US-Taliban sign landmark agreement

Syllabus subtopic: Effect of Policies and Politics of Developed and Developing Countries on India’s interests, Indian Diaspora.

Prelims and Mains focus: on the agreement and its implications

News: India has signalled its acceptance of the U.S.-Taliban and U.S.-Afghanistan peace agreements in Doha and Kabul that aim to end the 18-year war in Afghanistan, by sending envoys to witness them.

What are the agreements called?

1. US-Taliban agreement: “Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan between the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan which is not recognised by the United States as a state and is known as the Taliban, and the United States of America.”

2. US-Afghanistan agreement: “Joint Declaration between the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the United States of America for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan.”

Aim of the agreements signed

The two agreements set out a course for the next 14 months, including the pull-out of U.S. troops, the denial of space to foreign terrorist groups and any violence against the U.S. and allies, and intra-Afghan dialogue.

What are the salient points of concern?

1. Does the term “U.S. and Allies” include India?

In the Doha agreement, the Taliban has guaranteed “enforcement mechanisms that will prevent the use of the soil of Afghanistan by any group or individual against the security of the United States and its allies”. However, it is unclear whether India, which is not a U.S. ally, is included in this definition, and whether Pakistan-backed groups that threaten India, would still operate in Afghanistan. The Kabul declaration with the Ghani government more specifically commits to stopping “any international terrorist groups or individuals, including al-Qa’ida and ISIS-K, from using Afghan soil to threaten the security of the United States, its allies and other countries.”

2. Impact of prisoner release and lifting sanctions

• Officials worry most about the “mainstreaming of the Haqqani network”, which Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists reportedly fight alongside and were responsible for the 2008 bombing of the Indian embassy in Kabul.

• According to the agreements, 5,000 Taliban prisoners will be released by March 10, 2020, the first day of intra-Afghan negotiations, and the remainder in another three months. Officials also point out that the U.S. has committed to taking Taliban leaders off the UN Security Council’s sanctions list by May 29, 2020, which could considerably bring down the number of terrorists Pakistan is accused of harbouring, according to the FATF grey-list conditions. This might benefit Pakistan during the June 2020 FATF Plenary, when it faces a blacklist for not complying.

3. Handing powers to Taliban

• In the Doha agreement, the U.S. has committed to clearing five bases and bringing troop levels down to 8,600 in four and a half months, and even appears to submit to the possibility of a Taliban-led government, by extracting promises that the Taliban will not provide “visas, passports, travel documents or asylum” to those threatening the U.S. and its allies. This appears to sideline the “Intra-Afghan” dialogue, and India’s support for the election process for leadership in Afghanistan.

• In the last section of the agreement, the U.S. and Taliban seek “positive relations with each other and expect that the relations between the United States and the new post-settlement Afghan Islamic government as determined by the intra-Afghan dialogue and negotiations will be positive”.

4. Afghan govt. in peril?

This indicates that the Ghani government, which India has recognised as winner of the 2019 election, will only serve for an interim period. This also raises a big question mark on the future of Afghanistan’s government, and whether it will remain a democracy.

5. Terms of agreement still nebulous

• All Taliban demands have been front-loaded, while the actual terms of the ‘peace deal’ are yet to be negotiated between the Taliban and the Afghan side, facilitated by the U.S. So, much of the heavy lifting remains.

• There is no reference to the Constitution, rule of law, democracy and elections.

6. Impact on India

• After a closer look at the texts of the two agreements distributed to news agencies diplomatic and security experts say the impact on India may be a cause for worry for the government.

• Experts warned the Afghanistan-Pakistan dialogue facilitated by the U.S. on cross-border terrorism and mechanisms must not cut India out of the region’s security architecture.

Syllabus subtopic: Government Policies and Interventions for Development in various sectors and Issues arising out of their Design and Implementation.

Prelims and Mains focus: about the move and its significance; about Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958; about ASI

News: The number of monuments under the Centre’s protection could increase as the government is planning a review of those under the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the ones protected by the State governments.

Current scenario

• At present, 3,691 monuments nationwide are protected by the ASI, with the highest number, 745, in Uttar Pradesh.

• The list of the Centrally protected monuments had not seen a substantial increase in many years, and important sites under the State governments could be added to the list. On the other hand, there were some monuments that could be removed from the Central list and placed under the State governments.

About the move

• The list of Centrally protected monuments can go up to 10,000. In Tamil Nadu alone, there are about 7,000 temples, many of which are hundreds of years old. On the other hand, there are some monuments under the ASI that can be shifted to the State list.

• There were some sites that could be moved from the Central list, allowing development works in their vicinity. There is a ban on construction within 100 metres of a Centrally protected monument and regulated construction within 100-200 metres under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. The Act protects monuments and sites that are over 100 years old.

About Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)

• The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is the premier organization for the archaeological researches and protection of the cultural heritage of India. It was established in 1861. It works under Ministry of culture.

• The major functions of Archaeological Survey of India include maintenance of ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains of national importance.

• Under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act of 1958, the ASI has declared 3656 monuments to be of national importance in the country.

• ASI has also undertaken major conservation works abroad besides carrying out excavations, explorations, images and other studies in countries like Afghanistan, Nepal, Cambodia and Egypt.

Syllabus subtopic: Government Policies and Interventions for Development in various sectors and Issues arising out of their Design and Implementation.

Prelims and Mains focus: about the amendment and its significance; about steps taken in banking sector

News: The Parliament is likely to clear a Bill to amend Banking Regulation Act during the second leg of Budget session. The session ends on April 3.

Cooperative Banks in India

There are 1,540 co-operative banks with a depositor base of 86 million having total savings of about Rs.5 lakh crore.

Objective of the amendment

• To bring multi-state co-operative banks under effective regulation of RBI, in order to address weaknesses in co-operative banking sector.

• The proposed legislation will help prevent a repeat of Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative Bank-like crisis.

Steps taken by the government in banking sector

In the last couple of years, the Department of Financial Services has taken several steps to promote responsive and responsible banking.

• As part of clean banking initiative, project cash flows were ring-fenced, enforcement of terms of loan agreements and prior validation of backward and forward linkages were made integral to lending processes.

• Besides, the number of banks in loan consortium was capped, reducing borrowers' ability to play one lender off against another.

• This was accompanied by data driven risk scoring and scrutiny, comprehensive diligence across data sources and strengthened credit assessment.

• To ensure financial health of public sector banks (PSBs), recapitalization of Rs.4 lakh crore was undertaken in the last five years. Provision coverage ratio reached a record high of 77 per cent. NPA and slippages are declining with improved asset quality.

• As a result of various initiatives taken by the government the number of PSBs under Prompt Corrective Action (PCA) is down from 11 in 2017 to four.

• As many as 12 out of 18 banks are in profit this year as against 19 out of 21 in loss just two years ago with the help of record recovery and reduction in bad loans.