Syllabus subtopic: Indian Constitution- historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure.

Prelims and Mains focus: About the SC judgement on internet curbs in the valley and its significance; about Article 370

News: The right to internet is protected by the constitution and the Centre should review the sweeping restrictions it has placed on internet access in Kashmir, the Supreme Court ruled on Friday in a landmark judgement.

About the SC judgement

• While recognizing the right of the government to impose internet bans in exceptional circumstances, it questioned the extent of the clampdowns. It drew these conclusions by recognizing that the right to internet is constitutionally protected.

• The court gave the central government and “competent authorities” a week to complete the review into the clampdown that was imposed on the eve of the 5 August revocation of Article 370 that gave the erstwhile state its special status.

• The court also directed the Centre to publish all prohibitory orders in force, future orders under Section 144 of the CrPC and orders suspending telecom services, including the internet, so that affected citizens can challenge them in the high court or another appropriate forum.

• The SC declared that the freedom of speech and expression and the freedom to practice any profession or carry on any trade, business or occupation over the medium of internet enjoys constitutional protection under Article 19(1)(a) and Article 19(1)(g). The restriction upon such fundamental rights should be in consonance with the mandate under Article 19 (2) and (6) of the Constitution, inclusive of the test of proportionality.

• The SC said that the power under Section 144 Criminal Procedure Code, being remedial as well as preventive, is exercisable not only where there exists present danger, but also when there is an apprehension of danger. However, the danger contemplated should be in the nature of an “emergency” and for the purpose of preventing obstruction and annoyance or injury to any person lawfully employed. The power under Section 144 cannot be used to suppress legitimate expression of opinion or grievance or exercise of any democratic rights.

• An order passed under Section 144, CrPC should state the material facts to enable judicial review of the same. The power should be exercised in a bona fide and reasonable manner, and the same should be passed by relying on the material facts, indicative of application of mind. This will enable judicial scrutiny of the aforesaid order. Repetitive orders under Section 144, CrPC would be an abuse of power.

What does the research on internet shutdown say?

• Around 4,196 hours of internet blackouts in India cost the economy close to $1.3 billion in 2019, said a 7 January report by UK-based research firm Top10VPN.

• The report analysed every major internet shutdown around the world in 2019 which cost the global economy over $8 billion. India, where over 100 shutdowns were documented, was the third worst-hit after Iraq and Sudan.

• The findings for India are based on internet blackouts in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Tripura and Uttar Pradesh.

Why SC order on Internet goes beyond J&K?

• Directing the government to mandatorily publish all orders permitting Internet shutdowns, the Supreme Court has for the first time set the stage for challenging suspension orders before courts.

• Although the Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Service) Rules, 2017 issued under the Telegraph Act — the law that deals with restricting Internet access — does not provide for publication or notification of the order suspending Internet, the apex court mandated that such orders must be made available to the public.

• The court declared that it is a “settled principle of law, and of natural justice” that requires publication of such orders, “particularly one that affects lives, liberty and property of people”. “Any law which demands compliance of the people requires to be notified directly and reliably,” it said.

• This allows individuals to now challenge the orders before courts in J&K and rest of India. In the wake of protests against the new citizenship law, Internet services were suspended temporarily in parts of Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Karnataka. While suspension orders were always subject to judicial review, lack of availability of such orders in public domain prevented such challenges before courts.

• In December last year, the Gauhati High Court directed the Assam government to restore Internet in the state after reviewing suspension orders.

• India tops the list of Internet shutdowns globally. According to Software Freedom Law Center’s tracker, there have been 381 shutdowns since 2012, 106 of which were in 2019. The ongoing shutdown in Kashmir is the longest ever in any democratic country.

• The Supreme Court also highlighted ‘gaps’ in the current Suspension Rules. In favour of the petitioners, the court tightened the window for broad telecom suspensions, stating they had to be “necessary” and “unavoidable”.

• While the Solicitor General had argued during the proceedings that blocking only some social media services was not feasible, the Court responded that “the State should have attempted to determine the feasibility of such a measure” and “if such a contention is accepted, then the Government would have a free pass to put a complete internet blockage every time. Such complete blocking/prohibition perpetually cannot be accepted by this Court”.

• There should not be excessive burden on free speech even if complete prohibition is imposed, and the government has to justify imposition of such prohibition and explain why lesser alternatives will be inadequate, the bench stated.

• Lastly, the court mandated that all orders regarding the Kashmir case be made public, and to provide essential services such as e-banking and hospitals immediately..

• Once these orders have been reviewed, they are open to be challenged by everybody and can be subject to judicial review. What the state was arguing in this case was that this is a matter of national security given that it pertains to Kashmir with a history of militancy. They said, therefore leave it to the state, armed forces, and security forces to determine what restrictions need to be imposed, and the court should not be reviewing these orders. On that aspect, the court has come down very clearly to say that it will judicially review executive orders.

• This was an unprecedented court recognition of the new important mediums of expression and trade.

• The bench also noted that the law needs to keep pace with technological development: “We need to note that the law should imbibe the technological development and accordingly mould its rules so as to cater to the needs of society. Non-recognition of technology within the sphere of law is only a disservice to the inevitable.”

Syllabus subtopic: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests

Prelims and Mains focus: About IEA findings on India’s oil demand; about India’s strategic oil reserves; IEA: members and mandate

News: India’s oil demand growth will overtake China by mid-2020s, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Friday asking the world’s third-largest energy consumer to raise the capacity of strategic oil storages as insurance against disruptions.

India 2020 ‘Energy Policy Review’

• India’s current strategic oil storage of 10 days of its imports is not enough to protect it in the rainy days in the oil market

• India imports more than 80 per cent of its oil needs, of which 65 per cent is from the Middle East through the Strait of Hormuz, the IEA said, adding that the country’s oil refining capacity will rise to about 8 million bpd by 2025 from about 5 million bpd at present.

• IEA projected India’s oil demand to reach 6 million barrels per day (bpd) by 2024 from 4.4 million bpd in 2017. China’s demand growth is likely to be slightly lower than that of India by the mid-2020s.

• India is the world’s third-largest consumer of oil (behind the US and China), the fourth-largest oil refiner and a net exporter of refined (petroleum) products. The rate of growth of India’s oil consumption is expected to surpass that of China in the mid-2020s, making India a very attractive market for refinery investment.

• Its “demand will go up significantly in the next years to come” on the back rise in oil consumption for mobility, as cooking fuel and in the petrochemical industry.

India’s strategic oil reserves

• India has built underground storages at Padur and Vishakapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Mangalore and Padur in Karnataka to stock 5.33 million tonnes of crude oil. The storage capacity is equivalent to less than 10 days of India’s oil imports.
• In the second phase, similar storages are planned at Chandikhol in Odisha and Padur in Karnataka for another 6.5 million tonnes of oil.

About IEA

• Established in 1974 as per framework of the OECD.
• MISSION – The IEA works to ensure reliable, affordable and clean energy for its 30 member countries and beyond. Our mission is guided by four main areas of focus: energy security, economic development, environmental awareness and engagement worldwide.
• Headquarters (Secretariat): Paris, France.
• A candidate country must be a member country of the OECD. But all OECD members are not IEA members (Ex:Chile, Iceland, Israel, Latvia and Slovenia).
• India currently is an associate member.
• It coordinates the release of strategic petroleum reserves (SPR) among developed countries in times of emergency.

To become member a candidate country must demonstrate that it has:

• crude oil and/or product reserves equivalent to 90 days of the previous year’s net imports, to which the government has immediate access (even if it does not own them directly) and could be used to address disruptions to global oil supply
• a demand restraint programme to reduce national oil consumption by up to 10%
• legislation and organisation to operate the Co-ordinated Emergency Response Measures (CERM) on a national basis
• legislation and measures to ensure that all oil companies under its jurisdiction report information upon request;
• measures in place to ensure the capability of contributing its share of an IEA collective action.

Mandate of IEA

To focus on the “3Es” of effectual energy policy:

1. Energy security.
2. Economic development.
3. Environmental protection.

Reports by IEA:

• Global Energy & CO2 Status Report 2017.
• World Energy Outlook.
• World Energy Statistics 2017.
• World Energy Balances 2017.
• Energy Technology Perspectives.

About OECD

• Founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and world trade
• Headquarter — Paris, France

Origin

• Organisation for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC) was founded in 1948 to help administer the Marshall Plan.
• In 1961, the OEEC was reformed into the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development by the Convention on the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and membership was extended to non-European states
• Intergovernmental economic organisation
• Official United Nations observer
• It works through consensus to develop policy recommendations and other “soft law” instruments to encourage policy reform in member countries.

Membership

• Currently 36members
• India is not a member but key partner (the countries which are invited for annual ministerial conference. Other key partners are – Brazil, China, Indonesia and South Africa )
• It is forum of countries describing themselves as committed to democracy and the market economy.
• Most OECD members are high-income economies with a very high Human Development Index (HDI) and are regarded as developed countries
• It provides a platform to compare policy experiences, seeking answers to common problems, identify good practices and coordinate domestic and international policies of its members.
• Its programs are funded by contributions from member states at varying rates

How it works?

• OECD Council — provide direction and guidance to the work of Organisation. Each member country is represented.
• OECD Substantive Committees — oversee all the work on each theme (publications, task forces, conferences, and so on)
• OECD Secretariat — led by the Secretary-General provides support to Standing and Substantive Committees

Special bodies and entities

• International Transport Forum (ITF) (formally known as the European Conference of Ministers of Transport)
• International Energy Agency
• Nuclear Energy Agency
• Partnership for Democratic Governance (PDG)
• Trade Union Advisory Committee (TUAC)

Reports and Publications

• OECD Economic survey of India
• Government at a Glance
• Education at a Glance
• Agricultural Outlook 2017-2026 (in association with FAO)
• Multilateral Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information (MCAA) — multilateral convention on administrative assistance in taxation matters
• Employment Protection Index
• Your Better Life Index

Syllabus subtopic: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests

Prelims and Mains focus: About the Inda-US trade dispute; GSP and its benefits; WTO: structure and functions

News: The World Trade Organisation's (WTO) dispute settlement body has set up a panel to examine the US complaint against India which had increased customs duties on 28 American goods last year.

Background

• The US in July had dragged India to the WTO by filing a complaint against New Delhi's move to increase customs duties, alleging the decision as inconsistent with the global trade norms.

• The US had alleged that the additional duties imposed by India "appears to nullify or impair the benefits accruing to the US directly or indirectly" under the GATT 1994.

• It had stated that India does not impose these duties on products originating in the territory of any other WTO member nation.

About GATT

The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) is a WTO pact, signed by all member countries of the multi-lateral body, aims to promote trade by reducing or eliminating trade barriers like customs duties.

How is a dispute settled in WTO?

• As per the WTO's dispute settlement process, the request for consultations is the first step in a dispute.
• Consultations give the parties an opportunity to discuss the matter and find a satisfactory solution without proceeding further with litigation.
• After 60 days, if consultations fail to resolve the dispute, the complainant may request adjudicated by a panel.

India-US trade dispute

• India's exports to the US in 2017-18 stood at USD 47.9 billion, while imports were at USD 26.7 billion. The trade balance is in favour of India.

• The US has rolled back export incentives from India under its GSP programme and New Delhi has imposed higher customs duties on 28 American products including almond, pulses, walnut, chickpeas, boric acid and binders for foundry moulds.

• The other products on which duties were hiked include certain kind of nuts, iron and steel products, apples, pears, flat rolled products of stainless steel, other alloy steel, tube and pipe fittings, and screws, bolts and rivets.

• The duties were hiked as retaliation to the US move to impose the highest customs duties on certain steel and aluminium goods.

Generalised System of Preferences (GSP):

The Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) is a U.S. trade program designed to promote economic growth in the developing world by providing preferential duty-free entry for up to 4,800 products from 129 designated beneficiary countries and territories.

What is the objective of GSP?

The objective of GSP was to give development support to poor countries by promoting exports from them into the developed countries. GSP promotes sustainable development in beneficiary countries by helping these countries to increase and diversify their trade with the United States.

Benefits of GSP:

1. Indian exporters benefit indirectly – through the benefit that accrues to the importer by way of reduced tariff or duty free entry of eligible Indian products
2. Reduction or removal of import duty on an Indian product makes it more competitive to the importer – other things (e.g. quality) being equal.
3. This tariff preference helps new exporters to penetrate a market and established exporters to increase their market share and to improve upon the profit margins, in the donor country.

About World Trade Organisation (WTO)

• Officially commenced on 1 January 1995 under the Marrakesh Agreement, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which commenced in 1948
• An organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade
• HQ – Geneva, Switzerland
• Official language – English, French, Spanish

Evolution of WTO

WTO Structure

Director General

• Appointed by ministerial conference
• Has four years term.
• Heads Secretariat at Geneva