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Daily Editorial Summary

22nd November 2023

Topics To be Covered:
✓ How Capitalism Corrupts Democracy?
✓ The Impact of Climate Change on Health
✓ Tapping Technology to Check Minor Mineral Plunder

To access the video of editorial summary:

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Topics
How Capitalism Corrupts Democracy?
Context:
As per Economist expert, Arun Maira, drugs of fentanyl’s ilk currently kill around 70,000 Americans a year,
more than (those who) died in the wars in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan combined.
❖ Relevancy for Prelims: Rise of Drugs in the World and the Impact of Capitalism on Democracy.
Drugs in US and its associated Concerns:
❖ Xylazine: A drug commonly used as a tranquilizer (a sedative) for animals like cows and horses. It has made
its way into the illegal drug market in the U.S., particularly in drugs like fentanyl.
➢ It was synthesized in Belgium in 1959 as a legal painkiller.
❖ Fentanyl: A powerful synthetic opioid, used legitimately for pain management. Illegally produced fentanyl,
often mixed with other substances, has become a significant public health concern due to its potency and the
increased risk of overdoses.
❖ Combination of Xylazine and Fentanyl: A dangerous combination that enhances the life-threatening effects
of respiratory depression caused by opioids like fentanyl, increasing the risk of overdose and death.
❖ High Usage: From the 1990s, doctors in the US prescribed painkillers unnecessarily, incentivised by
unethical pharmaceutical firms. By 2015, some 227 million prescriptions for opioids were made out every
year in the US, roughly one for every adult.
➢ However, in Europe due to universal medical care, there were broad restrictions unlike Americans' use
of painkillers to quickly fix the ailments.
Corruption of Democracy through Capitalism:
❖ Science and technology are powerful instruments that are used to improve the performance of the
Universe and Artificial intelligence and synthetic biology are its exciting new frontiers.
❖ Great danger is for leaving such powerful instruments in the
Capitalism: It is the economic
control of companies in any sector whose mission is to improve
system in which businesses are
only profits.
owned and run for profit by
➢ Drugs and guns produced and sold by US companies are
individuals and not by the state.
killing tens of thousands of American citizens.
❖ More Influence than Regulation: US capitalism is not unregulated, its pharmaceutical, health and financial
sectors are heavily regulated. However, US firms have great power to influence regulations.
➢ Companies can spend large amounts of money, legally, to lobby for their interests, and fund think tanks
and universities to produce ideas that support their ideology.
❖ In the American version of ‘no-holds-barred’ capitalism, the business of business is business. Government
regulation of business curbs innovative ways of industries from making profits.
Need of the Hour:
❖ Responsible Media: As a fourth pillar of democracy, the media have the responsibility to engage and educate
citizens about such serious issues.
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❖ Responsible Government: Governments must learn to govern the economy for the benefit of all citizens. A
government has to provide all citizens with healthcare and education regardless of their ability to pay.
❖ A Government must regulate the profit-seeking urges of private businesses.
News Source: Tribune India

The Impact of Climate Change on Health

Context:
❖ As India prepares for the 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (COP28) global conference on climate change, (which will be held at the Expo City,
Dubai), it's crucial to understand how climate change affects people's health in the country.
❖ India's healthcare systems are not strong, making its population vulnerable to climate-related health risks.
❖ Relevancy for Prelims: COP28.
❖ Relevancy for Mains: Impact of Climate Change on Health, Associated Challenges and the Way Forward.
Impact of Climate Change:
❖ Health Impacts: Climate change directly causes more sickness and death.
➢ It also indirectly affects nutrition, reduces working hours, and increases stress.
❖ Rising Temperatures: The global agreement aimed to limit the rise in temperature to 1.5°C, but in 2023, the
world experienced the highest temperatures ever recorded.
❖ Climate Induced-Stress: More extreme climate events like heat waves, cyclones, and floods are expected,
affecting food security, livelihoods, and health.
Double Health Burden:
❖ Impact of Climate Change: India already faces health challenges from both communicable and non-
communicable diseases. Climate change could worsen this by influencing the growth of disease-carrying
vectors (like mosquitoes) and changing infection patterns.
❖ Non-Communicable Diseases: Climate change can impact non-communicable diseases (like kidney injuries
and pulmonary diseases).
❖ Mental Health: Climate change can impact mental health (like depression, aggravated by stress generated
by the change in weather conditions, and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder invariably accompany a climate
emergency).
➢ These are rarely recognised in India, much less addressed.
❖ Urbanization Challenges: India's rapid, unplanned urbanization contributes to health challenges.
➢ Urban areas, with their lack of green spaces and heat-retaining structures, face the worst effects.
➢ Urban areas suffer from the "urban heat island effect," making them warmer, especially at night.
➢ Epidemics commonly occur after floods, but extended warm periods also promote the proliferation of
water and food-borne pathogens and diseases.
Way Forward:
❖ Better Understanding: Understanding of climate change impacts is crucial for taking action.
❖ Better Planning: Social support, improved health services, and upstream interventions like better urban
planning are necessary to reduce the impact.
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❖ Action at all Levels: Addressing climate change's impact on health requires action at global, regional, and
local levels.
➢ Researchers must provide policy options, and governments need to decide and act on these options.
➢ National, State, and local governments have to decide to act on the policy options that have been
generated by research.
Conclusion:
India has to recognise climate change and its impact on health as a problem that can be and needs to be
addressed. Meaningful change in dealing with climate change and its impact on health will happen when there is
a collective effort involving problem understanding, policy options, and political decision- making.
News Source: The Hindu

Tapping Technology to Check Minor Mineral Plunder

Context:
With the increase in the pace of development, the demand for minor minerals such as sand and gravel has crossed
60 million metric tons in India.
❖ Relevancy for Prelims: Minor Minerals.
❖ Relevancy for Mains: Minor Minerals in India, its Associated Concerns and various studies and the Way
Forward.
Associated Laws and Regulations for Minor Minerals Industry in India:
❖ Power to Regulation: The regulatory and
Minor minerals
administrative powers to frame rules, prescribe rates of
royalty, mineral concessions, enforcement, etc. are ❖ Minor minerals have been defined in
entrusted to the State governments. Section 3 of the mines and Minerals
❖ The Environment Impact Assessment (EIA): The (Regulation and Development) Act, 1957
earlier EIA Notifications of 1994 and 2006 made and comprise mostly such minerals that are
environmental clearance compulsory for mining in locally available and have local use. These
areas more than or equal to five hectares. are not used in any major industries.
➢ Later, the EIA was amended in 2016 which made ❖ Most of the building and construction
environmental clearance mandatory for mining in materials fall in this category.
areas less than five hectares, including minor
minerals.
➢ The amendment also provided for the setting up of a District Environment Impact Assessment
Authority (EIAA) and a District Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC).
Associated Concerns of Minor Minerals Industry in India:
❖ High Extraction: It becomes the second largest extractive industry on the planet, after water.
❖ Illegal Mining: The rampant and illegal mining of minor minerals continues unabated.
❖ Irregularities in the Illegal Mining of Minor Minerals: A State-wise review of EACs and EIAAs in many
states shows that the rejection rate of project proposals is mere 1%, which raises a question on elimination
of irregularities in the illegal mining.
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❖ Under-Estimation of the Problem of Illegal Mining of Minor Minerals: There have been numerous cases
of the illegal mining of dolomite, marble and sand across States.
❖ Example: In Andhra Pradesh’s Konanki limestone quarries alone, 28.92 lakh metric tonnes of limestone have
been illegally quarried.
❖ Observations by the United Nations Environment Programme, in 2019: In India and China, illegal sand
mining has led to sweeping environmental degradation.
➢ No Assessment: Despite this, there is no comprehensive assessment available to evaluate the scale of
sand mining in India.
❖ Regional studies by the Centre for Science and Environment: The study of the Yamuna riverbed in Uttar
Pradesh have observed that increasing demand for soil has severely affected:
➢ Soil formation and the soil holding ability of the land
➢ Leading to a loss in marine life
➢ An increase in flood frequency and droughts
➢ Degradation of water quality
➢ Study of the Narmada Basin: Sand mining has reduced the population of Mahseer fish from 76%
between 1963 and 2015.
❖ Losses to the State Exchequer: As per an estimate, U.P. is losing revenue from 70% of mining activities
as only 30% area is legally mined.
➢ Similarly, the absence of royalty has caused a loss of ₹700 crore in Bihar.
❖ Negligence of Judicial Orders: Judicial orders are often neglected by State governments.
➢ For instance, as in the report of the Oversight Committee by the National Green Tribunal, U.P. has either
failed or only partially complied with orders issued regarding compensation for illegal sand mining.
➢ The same is observed in States such as West Bengal, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh too.
➢ Reasons behind such non-Compliance:
✓ Malfunction of governance due to weak institutions
✓ A scarcity of state resources to ensure enforcement
✓ Poorly drafted regulatory provisions
✓ Inadequate monitoring and evaluation mechanisms
✓ Excessive litigation that dampens state administrative capacity
The Path Ahead:
❖ Protecting minor minerals requires investment in production and consumption measurement.
❖ Need of monitoring and planning tools.
❖ A robust technology-driven enforcement approach is required.
➢ Drones, the internet of things (IoT) and blockchain technology can be used to monitor mechanisms
by using Global Positioning System, radar and Radio Frequency (RF) Locator.
News Source: The Hindu
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