The

Analyst
Handout Rule of law
10th January,2024
Context: A Bench headed by Justice B.V. Nagarathna said that the rule of
law was quintessential for personal liberty or any other fundamental right to
exist and flourish.
About : upholding democratic principles
and accountability.
Dicey’s Concept
● Supremacy of Law
● DK Basu vs State of West
● Equality before Law
Bengal : Strengthens the rule of
● Predominance of Legal Spirit
law by outlining guidelines to
prevent custodial torture and
Indian Context protect individual rights during

● Article 13 arrest.

● The Golden Triangle

● Exceptions ● A.K Kraipak V Union of India :

○ Wide discretionary powers to Reinforces the rule of law by

executive specifying that administrative

(President & Governor) decisions must be free from

○ Immunities & Privileges arbitrariness and adhere to

principles of natural justice.”
Case laws :
● Som Raj vs State of Haryana : Emphasizes
● ADM Jabalpur vs S. Shukla
the rule of law by addressing issues of illegal
○ RoL is the antithesis of
detention and custodial violence.
arbitrariness
○ Accepted norm of
● Kesavananda Bharati vs State of Kerala :
Civilized societies
Establishes the doctrine of basic structure,
reinforcing the rule of law in safeguarding
fundamental rights from arbitrary
amendments.

● Indira Gandhi vs Raj Narain : Signifies the

rule of law's supremacy as the court set
aside the Prime Minister's election,
 The
Analyst
Handout Free Internet & RTI
10th January,2024

Context: Website blocking orders have grown over 100 fold in the past
decade, shows an RTI reply.

About : ● Added Expense

● EoDB
● Autonomy
● Instances of Censorship
● Tool for Moral Policing
○ Porn Ban
● Who watches the Watchers?
○ Manipur Internet Shutdown

Judicial take :
● Laws pertaining to censorship
○ Temporary Suspension of Telecom ● UNHRC General Assembly -

Services (Public Emergency or Public essential human right.

Safety) Rules, 2017 ● Faheema Shirin v. State of

○ Section 144, CrPC Kerala

○ Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 ○ Right to access Internet is

○ IT Act, 2000 an integral part of Right to

education and Right to
Privacy
Arguments in favour of Internet
○ greater access to
censorship :
information, services,
better opportunities for
● National Security
livelihoods
● Child victims
● Anuradha Bhasin vs UOI
● Identity Theft
○ “Integral part” of Article
● Fake News
19(1)(a)
● Hate Speech
○ Test of proportionality -
● Protection of Rights
justified infringement?
● Other Illegal Activities
○ Reasonable Restrictions -
sanctioned by law,
Arguments against : reasonable in nature and

● Freedom of Expression for a legitimate purpose

● Secrecy ○ Complete restriction -

case to case basis
 The
Analyst
Handout MGNREGS
10th January,2024

Context: Govt is likely to increase the budget outlay for MGNREGS by 50%
over the budget estimate for FY 2024.

About : ● Bottom-up approach:

Emphasizes community
● Demand driven social security measure
involvement in decision-making,
● 100 days unskilled work per household in
fostering inclusive development
financial year
from the grassroots.
● 18 year, rural resident
● Grassroot democracy:
Promotes local participation
Data
and decision-making through
● World’s largest anti poverty prog
village assemblies, ensuring
● SECC 2011 - 40% rural households
community representation.
● 7.6 cr families active job cards
● Transparency and
● NSSO - areas with low consump expenditure,
Accountability (T&A):
high demand
Implements social audit,
● Women SC/ST beneficiaries
ombudsman, and proactive
disclosure on portals to
Paradigm shift : enhance transparency and
accountability in program
● Rights-based: MGNREGS ensures the right to implementation.
work, empowering individuals to demand
employment opportunities.
Performance :
● Demand-driven: The program responds to
the local community's needs, allowing them ● Increased rural wages
● Reduced distress migration
to request specific projects. ● Risk mitigation - rain scanty
● Self-targeting: MGNREGS inherently benefits ● Usage of barren areas for
cultivation
the most vulnerable by providing ● Creation of assets like ponds
employment opportunities where they are (but divert manpower from
agriculture?)
needed the most. ● NSSO - empower weak
● Unemployment allowance: Offers financial ● FRA beneficiaries - 150 days
● Financial inclusion - DBT
support to workers if employment is not ● Improve HDI - food security,
provided within the stipulated time. nutrition, income
increase so child labour less
 The
Analyst
Handout K - shaped recovery ?
10th January,2024
Context: A report by SBI seeks to debunk the claims of India’s K-shaped economic
recovery.

● Following a recession, different Highlights of the SBI Report

parts of the economy recover at
different rates, times, or ● Taxpayers have moved from lower
magnitudes. income to higher income tax bracket
● Leads to changes in the structure ● ITRs filed by individual taxpayers
of the economy. earning between Rs 5 - 10 lakh, climbed
by 295%
● 20% of small firms have transitioned
into larger firms
● Consumption of the bottom 90%
increased post pandemic - e.g. Zomato
● Decline in sales of two-wheelers

Conclusion Drawn by the SBI Report

● Growth in all income classes, skewness

decreasing, convergence towards
middle
● Claim of K-shaped recovery seems
flawed, prejudiced, ill-concocted
● Income inequality captured through the
Gini coefficient has declined from 0.472
to 0.402 during FY14-FY22.

Causes of a K-shaped recovery:

● Creative destruction
● Public policy response to a
recession - benefit some
segments
● Differential impact of the initial
recession

Income inequality in India: Highlights

of UNDP Report

● Income distribution has become

more skewed in India.
● Top 10% get 57% of national
income and the top 1% get 22%
● Gaps in wealth - Top 10% controls
65%
 The
Analyst
Handout 2023: Warmest Year
10th January,2024

Context: The increase in Earth’s surface temperature nearly crossed the critical
threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius as per EU climate monitors.

WMO State of Global climate report 2023

● Chance of more than 1.5°C warm

● 98% chance - 2023 to 2027 will be the
warmest, 1.1°C to 1.8°C above the
pre-industrial level.
● Impacts on health, food security, water
management, environment
● Global mean sea level rise
○ 20 cm since 1900
Causes
○ by 2100 - 0.28 m to 0.55 m if
● GHG concentration in atmosphere low-emissions, 0.63 m to 1.01 m if
○ E.g. CO2 concentration 2.4 ppm high-emissions
higher in 2023
● Anthropogenic activities
● Onset of El Nino last year