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TOPIC : GS 2 Functions and Responsibilities of the Union and the States, Issues and Challenges Pertaining to the Federal Structure, Devolution of Powers and Finances up to Local Levels and Challenges Therein.

Still no recognition of third tier

What is the news?

In the FC­15 proposals, the goal of fiscally empowering local governments to deliver territorial equity is still far away

  • The primary task of the Union Finance Commission is to rectify the vertical and horizontal imbalances in resources and expenditure responsibilities between Union and States, which after the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments includes the third tier of local governments.
  • Commission is the fifth after the incorporation of Part IX and Part IX­A to the Constitution which mandate the Union Finance Commission to supplement the resources of panchayats and municipalities on the basis of the recommendations of the State Finance Commission (another institution created by the Amendments).

Higher vertical devolution  :

  1. The vertical devolution recommended to local governments is raised remarkably high. Commission, the Fifteenth Finance Commission raised it to 4.23% with a reasonably estimated amount of 4,36,361 Crore. Compared with the Fourteenth Finance Commission there is a 52% increase in the vertical share.
  2. All the Commissions since the Eleventh Commission have tied specific items of expenditure to local grants and the Fifteenth Finance Commission has raised this share to 60% and linked

them to drinking water, rainwater harvesting, sanitation and other national priorities in the spirit of cooperative federalism.

Performance based grant :

  1. It reduced the performance based grant to just 8,000 crore  and that too for building new cities, leaving out the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) altogether.
  2. The performance linked grants thoughtfully introduced by the Thirteenth Finance Commission earmarked 35% of local grant specifying six conditions for Panchayats and nine for urban local governments and covered a wide range of reforms
  3. It  establishment of an independent ombudsman to notifying standards for service sectors such as drinking water and solid waste management.
  4. The transformative potential in designing performance linked conditionalities for improving the quality of decentralized governance in the context of indifferent states is missed.

Entry level criterion :

  1. An important recommendation of the Fifteenth Finance Commission is the entry-level criterion to avail the union local grant (except health grant) by local governments (strictly speaking, it is performance linked).
  2. For Panchayats, the condition is online submission of annual accounts for the previous year and audited accounts for the year before.

For urban local governments, two more conditions are specified:

  • After 2021­22, fixation of minimum floor for property tax rates by the relevant State
  • Consistent improvement in the collection of property taxes in tandem with the State’s own Gross State Domestic Product.

Equalization Principle

  1. Alma-Ata declaration of the World Health Organization (1978) which outlined an integrated, local government centric approach with simultaneous focus on access to water, sanitation and  shelter
  2. The Fifteenth Finance Commission claims that it seeks to achieve the “desirable objective of evenly balancing the union and the states”.
  3. The Fifteenth Finance Commission, which generally takes care to go into details (recommendations on health care, air pollution etc.) and is well aware of India’s regional heterogeneity
  4.  Articles 243G, 243W and 243ZD read along with the functional decentralization of basic services like drinking water, public health care, etc., mandated in the Eleventh and Twelfth schedules demand better public services and of economic development and social justice’ at the local level.
  5.  While the grants to the primary health centres must be acknowledged as a great gesture, a good opportunity to ensure comparable minimum public services to every citizen irrespective of her choice of residential location has not been taken forward in an integrated manner.

Way forward

Decentralization is meant to empower local people the primary task is to fiscally empower local governments to deliver territorial equity.

Mains question

In the FC­15 proposals, the goal of fiscally empowering local governments to deliver territorial equity is still far away. Critically examine?

Source : https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/still-no-recognition-of-the-third-tier/article34209337.ece

TOPIC : GS 2 India and its Neighborhood- Relations.

Enter the peace process

What is the news?

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar comment that India supports talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban signals a subtle shift in New Delhi’s approach towards the Afghan crisis.

  • At the 9th Heart of Asia Conference in Tajikistan, he said India has been supportive of all efforts being made to “accelerate the dialogue” between the Afghan government and the Taliban, in a rare direct reference to the insurgent group.
  • In the 1990s and 2000s, India was stead fastly opposed to any dealings with the Taliban. But its position seems to have evolved over the years.
  • In 2018, when Russia hosted Afghan and Taliban talks, India had sent a diplomatic delegation to Moscow.
  • In September2020, at the intra­Afghan peace talks in Doha, Indian external minister was present at the inaugural session via a video link, reaffirming the long­held Indian position that any peace process should be Afghan led, Afghan owned and Afghan controlled.
  • Indian latest comments come close on the heels of a new peace push by the Joe Biden administration of the U.S.

Biden plan includes two key proposals — a unity transition government between the warring   parties and a UN­led multilateral conference of envoys from India, China, Iran, Pakistan, Russia, and the U.S.

  • India has supported the UN­ led process, in an apparent climb down from its earlier position, and now shown willingness to deal with the Taliban.

The evolution of India’s position is in sync with the evolution of the reality in Afghanistan.

  • The Taliban, no longer an untouchable force, control much of the country’s rural territories.
  • The U.S. has already signed a deal with the Taliban, wherein American troops are scheduled to pull back from Afghanistan by May .
  • China had long ago reached out to the Taliban.
  • Russia has hosted talks between the two sides.
  • European powers have also shown interest in sponsoring talks.

 India

  1. India has to be more flexible and adapt to the new strategic reality.
  2. Since the fall of the Taliban, India has cultivated deep ties with the Afghan people and the government with investments in multiple projects dealing with education, power generation, irrigation and other infrastructure development.
  3. The first batch of vaccines Afghanistan got was from India, in February.
  4. Recently, India signed an agreement to build the Shahtoot dam near Kabul. Thus, its economic, strategic and security ties could be disrupted if the Taliban were to take over.

Way forward

The question India faces, like the other stakeholders, is how to help Afghanistan end the violence without a total capitulation to the Taliban. India joining the peace process could strengthen the hands of the Afghan government, which is negotiating from a position of weakness.

Mains question

India should use its influence to ensure peace within Afghanistan and wider region . Discuss

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/enter-the-peace-process-the-hindu-editorial-on-indias-role-in-afghanistan/article34209331.ece

PRELIMS PUNCHERS

  1. Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana

It is  a Government of India backed saving scheme targeted at the parents of girl children. The scheme encourages parents to build a fund for the future education and marriage expenses for their female child. The scheme was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 22 January 2015 as a part of the Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao campaign. The scheme currently provides an interest rate of 7.6% (for Apr-July 2020 quarter) and tax benefits. The account can be opened at any India Post office or branch of authorized commercial banks.

The account can be opened anytime between the birth of a girl child and the time she attains 10 years age by the parent/guardian. Only one account is allowed per child. Parents can open a maximum of two accounts for each of their children (exception allowed for twins and triplets). The account can be transferred to anywhere in India. The girl can operate her account after she reaches the age of 10. The account allows 50% withdrawal at the age of 18 for higher education purposes. The account reaches maturity after time period of 21 years from date of opening it.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/govt-slashes-rates-on-small-savings-schemes-by-up-to-11/article34208743.ece

  1. Senior Citizens Savings Scheme (SCSS)

It  is a government-backed savings instrument offered to Indian residents aged over 60 year. Under Senior Citizen Savings Scheme, the deposit matures after 5 years from the date of account opening but can be extended once by an additional 3 years. This is the highest interest rate among the various small savings schemes in India.  SCSS is available through Public / Private sector banks and India Post Offices.

Investments made in a Senior Citizen Savings Scheme account qualify for income tax deduction benefit up to Rs. 1.5 Lakh under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

Interest on SCSS is fully taxable. In case the interest amount earned is more than Rs. 50,000 for a fiscal, Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) is applicable to the interest earned. This limit for TDS deduction on SCSS investments is applicable from AY 2020-21 onwards.

Source: https://www.financialexpress.com/money/ppf-nsc-scss-kvp-5-year-post-office-fd-interest-rate-cut-check-new-small-savings-rates-till-june-2021/2224275/

  1. Gamosa

The Gamosa or Gamusa is an article of significance for the indigenous people of Assam, India. It is generally a white rectangular piece of cloth with primarily a red border on three sides and red woven motifs on the fourth (in addition to red, other colors are also used). Although cotton yarn is the most common material for making/weaving gamosas, there are special occasion ones made from Pat silk. Significantly the gamusa is used equally by all irrespective of religious and ethnic backgrounds.

At par with gamusa, there are beautifully woven symbolic clothes with attractive graphic designs being used by different cultural sub-systems and ethno-cultural groups as well. There were various other symbolic elements and designs traditionally in use, which are now only found in literature, art, sculpture, architecture, etc. or used for only religious purposes (in particular occasions only). The typical designs of Assamese-lion, dragon, flying-lion, etc. were used for symbolizing various purposes and occasions .In November 2019, the Gamusa published in Geographical indication journal but didn’t received the Geographical Indication tag till now

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/gamosa-evolves-from-memento-to-mask-in-assam/article31301183.ece

  1. Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation

This is an organisation tasked to assist the Central Board of Trustees. Employees’ Provident Fund is a statutory body established by the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 and is under the administrative control of the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India.

EPFO is the regulatory body responsible for the overall supervision and regulation of provident funds in India. EPFO assists the Central Board in administering a compulsory contributory Provident Fund Scheme, a Pension Scheme and an Insurance Scheme for the workforce engaged in the organised sector in India. It is also the nodal agency for implementing Bilateral Social Security Agreements with other countries on a reciprocal basis. The schemes cover Indian workers as well as International workers (for countries with which bilateral agreements have been signed. As of now 19 Social Security Agreements are operational). The EPFO’s apex decision making body is the Central Board of Trustees (CBT). On 1 October 2014, the government of India launched Universal Account Number for Employees covered by EPFO to enable PF number portability.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/re-examining-the-epf-tax-rules/article34209922.ece

  1. Turkey

It is a transcontinental country straddling Southeastern Europe and Western Asia. It is bordered on its northwest by Greece and Bulgaria; north by the Black Sea; northeast by Georgia; east by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran; southeast by Iraq ,south by Syria and the Mediterranean Sea; and west by the Aegean Sea. Istanbul, which straddles Europe and Asia, is the country’s largest city, while Ankara is the capital. Approximately 70 to 80 percent of the country’s citizens are ethnic Turks, while the largest minority are Kurds at 20 percent.

Source: https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/turkey-on-edge/article34209796.ece

Prelims Question

  1. Consider the following statement regarding Turkey
  2. It is a transcontinental country straddling South western Europe and Western Asia.
  3. Approximately 70 to 80 percent of the country’s citizens are ethnic Kurds

Select the correct statement using code given below.

(a). 1only       (b) 2 only

(c).Both       (d). None of above

Answer: D

It is a transcontinental country straddling Southeastern Europe and Western Asia. It is bordered on its northwest by Greece and Bulgaria, north by the Black Sea , northeast by Georgia; east by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Iran, southeast by Iraq ,south by Syria and the Mediterranean Sea, and west by the Aegean Sea. Istanbul, which straddles Europe and Asia, is the country’s largest city, while Ankara is the capital. Approximately 70 to 80 percent of the country’s citizens are ethnic Turks, while the largest minority are Kurds at 20 percent

Qn 2.Gamosa is recently seen in news is from which of the following state

  1. Meghalaya
  2. Assam
  3. Nagaland
  4. Tripura

Answer : 2

The Gamosa or Gamusa is an article of significance for the indigenous people of Assam, India. It is generally a white rectangular piece of cloth with primarily a red border on three sides and red woven motifs on the fourth (in addition to red, other colors are also used). Although cotton yarn is the most common material for making/weaving gamosas, there are special occasion ones made from Pat silk. Significantly the gamusa is used equally by all irrespective of religious and ethnic backgrounds.