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Heightened tensions in West Asia

Context: The targeted killings of top Hamas and Hezbollah leaders have increased the possibility of all-out war in West Asia to perhaps its highest level since the October 7 attacks on Israel.

Overview:

Hamas killed around 1,200 Israelis and took 250 hostage on October 7, 2023, and Israel’s response with air strikes and ground operations is estimated to have killed more than 40,000 people in Gaza so far.
Yet, the recent deaths of three key figures may have more profound implications.

Key figures and assassinations:

Fuad Shukr: A senior Hezbollah commander, was killed in an Israeli airstrike. Israel claimed Shukr was responsible for a rocket attack on Israeli-controlled Golan Heights.
Ismail Haniyeh: The head of Hamas' political bureau, was killed in Tehran. This act was particularly provocative, occurring on Iranian soil.
Mohammed Deif: He was reportedly killed in Gaza

Objectives of Israel

1. Demonstration of intent:

These targeted killings are seen as a huge victory for Israel, which had vowed revenge for the October 7 attacks, a catastrophic failure of its intelligence, operations, and response mechanisms.
Its Swords of Iron military offensive in Gaza had the twin objectives of destroying Hamas and freeing the hostages.
By killing key figures, Israel can claim to have substantially achieved the target of neutralising Hamas.
Israel seeks to restore its strategic credibility and reputational damage of Mossad.

2. Message to Iran:

By targeting the leaders of Hezbollah and Hamas, both groups are part of the ‘Axis of Resistance’ sponsored by Iran, Israel has redrawn the red lines of the conflict in West Asia.
The possibility of all-out war in the region is perhaps the highest now since the October 7 attacks.
In April, Israel had previously targeted Iranian military officials in Syria, leading to a retaliatory aerial attack from Tehran. The latest strikes against Iranian-affiliated leaders further illustrate Israel’s readiness to confront Iranian interests directly, even within Iranian territory.
Israel aims to expose the vulnerabilities of Iran’s intelligence and security establishment in much the same way as the Hamas attack had exposed and embarrassed the Israelis.
Israel has sent the message that Iran’s security umbrella cannot protect the leaders of Hamas.

Potential Iranian responses

While the three targeted assassinations and Israel’s military response in Gaza is intended to re-establish its deterrence against Iran and its proxies, Tehran cannot be expected to take it lying down.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and President Pezeshkian have vowed revenge. There are three scenarios on the possible Iranian response.

1. Direct retaliation:

Iran may opt to strike Israeli targets within Israeli territory, similar to the aerial attacks of April. Such a response would heighten regional tensions and could escalate the conflict further.

2. Coordinated attacks:

Tehran might collaborate with its allies, Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, to launch coordinated assaults on Israeli targets. This strategy could increase the scope and scale of the conflict, potentially drawing in more regional actors.

3. Indirect targeting:

Another possibility is for Iran to target Israeli officials in third countries, similar to the 2012 attack on an Israeli diplomat’s wife in New Delhi. This approach could complicate diplomatic relations and pose security challenges internationally.

Implications for India

1. Impact on regional stability:

About 9 million Indian nationals live and work in the region. They are the largest source of remittances to India. The first two scenarios could trigger a broader conflict, affecting the safety of Indians in West Asia.
The potential disruption of energy supplies, given that two-thirds of India’s crude oil and natural gas imports come from this region, would also have significant economic implications.

2. Diplomatic and security challenges:

India faces a difficult diplomatic balancing act. India has so far made no statements on the volatile situation. New Delhi, which has friends across the region, does not want to get drawn into regional rivalries.
The country has issued travel advisories for Israel and Lebanon, and airlines have adjusted their routes to avoid the region.
Other countries in the region have launched efforts to de-escalate the situation. Efforts of these regional players, such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Oman, to mediate could influence India’s strategy.

How Tungabhadra dam gate was swept away, why farmers are fearful

Context: A flood alert has been sounded downstream of the Tungabhadra dam in Karnataka’s Koppal district after one of the 33 crest gates of the massive stone masonry dam across the Tungabhadra river was washed away

Important key facts related to Tungabhadra river and Dam:

The Tungabhadra is formed at the confluence near Shimoga of two streams, Tunga and Bhadra, that rise in the Western Ghats.
It flows into the Krishna at Sangameshwaram in Andhra Pradesh.

It is influenced chiefly by the South-West monsoon.
The river forms part of the boundary between Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
TungaBhadra Dam (TB Dam) is a multipurpose dam built across TungaBhadra River in Hosapete, Ballari district.

It is one of the major reservoirs in South India that supplies water for irrigation and industrial use, as well as drinking water to Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
The wedge of land that lies north of the Tungabhadra, between the Tungabhadra and the Krishna, is known as the Raichur Doab.

Google Monopoly Antitrust Case

Context: On August 5, 2024, Google lost a major antitrust case brought against it by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that sought to establish that the tech giant had a monopoly in the web search and advertising sectors.

What is the Google 'monopoly' antitrust case: Major Highlights

The lawsuit accused Google of using its dominant position in the search engine market to push out rivals and maintain monopoly.
- Google’s search dominance was majorly achieved through a strategy of exclusive distribution agreements, or default distribution, i.e., Google entered into lucrative contracts with “browser developers, mobile device manufacturers, and wireless carriers” so that it was the first or default search engine that users of such services or new phones were given.
- Its exclusive deals with handset makers were brought before the court as evidence.
In the end, the U.S. District Judge ruled that Google was a monopolist. As per the court, Google used its monopoly power in two markets: general search services and general search text advertisements. Essentially, the court found that Google has abused its monopoly power by engaging in anti-competitive practices to maintain its dominance in both markets.

Impact of monopolistic practices on consumers

Monopolistic practices harm consumers by reducing competition, leading to higher prices, lower quality, and less innovation.

Higher prices: With fewer or no competitors, a monopolistic company can set higher prices for its products or services without the risk of losing customers. A monopoly can control the supply of a product or service, creating artificial scarcity or flooding the market to manipulate prices and demand.
Lack of diversity/ Less incentive to improve quality: The lack of competition can lead to a homogenisation of products, with fewer unique or diverse options available to consumers. With fewer alternatives, consumers might be stuck with lower quality services, as monopolies have less incentive to improve.
Privacy concerns/data exploitation: In digital monopolies, like Google, consumers may have less control over their personal data, which can be exploited for profit without adequate alternatives or competition to offer better privacy options.

Competition Act, 2002

The Competition Act, 2002 is a key legislation in India concerned for preventing practices that have an adverse effect on competition. It replaced the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act) to ensure the regulation standards are in line with the international standards.
Rationale: To prevent the concentration of power in the hands of a few entities and ensure healthy competition in the market segment.
The Act establishes the Competition Commission of India (CCI) as the national competition regulator to enforce its provisions. The CCI has the power to investigate anti-competitive practices, impose penalties, and issue orders to ensure compliance.
Key Objectives:
- Prevent Anti-Competitive Practices: The Act prohibits agreements that have the potential to cause an appreciable adverse effect on competition within India. This includes cartels, collusion, price-fixing, and other practices that limit market competition.
- Regulate Combinations: It governs mergers, acquisitions, and amalgamations that could lead to an adverse effect on competition. CCI has the authority to approve, modify, or block combinations that may harm competition.
- Prohibit Abuse of Dominant Position: The Act seeks to prevent entities with significant market power from engaging in practices that could exploit consumers or stifle competition, which includes predatory pricing and restrictive trade practices like limiting production or technical development, denying market access etc.
- Promote Fair Competition: It aims to create a level playing field for businesses in the market, encouraging innovation and efficiency while ensuring that consumers have access to a wide variety of goods and services at competitive prices.

Draft Digital Competition Bill, 2024

In February 2023, the Ministry of Corporate Affairs constituted a Committee on Digital Competition Law (CDCL) to examine the need for a separate law on competition in digital markets.
The CDCL concluded that there was a need to supplement the current ex-post framework under the Competition Act, 2002 with an ex-ante framework. It laid out this ex-ante framework in the draft Digital Competition Bill.
The Draft Digital Competition Bill, 2024 is a proposed legislation aimed at addressing the unique challenges posed by digital markets and ensuring fair competition in the rapidly evolving digital economy. The Bill has driven its inspiration from the European Union's Digital Market Act 2022.
It seeks to put in place several obligations for large digital enterprises (Systemically Significant Digital Enterprises/SSDEs), including news aggregators, in efforts to ensure a level playing field and fair competition in the digital space.

Ex-Post vs. Ex-Ante Competition Regulation

# Ex-Post regulation: The Competition Act, 2002 operates on an ex-post framework. This means that CCI can use its powers of enforcement only after the anti-competitive conduct has occurred. E.g., CCI has fined many MNCs in India who had abused their dominant position.
- In October 2022, Google was fined Rs. 1337 crores by the CCI as it had engaged in anti-competitive practices by abusing its dominant position in the Android mobile ecosystem. Google was found to have imposed unfair and discriminatory conditions on mobile phone manufacturers, particularly in the form of agreements that required these manufacturers to pre-install Google’s proprietary apps (such as Google Search, Chrome, and YouTube) on their devices. These conditions created a dependency on Google’s ecosystem, stifled competition and limited consumer choice.

# Ex-Ante Regulation: The rapid pace of innovation and growth in digital markets has highlighted the limitations of the ex-post approach which is time consuming and allows offending actors to escape timely scrutiny. The ex-ante regulatory framework would empower the CCI to proactively identify and regulate large digital platformsbefore they engage in anti-competitive behaviour. By intervening early, the CCI can prevent market failures and promote fair competition.

Japan issues its first-ever ‘megaquake advisory’: What does it mean?

Context – After a 7.1-magnitude earthquake shook southern Japan on Thursday (August 8), the country’s meteorological agency issued its first-ever “megaquake advisory”

What is Megaquake?

Earthquakes having magnitude larger than 8 are known as ‘Megaquakes’.

What is the Nankai Trough?

The Nankai Trough is an underwater subduction zone (nearly 900 km long) where the Eurasian Plate collides with the Philippine Sea Plate, pushing the latter under the former and into the Earth’s mantle.
This accumulates tectonic stress which can cause a megaquake — an earthquake with a magnitude larger than 8.
The trough has produced large earthquakes roughly every 100 to 150 years.
These tremors usually come in pairs, with the second often rupturing in the subsequent two years — the most recent “twin” earthquakes took place in 1944 and 1946.

What is a Richter scale?

The Richter scale is a logarithmic scale used to measure the magnitude of earthquakes.
The Richter scale is logarithmic, meaning that each whole number increase on the scale corresponds to a tenfold increase in the amplitude of seismic waves recorded by seismographs. For instance, an earthquake with a magnitude of 5.0 has seismic waves with amplitudes 10 times larger than those of a 4.0 earthquake.
The Richter scale measures the magnitude of an earthquake, which is the total energy released at the source. This differs from intensity, which describes the effects of an earthquake at specific locations, often measured by the Mercalli intensity scale.
In theory, the Richter scale has no upper limit, though the largest recorded earthquakes have magnitudes of around 9.0. However, the scale is less commonly used for very large earthquakes, as more advanced scales like the Moment Magnitude Scale (Mw) provide better accuracy for these events.

Earthquakes of magnitude 10 or larger:

Earthquakes of magnitude 10 or larger cannot happen. The magnitude of an earthquake is related to the length of the fault on which it occurs. That is, the longer the fault, the larger the earthquake. A fault is a break in the rocks that make up the Earth's crust, along which rocks on either side have moved past each other. No fault long enough to generate a magnitude 10 earthquake is known to exist, and if it did, it would extend around most of the planet.

The largest earthquake ever recorded was a magnitude 9.5 on May 22, 1960 in Chile on a fault that is almost 1,000 miles long…a “megaquake” in its own right.

Can we predict Earthquakes?

An earthquake prediction must define 3 elements: 1) the date and time, 2) the location, and 3) the magnitude.

No definite pattern: scientists have attempted to link multiple natural factors that have preceded earthquakes in the past with the earthquake itself, including increased amounts of radon in local water sources, rising levels of ground water, changes in electromagnetic activity and even odd animal behavior. For example, before the main rupture that ultimately causes a quake, smaller breaks called micro-fissures will form in subsurface rock. These smaller cracks change the rock’s permeability, or, in other words, they allow water to more easily pass through the rock. The more permeable rock might then lead to changes in ground water levels. This same change in permeability could also lead to the escape of radon which forms by radioactive decay of elements in certain minerals.
Sometimes these events occur without an ensuing earthquake, and other times earthquakes occur without any of these precursor events.
Huge depths: Earthquakes originate several miles below the Earth’s surface so it is of course possible that other early indicators occur, but we can’t readily detect them here on the surface, especially when we are not sure what it is we are looking for.
Similar beginning: small and large quakes are thought to start in similar ways: ruptures often occur suddenly.
Lack of data: More recently, researchers have turned to machine learning to develop nowcasting models by taking advantage of large amounts of data, such as seismology readings and data on Earth’s surface deformation. But challenges include a lack of data on the early warning signs to feed into the machine learning pipelines — given that these warning signs are not yet entirely understood

World distribution of Earthquakes:

Circum-Pacific Belt: Coastal Margins of North and South America and East Asia representing the margins of Pacific. 65% of the global Earthquakes occur in this region. It has ideal conditions of (i)C-O convergence and subduction zones, (ii)zone of young folded mountains and (iii) zone of active volcanoes.

Mid-Atlantic Belt: Epicentres located along mid Atlantic ridge. Earthquakes are because of transform faults and fractures because of splitting of plates

Mid-Continental Belt: Alpine-Himalayan belt representing collision of continental plates. 21% of the global earthquakes occur in this region. They represent weaker zones of folded mountains and fault induced earthquakes.

Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve

Context - A dead elephant, a cover up, and a probe that exposed Forest dept officials at Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve.

Key facts related to Bandhavgarh tiger reserve

The Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve is located between the Vindhyan and Satpura ranges of Madhya Pradesh.
The habitat is characterized by valleys, hills and plains, with the Bandhavgarh fort prominently seen as a major landmark.
The habitat consists of tropical moist, deciduous forests with sal, mixed forest and grasslands.
The habitat also has several archaeological monuments.
- Fauna - Bandhavgarh is famous for its tigers. Dense forests interspersed with grasslands and perennial streams provide an ideal habitat for this predator. The other wild animals include: leopard, wild dog, wolf, Indian fox, Jungle cat, chital, sambar, nilgai, chousingha and chinkara. The Gaur, which became locally extinct since 1998, have been successfully reintroduced from Kanha. Bandhavgarh has a rich avifauna which include: vultures, hornbills, barbets, woodpeckers. The Sarus cranes is seen during monsoon.
- Flora - The tropical moist deciduous forest type is dominated by sal trees. Lofty Saja and Arjun, Mahua (Madhuca species.) and the like contribute to the floral diversity. The habitat also has large number of Palash trees. The lowlands and river flood plains form grasslands during dry months and marshes in the rains. The open marshy grasslands or ‘Vahs’ have abundance of many species of grasses.

Notes: List of Tiger Reserves in India

India to roll out new treatment regimen for drug-resistant TB

Context: Tuberculosis (TB) is a silent crisis that impacts the physical as well as mental health of millions of people in India. India needs to scale up investment and formulate new strategies to meet its goal of Tuberculosis eradication by 2025.

Relevance of the topic:

Prelims: Key facts about Tuberculosis; National TB Elimination Programme; Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan.

Mains: Challenges associated with TB control and new strategies required.

Tuberculosis (TB)

TB is an airborne communicable disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
- Typically, the bacteria grow in the body where oxygen and blood are in high amounts.
- As a result, 80% of TB cases are pulmonary which infect the lungs and 20% of cases are extra-pulmonary which infect the brain, uterus, stomach, mouth, kidneys and bones.
Mode of transmission: Airborne- through coughing, sneezing or spitting.
High-risk groups: People with weak immunity like those infected with HIV, Under-nutrition, Diabetes, Smoking and Alcohol consumption.

Drug-resistant Tuberculosis (DR-TB):

DR-TB refers to various forms of TB where the bacteria have developed resistance to at least one of the anti-TB drugs, which makes the infection harder to treat.

Types of Drug-Resistant TB: There are two main categories:

1. Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis (MDR-TB):

Resistant to at least isoniazid and rifampicin (the two most powerful first-line drugs).
Treatment is longer, more expensive, and has more side effects.

2. Extensively Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis (XDR-TB):

A severe form of MDR-TB.
Resistant to isoniazid, rifampicin, at least one fluoroquinolone, and at least one of three injectable second-line drugs.
Extremely difficult to treat and has a high mortality rate.

Causes of Drug Resistance:

Improper or incomplete treatment: Not taking all prescribed medication or stopping treatment prematurely.
Poor-quality medicines: Counterfeit or substandard drugs.
Overuse of antibiotics: Contributing to the development of drug resistant bacteria.

Present Status of TB:

India tops the list of 20 TB high-burden countries in the world. India accounts for 27% of the total TB patients in the world. In 2022, 2.42 million Indians were diagnosed with tuberculosis.
Target for TB elimination:
- The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals has a target to ending the TB epidemic by 2030.
- India aims to eliminate TB in the country by 2025.
WHO has acknowledged India’s success on two major fronts:
- In reducing TB incidence by 16% from 2015 to 2022 (close to double the pace at which global TB incidence is declining).
- In reducing TB mortality by 18% during the same period, keeping in line with the global trend.

Prevention and Treatment:

Prevention:
- BCG vaccine for children.
- Currently no effective vaccine for adults.
Diagnosis:
- Early diagnosis is extremely important in fighting TB.
- Widely followed diagnosis methods include- Sputum smear microscopy which studies the phenotype of the pathogen from the sputum sample of infected patients.
Treatment:
- Strategy: DOTS strategy (Directly Observed Treatment Short Course) is a WHO-recommended cost-effective strategy to reduce the disease burden of TB.
- Antibiotics: Administering commonly used antibiotics like rifampin.
Challenge: Mycobacterium tuberculosis has developed drug resistance.

Existing challenges associated with TB:

High-prevalence of TB: The reasons include-
- Lack of widespread awareness about the disease, lack of access to quality care, under-reportion of cases.
  - The National TB Prevalence Survey (in India) found that 64% of people with infectious TB did not seek care. This results in under-reporting of TB incidences and hence, widespread TB prevalence.
- Excessive focus on affected patients only, while ignoring the ‘potential’ patient who might be in contact with the patients.
Non-compliance to Follow-up period: Premature treatment cessation fosters the development of drug-resistant strains like multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) and extensively drug resistant TB (XDR-TB).
Mental Health crisis: TB is associated with a deep stigma, and those affected are still ostracised and mistreated by families, communities, and even the health system. All of this has a significant impact on their mental health.
Gendered issue: There is a significant difference in how males, females and transgenders receive such health care services. Females and transgenders have greater risk of discontinuing treatments, facing greater stigma from society and apathy of healthcare systems.
Re-lapse of TB: The healthcare crisis during the COVID-19 pandemic has reversed the previous gains and increased the TB burden.

Efforts towards eradicating TB:

Global initiatives:

End TB Strategy: Global strategy developed by WHO that aims to reduce TB deaths by 90% and to cut new cases by 80% by 2030..
Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (2003): Single largest channel of additional money for global TB control.
Stop TB Partnership: Global partnership of organisations, governments, and individuals working to eliminate TB advocating political commitment & technical assistance.

India’s Initiatives:

National TB Elimination Programme (NTEP):
- Adopted in 1997 after WHO declared TB as a global epidemic in 1993.
- Previously known as the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme or RNTCP.
- RNTCP focuses on Early Diagnosis and Treatment in accordance with DOTS strategy.
- Under RNTCP about 4 lakh DOTS centres have been established so far. Patients are supported with free diagnostics and medicines.

NTEP implements key activities as under:

-State and District Specific Strategic plan for targeted interventions in high-burden areas.
-Provision of free drugs and diagnostics to TB patients including for drug-resistant TB.
-Active TB case-finding campaign in key vulnerable and co-morbid populations.
-Integration with Ayushman Bharat - Health & Wellness Centres to decentralise screening and treatment services closer to the community.
-Private sector engagement including incentives for notification and management of TB cases.
-Scale-up of molecular diagnostic laboratories to sub-district levels.
-Intensified IEC campaigns to reduce stigma, raise community awareness and improve health-seeking behaviour.
-Multi-sectoral response with involvement of line ministries.
-Scale up TB preventive therapy to contacts of pulmonary TB.
-Tracking of notified TB cases through a case-based web-based portal namely Ni-kshay. Nikshay Portal [Ni-Kshay-(Ni=End, Kshay=TB)] is the web enabled patient management system for TB control under the National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme (NTEP).
-Ni-kshay Poshan Yojana for nutritional support to TB patients. It has been implemented from April 2018, wherein 500 rupees per month is being provided to All TB patients towards nutritional support for the duration of their treatment.

National Strategic Plan for TB Elimination 2017-2025:
- Adopted in 2018 in line with the TB Elimination Strategy of the WHO and SDG of the UN. (India has set ambitious targets for reducing TB incidence, prevalence and mortality rates by 2025).
- Includes 4 strategic pillars: "Detect – Treat – Prevent – Build".
- Specific targets include:
  - 80% reduction in TB incidence
  - 90% reduction in TB mortality
  - 0% patients having catastrophic expenditure due to TB.
Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyan:
- Launched in September 2022 where the community is encouraged to adopt TB patients and support them.
- Support can be provided in the form of nutritional support, nutritional supplements, additional investigations, and vocational support for a minimum period of six months or maximum period of up to three years.
Establishment of Centres of Excellence:
- Facilitates collaboration between Indian Council of Medical Research laboratories and the private sector to strengthen and expand research and development efforts for TB.

Way Forward:

Prioritise TB vaccine trials: Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine for TB does not adequately protect adolescents and adults who are at the highest risk for developing and spreading TB. Streamline clinical trials for over 15 TB vaccine candidates in the pipeline.
Leveraging technology and innovation:
- Diagnosing TB needs to become more accessible and affordable: E.g.,
  - New innovations such as nasal and tongue swab-based tests for TB can reduce diagnostic delays. E.g., Scaling up Nucleic Acid Amplification Test (NAAT) coverage.
  - Handheld digital X-ray machines (with artificial intelligence-based software) can offer mobility to test risk-risk individuals in villages.
- Develop new therapeutic models: Invest more in drug discovery, introduction and development of new therapeutic molecules which have short time-periods.
- Adoption of AI and digital health solutions for TB diagnosis, adherence and surveillance.
Regulatory frameworks: Need to create regulatory and policy frameworks for strict enforcement of drug control and non-compliance with treatment regimens to tackle antibiotic resistance.
Address socio-economic determinants of TB: Multi-sectoral approach is needed like poverty alleviation, improvement in nutritional status, well-ventilated housing and better air quality.

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As in Kerala, local climate processes can worsen climate extremes

Context – Wayanad landslides

Post-facto analyses of deadly disasters — like the landslides in Wayanad, Kerala, reminds us of the fact that broad warnings of risks can hardly be translated to specific actions.

For example, declaring whole of the western ghats to be landslide vulnerable won’t get rid of extreme events induced by climate change anytime soon.

Some landslides will occur anyway even if the Ghats enjoy the fullest protections from human perturbations because the risk is never zero.

Therefore predictions of disaster management and mitigation becomes important.

Need for long-term climate risk outlooks: extending up to a decade or more.
Improving accuracy of predictive models by understanding local factors that exacerbate climate effects. The relationship between local events and global warming complicates predictions. Local amplifiers often intensify the effects of distant climate drivers.
- Case Study - Coastal Influence on heavy rain in Wayanad: Coastal sea surface temperatures significantly influence heavy rain along India’s west coast. As monsoon winds approach the Western Ghats, coastal waters warm up, leading to increased rainfall.
Importance of Location-Specific Measures: such as preserving biodiversity, can help mitigate disaster risks.
Role of Governments and Monitoring: National and local governments must collaborate to monitor, report, and verify risks, and these efforts must be reflected in budgetary provisions.
Weather-Proofing the Country: Disaster mitigation is essential to making the country more resilient to climate change. Establishing a robust data network to map local extreme event amplifiers is urgently needed.

No clinical trial for drugs approved in select nations

Context: The Union government has authorised the exemption of local clinical trials for approval of new drugs under Rule 101 of the New Drugs and Clinical Trial Rules, 2019.

Major highlights

Under the Rule 101 of the New Drugs and Clinical Trial Rules, 2019, the CDSCO, with Union government approval, can issue orders specifying the name of the countries for considering waiver of local clinical trials for approval of new drugs.
The government has decided to waive the requirement for clinical trials in India if the drugs are approved in the U.S., the U.K., Japan, Australia, Canada, or the European Union.
A set of five categories for new drugs has been specified that will be considered for waiver in the Indian market. They include:
- Drugs for rare diseases: These often lack sufficient patient populations for local trials. (https://compass.rauias.com/current-affairs/indias-fight-against-rare-diseases/)
- Gene and cellular therapy products: Cutting-edge treatments that require speedy approval.
- New drugs for pandemic situations: To address urgent public health crises.
- New drugs for special defence purposes: For military personnel.
- Drugs with significant therapeutic advancements: To provide patients with better treatment options faster.

Significance:

Enhanced drug accessibility for patients and for research.
Drugs manufactured outside India will be more accessible and affordable in the local market.
Address the critical and unmet medical needs and accelerate access to innovative therapies to the patients in India.
By aligning with approvals from established regulatory bodies in other countries, India is moving towards global harmonisation in drug approval processes.

Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO):

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) is the Central Drug Authority in India.
CDSCO is responsible for many functions under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, including:
- Approving new drugs and clinical trials
- Setting standards for drugs
- Controlling the quality of imported drugs
- Coordinating the activities of state drug control organisations
- Granting licences for certain specialised categories of critical drugs, such as blood and blood products, IV fluids, vaccines etc.

Why Himalayan towns need a different kind of development

Context: The Indian Himalayan Range (IHR), comprising 11 States and two Union Territories, had a decadal urban growth rate of more than 40% from 2011 to 2021. Towns have expanded, and more urban settlements are developing. However, Himalayan towns require a different definition of urbanisation.

Why Himalayan ecosystem is unique?

These systems, with their steep slopes and sharp gradients, are heterogeneous and exhibit sharp and most often systemic changes in climatic variables over very short distances.
These features consequently result into enhanced changes in hydrological processes, with accelerated direct runoff and erosion.
Major rivers of the region have their origin from these mountains and are the source of water for a large proportion of the human population within and outside the mountain region.
Many of the world’s crops originate in mountains, a crucial resource that should be conserved for sustaining modern agriculture.
Natural wealth in the region, including geological assets, forms an important part of the Himalayan eco-system.
All this has contributed to a whole range of diversity in indigenous human habitations, cultures and knowledge systems. The region is largely inhabited by indigenous societies.

What is happening to the Himalayan towns?

Huge civic issues - For example, cities like Srinagar, Guwahati, Shillong, and Shimla, as well as smaller towns, face significant challenges in managing sanitation, solid and liquid waste, and water.
Lack of institutional strength - Planning institutions in these States often fail because they use models copied from the plains and have only limited capacities to implement these plans. City governments are short of human resources by almost 75%.
Unchecked expansion and consequent land use change - Cities continue to expand into the peripheries, encroaching on the commons of villages. Srinagar and Guwahati are examples of such expansion, leading to the plundering of open spaces, forest land, and watersheds. In Srinagar, land use changes between 2000 and 2020 showed a 75.58% increase. Water bodies have eroded by almost 25%.
Complex mix of other factors - The IHR faces increasing pressure from urbanization and development, compounded by high-intensity tourism, unsustainable infrastructure, and resource use (land and water), further aggravated by climatic variations like changing precipitation patterns and rising temperatures. This has led to water scarcity, deforestation, land degradation, biodiversity loss, and increased pollution, including plastics. These pressures have the potential to disrupt lives and livelihoods, impacting the socio-ecological fabric of the Himalayas.

How Infrastructure is affecting the Himalayan region?

Infrastructure like dams, roads, hotels, industries etc are increasing the vulnerability of the Himalayan ecosystem in multiple ways. Joshimath crisis is one such example.

Following are the various impacts:

Slope destabilization - Large scale construction of roads, hotels, powerhouses etc. involves blasting, quarrying, deforestation and muck disposal which loosens slopes and destabilizes them.
Floods - Altered river flows reduce flood absorption, risks flash floods downstream (Uttarakhand disaster, 2013).
Landslides - By disrupting underground streams and aquifers, tunnels can weaken slope stability leading to landslides (Kinnaur, Himachal Pradesh 2022)
Earthquakes – Huge pressure is exerted by the large structures of the dams which in turn create fractures and faults in the rocks below generating earthquakes. For e.g – Koyna dam.
Erosion and desertification - Siltation in dams devoid the rivers of natural sediments. Soil downstream does not get enough nutrients and thus issues of soil erosion, desertification etc rises.
Forced displacement - This destroys livelihood sources of indigenous communities further increasing their vulnerabilities.

What needs to be done?

Continuous Monitoring of the Eco-system and Data Generation - Every town needs to be mapped, with layers identifying vulnerabilities from geological and hydrological perspectives.
Ecological modelling and predicting climate change scenarios - Climate-induced disasters annually erode infrastructures built without such mapping and hence requires vulnerability assessment.
Financial strengthening - none of the cities in the IHR can generate capital for their infrastructure needs. The Finance Commission must include a separate chapter on urban financing for the IHR.
Promoting sustainable forestry, sustainable agriculture and food security.
Promoting regional cooperation involving domestic states as well as neighbouring countries.
Sustainable urbanization by waste management, traffic control, town planning and regulating tourism.
Building environmental awareness among the citizens.

Pyrocumulonimbus Clouds

Context: The intense wildfires raging in the United States and Canada have spiked the occurrence of pyrocumulonimbus clouds. The development of these clouds has become more frequent in recent years.

About Pyrocumulonimbus clouds

Pyrocumulonimbus clouds are thunder clouds created by intense heat from the Earth’s surface, either from large wildfires or volcanic eruptions. That is the reason why the prefix ‘pyro’ is used – meaning fire in Greek.
- For instance, these clouds were formed during the Australian bushfires of 2019-2020 when temperatures crossed 800 degrees Celsius.

Mechanism of formation of the clouds:

The intense heat from the wildfire/ volcanic eruption warms the surrounding air which moves upward into the atmosphere.
As this hot and very buoyant air (carrying water vapour, smoke, and ash) rises, it expands and cools down.
Once it is cool enough, water vapour condenses on ash, forming a grey or brown cloud. At this stage, the cloud is known as a pyrocumulus cloud, also known as ‘fire cloud’.
But if there is sufficient water vapour available and the upward movement of hot air intensifies, pyrocumulus clouds can evolve into a pyrocumulonimbus cloud.

Characteristics:

These clouds can reach heights of 50,000 feet and generate their own systems of thunderstorms.
Although pyrocumulonimbus clouds can produce lighting, they do not generate much rain. As a result, they can spark new wildfires many kilometres away from the main blaze.
These clouds can also trigger strong winds that can make the spread of the wildfire faster and unpredictable.

Frequent occurrence of pyrocumulonimbus clouds:

Before 2023, 102 pyrocumulonimbus were recorded globally in a single year on average — 50 of them were seen in Canada. However, during last year’s extreme wildfire season, 140 pyrocumulonimbus clouds were recorded in Canada alone.
The exact reason for their frequent occurrence remains unclear. However, scientists believe that climate change and temperatures soaring across the world, leads to frequent wildfires, which may spike the occurrence of pyrocumulonimbus clouds.

GST on health insurance

Context: Opposition leaders demanding the withdrawal of 18% Goods and Services Tax (GST) on life insurance and health insurance premiums.

GST on health and life insurance premiums

GST replaced all indirect taxes like service tax and cess and is currently set at 18% for health and life insurance policies.
Prior to GST, life insurance premiums were subject to a 15% service tax, including Basic Service Tax, Swachh Bharat cess, and Krishi Kalyan cess. The increase to 18% has raised premium costs for policyholders.

Markets for life and health insurance in India:

General insurance industry: Collected Rs 1,09,000 crore in premiums under the health portfolio for fiscal 2023-24.
Life Insurance Companies: Mobilized Rs 3,77,960 crore in premiums in FY2024, with LIC accounting for a significant portion.
Regional contributions: Five states (Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, and Delhi) contributed 64% of the total health insurance premiums.
Insurance penetration: Life insurance penetration decreased from 3.2% in 2021-22 to 3% in 2022-23, with non-life insurance remaining at 1%. Overall insurance penetration dropped to 4% from 4.2% during the same period.

Arguments for GST on health insurance:

Revenue generation: GST applies to all insurance policies as a service tax, generating significant revenue for the government, which can be used for public welfare and infrastructure development.
- As government collected around Rs 21,000 crore in GST over the last 3 FYs, with an additional around Rs 3,000 crore from the reissuance of health policies.
Tax exemption: Insurance policies allow certain deductions while computing income tax under Sections 80C and 80D of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
- Section 80C allows deductions of up to Rs 1.5 lakh on the total premium, including GST, while Section 80D provides additional deductions for medical riders with life insurance policies.
Simplification and uniformity: GST replaces multiple indirect taxes, simplifying the tax structure and providing uniformity across states, making it easier for insurers to comply with tax regulations.
Transparency: GST compliance often encourages digital record-keeping and transactions, lead to more transparency and efficiency in the insurance industry.
Constitutional framework: GST rates and exemptions are determined by the GST Council, which includes both central and state representatives. This ensures that decisions are made based on comprehensive inputs from various stakeholders.

Arguments against GST on health insurance:

Increasing out-of-pocket expenses for healthcare: High GST rates on insurance, acts as a deterrent to buying policies, making it less affordable for individuals and families, especially for those already facing high medical costs and increasing out-of-pocket expenses for healthcare.
Premium increases: Significant increases in health insurance premiums have led to a decline in policy renewals and unable to achieve the goal of "Insurance for All by 2047."
Impact on vulnerable populations: Low-income groups and senior citizens may find it particularly challenging to afford insurance with the added GST, potentially leaving them without financial protection in medical emergencies.
Contradiction to public health goals: May contradict government efforts such as Swasth Bharat Viksit Bharat to promote healthcare access and financial protection for all citizens.
Potential for reduced coverage: Individuals may opt for lower coverage or higher deductibles to offset the increased costs due to GST, may undermine the effectiveness of their insurance in covering medical expenses.

Way forward:

Parliamentary Standing Committee Recommendations:
- GST rates applicable to health insurance products, particularly retail policies for senior citizens and microinsurance policies (up to limits prescribed under PMJAY, presently Rs 5 lakh), and term policies may be reduced.
- It recommended that the Ayushman Bharat scheme can be expanded by allowing people who are not covered by the scheme to opt for it on a paid basis to achieve public health goal.
Sector-specific adjustments: Consideration of lower GST rates for specific categories such as retail policies for senior citizens, microinsurance policies, and health insurance could help in addressing affordability concerns.

Global scenario

In countries like Singapore and Hong Kong, there is no GST or VAT on insurance, making it more accessible to consumers.

Reverse Charge Mechanism

Context: Recently Infosys had received a tax notice of ₹32,403 crore for unpaid IGST under the reverse charge mechanism for services from its overseas branches from 2017-22.

What is Reverse charge mechanism under GST?

Generally, the supplier of goods or services is liable to pay GST. However, in specified cases the liability may be cast on the recipient under the reverse charge mechanism. Reverse charge means the liability to pay tax is on the recipient of supply of goods or services instead of the supplier of such goods or services.
The input tax credit is received is by the receiver of the good/service in this mechanism.
Reverse charge mechanism is applicable in the following cases:
- Import of goods/services
- Good/Service is supplied by an unregistered (who is not registered under GST) supplier.
- Services provided by the e-commerce operators.
- Any other category of services notified by the government.

What happened in Infosys case?

The tax authorities had issued notices for remittance sent by the Indian head office to its foreign branches as part of its expenses, even where there is no service between the head office and the foreign branch.

The tax authorities considered them as ‘import of services’ by the head office from the branch.