DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

Monthly DNA

16 Jan, 2024

18 Min Read

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Paper	Topics	Subject
GS-I	Pong dam	Physical Geography
GS-II	Free Legal AID and Access to Justice	Governance
GS-III	Critically Important Antimicrobials (CIA)	Biodiversity & Environment
GS-III	Up skilling Rural Youth of India	Economic Issues
PT Pointer	Project ‘Veer Gatha’	Governance
PT Pointer	Pariksha Pe Charcha 2024	Governance

Pong dam

GS-I : Physical Geography Environment geography

Recently the draft policy was prepared to declare Pong Dam Wildlife Sanctuary and the surrounding area an eco-sensitive zone.

It is the highest earth-fill dam in India and is one of India’s largest man-made reservoir.
Built in – 1975, named after Maharana Pratap and so called as Maharana Pratap Sagar.
Location – Over Beas River in Himachal Pradesh.

Pong Dam Wildlife Sanctuary – In 1983, the entire reservoir was declared a Wildlife Sanctuary by the state government.

It is covered with tropical and subtropical forests.
It is the most important fish reservoir in the foothills of the Himalayas.
Pong Dam Lake Bird Sanctuary – In 1994, the Government of India declared it a ‘wetland of national importance’ and in 2002, it was declared as a Ramsar Site.
Every year more than 100,000 birds migrate here from Central Asia, Mongolia, Siberia and China and it is the largest congregation of the ‘Bar headed geese’.
Vulture Cafe – A place where cattle carcasses are made available at one spot, for vultures to ‘feast’ (scavenge) upon them.

Impact of Declaring Pond Dam an ESZ

The National Environment Policy (2006) defined the Eco-Sensitive Zones “as areas/zones with identified environmental resources having incomparable values which require special attention for their conservation” because of its landscape, wildlife, biodiversity, historical and natural values.

Impact – It will impose more restrictions on human activities within a radius of 1-1.5 kilometres of the dam area.

It will affect people living within a radius of 116 kilometres in the dam area who does farming around the dam when the water level goes down.
Over 25,000 families were displaced by the dam and over 7,000 rehabilitation cases are pending.

Source:

Free Legal AID and Access to Justice

GS-II : Governance Judiciary

"Who are entitled to receive free legal aid? Assess the role of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) in rendering free legal aid in India" important for PAPER-2 UPSC examination Mains.

Article 39-A of the Constitution in Directive Principle of State Policy mandates universal access to free legal aid, aiming to establish a legal framework that upholds justice without regard to social or economic distinctions. This constitutional provision led to the enactment of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, giving rise to the formation of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA). Apart from this Article 14 and Article 22(1) are also associated with FREE LEGAL AID.

Eligibility for Free Legal Services

Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes
Victims of Trafficking or Begar
Women and Children.
Mentally Ill or Disabled Persons
A person who is going through tough times, like being a affected by a big disaster, violence based on ethnicity or caste, a flood, drought, earthquake, or a big industrial accident.
Industrial Workmen
Individuals in custody, including those in protective homes as defined in the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956, juvenile homes as defined in the Juvenile Justice Act, 1986, or psychiatric hospitals or nursing homes as defined in the Mental Health Act, 1987, can avail free legal services.
Income-Based Eligibility: Individuals with an annual income less than the specified amount (as mentioned in the schedule or higher amount prescribed by the State Government) are eligible for free legal services if the case is before any court other than the Supreme Court. For cases before the Supreme Court, the income threshold is less than Rs 5 Lakh.

Recently, Department of Justice has announced the nomination of Supreme Court judge Justice BR Gavai as the Chairman of the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee (SCLSC).

What is the need for legal services?

Indian Constitution has provisions that specifies the need for providing legal services.

Article 39A – The State shall secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice, on a basis of equal opportunity and shall provide free legal aid by suitable legislation or schemes, to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities.

Article 14 – It entails right to equality and make it obligatory for the state to ensure equality before law.
Article 22(1) – It entails the rights to be informed of grounds for arrest which make it obligatory for the State to ensure a legal system that promotes justice based on equal opportunity.

Committee for implementing legal aid schemes – It was constituted in 1980, at the national level under the chairmanship of then SC judge PN Bhagwati to monitor legal aid activities throughout India.

What is Legal Services Authorities Act?

Constituted in – 1987

Objectives – To give a statutory base to legal aid programmes and to provide free and competent legal services to eligible groups.

It envisages a nationwide network for providing legal aid and assistance
- At National level – NALSA
- At State level – SLSA
- At District level – DLSA
- At Taluk level – TLSA
- At Supreme Court level – SCLSC
- At High Court level – HCLSC
NALSA – National Legal Services Authority was constituted in 1995 to monitor and evaluate the implementation of legal aid programmes and to lay down policies for making them available.
It also disburses funds and grants to SLSA and NGOs for implementing legal aid schemes and programmes.
SLSA – State Legal Services Authorities were established to implement NALSA’s policies and directions, give free legal services to people and conduct Lok Adalats.
It is headed by the Chief Justice of the respective High Court and includes the senior HC judge as its Executive Chairman.

While the HC Chief Justice is the patron-in-chief of the SLSA, the CJI is the patron-in-chief of NALSA.

DLSA – District Legal Services Authorities are chaired by the district judge of the respective district.
Taluk (Sub-Divisional) Legal Services Committees – They were established in most taluks and are headed by a senior civil judge.
Collective function – To provide free and competent legal services to the eligible persons
To organize Lok Adalats for amicable settlement of disputes
To organize legal awareness camps in the rural areas
To supply and obtain certified order copies and other legal documents, among other functions

Free Legal Aid in India

Free Legal Services
- Payment of court fee, process fees and other charges incurred in connection with any legal proceedings.
- Providing service of lawyers in legal proceedings.
- Obtaining and supply of certified copies of orders and other documents in legal proceedings.
- Preparation of appeal, paper book including printing and translation of documents in legal proceedings.

Role Of The National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) In Rendering Free Legal Aid In India

Expanding Reach and Accessibility
- NALSA has been instrumental in establishing legal aid clinics, Lok Adalats (People's Courts), and legal awareness camps to bring legal assistance closer to the grassroots level..
Targeting Vulnerable Groups
- Assistance to women in cases of domestic violence during lockdown (National Legal Aid Helpline-15100), legal services for transgender rights (NALSA Judgement).
- For legal awareness among prisoners, Haq Hamara bhi to hai campaign was recently launched by NALSA.
Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanism
- NALSA's efforts in organizing Mega Lok Adalats have resulted in the amicable settlement of a significant number of cases, reducing the burden on regular courts.
Awareness Campaigns and Education
- For example: The "Legal Literacy Clubs" in schools and colleges is to instill legal awareness among students. The "Women Empowerment through Legal Literacy" program aims to educate women about their legal rights. Nyayadeep (the official newsletter of NALSA )for sharting views and ideas).

Despite its commendable efforts, the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) faces a range of formidable challenges in its mission to provide free legal aid to all segments of society.

What is the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee (SCSLC)?

Constitution – Under section 3A of the 1987 Act which states that the Central Authority (NALSA) shall constitute the committee.
Objective – To provide free and competent legal services to the weaker sections of society, in cases falling under the top court’s jurisdiction.
Composition – It consists of a sitting SC judge, who is the chairman, along with other members possessing the experience and qualifications prescribed by the Centre.
As of date, it consists of chairperson and 9 members.
Selection criteria – Under 1987 Act, the Centre is empowered to make rules in consultation with the CJI, by notification.
Rule 10 of the NALSA Rules, 1995, entails the numbers, experience, and qualifications of the SCLSC members.
Appointment – CJI nominates both the chairman and other members of SCLSC and appoints the Secretary to the Committee.
The Committee can appoint officers and other employees as prescribed by the Centre, in consultation with the CJI.

Other Initiatives for Free Legal Aid in India

Nyaya Bandhu (Pro Bono Legal Service) – An initiative of the Department of Justice, launched in 2017 to enhance access to justice for marginalised sections of the society.
Tele-Law Services – It is to facilitate delivery of legal advice through a panel of lawyers stationed at the front office of Legal Services Authorities and CSC.
Tele-Law 2.0 – It entails the fusion of Tele-Law Services with Nyaya Bandhu pro bono legal services, a merger to further enhance citizen accessibility to legal aid.

Challenges Faced by Nalsa in Ensuring Free Legal Aid for All

Resource Constraints and Budgetary Limitations: Budget constraints hinder NALSA's efforts in underserved areas.
- For instance, as per India Justice Report 2019, expenditure on legal aid has been only Rs 0.75 per capita spent in 2018 and Rs 1.05 in 2019-20 – the lowest figures globally
Inaccessibility Of Legal Aid: According to India Justice Report 2019, more than 80% of India’s 1.3 billion people are eligible for legal aid. But only 15 million have benefitted from it since NALSA was established in 1995.
Shortage of Qualified Legal Professionals: According to India Justice Report 2019, out of 629 posts for full-time secretaries approved for India’s 669 District Legal Services Authorities (DLSA), only 573 are currently occupied. This poses a significant challenge in meeting the diverse legal needs of the populace.
Complexity of Legal Procedures and Lack of Legal Awareness: This keep rural and marginalized communities uninformed about their rights of free legal aid services.
- In the case of Hossainara Khatun, Justice P.N. Bhagwati emphasized that a majority of rural residents lack awareness of their legal rights, leading to their exploitation and deprivation of entitled benefits.
Social Stigma and Discrimination: Victims of domestic violence or LGBTQ+ individuals may face social ostracization, creating reluctance in approaching legal authorities for assistance.
Underutilization of Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) Mechanisms: It hinders NALSA's efforts to resolve cases swiftly and cost-effectively. “Legal services cover only 1% of all pending court cases." - Justice U.U. Lalit, NALSA Chairperson

To address the challenges faced by NALSA, promoting Alternative Dispute Resolution methods like mediation and conciliation can expedite the resolution process while reducing costs. Additionally, establishing, strengthening and digitising State and District Legal Services Authorities at various levels can enhance accessibility to justice. However, to optimise NALSA's efforts, a collaborative effort between government institutions and civil society is crucial, ensuring a more inclusive and effective delivery of legal aid services to those in need.

National Lok Adalat will be held on 12 November across the country to dispose off pending cases through settlement.

What is it? Lok Adalat is one of the alternative dispute redressal mechanisms, it is a forum where disputes/cases pending in the court of law or at pre-litigation stage are settled/ compromised amicably.

Who conducts? National Legal Services Authority of India (NALSA) along with other Legal Services Institutions conducts Lok Adalats.
Status: Lok Adalats have been given statutory status under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987.
Appeal:
- The award (decision) made by the Lok Adalats is deemed to be a decree of a civil court and is final and binding on all parties and no appeal against such an award lies before any court of law.
- If the parties are not satisfied with the award of the Lok Adalat though there is no provision for an appeal against such an award, but they are free to initiate litigation by approaching the court of appropriate jurisdiction by filing a case by following the required procedure, in exercise of their right to litigate.
Fees: There is no court fee payable when a matter is filed in a Lok Adalat.
Nature of Cases to be Referred to Lok Adalat
1. Any case pending before any court.
2. Any dispute which has not been brought before any court and is likely to be filed before the court.

Provided that any matter relating to an offence not compoundable under the law shall not be settled in Lok Adalat.

Source: nalsa

Critically Important Antimicrobials (CIA)

GS-III : Biodiversity & Environment Biodiversity & Environment

The findings of a new survey by the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) underscored the need for properly monitoring critically important antimicrobials to mitigate AMR.

CIAs – They represent a class of antimicrobials.

Categorised by – World Health Organisation (WHO).

3 groups – Based on their importance to human medicine and the urgency to preserve their effectiveness in treating infectious diseases.
HPCIAs – Highest priority critically important antimicrobials constitute a subcategory within CIAs, signifying antimicrobials of the highest priority in preserving their effectiveness.
Limitation – It is limited to antibacterial drugs of which most are also used in veterinary medicine and on how much and what kind of antibiotics are used in food animals and crops.

Key findings – 3^rd generation cephalosporins tops in overall antibiotic prescriptions with Ceftriaxone as top in this class.

Aminoglycosides is 2^nd highest in overall antibiotic prescription where amikacin is the most commonly prescribed antibiotic.

3^rd generation cephalosporins are categorised as the highest priority critically important antimicrobials (HPCIA) by WHO.

Other CIAs were belonging to the classes of carbapenems, penicillins, fluoroquinolones, glycopeptides and macrolides.

Recommendations – Antimicrobial consumption tracking efforts, like seen for human consumption, should be considered for use of antibiotics in India’s food animal production sector.

Significance of listing – It assists in managing antimicrobial resistance, ensuring that all, especially CIA are used prudently both in human and veterinary medicine.

Report by Centre for Science and Environment in 2021

It highlighted the use of CIAs in food-producing animals in India.
Findings – The 3^rd generation cephalosporins, were found in the Indian dairy sector and aminoglycosides were reported in the Indian poultry sector.
Use of antibiotics – To prevent, control or treat diseases.
Recommendations – Hospitals should adopt standard treatment guidelines and to have well-defined antibiotic policies in place.
It further highlights the need for conducting point prevalence surveys periodically in hospitals to monitor changes in antibiotic usage with time.

Recent data from the Antimicrobial Resistance Research and Surveillance Network of the ICMR as well as National Antimicrobial Surveillance Network (NARS-Net) of NCDC also showed a trend of increasing resistance towards CIAs, including 3^rd generation cephalosporins and aminoglycosides.

Source:

Up skilling Rural Youth of India

GS-III : Economic Issues Employment

In a recent group discussion held by Life Skills Collaborative, most of the rural youth preferred to stay in their village which necessitates the importance of upskilling them.

Why is upskilling necessary for the rural youth?

UN projects that almost 50% of the Indian population will be living in urban areas by 2047.

To overcome agrarian crisis – Farming is the main source of rural livelihoods including children who work on family-owned farms.
But the rural economy is experiencing a major occupational shift with more farmers quitting agriculture to join non-farming jobs, hinting at an agrarian crisis.

The National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) data recorded 34 million farmers leaving their farms and transitioning to other sectors such as construction during 2004-05 and 2011-12.

To reduce unemployment rate – According to NSSO, the unemployment rate among rural male and female youth stood at 17.4% and 13.6% respectively in 2020.
To control migration – Many rural youth migrate to urban areas in search of meaningful employment which impacts livelihood of urban dwellers.

How can youth in rural India be made employment-ready?

Rural education – Technical as well as life skills are needed to empower youth in these areas through formal education.
The success stories of Mexico’s tele-schools and Bhutan’s well-being-infused curriculum can be introduced.

According to ‘LSC Voices 2023 survey’, of 15,856 young people across 11 districts, 66% of youth aged between 19 and 22 had never taken any kind of vocational training with only 5% of them enrolled in these courses.

Vocational training – It will imbibe relevant rural skills in them to ensure a secure living where they currently live.
Placement opportunities – Industrial Training Institutes need to provide avenues for placements to vocational skill aspirants.
Alternate employment opportunities – Rural India can boost employability in both traditional and non-traditional trades, leading to a vibrant economy by offering skills in fields like agricultural mechanisation, pollution monitoring, nursing and digital technologies via e-learning,
Upskilling opportunities – Indian government have launched ‘Skills on Wheels’ initiative with NSDC and IndusInd Bank to promote skilling to students’ doorsteps.
Promoting life skills – If learning is infused with rural life skills in schools, rural education will have the potential to nurture a generation capable of thriving.
- Example, courses in both industry-specific skills (such as in healthcare, electrical, construction) and life skills by Pratham.
NGO’s participation – Bharat Cares, a non-profit organisation in India is working towards empowering the underprivileged through skilling.

Skills on Wheels

A customized bus will promote 'Skill India Mission’.
Initiative by – NSDC and IndusInd Bank in 2023
Objectives – To equip rural youth, particularly women with key Digital Skills and make them job and future-ready and to improve their livelihood.
To bridge the gap between the skilled people required in the industry and the unemployed youth.
Target –60,000 youth will be empowered over a period of 5 years.
Activities – It will travel across the length and breadth of aspirational and backward districts and spreads awareness at grass root level about free skill training programs.

Source:

Project ‘Veer Gatha’

GS-II : Governance Policies and Programmes

The 3^rd edition of Project ‘Veer Gatha’, a joint initiative of Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Education will take part in Republic Day celebrations.
Project Veer Gatha is a project that was established in 2021 under the Gallantry Awards Portal (GAP).

Aim – To disseminate the details of the bravery and sacrifice of the Gallantry Awardees (Soldiers of Armed Forces) among the students so as to raise the spirit of patriotism.

Source:

Pariksha Pe Charcha 2024

GS-II : Governance Policies and Programmes

Pariksha Pe Charcha (PPC) is an annual event where Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacts with students, teachers, and parents.
Students of Classes 6 to 12 are eligible to participate in this event.
The event is part of the larger movement, 'Exam Warriors', which aims to create a stress-free environment for young people.

PPC 2024 is the 7^th edition of the event and will take place in Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.

Source:

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