UPSC 2020 Exam - NEWS Analysis 18th January

Today, students aspiring to clear the UPSC form can focus on proposed changes for the NPR form, a 24/7 Mumbai city and the declining birth rates in China. Mercy pleas for the Nirbhaya killers have been rejected once again, extending the execution to February 1.

Citizens can skip place of birth query in NPR form

Non-BJP rules states have asked the Registrar General of India (RGI) to remove a column for ‘place of birth of mother and father’ in the upcoming National Population Register (NPR) for the Census exercise in April-September.

This demande was made during a conference organised by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Census 2021 and NPR. They were told that respondents could skip questions in the NPR form as answering the was ‘voluntary’.

Context:

There are fears that the data collected in NPR may be used for the National Register of Citizens, under the Citizenship Amendment Act. Non-BJP states are against the NRC and CAA and have moved resolutions to have the act repealed.

West Bengal and Kerala had earlier asked the RGI to halt the NPR exercise, citing the need to maintain ‘public order’.

Minister of State for Home G. Kishan Reddy said no one would be pressured to collect details for the NPR. “No documents are required to be shown by people during the NPR and Census exercise. People can give the details they want to. NPR should not be linked to the National Register of Citizens (NRC),” Mr. Reddy said. 

Nirbhaya killers to be hung on February 1

Hours after the President of India rejected the Mercy plea of the 4 convicts held guilty in the rape and murder of a 23 year old medical student in 2012 Delhi, a new fresh black warrant was issued against the criminals for their execution to be done on February 1 at 6 am.

Context

Mukesh Singh, one of the convicts held guilty in the brutal murder and rape case of a 23-year-old medical student in Delhi, had applied for a mercy plea in front of the President of India. It was straight away rejected by the President of India.

The new warrants, as per policy, have been issued to exactly 14 days from today. This period includes a brief repreive for convicts after their mercy plea is rejected. Out of the 6 criminals, 4 (Mukesh, Vinay, Akshay and Pawan) will be hanged. Ram Singh, the driver of the bus had killed himself in his cell in 2014, before his conviction. The last was a minor at the time of the crime and was sent to a reform house.

The remaining 3 convicts have not filed for their mercy pleas and may do so at any point of time prior to their execution. Each time a mercy petition is filed and rejected, a 14-day-period must be observed, thereby potentially prolonging the execution.

China’s birth rate falls to its lowest level since 1949.

China’s birth rate has fallen to the lowest level since the communist country was founded in

1949.

The eldery population is ageing fast, as compared to additions to the young population. Most of the blame is put on China’s ‘one child policy’ which existed for decades, restricting many families to one offspring since early 1980s.

Context

There were 14.6 million births in China in 2019, a drop of 500,000 from the year before and third year in a row that the number of births fallen. It was the lowest number in seven decades, with the exception of 1961, when a famine had left millions dead.

The birth rate was at 10.48 live births per 1,000 people with the lowest since 1949.The countries with lowest birth rate in the world are Singapore, England and Wales.

Singapore has the lowest one with 8.9 per 1,000 people and Niger with the highest one with 46.5 births per 1,000 people according to World Bank reports of 2017. 

The earlier restrictive birth control policy in China may ensure that birth rates here remain low for the foreseeable future. The decline in birth rate is lesser than the previous year where the birth rate fell to 10.94 per thousand in 2019 to 12.43 in 2017.

Citing the high cost involved in upbringing a child, many have still chosen to have a single kid only despite governments reversed policy to have more than one child since 2015.

Mumbai now all set to get a 24×7 life

An ambitious dream project by Aditya Thackeray will become operational from January 26, making certain centres in the city operational 24x7. These will include Nariman Point, Kala Ghoda, BKC and mill compounds.

Context

The new night life policy will allow malls, shopping complexes in commercial areas, gated communities and mill compounds to remain open 24×7 if they wish to do so. The new policy will allow commercial units which don’t sell alcohol to remain open 24/7. 

Several mall owners have expressed interest over it. This doesn’t apply to residential complexes though.

This move is going to put Mumbai in the list of global cities. It will boost its tourism and honour the city’s working culture. The step is also a move from Shiv Sena to distance itself from its earlier hardliner image.

A similar project would be launched in Ahmedabad too and this can boost the economy of Gujarat, by generating more employment.

Last NDFB faction agrees for truce in Assam

The central government, Assam government and the National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB)’s Saoraigwra faction have signed a three-party peace deal in New Delhi. The NDFB-S is the third and last faction of the NDFB, which has been demanding a separate homeland for Bodos in the Northeast.

Context:

Before this peace treaty, 50 members of the NDFB-S had come to India from their hideouts in Myanmar and given themselves up. 

The NDFB-S had been responsible for violent attaccks around the Indo-Bhutan border, as Bhutan used to be a base forr NDFB’s operations when it was a unified organisation. In 2003, a joint Indo-Bhutan military operation flushed out cadre of this group from here, alongside militants from ULFA and KLO.

Two top leaders from the outfit, G. Bidai alias Bishnu Goyari and his deputy Batha alias Binod Mushahary, are still at large.

All The Best To All The UPSC 2020 Aspirants !