📰 No need for uniform civil code now, says law panel
‘A unified nation does not necessarily need to have uniformity’
•The Law Commission of India on Friday said a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) is “neither necessary nor desirable at this stage.”
•In an 185-page consultation paper, the commission said secularism cannot contradict the plurality prevalent in the country.
•The commission, led by former Supreme Court judge Justice B.S. Chauhan, said “cultural diversity cannot be compromised to the extent that our urge for uniformity itself becomes a reason for threat to the territorial integrity of the nation.”
•A unified nation does not necessarily need to have “uniformity.” Efforts have to be made to reconcile our diversity with universal and indisputable arguments on human rights, the commission said.
•Difference does not always imply discrimination in a robust democracy, the government’s topmost law advisory body said.
•The term ‘secularism’ has meaning only if it assures the expression of any form of difference. This diversity, both religious and regional, should not get subsumed under the louder voice of the majority, the commission said. At the same time, it said, discriminatory practices within a religion should not hide behind the cloak of that faith to gain legitimacy.
‘Codify all personal laws’
•It said the way forward may not be UCC, but the codification of all personal laws so that prejudices and stereotypes in every one of them would come to light and can be tested on the anvil of fundamental rights of the Constitution. “By codification of different personal laws, one can arrive at certain universal principles that prioritise equity rather than imposition of a Uniform Code, which would discourage many from using the law altogether, given that matters of marriage and divorce can also be settled extra-judicially,” the commission reasoned.
•It suggested certain measures in marriage and divorce which should be uniformly accepted in the personal laws of all religions.
•These amendments in personal laws include fixing the marriageable age for boys and girls at 18 years so that they marry as equals, making adultery a ground for divorce for men and women and to simplify divorce procedure. The commission said the filing of Section 498A IPC (dowry harassment) cases is actually done by women wanting a quick exit from a difficult marriage.
A criminal offence
•It suggested that nikahnamas make it clear that polygamy is a criminal offence and this should apply to “all communities.” “This is not recommended owing to merely a moral position on bigamy, or to glorify monogamy, but emanates from the fact that only a man is permitted multiple wives, which is unfair,” the commission explained.
📰 India and the U.S. — it’s complicated
Creative thinking will be needed in the 2+2 dialogue to overcome challenges in bilateral ties
•The first round of the India-U.S. 2+2 talks at the level of External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and their counterparts Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary James Mattis is scheduled for September 6 in Delhi. It is a significant development but one that appears perfectly logical when seen against the two-decade-old trend line of India-U.S. relations. True, the trend line has not been smooth but the trajectory definitively reflects a growing strategic engagement. From estranged democracies, India and U.S. can worst be described today as prickly partners.
Strategic convergence
•Three factors have contributed to the emerging strategic convergence. The end of the Cold War provided an opportunity to both countries to review their relationship in the light of changing global and regional realities. Second, with the opening of the Indian economy, the American private sector began to look at India with greater interest. Trade grew and today stands at more than $120 billion a year with an ambitious target of touching $500 billion in five years. If U.S. foreign direct investment in India is more than $20 billion, Indian companies too have invested $15 billion in the U.S., reflecting a sustained mutual interest. The third factor is the political coming of age of the three-million-strong Indian diaspora. Its influence can be seen in the bipartisan composition of the India Caucus in the U.S. Congress and the Senate Friends of India group.
•Yet, the engagement has not been smooth sailing. The U.S. is used to dealing with allies (invariably junior partners in a U.S.-dominated alliance structure) and adversaries. India is neither, and is also determined to safeguard its strategic autonomy. Developing a habit of talking to each other as equal partners has been a learning experience for India and the U.S.
•Both countries also consider themselves to be ‘exceptional’, the U.S. as among the oldest democracies and India as the largest! Both have a habit of preaching and problems arise when they preach to each other. Indians become wary of the U.S.’s attempts to drive unequal bargains, and Americans find the Indian approach rigid and sanctimonious. Despite this, significant progress has been registered over the years resulting in the 60-plus bilateral dialogues, to which the 2+2 is now being added.
Growing defence cooperation
•Two parallel tracks of dialogue began in the 1990s. The strategic dialogue covering nuclear issues shifted gears following the nuclear tests of 1998 and imposition of sanctions by the U.S. The over a dozen rounds of talks between Jaswant Singh and Strobe Talbott during 1998-2000 marked the most intense dialogue between the two countries. It helped change perceptions leading to the gradual lifting of sanctions. The next phase was the Next Steps in Strategic Partnership steered by the then National Security Advisers, Brajesh Mishra and Condoleezza Rice. The momentum received a new impulse, thanks to the warmth between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President George W. Bush, eventually leading to the conclusion of the India-U.S. bilateral civil nuclear cooperation agreement in 2008.
•The defence dialogue began in 1995 with the setting up of the Defence Policy Group at the level of the Defence Secretary and his Pentagon counterpart and three Steering Groups to develop exchanges between the Services. A decade later, this was formalised and enlarged into the India-U.S. Defence Framework Agreement which was renewed for 10 years in 2015. Today, the U.S. is the country with which India undertakes the largest number of military exercises which have gradually evolved in scale and complexity.
•During the Cold War, more than three-fourths of India’s defence equipment was of Soviet origin. This gradually began to change, and in recent years, the U.S. and Israel emerged as major suppliers. The Indian Air Force went in for C-130J Hercules and the C-17 Globemaster aircraft, along with Apache attack helicopters and Chinook heavy lift helicopters. The Indian Navy acquired a troop carrier ship and the P-8I long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft. An agreement for 24 multi-role helicopters for the Indian Navy is expected soon. The Indian Army went in for the M-777 howitzers and artillery radars. From a total of less than $400 million of defence acquisitions during 1947-2005, the U.S. has signed defence contracts of over $15 billion since.
•During the Obama administration, Defence Secretary Ashton Carter became a strong votary of closer defence cooperation between the two countries. He soon understood that a defence supply relationship needed to be backed by technology sharing and joint development and came up with the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTII). Pathfinder projects have been identified under this banner. To get around export control licensing and other bureaucratic hurdles, an India Rapid Reaction Cell in the Pentagon was set up. In 2016, India was designated as a ‘Major Defence Partner’ country. Another step forward in the middle of this year was the inclusion of India in the Strategic Trade Authorisation-1 (STA-1) category, putting it on a par with allies in terms of technology access. This should enable the DTII to graduate to more ambitious projects.
Obligations and challenges
•Acquiring U.S. high technology comes with its own set of obligations in terms of ensuring its security. These take the form of various undertakings often described as foundational agreements. The first of these was GSOMIA (General Security of Military Information Agreement) which India signed in 2002. The other three related to logistics support, communications compatibility and security, and exchanges of geospatial information. The U.S. proposed its standard logistics support agreement text in 2003 which was finally concluded in 2016, after it was made into an India-specific text. It facilitates logistics supplies during port visits and joint exercises and does not contain any obligations for joint activity or any basing arrangements. Realising Indian reservations, the U.S. was more flexible, and now the India-specific Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) is likely to be signed. It makes it possible to install high-end secure communication equipment on U.S. platforms that we have been acquiring. With the possibility of acquiring armed Sea Guardian drones, COMCASA was necessary to ensure optimal use. The lessons learnt should help in expediting negotiations on the third.
•Nevertheless, two difficult issues loom large and the 2+2 offers an opportunity for addressing these. The first is the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) enacted last year which enables the U.S. government to sanction countries that engage in ‘significant transactions’ with Russian military and intelligence entities. The proposed purchase of the S-400 missile defence system would attract CAATSA sanctions. A waiver provision has now been introduced to cover India, Indonesia and Vietnam. It requires certification by the U.S. that the country concerned is gradually reducing its dependency on Russian equipment and cooperating with the U.S. on critical security issues. Indian concerns on this need to be addressed.
About Chabahar
•The second relates to U.S. sanctions on Iran after its unilateral withdrawal from the nuclear deal. Iranian crude imports have grown significantly in recent years and India also stepped up its involvement in developing Chabahar port. The port provides connectivity to Afghanistan and Central Asia. The Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act (2012) contains a waiver provision in case of activities for reconstruction assistance and economic development for Afghanistan, which is a U.S. priority too.
•Creative thinking will be needed in the 2+2 dialogue to overcome these challenges, which should also ensure that there are no nasty surprises and difficult issues are settled through quiet diplomacy. In order to realise the Joint Strategic Vision for the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean Region (2015), both countries will have to nurture the habit of talking and working together to diminish some of the prickliness in the partnership.
📰 Story of a leaking ship
Crucial questions about development in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
•In what can only be considered a prophetic coincidence, the online version of the Port Blair-based newspaper Andaman Chronicle, carried, on August 2, two very interesting and instructive news reports related to the Andaman and Nicobar (A&N) Islands.
A big meet
•One of the reports was about a development that has been in the making for about a couple of years. This was the announcement that the A&N administration and NITI Aayog would be organising an investors’ meet in New Delhi on August 10 for tourism projects under a plan called ‘holistic development of the islands’. The projects on four islands — Long, Neil, Smith and Aves — are being undertaken as per decisions of the Islands Development Agency (IDA) and the specifics of proposals listed for the investors meet were indeed grand: “Develop 220 rooms Premium Island Resort in 42 hectares land at Long Island, 50 beach tents in 2.75 hectares land at Aves Island, 70 premium tents & tree houses in 25 hectares land at Smith Island and 120 rooms premium beach resort in 9.75 hectares land at Bharatpur, Neil Island.”
•The projects also include the “setting up of infrastructure for power, water, floating jetty, adventure sports, banqueting and conferences”. The ambition and scale can be imagined from the fact that the administration is said to be simultaneously working on readying supporting infrastructure that includes “air strips, jetty, helipads, Roll On/Roll Off (RORO) ferry and roads works”. The investors’ meet in Delhi was attended by nearly 150 participants, including 40 entrepreneurs from the islands as well. Amitabh Kant, CEO of NITI Aayog, announced at the August 10 meeting that 100 islands in A&N and in the Lakshadweep could be opened up for tourism in the next 12 months.
•These announcements have been received with considerable excitement in a section of the island population, given the possible economic and livelihood opportunities. It also plays up the aspirational dimension whereby one dominant narrative is of the islands as a world-class tourism destination, a potential that has so far remained unrealised. And there can also be no space for opposition because the plan is to “provide world class and sustainable tourism infrastructure with low environmental impact and provision for socio-economic involvement of local population” with the projects also conforming to internationally acknowledged benchmarking standards. How can anyone have a problem with something as perfect as this?
•Use of the smart language notwithstanding, however, many key questions remain. It’s all very well to say everything will be executed right, but how can we be sure that the promises will be delivered upon? How, for instance, will ecological and cultural sensitivity be ensured? Does a capacity really exist to ensure the safeguards when the scale and the ambition is so large? How much will it really benefit the local people and the local economy? And: Is it this that the islands really need?
•The answer is visible, perhaps obliquely at first glance, in the second of the two reports in the Andaman Chronicle. Titled ‘Hole in the Hull of MV Swarajdweep Panics Islanders’, it related the horrifying details of a huge leak and of water filling up many feet in a key passenger ship with 343 passengers, including staff, on board. The incident happened in the early morning of August 2 when the ship was on its journey from the islands to Chennai, 40 nautical miles from the island of Car Nicobar. The situation was retrieved only following the intervention of the Coast Guard that sent in a ship from Kamorta and flew in a special team of five divers from Port Blair. The passengers had to be all evacuated and alternative arrangements were made to send them home to the Nicobars or to Port Blair. The report said: “It was fortunate that the hole was noticed while it was in the safe zone. Had it been in between Port Blair and Chennai, it would have been a major disaster.”
•Putting the two reports together offers a snapshot of a bizarre reality in these islands — an island set-up that is promising everything from air strips and floating jetties to premium resorts, not to mention ecological sensitivity, global bench marking and overall socio-economic development, is unable to ensure that the local community has a safe and reliable, leave alone comfortable, ship to travel on. And that too in an island system where shipping is, or certainly should be, the lifeline. If such a basic and critical element cannot be ensured, what is the guarantee that the grand plans and promises will not meet the same fate?
Cost to local communities
•The important point to note here is that the cost is being paid by the local communities and the local environment. In its vision for achieving the grand and the ambitious, foundational and fundamental elements are being given the go-by and one cannot but ask whether the huge effort and the substantial human, planning and financial resources being spent for the tourism projects cannot be invested better and more productively?
•A truly holistic development plan for an island system should have a robust shipping system as its first building block. What we have instead is a seriously leaking ship that should lead to serious questions about capacities and about priorities.
📰 The sedition debate
Thoroughly overhauling Section 124-A is good, but repealing it is much better
•Rulers everywhere tend to treat trenchant criticism as attempts to excite disaffection and disloyalty. That is perhaps the only reason that Section 124-A of the Indian Penal Code, enacted under colonial rule, remains on the statute book. There have been repeated instances of its misuse. Regimes at the Centre and the States have often been shown in poor light after they invoked the section against activists, detractors, writers and even cartoonists. Since Independence, many have seen the irony of retaining a provision that was used extensively to suppress the freedom struggle. Despite all this, Section 124-A has tenaciously survived all attempts by successive generations to reconsider it, if not repeal it altogether. The Law Commission, for the third time in five decades, is now in the process of revisiting the section. Its consultation paper calls for a thorough reconsideration and presents the various issues related to it before the public for a national debate. In particular, it has raised the pertinent question: how far is it justified for India to retain an offence introduced by the British to suppress the freedom struggle, when Britain itself abolished it 10 years ago? In an earlier report in 1968, the Law Commission had rejected the idea of repealing the section. In 1971, the panel wanted the scope of the section to be expanded to cover the Constitution, the legislature and the judiciary, in addition to the government to be established by law, as institutions against which ‘disaffection’ should not be tolerated. The only dilution it mooted was to modify the wide gap between the two jail terms prescribed in the section (either three years or life) and fix the maximum sanction at seven years’ rigorous imprisonment with fine.
•The foremost objection to the provision on sedition is that its definition remains too wide. ‘Overbroad’ definitions typically cover both what is innocuous and what is harmful. Under the present law, strong criticism against government policies and personalities, slogans voicing disapprobation of leaders and stinging depictions of an unresponsive or insensitive regime are all likely to be treated as ‘seditious’, and not merely those that overtly threaten public order or constitute actual incitement to violence. In fact, so mindless have some prosecutions been in recent years that the core principle enunciated by the Supreme Court — that the incitement to violence or tendency to create public disorder are the essential ingredients of the offence — has been forgotten. However, as long as sedition is seen as a reasonable restriction on free speech on the ground of preserving public order, it will be difficult to contain its mischief. There can only be two ways of undoing the harm it does to citizens’ fundamental rights: it can be amended so that there is a much narrower definition of what constitutes sedition, but the far better course is to do away with it altogether.
📰 SC puts off hearing on Kashmir special status
Agrees to Centre’s plea to wait till panchayat elections
•The Supreme Court on Friday bowed to the Centre’s wish to postpone hearing on the legality of Article 35A, giving special status to the State of Jammu and Kashmir, till the panchayat elections in the State are over in order to avoid law and order problems.
•Appearing before a Bench led by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, Attorney-General K.K. Venugopal, for the Centre, said proceeding with the case now would affect peace in the State.
•“The issue is so sensitive…Large companies of paramilitary forces are moving towards the election areas. Law and order may go out of hand...Let the elections first get over in December,” Mr. Venugopal submitted to the Bench, also comprising Justices A.M. Khanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud. “We do not want to precipitate things when the elections are due,” Justice Chandrachud observed as the petitioners objected to the government’s request to postpone.
•Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, for Jammu and Kashmir, submitted that hearing the case at this point would be a threat to peace.
•The Bench scheduled the petitions for the second week of January next year.
•One of the main petitions is filed by NGO We the Citizens, which argues that Article 35A is against the “very spirit of oneness of India” as it creates a “class within a class of Indian citizens.”
📰 Root out terror: BIMSTEC
The regional grouping’s Kathmandu Declaration focusses on backing of terror by state and non-state actors, apart from connectivity among the member nations.
•Describing terrorism as a “great threat” to international peace and security, India and six other BIMSTEC nations on Friday called for identifying and holding accountable states and non-state entities that encourage, support or finance terrorism, provide sanctuaries to terrorists and falsely extol their virtues.
•The BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) is a regional grouping comprising India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal.
•The Kathmandu Declaration issued at the end of the two-day fourth BIMSTEC summit, attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, deplored terror attacks in all parts of the world, including in BIMSTEC countries, and stressed that there could be no justification for any act of terrorism.
•“Today’s [Friday] proceedings at the BIMSTEC Summit were extremely productive. We built on the ground covered yesterday [Thursday] and reiterated our commitment to further strengthen multilateral cooperation in diverse areas,” Mr. Modi said.
Great threat
•“Terrorism and transnational organised crimes continue to pose a great threat to international peace and security including in the BIMSTEC countries,” the declaration said.
•The unanimously adopted declaration said the “fight against terrorism should target not only terrorists, terror organisations and networks but also identify and hold accountable states and non-state entities that encourage, support or finance terrorism, provide sanctuaries to terrorists and terror groups and falsely extol their virtues.”
•The declaration did not name any specific country, but Pakistan is often accused by its neighbours, including India, of providing safe havens to terrorists.
•The declaration underlined the importance of multidimensional connectivity, which promotes synergy among connectivity frameworks in the region, as a key enabler to economic integration for shared prosperity.
•An MoU was signed on establishment of the BIMSTEC Grid Interconnection. “The MoU provides for optimisation of using energy resources in the region & promotion of efficient & secure operation of power system,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted.
📰 SAARC meet to allow India-Pakistan interface
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Pakistan counterpart Shah Mehmood Qureshi to have a meeting in New York.
•The first face-to-face engagement between the new Pakistani government and India could come later this month when External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi attend the SAARC (South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation) Council of Ministers’ meeting in New York, officials in Delhi and Islamabad confirmed.
•However, they said there were no plans “so far” for a one-on-one meeting between the two Ministers on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), which begins on September 25.
•The SAARC meeting, which will most likely include a lunch attended by the Foreign Ministers of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives, is scheduled for September 27.
•Ms. Swaraj is slotted to address the UNGA on September 29, as will her Pakistani counterpart.
•The informal Council of Minister’s meeting was also held last year on the sidelines of the UNGA, and is expected to be chaired by Nepal Foreign Minister Pradeep Gyawali, and organised by Pakistani diplomat Amjad Sial, who is the SAARC Secretary-General.
•Sources confirmed to The Hindu that preparations for the informal meeting of Ministers of the grouping are being made by the SAARC secretariat in Kathmandu. External Affairs Ministry sources confirmed the meeting would be attended by Ms. Swaraj “as in previous years”, as did the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson in Islamabad, who also said several unspecified steps may be taken by the two countries.
•“In the wake of recent overtures by both Pakistan and India to lessen the ever-widening gulf between the two neighbours, some future steps are under consideration. I will share details with you, in due course,” spokesperson Mohammad Faisal told presspersons on Thursday.
Constructive overtures
•In the past month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has telephoned Prime Minister Imran Khan to congratulate him on his win and followed the call with a letter calling for “constructive and meaningful engagement with Pakistan.”
•In his speeches Mr. Khan has promised to meet every step India takes with “two steps” from Pakistan, and Islamabad sent a Ministerial team to Delhi to attend former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s funeral.
•Despite the “overtures”, there has been little movement in scheduling the SAARC summit due to be held in Pakistan, after it was called off in 2016 following the Uri attack.
•Nepal, which hosted the last SAARC summit in Kathmandu in November 2014, has been keen to pass on its chairmanship of the regional grouping, which it can only do once India and other members agree to attend the summit in Islamabad.
•Inaugurating the BIMSTEC summit on Thursday, Mr. Oli reiterated that the newly revived BIMSTEC grouping would not replace the SAARC group.
•“Nepal stands for meaningful regional cooperation. We believe that SAARC and BIMSTEC do not substitute but complement each other,” Mr. Oli said.
📰 India invites Pak. experts to hydel sites in J&K
‘Invite as per the provisions of the Indus treaty’
•India has invited Pakistan to visit sites of the Pakal Dul and Lower Kalnal hydro-electric projects on the Chenab.
•India and Pakistan concluded the 115th meeting of the India-Pakistan Permanent Indus Commission (PIC) in Lahore from August 29-30. The Indian delegation was led by P.K. Saxena, the Indian Commissioner for Indus Waters. He wasn’t immediately available for comment.
•“Yes we have asked them to visit. But this according to existing provisions of the treaty,” U.P. Singh, Secretary, Union Water Resources Ministry, told The Hindu .
•As per the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty 1960, technical discussions were held on implementation of various hydroelectric projects including Pakal Dul (1000 MW) and Lower Kalnai (48 MW) in Jammu and Kashmir.
•“Both the countries agreed to undertake the Treaty-mandated tours of both the Indus Commissioners in the Indus basin on both sides. Deliberations were also held on further strengthening the role of the Permanent Indus Commission for matters under the Treaty,” said a statement from the Ministry of External Affairs. Though a routine affair, the talks in Lahore were the first bilateral engagement between India and Pakistan since Prime Minister Imran Khan took office. The last meeting of the Permanent Indus Commission was held in New Delhi in March.
📰 GDP grows 8.2% in April-June
Manufacturing, construction lead robust revival
•The Indian economy grew 8.2% — the highest in two years — in the April-June quarter, driven by robust growth in the manufacturing, construction and farm sectors. The figures raised hopes of a higher than estimated annual growth of 7.5%.
•The pace of growth was the highest since the 9.3% rise reported for the January-March quarter of 2016. The latest figures, however, come on a lower base of 5.6% growth in the first quarter of 2017-18.
•Finance Minister Arun Jaitley tweeted that achieving a growth rate of 8.2% in “an environment of global turmoil” represented the “potential of New India.”
•The manufacturing sector grew 13.5% in the first quarter of 2018-19, as against a contraction of 1.8% a year earlier, while the construction sector grew 8.7% as compared to a growth of 1.8% in the first quarter of last year. The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at constant (2011-12) prices in the first quarter of 2018-19 is estimated at Rs. 33.74 lakh crore as against Rs. 31.18 lakh crore in Q1 of 2017-18, the Central Statistics Office said in a statement.
•“… this gives us confidence… we predicted that the growth will be in the range of 7-7.5% annually. We are reasonably confident now that we may even exceed the higher end of the projection... Indian economy would perform robustly… will remain the fastest-growing economy in the world,” Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash Chandra Garg said at a press conference.
•Former Finance Minister P. Chidambaram pointed out in a tweet, “Happy that the rate of growth has quickened, but…Q1 growth rate is based on the lowest base (5.6) in the last 8 quarters.”
•“Going forward, the base effect will not be so favourable,” he added. Replying to a question, Mr. Garg said, “Inflation numbers so far suggest very moderate and well-controlled inflation… However, I do recognise that oil prices increasing and rupee depreciating will have inflationary implications.”
•Bibek Debroy, Chairman of the Economic Advisory Council to Prime Minister said, “Despite an uncertain international environment and volatile crude oil prices, India’s sustained growth reflects its strong resilience to adverse global conditions, because of strong economic fundamentals.”
📰 Submerging markets: on falling rupee value
The increasing demand for the U.S. dollar is shaking currency markets across the globe
•Emerging market economies continue to be in the spotlight for the wrong reasons as their currencies resume their prolonged slide against the U.S. dollar. The Indian rupee weakened past the 71 mark for the first time ever on Friday, registering a loss of about 10% of its value against the dollar since the beginning of the year. This makes the rupee the worst-performing currency in Asia. Other emerging market currencies, most notably the Turkish lira, the Argentine peso and the South African rand, have suffered much larger losses owing to a serious loss of confidence among investors. The Argentine peso, which has lost more than half of its value in 2018, for instance, witnessed a sharp loss of more than 10% on Thursday alone. This happened despite a 15 percentage point increase in interest rates by Argentina’s central bank in order to stem the outflow of capital and shore up the value of the currency. The Turkish lira, which has lost almost half its value this year, is another currency in the doldrums. The crises in both Turkey and Argentina have been intensified by domestic economic issues. But the common factor underlying the wider carnage among emerging market currencies is the increasing demand for the dollar across the globe. The tightening of liquidity in the West, with the U.S. Federal Reserve raising interest rates, has played a major role in the strengthening of the dollar since February this year. Investors who earlier put their money in emerging markets have recently preferred American assets, which now yield higher returns.
•Such a widespread shift of capital across the globe owing to the variations in interest rates is normal whenever the global interest rate cycle turns. Emerging market countries, which earlier benefited from the easing of monetary conditions in the West, are now feeling the pain of a return to monetary policy normalcy. This does not, however, mean that emerging market economies can simply blame external economic factors for the present turmoil in their currencies and hope for better times. The management of these economies has generally been far from ideal, particularly when it comes to hard-hit economies like Turkey and Argentina. The chief among the troubles of emerging market economies is higher domestic inflation when compared to the economies in the West. It is only natural, then, that their currencies will slide in value over time against the dollar and other major Western currencies. Unless there is a drastic change in emerging market monetary policy vis-à-visthe West, this is likely to be the case for a long time. The mandate of emerging market central banks in the current scenario should be to let their currencies find their true value in a smooth manner.
📰 Census 2021 to collect OBC data, use maps
The exercise will involve 25 lakh enumerators; final figures are expected to be out in three years instead of the usual seven
•Census 2021 will for the first time collect data on Other Backward Classes (OBC), the Centre said on Friday.
•The decennial exercise will involve 25 lakh trained enumerators and the use of “maps/geo-referencing at the time of house listing is also under consideration,” a statement issued by the Home Ministry said.
•A senior Minister said the decision to count the OBCs in the next Census was to get a correct perspective on the social status in the country.
•The 2011 caste data collected as part of the Socio-economic Caste Census (SECC) is yet to be released by the Centre. The National Commission for Backward Classes says there are 2,479 entries on the Central list of the OBCs. “We are committed to giving the correct social perspective of the country. We will know how much a community has progressed and who has not,” the Minister said on condition of anonymity. He refused to elaborate whether this was being done to extend reservation benefits to the OBCs in the future.
•The 2011 Census collected information in 29 categories that included a separate column for Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes. A senior Home Ministry official said the OBCs would be an option in the column in 2021.
•Home Minister Rajnath Singh reviewed the functioning of the Office of the Registrar-General and the Census Commissioner on Friday.
•“It was emphasised that improvements in design and technological interventions be made so as to ensure that the Census data is finalised within three years after conducting of Census. At present it takes seven or eight years to release the complete data,” the statement said.
•The enumerators will start “house listing” in 2020 and the headcount will begin from February 2021. “It was also informed that nearly 25 lakh enumerators are trained and engaged for the gigantic exercise and accurate collection of data will be ensured in Census 2021.”
•The Home Minister also emphasised the need for improvement in the Civil Registration System, especially on registration of birth and death in remote areas, and strengthening sample registration system for estimating the data namely, infant mortality rate, maternal mortality ratio and fertility rates,” the statement said.
Ad-hoc basis
•The Census Organisation was set up on an ad-hoc basis for each Census till the 1951 Census when the Census Act was enacted in 1948 to provide for the scheme of conducting population census with duties and responsibilities of census officers. As per the 2011 Census, the country’s population stood at 1.21 billion, almost equal to the combined population of the U.S., Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Japan put together [1214.3 million].
•Earlier, the Home Ministry issued notification that the data collected during 2021 Census would be stored electronically, also a first.
•Presently, the “schedules” (a tabular form containing details of individuals), carried by enumerators to households was being stored in a physical form at government’s storehouse in Delhi. It is based on these schedules that the relevant statistical information on population, language, occupation, etc, are sorted from and published.
