Pakistan Army is ready to formally inject itself into any dialogue process with India, the country’s military spokesman indicated to a group of visiting South Asian journalists in a rare on-the-record conversation on Sunday. Pakistan’s Army chiefs have engaged with India after assuming power directly but have shied away from talking to New Delhi when a civilian government holds power in Islamabad.
•Other foreign leaders routinely meet the current Army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa in Rawalpindi, as was the case with his predecessors. “We have passed that stage,” Major-General Asif Ghafoor, Director-General of the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Directorate, said when asked by The Hindu whether the Army chief would join Pakistan’s civilian leaders in talking to India or meeting his Indian Army counterpart.
•India has long felt that the Pakistan Army is not on the same page with the country’s civilian government when it engages in talks with New Delhi, and could sabotage the process like what happened with the Lahore “breakthrough” in 1999.
•After the 2016 Uri terror strike, New Delhi scrapped plans to attend the SAARC summit in Islamabad.
•The bilateral dialogue process has also been put on hold. NSAs Ajit Doval and Nazir Janjua have, however, been meeting and interacting on a range of issues. Asked whether the Army envisaged a grand reconciliation with India or small steps in the direction of peace, Gen. Ghafoor said the two countries could not jump to the moon. “Initial steps have to be taken,” he said.
•Gen. Ghafoor also told The Hindu that groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba would have to be mainstreamed and that Pakistan was awaiting “evidence” from India to conclude the trial in the November 2006 Mumbai terror strikes.
•He said Pakistan had been much misunderstood abroad. Westerners feel that Pakistanis dress like Osama bin Laden with nuclear bombs in hand. “The same red blood runs in our veins,” he stressed.
•Gen. Ghafoor also indicated that Pakistan was ready to consider participating in any multilateral exercise that involved Indian troops under Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) auspices. Both India and Pakistan are now members of SCO, a grouping in which the Chinese have taken the lead.
•Conceding that there was a “trust deficit” between India and Pakistan, he said the time had come to move forward. He said SAARC could be a most effective forum if it could be revived. “Let us make SAARC effective.”
•On former Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s statement that militant groups were active in Pakistan and questioning why the Mumbai attack trial could not be completed, Gen. Ghafoor said the remarks had gotten more play in the Indian media than in Pakistan.
•Mr. Sharif, however, has not backed down from his comments despite a meeting of Pakistan’s National Security Council, which comprises the top brass of the country’s military.
•Demanding a national truth commission, Mr. Sharif, who is at loggerheads with the Army, said on Tuesday, “We should find out who laid the foundation of terrorism in the country. Pakistan is not becoming isolated; it is already isolated. Tell me which country stands with us.”
•Mr. Sharif’s nominee as Prime Minister, Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, who demits office at the end of May as a caretaker government comes in ahead of general elections, has defended his former boss.
📰 SC rejects Karnataka’s plea to stall finalisation of draft Cauvery scheme
Karnataka wanted the scheme to be put on hold as the new government in the State is yet to be formed
•The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused Karnataka's repeated pleas to stall the Cauvery management scheme framed by the Centre till the dust settles on the government formation in the State.
•The uncertainty about Karnataka's future government made its presence felt in the courtroom when senior advocate Shyam Divan, for the State, asked the apex court to postpone the hearing to July first week.
•“The government formation is going on. We too want to give suggestions on the draft scheme like the other States. You deferred the case many a time for the Centre. If that had not happened, we would not have been in this situation now. This scheme will be effective on us for 15 years. We have a right to say something. Stand this over till the first week of July," Mr. Divan told the court.
•Senior counsel for Tamil Nadu, Shekhar Naphade, protested. He said the Constitution does not contemplate a vacuum and it is wrong to say that there is no government in Karnataka now. Mr. Naphade said the court cannot wait till July as the first release of water from Cauvery is scheduled in June.
•The Supreme Court paid no heed to Mr. Divan and went ahead to sift the inputs from the States of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Union Territory of Puducherry. It agreed to four changes suggested by the States in the draft Cauvery management scheme of 2018.
'Rectify the draft scheme by tomorrow'
•Now, the court wants the Centre to incorporate the changes into the draft scheme within the next 24 hours.
•"Rectify the draft scheme by tomorrow," Chief Justice Dipak Misra, leading a three-judge Bench, told Attorney General K.K. Venugopal for the Centre.
•Primarily, the Bench took offence to a provision in the draft scheme which virtually gave the Centre the final say in inter-State disputes over Cauvery water. The provision makes the decision of the Centre "binding".
•"Central government's authority is not final. Centre has to understand our judgement better," Chief Justice Misra observed orally.
•Puducherry said giving the Centre such unbridled power would "politicise" the issue. Mr. Misra observed that such a provision is against the Supreme Court's February 16 judgement in the Cauvery dispute.
•Though Mr. Venugopal said the provision was only meant as a "safety valve" if States do not "co-operate" with the Cauvery implementing authority, the court stood firm and asked the Centre to amend the provision.
•Tamil Nadu, represented by senior advocates Shekhar Naphade, Rakesh Dwivedi and advocate G. Umapathy, took offence to a second provision which directs the Cauvery authority to comply with any and all directions given to it by the Centre from time to time.
•"This way the Centre can give any instructions from time to time... What wide powers! The provision is too broad. Please look into it," Mr. Dwivedi addressed the Bench.
•Mr. Venugopal said the provision was only confined to the working of the authority and did not extend to the water-sharing part. The court asked the Centre to make this point clear in the provision.
•The court agreed with Tamil Nadu that the headquarters of the Cauvery authority should be in New Delhi and not in Bengaluru, as in the draft scheme. Mr. Naphade suggested that the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee - which is in charge of the day-to-day functioning of Cauvery water management and storage under the scheme - could be based in Bengaluru. This proposition was largely found acceptable in court.
•Tamil Nadu insisted that the Cauvery authority should be named the 'Cauvery Management Board' as is the "practice".
•Chief Justice Misra said there was no such "practice" though Mr. Venugopal repeated that the Centre had no qualms about the name of the authority - whether it is Board, Authority or Committee.
•The Supreme Court shot down Tamil Nadu's suggestion that the chairman of the Cauvery authority should be an "independent person" like a retired judge and not an engineer or IAS officer as proposed in the draft scheme.
•The court had in the previous hearing asked the Centre to provide Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry with the draft scheme copies for them to check whether it is in conformity with the February 16 judgement of the Supreme Court.
📰 Naveen ups the ante on Mahanadi
Accuses Centre of adopting an anti-Odisha approach on water-sharing dispute
•Odisha Chief Minister and Biju Janata Dal president Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday alleged that the BJP-led government at the Centre and the BJP government in Chhattisgarh were adopting an anti-Odisha approach on the Mahanadi water-sharing dispute.
•Launching his party’s ‘Save Mahanadi’ campaign from Jharsuguda district, Mr. Patnaik criticised the BJP leaders of Odisha saying that they were supporting the Chhattisgarh government but shedding crocodile tears in the State.
•Observing that Mahanadi was the lifeline of Odisha, Mr. Patnaik said that if the BJP leaders had compassion for Odisha and Odia people, then they should oppose the constructions the Chhattisgarh government was carrying out over the river. The BJD government had moved the Supreme Court and a Tribunal to resolve the Mahanadi water dispute as per its demands, he said.
•Mr. Patnaik said that there was no shortage of water in the Mahanadi during the monsoon season. But the river was drying up in other seasons and the water level at Hirakud reservoir was declining due to construction of several barrages over the river by the Chhattisgarh government, he added.
•Stating that the crisis will not end with the construction of barrages by Odisha, Mr. Patnaik said that water will not be available in the entire 500-km stretch along the river for the rabi season, which would also affect the lives of the fishermen community.
•The people have realised that those who are supporting barrages are applying double standards, Mr. Patnaik observed.
•He said that the Odisha government had constructed many mega lift irrigation projects on the Mahanadi and more such projects will be undertaken in future. Some barrages will be constructed on the river by the State government, but requisite care will be taken not to displace people, he said.
•Maintaining that Mahanadi was the pride of Odisha, the Chief Minister announced that they will not allow the river to dry up.
•Insisting that the movement to save Mahanadi was not the BJD’s fight alone, Mr. Patnaik urged other parties to rise above political considerations and participate in the campaign and protect the rights of the people of the State.
•The campaign, which will continue for about a fortnight covering as many as 15 of the 30 districts of Odisha, will end at Paradip where the Mahanadi flows into the Bay of Bengal.
📰 A ‘pilgrimage’ to Nepal
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit was high on symbolism but India must do more to deliver on the bilateral agenda
•Last week, Narendra Modi visited Nepal, his third since he became Prime Minister in 2014. Each of the visits has been markedly different, in terms of both atmospherics and outcomes. This is due to the political backdrop against which it took place, reflecting the evolving Nepali domestic political transition from a centralised monarchy to a federal republic and the complex nature of India-Nepal relations. Nepali Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli was in Delhi from April 6-8. Mr. Modi’s return visit coming within a month (May 11-12) was not just good neighbourliness but more a realisation that the relationship had deteriorated in recent years and there was an urgent need to arrest the slide.
Nepal’s importance
•After coming to power, Nepal was among Mr. Modi’s first destinations abroad(August, 2014), in keeping with his ‘neighbourhood first’ policy. A bilateral visit to Nepal was long overdue, the last one being in 1997. Part of the reason was Nepal’s ongoing political transition — a Maoist insurgency in Nepal which lasted from the mid-1990s till 2005, a delicate peace process which was mid-wifed by India and a new constitution-drafting exercise that began in 2008. Meanwhile, every Nepali Prime Minister had visited India, some more than once, leading Nepali commentators to conclude that Nepal did not rank high in Delhi’s foreign policy priorities. Mr. Modi’s visit was a successful exercise in correcting this perception.
•He addressed the Constituent Assembly, the only foreign leader to have done so, touching all the thorny issues in the relationship and hitting the right notes. He spoke about respecting Nepali sovereignty, reiterated readiness to revise the 1950 Friendship Treaty in line with Nepali wishes, offered encouragement for the constitution-drafting process while wisely refraining from any suggestions, offered generous terms for power purchase and announced a billion-dollar line of credit on generous terms. A long joint statement was issued issued, highlighting (HIT – Highways, Information ways and Transmission ways) connectivity projects with clear timelines. Political parties and civil society were unanimous in concluding that a new chapter in India-Nepal relations was being opened.
•Less than four months later, Mr. Modi was back in Nepal, this time for the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit. In the run-up to the visit, he had indicated an interest in visiting Janakpur, Lumbini and Muktinath. The Nepali authorities were lukewarm. Somewhat disappointed, the Indian side agreed to limit the visit only to Kathmandu. The reasons cited by Nepali authorities were security and logistical difficulties. The real reason was that the deadline for finalising the constitution was less than two months away and the political climate was heating up. Public gatherings in Janakpur and Lumbini (both are close to the India-Nepal border) were bound to attract large crowds from both countries and Mr. Modi’s oratory could have unwelcome political reverberations.
•During his visit when he spoke about the need for the spirit of consensus to guide the constitution-drafting so that it could become an instrument to fulfil the aspirations of all Nepali citizens, it was criticised as gratuitous advice and even described by some as interference in Nepal’s internal affairs. The August honeymoon was over.
•The problem lies in the fractured politics of Nepal. Traditionally, hill elites (Bahuns and Chettris) who constitute 29% of the population have ruled Nepal. This is as true today as during the monarchy for the leadership of the three main political parties — Nepali Congress (NC), United Marxist-Leninist (UML) and the Maoists — is drawn from the same elites. The Madhesis constitute 35% but have traditionally been marginalised, live in the Terai areas bordering India and share close ties (roti-beti ka rishta) with their kin across the border. This is why Mr. Modi’s remarks in November 2014 generated criticism.
Nationalism, anti-Indianism
•Relations with India often become an issue in Nepal’s domestic politics as politicians seek to don the mantle of Nepali nationalism which invariably carries within it a grain of anti-Indianism. During the monarchy, the King would emerge as a staunch nationalist when he wanted to crack down on pro-democratic forces and the NC would be painted in pro-Indian colours. The monarchy has given way to a republic but old habits die hard. India’s desire to play favourites also contributes to it, particularly when different elements in India convey different messages.
•Following the 2013 election, an NC-UML coalition emerged with NC leader Sushil Koirala becoming Prime Minister on the understanding that he would hand over the reins to Mr. Oli, the UML leader, after the constitution was adopted. Mr. Oli was understandably impatient and finally the constitution was promulgated in September 2015 even as the Terai was erupting in protests. Having belatedly realised the implications, India cautioned against haste but this was seen in Kathmandu as blatant encouragement for the growing Madhesi agitation which claimed 45 lives.
•Life in the Terai came to a standstill. Mr. Oli blamed India for imposing an economic blockade which was causing acute shortages of essentials such as petrol, diesel, liquefied petroleum gas and medical supplies. India blamed the deteriorating security environment which made the transporters reluctant to cross over and advised Mr. Oli to address Madhesi concerns. Relations took a nosedive. Eventually, a constitutional amendment was adopted and the movement of goods across the border returned to normal. But trust had been breached. In addition, the blockade had unleashed a wave of resentment against India.
A new beginning
•In 2017, the first elections under the new constitution were held for the national parliament, the seven newly created provincial assemblies and the local bodies (town municipalities and village council). Riding the nationalist wave and projecting himself as the only leader who had stood up to India, Mr. Oli again emerged as Prime Minister, but stronger than before as UML also scored impressive victories in the provincial and local body elections.
•Mr. Modi realised that the political landscape was shifting. China was now keen to expand its presence in the region with ambitious projects. Following a couple of phone calls and an invitation personally conveyed by Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj, Mr. Oli made India his first foreign destination and Mr. Modi has reciprocated with a quick return visit. Janakpur and Muktinath were included in the itinerary and a confident Mr. Oli received Mr. Modi in Janakpur.
•The visit was high on symbolism, less so on substance. Mr. Modi described it as a visit by the ‘Prime Pilgrim’. With prayers offered in Janaki Mandir, Muktinath and Pashupatinath, the focus was on religious and cultural commonalities. A bus service between Janakpur and Ayodhya was inaugurated.
•The joint statement is short. Only one of the earlier commitments, the 900 MW Arun III hydel project, has progressed and both Prime Ministers jointly laid its foundation stone. Of the four planned Integrated Check Posts, one is now functional after over a decade.
•The 2018 statement prioritises cooperation in agriculture, inland water-ways, a survey for a railway line from Raxaul to Kathmandu and increasing air connectivity. The 2014 announcements included a railway services agreement, additional air links connecting Lucknow, Pokhara and Nepalgunj in six months, setting up of the Pancheshwar Development Authority to complete the detailed project report in a year, concluding an MoU for the Nepal Police Academy, pledge of $1 billion (increased by another $1 billion after the 2015 earthquake) and creating a Buddhist circuit connecting Lumbini with Sarnath and Bodh Gaya. Most of these have remained announcements. With China stepping up its game in Nepal, this is no longer a tenable situation.
•A pilgrimage is part expiation and part a new beginning. The first may have been achieved but a new beginning based on the principles of “equality, mutual trust, respect and mutual benefit”, phrases that Mr. Oli now insists on including in every joint statement, will require time, avoiding mixed messaging and a sustained effort by India in ensuring implementation of long-pending economic cooperation projects.
📰 Death in Gaza
The deaths at the Gaza-Israel border show the continuing toll of occupation
•The violence in Gaza that preceded the opening of the American embassy in Jerusalem on Monday has once again reminded the world of the dangerous consequences of President Donald Trump’s decision to move the U.S. diplomatic mission from Tel Aviv to the disputed city. When Mr. Trump first announced the shift, making good a campaign promise, many had warned it would trigger violence in the Palestinian Territories besides complicating any peace processes. On Monday morning, across Gaza, a tiny Mediterranean strip that has been suffocatingly blockaded by Israel and Egypt for years, loudspeakers urged Palestinians to rush to the border with Israel and protest. On the border, Israeli soldiers fired into the crowd, killing at least 60 people; it was the worst day of violence since Israel attacked Gaza in 2014. The embassy shift and the disproportionate response at the Gaza border, crucially, came on the eve of the 70th anniversary of Nakba, the day to mark the forced eviction of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homes in 1948. Gaza has been burning for the past few weeks. Dozens of protesters had already been killed before Monday’s incidents. The callous way in which Israel dealt with the protests shows the utter disregard Tel Aviv and the international community have for Palestinian lives.
•Shortly after the Gaza violence, at the embassy opening ceremony, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu didn’t show any remorse over the death of Palestinians. Instead he called it a glorious day, while Jared Kushner, Mr. Trump’s son-in-law and adviser, said that “those provoking violence are part of the problem and not part of the solution”, referring to the protesters. The real problem is that there is no meaningful effort to restart the peace process, which is the only way forward to end violence and address the political and humanitarian concerns of the occupied territories. Mr. Trump had promised to make his own peace plan, but his decision to move the embassy to Jerusalem, which most countries do not recognise as Israel’s capital, has only worsened the crisis. Jerusalem is seen as part of a final settlement between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Though the whole city is now under Israeli control, the Palestinians lay claim to East Jerusalem, including the Old City, as their capital. They are now trapped in this cycle of violence. Despite repeated promises from the outside world, they are caught in the status quo — the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem and the blockade of Gaza. With Mr. Trump recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, Palestinians fear that facts on the ground are being manipulated further to their disadvantage. The international community must not remain silent; for starters, there must be an inquiry into the carnage at the Gaza border.
📰 Even Parliament can’t deny right to life and liberty: SC
‘1989 Act allows arrest without scrutiny’
•We are not living in a civilised society if a person can be put behind bars without fair procedure, Justice A.K. Goel, the Supreme Court judge who authored the March 20 judgment banning immediate arrest under Dalit protection law, observed on Wednesday.
•Justice Goel, heading a Bench comprising Justice U.U. Lalit, addressed the Centre while hearing a review petition filed by the Centre and States, including Tamil Nadu and Kerala, against the March 20 judgment.
•The judgment had directed the police to conduct preliminary enquiries before arresting persons accused of insulting or hurting Dalits. This direction went against the very grain of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act of 1989, which mandates immediate arrest of the accused.
•Justice Goel said, in an obvious criticism of the 1989 Act, that “even Parliament cannot deny the fundamental right to life and liberty.”
Fair procedure
•Justifying the March 20 verdict banning immediate arrest under the 1989 Act, Justice Goel observed that adherence to a fair and reasonable procedure before arrest is expected in every provision of law. A person’s liberty cannot be shackled without due procedure.
•Justice Goel pointed out that the 1989 Act allows arrest of accused persons “without anybody’s scrutiny and based on a one-sided version.”
•The hearing occurred even as a move is on by the Centre to promulgate an ordinance under the 1989 in a bid to overcome the effect of the March 20 verdict, which had unleashed violence across the country.
•Justice Goel abruptly cut short the hearing. The Bench then scheduled the case to July, after the court re-opens post summer vacations. Justice Goel is retiring on July 6. The review petitions would be heard again after Justice Goel’s retirement.
•In the previous hearing, Justice Goel had explained that the police need to conduct a preliminary enquiry before arrest only in cases where they feel a complaint filed about an atrocity committed on Dalits is outright “absurd” or “absolutely” frivolous.
•The Supreme Court had never intended, in its March 20 judgment, to make preliminary enquiry before arrest a mandatory condition in each and every complaint filed by Dalits under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act of 1989, Justice Goel qualified the verdict.
•The direction was meant to avoid prosecution of innocent people in frivolous cases filed under the Atrocities Act.
•Justice Goel said “what is happening now is that everybody is arrested under the law even if the probe officer is convinced there is no case.”
•But Attorney-General K.K. Venugopal had said the judgment had led to more crimes committed against Dalits.
📰 V.K. Singh makes surprise visit to North Korea
There is no confirmation yet on a possible meeting with DPRK leader Kim Jong-Un.
•In a surprise development, Minister of State for External Affairs Gen. (Retd.) V.K.Singh has reached Pyongyang for talks with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) government, the official Korean newspaper Rodong Sinmun reported on Wednesday.
•During the visit on May 15-16, that was previously unannounced, Mr. Singh met with DPRK Vice President Kim Yong Dae, and the Foreign and Culture ministers on “a range of issues covering political, regional, economic, educational and cultural cooperation between the two countries,” a statement from the MEA said.
•According to the statement, DPRK officials discussed recent peace initiatives with the Republic of Korea (South Korea) as well as proposed talks with the United States. Mr. Singh raised the issue of DPRK links with Pakistan.
•“[Mr. Singh] highlighted the threat from nuclear proliferation, in particular India’s concerns in the context of the proliferation linkages with India’s neighbourhood. The DPRK side emphasized that as a friendly country DPRK will never allow any action that would create concerns for India’s security,” the statement added.
•The visit by Gen. Singh closely followed the presentation of credentials by the new Indian Ambassador Atul Gotsurve, indicating the meeting had been fixed quite recently.
•Mr. Gotsurve, who is one of the seniormost IFS officers to be posted to North Korea by India, presented his credentials to Kim Yong Nam, President of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly of the DPRK on Monday.
•The visit by Gen. Singh, and the secrecy surrounding it suggests that India is trying to quietly rebuild ties with the reclusive regime, ostracised by most of the world due to its defiance of UNSC norms on nuclear weapons. In the past year, India had joined the U.S. and allies in statements “deploring” nuclear tests and ballistic missile tests by the DPRK, although it had earlier refrained from similarly strong language.
•In March 2017, the government even issued a gazette notification instituting major restrictions on any trade with North Korea other than essentials like food and medicines.
•According to the gazette notification, that implemented UNSC decisions from 2006, all trade of exports of defence, space and technological materials, and training of DPRK officials would be banned between the two countries and imposed a travel ban on officials suspected to be involved in nuclear proliferation activities.
•The notification also restricted bank accounts of DPRK diplomats in India and put strictures on procurement of coal, minerals and other metals from North Korea. At the time, the gazette notification had been seen as a result of requests from the United States, which has been driving U.N. Sanctions against DPRK.
•However, New Delhi refused a request from U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to shut down its diplomatic mission in Pyongyang altogether. After a thaw between the United States in the past few months, and the North Korean regime, India seems to have changed its strategy with North Korea, sending Gen. Singh on a diplomatic mission to Pyongyang, the first such mission in two decades.
•However, the timing of Gen. Singh’s visit coincided with fresh tensions breaking out between Pyongyang and Washington over the nature of upcoming talks between US President Donald Trump and Mr. Kim, due to be held in Singapore on June 12th.
•In a statement issued by its First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Kye Gwan on Wednesday, DPRK threatened to call off the talks if the Trump administration continued to press for denuclearisation as a precondition, and criticised the US administration for trying to put undue pressure on Pyongyang.
•“[DPRK] cannot suppress indignation at such moves of the U.S., and harbour doubt about the U.S. sincerity for improved DPRK-U.S. relations through sound dialogue and negotiations,” Mr. Kim said, adding that North Korea would not share the “miserable” fate of Libya, whose ruler Muammar Qadhafi had given up his nuclear capabilities, but was removed from power anyway.
📰 New vistas for India
What is the SCO?
•The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) is a multi-government organisation that was formed in 2001 as an expression of greater coordination among the major powers in the Eurasian region. The organisation was launched by China, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, reflecting a growing awareness among these countries to come to terms with the unilateralism of the U.S.-led post-Cold War world order. The group was a formal initiative borne out of the Shanghai Five Mechanism which came up in the backdrop of growing unilateral moves by the U.S., such as the Iraq war of 1990-91.
What is its agenda?
•The agenda of the nascent SCO was shaped under the Shanghai Five Mechanism to include violent liberation movements and counter-terrorism efforts. For instance, in a criticism of U.S.-led intervention in various states in West Asia and the Balkans, the Shanghai Five Mechanism aimed to secure national sovereignty of the member countries. The SCO also served as a platform to facilitate warmer ties among its countries by enhancing cooperation on the economic, technology, culture, energy and other fronts, subsequently helping China resolving its border problems with the Central Asian region. The SCO aims to create a ‘fair and rational new international political and economic order’.
What is India’s role in the SCO?
•The SCO granted India and Pakistan full membership in 2017. After inclusion, both India and Pakistan are expected to participate in the activities of the SCO Secretariat in Beijing. While the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) provides a rare platform for regional cooperation to counter-terrorism, it also brought into focus the different views the two countries have on terrorism. Yet in September, India and Pakistan will join other SCO members in counter-terrorism exercises.
What is the importance of the upcoming summit in Qingdao?
•The June summit will be the first major multilateral meeting since the re-election of Russian President Vladimir Putin where he is likely to push for Iran’s formal entry into the organisation. This could signal a coming together of SCO members against the unilateral U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. This will also be an opportunity for India, China and Russia to reset regional ties, helping them navigate the adverse impacts of U.S. Treasury sanctions. India especially appears to be under pressure from the U.S. on its trade with Iran, as it is also an MNNA (Major Non-NATO Ally) of the U.S. and has held ‘Quadrilateral’ talks with the U.S., Australia, and Japan in 2017. The next summit will therefore provide the space for urgent consultations on India’s “plurilateralism”, a term that has been used to characterise India’s current foreign policy.
📰 North Korea threatens to call off summit with U.S.
North Korea threatens to cancel next month's US summit
•North Korea threw next month’s summit between Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump into doubt on Wednesday, threatening weeks of diplomatic progress by saying it may reconsider if Washington insists it unilaterally gives up its nuclear weapons.
•The North’s official KCNA news agency said earlier that Pyongyang had called off high-level talks with Seoul, which had been due on Wednesday. Citing first Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Kye Gwan, KCNA later said the fate of the unprecedented U.S.-North Korea summit, as well as bilateral relations, “would be clear” if the United States spoke of a “Libya-style” denuclearisation for the North.
‘No unilateral move’
•“If the U.S. is trying to drive us into a corner to force our unilateral nuclear abandonment, we will no longer be interested in such dialogue and cannot but reconsider our proceeding to the DPRK-U.S. summit,” he said.
•The U.S. was still hopeful about the summit, scheduled for Singapore on June 12, but also prepared for a tough negotiation process, White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said.
•“We’re still hopeful that the meeting will take place and we’ll continue down that path, but at the same time we’ve been prepared that these could be tough negotiations,” said Ms. Sanders. “The President is ready if the meeting takes place. If it doesn’t, we’ll continue the maximum pressure campaign that’s been ongoing.”
•Vice Minister Kim specifically criticised U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton, who has called for North Korea to quickly give up its nuclear arsenal in a deal that mirrors Libya’s abandonment of its weapons of mass destruction. “(The) world knows too well that our country is neither Libya nor Iraq which have met miserable fate,” he said.
•Calling Mr. Bolton’s suggestion “absurd”, he said North Korea was a nuclear weapon state while Libya had been at the initial stage of nuclear development.
•The statement came hours after North Korea pulled out of talks with the South after denouncing the U.S.-South Korean “Max Thunder” air combat drills, which it said involved U.S. stealth fighters, B-52 bombers and “nuclear assets”.
📰 Cliff habitat needs a vulture safe zone
Official team visits Haryana to study the conservation methods followed there
•The Long-billed vulture or Indian vulture (gyps indicus) is critically endangered. According to conservationists, the way to conserve its present population and increase it is to step up conservation efforts at the Palarapu cliff vulture habitat in Kumram Bheem Asifabad. A team of Forest Department officials connected with conservation of vultures at Palarapu habitat — the only one in Telangana State — recently visited the Jatayu Conservation Breeding Centre (JCBC), Pinjore, Haryana, to study the methods and status of conservation.
•According to them, the Vulture Safe Zone (VSZ) initiative of the Pinjore JCBC needs to be implemented in Telangana too to make it safer for the scavenger birds here. The JCBC has launched the initiative to protect three species of vultures including the Long-billed vulture, but its efforts are concentrated in North Indian States only.
•The team, led by Kagaznagar Forest Divisional Officer A. Narasimha Reddy, will submit its report to the authorities soon which will discuss the VSZ. The Principal Chief Conservator of Forests P.K. Jha, who was informally told about the VSZ during his visit to Kuntala Waterfall last week evinced keen interest. “The project envisages elimination of the probability of consumption of the drug Diclofenac through animal carcasses by the vultures within a radius of 100 km which is considered to be the range of the habitat. It requires a massive effort in monitoring the use of the drug which is among the main causes for disappearance of the great fliers,” revealed M. Ram Mohan Rao, the Forest Range Officer at Bejjur Range in Kumram Bheem Asifabad.
•The VSZ will need the cooperation of Forest, Food and Drug Administration and Animal Husbandry departments to control the supply of Diclofenac. As the zone will encompass 32,000 sq km in Telangana, Maharashtra and Chattisgarh, the involvement of the governments of these States is also essential.
•“The initiative involves massive awareness on the issue of Diclofenac not only among people but other stakeholders like the government departments,” observed M. Ravikanth, the field researcher at the vulture conservation site, now in Penchikalpet Forest Range.
•“The effort in establishment of VSZ will also benefit vulture habitats in Maharashtra and Chattisgarh,” Mr. Ram Mohan Rao opined.
📰 Rupee rout: on the Indian currency's slide
Slide of the currency and a widening trade deficit present the RBI with a huge dilemma
•India’s macroeconomic threats lie exposed as it grapples with the rupee’s slide. The currency sunk to a closing low of 68.07 against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, its lowest level in 16 months, before recovering slightly the next day. The rupee, already one of the worst performing Asian currencies, has now weakened 6.2% in 2018. The rise in crude oil prices through this year, amidst rising geopolitical tensions in West Asia and dwindling global supply, have obviously hurt the rupee and the trade balance. Meanwhile, despite a depreciating currency, India’s merchandise exports are stumbling instead of gaining from the opportunity. April clocked a sharp decline in exports from employment-intensive sectors such as readymade garments and gems and jewellery, according to official data. The trade deficit has consequently widened to $13.7 billion in April, compared to $13.25 billion in the same month in 2017. The value of oil and petroleum product imports increased by 41.5% from last year to hit $10.4 billion. U.S. sanctions following Washington’s withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and a June 22 meeting of OPEC should drive oil price trends hereon. Oil prices apart, the tightening of U.S. monetary policy has almost always spelled trouble for emerging market economies hooked to Western capital inflows. This time it is no different; capital outflows are scuppering the currencies of many emerging market economies.
•As the U.S. Federal Reserve has come to adopt a more hawkish stance, investors in search of higher risk-adjusted yields have started to pull money out of emerging markets. Yields on emerging market bonds have risen as investors sold them off aggressively. The yield on the 10-year bond issued by the Indian government has risen to more than 7.8%, from 7.1% in early April. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) pulled out ₹15,500 crore from India’s capital markets in April, which is the highest monthly outflow since December 2016. Not surprisingly, about two-thirds of the outflow was attributed to the bond market. The current headwinds from the reversal of capital flows were only to be expected. India is better placed than countries such as Argentina or Turkey. But that’s no reason to be complacent as external account risks can get out of hand very quickly. A hike in the RBI’s benchmark interest rates could stem the capital exodus, but with core inflation picking up and the government keen on a rate cut as a growth catalyst, the RBI has an unenviable dilemma on its hands. Policymakers, blessed with relatively benign external economic conditions after the taper tantrum of 2013, will have to find means to spur exports — whether by facilitating swifter GST refunds or taking on tariff and non-tariff barriers from the developed world. Efforts to diversify India’s energy basket also need greater stress.
📰 Anything but green
The draft National Forest Policy is an attempt to get around the Supreme Court’s judgment on forest conservation
•The Draft National Forest Policy, 2018, published for public comments in March, has generated a fair amount of public discourse. Despite all that has been written, what is it that has changed in the last 30 years that necessitates a new policy?
‘Flavour’ of existing policy
•The answer lies in the judgment of the Supreme Court on forest conservation. In 2006, the court held that the existing National Forest Policy (NFP), 1988 has a “statutory flavour”. This was reiterated by the Supreme Court in 2011, in Lafarge Umiam Mining (P) Ltd. versus Union of India [(2011) 7 SCC 388], which said: “The time has come for this Court to declare and we hereby declare that the NFP, 1988 which lays down far-reaching principles must necessarily govern the grant of permissions under Section 2 of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980.” Thus, for the first time, the government was obligated to consider the provisions of NFP, 1988 while considering proposals for clearing forest land for activities such as mining, laying roads and building dams. One of the strongest provisions in the existing NFP is with respect to restrictions on diversion of forest land for non-forest purposes. According to the policy, “Diversion of forest land for any-non-forest purpose should be subject to the most careful examinations by specialists from the standpoint of social and environmental costs and benefits” (4.4.1). The need for “most careful examination by specialists” and “costs and benefit” are prerequisites before grant of clearances. In addition, the policy also says that “tropical rain/moist forests, particularly in areas like Arunachal Pradesh, Kerala, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, should be totally safeguarded” (4.3.1).
•In the last few years, forest clearances granted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change have been challenged before the National Green Tribunal by affected and concerned persons. The Ministry has been having a tough time in the Tribunal justifying how tropical moist evergreen forests in the Western Ghats, the Northeast and other regions which have to be “totally safeguarded”, in terms of the forest policy, have been allowed to be diverted in ecologically-sensitive locations. Concerned groups have also raised questions about the manner in which cost-benefit analyses have been done and how “detailed examination” by specialists was undertaken.
•It is these specific provisions with regard to forest diversion that have become the Achilles’ heel of the government, which has been finding it difficult to justify forest diversion in light of the restrictions under NFP, 1988.
Facilitating diversion
•Therefore, a matter of serious concern is that the draft policy published this year has completely deleted the section on safeguards to be followed for diversion of forest land. In fact, it does not regard diversion as a threat at all so far as forest land is concerned. Under the draft policy one has: before diversion of forest land, no requirement of cost-benefit analysis; no examinations by specialists; no requirement of alternatives; and no mention of the fact that tropical moist evergreen forests as well as forests in hilly States such as Arunachal Pradesh should be “totally safeguarded”. Instead of specialists, Central and State Boards for Forestry are envisaged, which are to be headed by the respective Forest Ministers with a specific mandate for ensuring “simplification of procedures”.
•Contrary to general belief, the real motive for a new Forest Policy is not to encourage commercial plantations, undermine the rights of communities (which are protected under the law) or mitigate climate change and encourage the use of timber. The main objective, in plain and simple terms, is to facilitate speedy diversion of forest land for various non-forest purposes such as mining, laying roads and building dams without any detailed scientific and legal scrutiny.
•The draft policy is nothing but an attempt to circumvent the Supreme Court’s judgment in Lafarge. There are reasons to believe that if the public at large demands that provisions with respect to forest diversion — as contained in the NFP,1988 — should be an integral part of the new Forest Policy, the government would never come out with a new policy.
📰 Mysuru cleanest among medium-sized cities in India
Rankings announced by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs
•Mysuru has been ranked the cleanest medium-sized city in the country under the Swachh Bharat rankings by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
•This was announced by the MoHUA in New Delhi on Wednesday. Mysuru has been ranked the cleanest among cities with a population of between 3 lakh and one million. However, in the overall national rankings, Indore, Bhopal, and Chandigarh have bagged the first three ranks.
•Mysuru, which was adjudged the cleanest city in India in 2015 and 2016, dropped to fifth place in the overall ranking in 2017. But the Swachh Survekshan 2018 assessed 4,203 urban local bodies and broadened the scope to cover a record number of urban local bodies, which impacted 400 million urban citizens involving over 2,700 assessors. The 2017 Swachh Survekshan was conducted in 434 cities.
•However, unlike in the past, awards have been given under 52 different categories such as ‘Cleanest Big City with a population above one million’ which was bagged by Vijaywada; India’s ‘Fast Moving Big City with a population above one million’, bagged by Ghaziabad, and so on.
•In Karnataka, apart from Mysuru, Mangaluru has been ranked India’s best city in solid waste management, with a population of 3 lakh to 1 million.
•Zonal wise, Hunsur town which is about 45 km from Mysuru, has been awarded the ‘Best city’ in solid waste management for the south zone in towns with a population below 1 lakh. Survey gave weightage to citizens feedback along with direct observation by assessors who visited various spots for site inspection. The overall focus was on the major initiatives taken by the urban local bodies like creating solid waste management facilities.
•Since the competition was intense, the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC), along with the NGOs, had taken up a massive drive for cleaning up operations, besides creating awareness and downloading the Swachhata App. Besides, best practices like segregation of waste at source, launching of eco clubs in schools etc. were other initiatives which helped the city score above others.
•In addition, the MCC’s focus was on garbage management for which dedicated vehicles were procured besides sweeping machines to clean up public places. For the first time, Information Technology was also harnessed to elicit public feedback and act on their response, apart from constructing toilets in public places.
📰 Cabinet approves new biofuels policy
•The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a national policy on biofuels that seeks to not only help farmers dispose of their surplus stock in an economic manner but also reduce India’s oil-import dependence.
•“The policy expands the scope of raw material for ethanol production by allowing use of sugarcane juice, sugar containing materials like sugar beet, sweet sorghum, starch containing materials like corn, cassava, damaged food grains like wheat, broken rice, rotten potatoes [that are] unfit for human consumption for ethanol production,” the government said in a release.
•“Farmers are at a risk of not getting appropriate price for their produce during the surplus production phase,” the release added. “Taking this into account, the policy allows use of surplus food grains for production of ethanol for blending with petrol with the approval of National Biofuel Coordination Committee.”
•The policy also provides for a viability gap funding scheme of ₹5,000 crore in six years for second generation (more advanced) ethanol bio-refineries in addition to tax incentives and a higher purchase price as compared to first generation biofuels.
•“One crore litres of E10 [petrol with 9-10% ethanol blended in it] saves ₹28 crore of forex at current rates,” the government said. “The ethanol supply year 2017-18 is likely to see a supply of around 150 crore litres of ethanol which will result in savings of over ₹4,000 crore of forex.”
•The release added that one crore litres of E10 saves reduces carbon dioxide emissions by about 20,000 tonnes.
•“For the ethanol supply year 2017-18, there will be lesser emissions of CO2 to the tune of 30 lakh tonnes,” it said. “By reducing crop burning and conversion of agricultural residues/wastes to biofuels there will be further reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.”
📰 Newest frog for India from Karnataka
The Mangaluru narrow-mouthed frog is found only in a small industrial space in the city
•The latest addition to India’s frog fauna is the Mangaluru narrow-mouthed frog, which has been found in a small industrial region in coastal Karnataka.
•The new find, described by a team of Indian scientists in the international journal Zootaxa on Tuesday, is christened Microhyla kodial after the city of Mangaluru (called kodial in the Konkani language) from where they spotted it two years ago.
•The frog is seen only in a small industrial region here — a former timber dumping yard — surrounded by seaport, petrochemical, chemical and refinery industries. The yard is bounded by the rail line of the Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited on one side and the busy National Highway 66 on another.
•The frog’s presence in this urban area could have been easily overlooked given its small size too: the greyish-brown frog is just 2 cm long. A thick olive-green band on its head, less-prominent dark green bands on the rest of its body and a few other physical features also set it apart from other similar-looking frogs. However, it was the frog’s very distinct loud, long calls that prompted the study’s lead author Vineeth Kumar (of Karnataka’s Mangalore University) and his colleagues to study it further.
•While the team’s surveys showed that the frogs are not seen outside of the urban area, behavioural observations revealed that the frogs breed only during the monsoon. Detailed genetic studies proved the team’s hunch right: the frogs were indeed a species new to science. Accidentally introduced? Interestingly, the scientists’ genetic work also reveal that the Mangaluru narrow-mouthed frog is more closely related to southeast Asian frogs than Indian frogs. The industrial patch where the frogs are currently found used to be a depot for timber imported from southeast Asia; therefore, the frogs could have been accidentally introduced with timber that came from Myanmar, Malaysia and Indonesia, write the scientists.
•“There are several examples of animals including molluscs and Aedes mosquitoes that have been introduced to new places through traded goods,” said the study’s co-author N. A. Aravind of Bengaluru’s Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment.
•“The new species could need some attention because we noticed new construction and truck movement in the industrial area,” he added. The Mangaluru narrow-mouthed frog is the 42nd species belonging to the genus Microhyla recorded from south Asia. More than 650 microhylids – or frogs belonging to the family Microhylidae – are found across the world’s tropics
