27-08-2021

27-AUGUST-2021

The Hindu News Analysis – 27th August 2021 – Shankar IAS Academy
S. Page Number*
News Articles
No. C B D H T

1 Few takers seen for debt recast 2.0 as demand recovers: Crisil 14 12 12 12 12

2 Indian firm to build a bridge in the Maldives 12 10 10 10 10

3 Afcons bags $530-mn project in Maldives 14 12 12 12 12

4 UN bans British stamps in Chagos island 13 11 11 11 11

T.N. to get ₹524-crore financing from SIDBI Cluster

5 5 - - - -
Development Fund
6 Arunachal’s decision to move settlers welcomed 12 10 10 10 10

7 Inaccessible UIDAI system leaves Aadhaar users in lurch 10 8 8 8 8

*C – Chennai; B – Bengaluru; D – Delhi; H – Hyderabad; T – Thiruvananthapuram

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The Hindu News Analysis – 27th August 2021 – Shankar IAS Academy
S. Page Number*
News Articles
No. C B D H T

8 Decades after dam on Hemavati, scam emerges - 4 - - -

9 Sambhar Lake needs faster restoration, says expert study - - 4 - -

10 Risks and rewards (Editorial) 8 6 6 6 6

11 The clean-up crew we need (OPED) 9 7 7 7 7

12 Covering the gaps in the game of data (Editorial) 8 6 6 6 6

13 Prelims Practice Questions

@ end of the video
14 Mains Practice Questions

*C – Chennai; B – Bengaluru; D – Delhi; H – Hyderabad; T – Thiruvananthapuram

Pg: 14 – Chennai

Pg: 12 – B, D, H, T

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Debt restructuring

Resolution Framework 2.0 • Debt restructuring - Process used by

• Reserve Bank of India - Resolution companies, individuals, and even countries to

Framework 2.0 avoid the risk of defaulting on their

existing debts.
• Framework for debt restructuring of
stressed individuals, small businesses  Provide relief to many companies and

and Ministry of Micro, Small and individuals during tough times.

Medium Enterprises (MSMEs)

News - Crisil Ratings Report

• Very few corporates have opted for

debt restructuring under the RBI’s Practice Question – Prelims
Resolution Framework 2.0.
Q. ‘Resolution Framework 2.0’ is often seen in
 Quick recovery in demand. news. It is related to?
 Gaining confidence in economic (a) Urban employment
growth.
(b) Cyber security
 Localized, less stringent lockdowns (c) Debt Restructuring
- Businesses experienced relatively (d) Energy security
lower disruption in business
activities compared to the first
wave.

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Pg: 12 – Chennai
Pg: 14 – Chennai
Pg: 10 – B, D, H, T
Pg: 12 – B, D, H, T

Part A—Preliminary Examination

Paper I - (200 marks)
 Current events of national and international importance.
 Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector
Initiatives, etc
Part B—Main Examination
PAPER-III
General Studies- II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations.
 India and its neighborhood- relations.
PAPER-IV
General Studies-III: Technology, Economic Development, Bio diversity, Environment, Security and Disaster
Management.
 Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.
 Investment models.

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Maldives / Maldive Islands The Greater Male Connectivity Project

• Independent island country • India - Signed a pact with the

Maldives
• Location - North-central part of the Indian
Ocean.  ‘India First’ foreign policy of
the Maldives

 India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’

foreign policy.

• Estimated cost - $500 million.

• Structure - 6.74-km-long bridge and

causeway link

 Male and nearby islands of

Villingli, Gulhifalhu and Thilafushi.

Location Significance

• Male - capital of the

Maldives

• Gulhifalhu - International
airport

• Thilafushi - Industrial zone

 Four islands - Half of

the Maldivian population

 Connectivity - Economic
lifeline for the Maldives

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• Project - Bigger than the Sinamale Bridge that was built

with the Chinese assistance in 2018.

 Connects the other half of the Maldivian islands.

 Connects Male with Hulhumale and Hulhule

Body In-charge

• Entrusted - Afcons Infrastructure Limited

 Chenab Railway Bridge.

Significance of the project • India - Air Travel Bubble with the

Maldives in August 2020.
• Enduring symbol of the India-Maldives partnership
 India’s first air bubble in the
• Strengthen the bilateral relations between nations
South Asian region.
• Biggest project India is doing in the Maldives

• Biggest infrastructure project in the overall

Maldives

• Better connect the business, people and industry of

the two nations.

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Project Funding

• Exim Bank of India - Indian grant and

Line of Credit scheme

 Grant of $100 million and a line of

credit of $ 400 million will be funded
from India

• Development assistance - Concessional Lines

of Credit is extended by the Government of
India through the Exim Bank of India

• Done under the Indian Development and

Economic Assistance Scheme

Pg: 13 – Chennai Pg: 11 – B, D, H, T

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Chagos

• Island group in the

central Indian Ocean.

• Located about 1,000

miles south of the
southern tip of the
Indian subcontinent.

Source:https://edition.cnn.com/

Dispute

• Mauritius - Chagos Islands has been a

part of its territory.

• United Kingdom took control of the Chagos

islands in 1965.

 British Indian Ocean Territory

 Included islands from Seychelles -

Aldabra, Farquhar and Desroches.

 June 1976 - Seychelles gained

independence from the United Kingdom.

 Islands of Aldabra, Farquhar, and

Desroches were returned by the UK.
Source:https://upload.wikimedia.org/

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Source:https://upload.wikimedia.org/

 UK did not return Chagos islands back

to Mauritius.

 Mauritius got independence from

Britain in 1968.

 UK retained sovereignty in Chagos

islands.

 Mauritius government - UK forcibly

took the Chagos islands in return
for their independence.

Source:https://upload.wikimedia.org/

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Interest in Chagos

• Used for defence purposes - UK and US.

 Important military base - Diego

Garcia.

• UK forcibly removed the entire Chagossian

population from these islands - 1967 and
1973.

 Prevented the native population from

returning to these islands.

Source:https://en.populationdata.net/

India’s stand

• India supported the Mauritius stand

Search for Justice
on the Chagos Archipelago.
• International Court of Justice (ICJ)
• India in ICJ - Chagos Archipelago
- United Kingdom to return the
has been and continues to be with
Chagos Archipelago back to
Mauritius and demanded sovereignty
Mauritius.
over the Chagos Archipelago from
 Continued British occupation of
Britain.
the Chagos archipelago is illegal.
• India - Committed to Mauritius and
anti-colonial credentials.

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Practice Question – Prelims

Q. Arrange these places from North to South:
1. Reunion Island
2. Chagos Islands
3. Lakshadweep
4. Maldives
Select the correct answer code.
(a) 3-2-4-1
(b) 3-4-2-1
(c) 2-4-3-1
(d) 2-3-4-1

Pg: 5 – Chennai

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MSME sector
Essential characteristics of enterprises
• important sector - contributes significantly to in a cluster
employment generation, innovation, exports, and inclusive
 Similarity or complementarity in
growth.
the methods of production, quality
• Union Ministry of MSME adopted a Cluster Development control & testing, etc.
approach for its development.
 Similar level of technology &
Cluster marketing strategies/practices.

• group of enterprises - linked together by common  Similar channels for communication

physical infrastructure facilities - addresses their among their members.
common challenges.
 Common market & common skill
 located within an identifiable or contiguous area. needs.

 producing same or similar products/services  Common challenges & opportunities

that the cluster faces.
 value chain goes beyond a geographical area.

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Cluster Development Approach

• Aims:

• Advantages:  Enhancing productivity and competitiveness of

 Providers of various services can MSMEs

provide their services more  Enhancing the capacity building of Micro and
economically - reduces costs and Small Enterprises (MSEs) and their collectives.
improves the availability of services
• Small Industries Development Bank of India
for enterprises.
(SIDBI)
 “Competition by cooperation”
 Apex body and financial Institution responsible
 Pooling resources and efforts -
for supporting financing and development of
achievement of shared economic goals
MSME sector.
and sustained development.
• RBI and SEBI frame broad policies for
facilitating funding support to the sector.

SIDBI Cluster Development Fund (SCDF) Soft interventions

 Bringing attitudinal changes necessary to initiate
• Set up by SIDBI with support of RBI. improvement in the existing style of working of the
MSEs in the cluster.
• Purpose - to support the hard infrastructure  Ex: general awareness, counseling, motivation and
facilities in clusters across India. trust building, exposure visits, market development
including exports, participation in seminars,
 Setting up, upgrading and renovation of hard workshops and training programmes on technology
infrastructure facilities. upgradation, etc.

Hard Interventions
 Areas other than agriculture.
• Creating hard infrastructure facilities - tangible
• News: “assets” as Common Facility Centers (CFCs).
 Common Production/Processing Centre
 SIDBI provided the first in-principle approval to (balancing/correcting/improving production line
Tamil Nadu - financing of ₹524 crore. that cannot be undertaken by individual units).
 Design Centres, Testing Facilities, Training Centre,
 For upgrading various existing MSME clusters R&D Centres, Effluent Treatment Plant, Marketing
and developing new industrial infrastructural Display/Selling Centre, Common Logistics Centre,
Common Raw Material Bank/Sales Depot, etc.
facilities

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Practice Question – Prelims

Q. Which among the following are essential characteristics
of enterprises in a cluster, according to the Cluster
Development Programme of Government?
1. Complementarity in the methods of production.
2. Similar level of technology & marketing strategies.
3. Varied market.
4. Common skill needs.
Select the correct answer from the code given below:
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2 and 4 only
(c) 1, 2 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Pg: 12 – Chennai

Pg: 10 – B, D, H, T

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News

Arunachal Pradesh government decided to

relocate Chakma and Hajong settlers
beyond the State - welcomed by an apex
student’s organization.

History of relocation:

• Chakma and Hajong settlers -

originally inhabitants of the Chittagong
Hill Tracts - former East Pakistan
(now Bangladesh).
file:///D:/loicz-r_s32-web.pdf

• Forced out of the country - two reasons.

 First reason - construction of the Kaptai

hydroelectric dam.

 Early 1960s - Built on the Karnaphuli

river (largest and most important
river in Chittagong & Chittagong Hill
Tracts).

 Displaced from their homeland – no

proper rehabilitation and
compensation.

 Second reason - religious persecution.

(Chakmas are Buddhists and the Hajongs file:///D:/loicz-r_s32-web.pdf

are Hindus).

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• In 2015 - Supreme Court directed Centre

What are the concerns?
to grant citizenship
• State - it could not permit “outsiders”
• Chakmas and Hajongs are citizens by
to settle on its territory.
birth as per Section 3(1) of the Citizenship
Act. • Adversely affect the state’s demography.

• Eligible portion of their population - • Problem in sharing the state’s limited

exercise the right to vote as citizens of resources.
India.
• Their name in the state’s electoral rolls
• Do not directly come under the ambit of the - can cause an impact in election
Citizenship Amendment Act,2019 (CAA) results.
(Arunachal Pradesh is one among the states
• The rights of indigenous people may be
exempted from the CAA – has inner line
diluted.
permit to regulate entry of outsiders)

Practice Question – Prelims

Q. The Inner Line Permit is applicable to which of the
following North-Eastern states:
1. Arunachal Pradesh
2. Nagaland
3. Mizoram
4. Manipur
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 1, 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

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UIDAI

• The Unique Identification Authority of India.

• Collect demographic and biometric information of

country’s residents.

• 12-digit unique identity number - Aadhaar.

• Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other

Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016

• Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology.

• 124 crore Aadhaar numbers

• Headquarters - New Delhi

• Two part-time Members and a Chief Executive

Officer.
Pg: 10 – Chennai Pg: 8 – B, D, H, T

Pg: 4 – Bengaluru

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Tributaries of Cauvery:

 Harangi, Hemavathi, Shimsha,

Arkavathi, Lakshmanathirtha and
Swarnavathi- joins Cauvery in KA.

 Kabini- originates in Kerala and

joins Cauvery in Karnataka.

 Bhavani, Amaravathi and Noyil-

main tributaries in Tamil Nadu.

• Bifurcates twice, forming the sacred

islands of Srirangapatnam
and Sivasamudram

Pg: 4 – Delhi

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Sambhar lake

• 70 kms from Jaipur Rajasthan

• Located in the foot hills of Rajasthan

• Largest Inland saline wet land

• 4 rivers drain into it

• Salt lake – salt extraction is done

• Ramsar wet land

• July - Flamingos

• Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) –

Source : Research gate critical/ over exploited

Practice Question – Prelims

Q. With reference to ‘Sambhar lake’, consider
the following statements:
1. The lake forms a pat of Ganga river
basin
2. The central ground water board has
termed it over exploited
Which of the statements given above
is/are incorrect?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2

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Pg: 8 – Chennai

Pg: 6 – B, D, H, T

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Pg: 9 – Chennai

Pg: 7 – B, D, H, T

Pg: 8 – Chennai

Pg: 6 – B, D, H, T

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Part A—Preliminary Examination

Paper I - (200 marks)
 Current events of national and international importance.
 Indian Polity and Governance - Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

Part B—Main Examination

PAPER-II
General Studies‐ II: Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice and International relations
 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.
 Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance applications, models, successes,
limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other measures.

Challenges in data-based policy making

Why data based policy making?
• Government - collection of vast amounts of
• Goal of data-based policy making -
granular data on citizens - these
facilitate the use of evidence - to make
administrative data are often not validated.
programmatic funding decisions.
• Affects entire decision-making process.
• Help to identify the idea – in which the
government investments can be profitable • Delays the funding process.

to the citizens. • At the panchayat level - Trying to match

• Help government to invest further. funds with functions is also a difficult task.

• Facilitates targeted resource allocations. • Link databases of various departments - the

territorial jurisdictions and household-level
• Address inter- and intra-district
identifiers varies from department to
inequities.
department.

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Way forward:

• Validation of data - done through urban local bodies

and rural local bodies.

• Develop mechanism that can unify various data sets -

under a single identifier. Practice Question – Mains
• Supplementing quantitative data with smaller GS-III
qualitative studies - to capture processes, Q. Discuss whether the current focus on
subjectivity, and contextual factors. collecting various forms of data reflects
a commitment to evidence based policy
• State – ensure a decentralised systems of data making.
collection processes. (250 Words, 10 Marks)

• State - invest heavily in both human and technical

infrastructure.

• Each state - ensure built-in quality control measures

to ensure credibility.

Practice Question – Prelims

Q. Which among the following are essential characteristics
of enterprises in a cluster, according to the Cluster
Development Programme of Government?
1. Complementarity in the methods of production.
2. Similar level of technology & marketing strategies.
3. Varied market.
4. Common skill needs.
Select the correct answer from the code given below:
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2 and 4 only
(c) 1, 2 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

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Practice Question – Prelims

Q. Arrange these places from North to South:
1. Reunion Island
2. Chagos Islands
3. Lakshadweep
4. Maldives
Select the correct answer code.
(a) 3-2-4-1
(b) 3-4-2-1
(c) 2-4-3-1
(d) 2-3-4-1

Practice Question – Prelims

Q. ‘Resolution Framework 2.0’ is often seen in

news. It is related to?

(a) Urban employment

(b) Cyber security
(c) Debt Restructuring
(d) Energy security

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Practice Question – Prelims

Q. The Inner Line Permit is applicable to which of the
following North-Eastern states:
1. Arunachal Pradesh
2. Nagaland
3. Mizoram
4. Manipur
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 1, 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

Practice Question – Mains

Practice Question – Mains
GS-III GS – II/III
Q. Discuss whether the current focus on collecting Q. Explain the role played by ‘The Greater
various forms of data reflects a commitment to Male Connectivity Project’ in India’s
evidence based policy making. ‘Neighbourhood First’ foreign policy.
(250 Words, 10 Marks)
(150 Words, 10 Marks)

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