TOPIC: GS 3 Inclusive Growth and issues arising from it.

A ‘reform wave’ Lakshadweep could do without

What is the news?

• Administrator of Lakshadweep is in the news for having introduced a slew of draft legislation that will have a wide­ranging impact on the islands
• In 2017 Centre constituted the Island Development Agency under the Home Minister for the development of the islands.

The Island Development Authority framework

• The Union Territory had its own decentralised political entity from the adoption of panchayati raj much before the constitutional amendments of 1993
• Of the Island Development Council, at the apex of the local government, was mandated to advise the Administrator on development
• The island as its own airport, and a flourishing tourist industry, with an international tourist resort in Bangaram.

About Lakshadweep

• A paradise set in the Arabian Sea, the archipelago of Lakshadweep
• It gives India a vast and exclusive economic zone with three distinct ecosystems: land, lagoon and ocean.
• Fishery is a primary occupation
• The language except in Minicoy is Malayalam in Minicoy, Mahl is spoken, a language akin to the 17th century Divehi of the Maldives.
• The society in all islands is matriarchal.

 

A ‘no’ to the Maldives model

• Rejecting the Maldives model, the plan for Lakshadweep required that the industry had to be people­centric and enrich the fragile coral ecology.
• It has rainwater harvesting facilities first introduced in government building every island and now accessible in every home.
• Solar power covers 10% of lighting needs, makes Lakshadweep a pioneer in India’s present flagship initiative.
• All islands have been connected by helicopter service since 1986, and high-speed passenger boats were purchased by an international tender.
• A study by the National Institute of Oceanography found practical applications, helping a redesign of the tripods reinforcing the beaches against sea erosion
• Report also ensuring piped water supply especially designed to draw from the fresh water lens that in every coral island and floats on the saline underground seawater

Finances

• Endorsed with outlays by the Eighth, Ninth and Tenth Finance Commissions, established in the words of the last of these Commissions speedy and accurate generation of accounting information that might be needed for purposes of better planning, budgeting and monitoring.

Against Government Policy

• Water bungalows an expensive concept and also hazardous to the coral favoured by the NITI Aayog, would collapse in Lakshadweep’s turbulent monsoon.
• It should be noted that a wooden jetty installed at the diving school in Kadmat needs to be dismantled every monsoon.
• The provision to allow the mining and exploitation of mineral resources which could convert the islands into a hub for cement manufacture.
• Panchayat rules designed to restrict the population growth in a territory according to the National Health and Family Survey­5 2019­20, the total fertility rate is 1.4 is far behind the national average of 2.2

Way Forward

The Government recognises the need to develop policies for enhancing employment opportunities, environment friendly management of fisheries, sanitation, waste disposal and widening access to drinking water, with the youth, having acquired a modern education, preferring salaried jobs over pursuing traditional occupations.

Mains question

Though there is room for improvement, the archipelago does not need the measures announced by its administrator. Explain

Sources : https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/lead/a-reform-wave-lakshadweep-could-do-without/article34684315.ece

 

 

 

PRELIMS PUNCHERS

1. The Chief Secretary

It is at the apex of the administrative hierarchy of a state and is the head of the State Secretariat. The Indian Constitution does not define or provide for his powers and functions. His functions are defined under the Rules of Business Article 166 – Conduct of business of the Government of a State which each state government frames for itself. These are amended from time to time. Some of the functions of Chief Secretary have also evolved through custom and conventions. In the union territories, which are governed by Administrators, Chief Secretaries are absent.

Chief Secretary is in charge of overall Law and Order Of the State. He is also the Administrative Head of the State Secretariat and  prepares the agenda Of Cabinet. Also, Chief Secretary’s presence in any meeting of Cabinet Of State Government is necessary.

Sources : https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/explained-is-the-order-attaching-west-bengal-chief-secretary-unprecedented/article34678058.ece

 

2. Betla National Park

It is a national park located on the Chota Nagpur Plateau in the Latehar and Palamu district of Jharkhand, India. The park hosts a wide variety of wildlife. The park features waterfalls and hot springs. There are also two historical forts known as Palamu Forts, one of them situated near the Betla erected in the 16th century as the seat of Chero Kings

The forests of the park have a vast range of vegetation consisting of sal and bamboo as the major components along with a number of medicinal plants. The North Koel River and its tributaries flow through the northern portion of the park, producing grasslands. Initially comprising of the Palamu Tiger Reserve, an additional area was added to the park in of the Mahuadar wolf sanctuary

Sources : https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/forests/palamu-tiger-reserve-land-diverted-without-ministry-permission-62744

3. Rwanda

It is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley where the African Great Lakes region and East Africa converge. One of the smallest countries on the African mainland, its capital city is Kigali. Located a few degrees south of the Equator Rwanda is bordered by Uganda, Tanzania, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

It is highly elevated, giving it the soubriquet “land of thousand hills”, with its geography dominated by mountains in the west and savanna to the east, with numerous lakes throughout the country. The climate is temperate to subtropical, with two rainy seasons and two dry seasons each year. The watershed between the major Congo and Nile drainage basins runs from north to south through Rwanda, with around majority of the country’s area draining into the Nile and the remaining  Congo via the Rusizi River and Lake Tanganyika.

Sources : https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/the-hindu-explains-frances-role-in-the-rwandan-genocide/article34666553.ece

 

4. Vinayak Damodar Savarkar

Commonly known as Swatantryaveer Savarkar or simply Veer Savarkar in Marathi language, was an Indian independence activist and politician who formulated the Hindu nationalist philosophy of Hindutva. He was a leading personality in the Hindu Mahasabha

Savarkar began his political activities as a high school student and continued to do so at Fergusson College in Pune. He and his brother founded a secret society called Abhinav Bharat Society. When he went to the United Kingdom for his law studies, he involved himself with organizations such as India House and the Free India Society. He also published books advocating complete Indian independence by revolutionary means One of the books he published called The Indian War of Independence about the Indian rebellion of 1857 was banned by the British authorities.

Sources : https://indianexpress.com/article/books-and-literature/book-on-veer-savarkar-to-hit-stands-in-july-7334115/

PRELIMS QUESTIONS

1. Consider the following statement with reference to Betla National Park
2. It is a national park located in Maharashtra
3. The North Koel River and its tributaries flow through portion of the park

Select the correct statement using code given below.

(a). 1only                                 (b) 2 only

(c). Both of them                 (d). None of the above

Answer : B

It is a national park located on the Chota Nagpur Plateau in the Latehar and Palamu district of Jharkhand, India. The park hosts a wide variety of wildlife. The park features waterfalls and hot springs. There are also two historical forts known as Palamu Forts, one of them situated near the Betla erected in the 16th century as the seat of Chero Kings

The forests of the park have a vast range of vegetation consisting of sal and bamboo as the major components along with a number of medicinal plants. The North Koel River and its tributaries flow through the northern portion of the park, producing grasslands. Initially comprising of the Palamu Tiger Reserve, an additional area was added to the park in of the Mahuadar wolf sanctuary

2. Consider the following statement with reference to Veer Savarkar
3. He established Hindu Mahasabha
4. He joined a secret society called Abhinav Bharat Society founded by Lal Hardyal

Select the correct statement using code given below.

(a). 1only                                 (b) 2 only

(c). Both of them                 (d). None of the above

Answer : D

Commonly known as Swatantryaveer Savarkar or simply Veer Savarkar in Marathi language, was an Indian independence activist and politician who formulated the Hindu nationalist philosophy of Hindutva. He was a leading personality in the Hindu Mahasabha

Savarkar began his political activities as a high school student and continued to do so at Fergusson College in Pune. He and his brother founded a secret society called Abhinav Bharat Society. When he went to the United Kingdom for his law studies, he involved himself with organizations such as India House and the Free India Society. He also published books advocating complete Indian independence by revolutionary means One of the books he published called The Indian War of Independence about the Indian rebellion of 1857 was banned by the British authorities.