Newspaper Notes | 20 October 2022 | UPSC CSE

(Important Topics Covered - Team Shashank Sajwan)

1. China again blocks 2 proposals on Pak. Terrorists at UNSC

• China has used its veto power to block the proposals of India and US to designate
Pakistan based terrorists on the UNSC’s terror entity.
• The son of the LeT’s founder and deputy chief of a front for the LeT were the targets
of the proposal.
• They were wanted for procuring funds and recruitment for the LeT, which was the
group behind the Mumbai attacks of 26/11.
• India will next week host all members of the Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) of
the UNSC in Mumbai.

2. GRAP Stage II kicks in as Delhi’s air quality may turn ‘very poor’

• The commission for Air Quality Management directed the authorities of Delhi to
enforce stage 2 of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP). The stage 1 was
announced on October 5.
• This stage includes a ban on diesel generators and use of coal and firewood in
hotels, restaurants and open eateries, and a ban on construction activities and entry
of trucks in Delhi.
• According to a forecast of air quality early warning system, the AQI of Delhi is
projected to cross 301 (very poor category) on October 22.
• GRAP is a set of emergency measures taken to reduce air pollution. It is a four
staged programme, enforced according to the severity of air quality index.

3. A new lease of LIFE for climate action

• For the first time since the Human Development Report began, it has warned that
global human development measures have declined across most countries in the
past two years.
• This comes against the backdrop of the greatest existential threat of all – the triple
planetary crisis of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss.
• LIFE, or Lifestyle for Environment, announced by the Indian PM at COP26 in
November 2021, recognises that small individual actions can tip the balance in the
planet’s favour.
• It cultivates the spirit of actions such as saving energy at home, cycling and using
public transport, eating more plant based food, etc.
• Many of the goals of LIFE can be achieved by deploying ‘nudges’ (gentle persuasion
techniques to encourage positive behaviour). These include offering smaller plates
to discourage food waste, encouraging cycling by creating cycle paths, etc.

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• According to UNEP, more than 2/3rd of greenhouse gas emissions can be attributed
to household consumption and lifestyles.
• The PM and the Secretary General of UN will be launching a global mission under
LIFE at Gujarat, calling people to become ‘Pro Planet People’ by 2027.

4. Held up by the Chinese

• China has attempted for the fourth time to block the proposals of US and India to
designate Pakistan based terrorists under 1267 list of terrorists under UNSC.
• The 1267 committee was set up in 1999 (updated in 2011 and 2015) and it allows
any UN member state to propose adding the name of a terrorist or a terror group to
a consolidated list.
• India has successfully proposed the listing of several terror groups in past two
decades including JeM and LeT.
• If any member of the 1267 committee, which comprises all the members of UNSC,
places a hold on the listing or objects outright to it, the listing cannot be adopted.
• Since China is a permanent member of UNSC and also holds veto power, it can block
any proposal for indefinite number of times.
• Since the Mumbai attacks in 2008, India has tried a number of ways to build
international consensus on the cross border terrorism, including UNSC terror listing,
and the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

5. Tamil Nadu launches mission to save critically endangered vultures

• The vulture population in India had declined by 96% between 1993-2003.

• In the wake of this, the central government had put into place two action plans to
protect the species at national level. The first was in 2006 and the second for the
period of 2020-25.
• Formation of state-level committees is one of the important action plans of the
plan.
• Acting on it, the TN government formed a state-level committee to set up an
institutional framework for the effective conservation of vultures.
• Vultures play a key role as nature’s scavengers, keeping the environment clean.
• Vultures almost went extinct at the beginning of the 21 st century.
• It has been listed as critically endangered in the IUCN Red List.

6. China’s total trade surplus with India surpasses $1 trillion

• The favourable Trade Balance that China has enjoyed with India since early 2000s,
has cumulatively exceeded to $1 trillion.
• In 2021, the annual two way trade crossed $100 billion for the first time, reaching
$125.6.