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DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

Monthly DNA

18 Aug, 2022

55 Min Read

Validity of Child Gang-Rape Law

GS-I : Social issues Issues related to Child

Validity of Child Gang-Rape Law

A 29-year-old man who is currently serving a life sentence for the gang rape of a nine-year-old in Maharashtra has filed a petition in the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court will review the constitutionality of a statute that sentences a convicted man to death or life in prison for gang raping a child under the age of 12 without giving him the opportunity to repent or change.

The issue highlighted in the petition:

Limit the trial judge's options:

  • It was argued that Section 376DB of the Indian Penal Code (gang rape of a child under 12 years of age) limited the trial judge's options to the death penalty or a sentence for the balance of the person's natural life. for more Laws regarding rape
  • The minimum obligatory punishment under the law is, however, life in jail.

Anomaly in 2018 Amendment:

  • The petitioner additionally stated that the sentence framework created by the criminal amendments implemented in August 2018 had an anomaly.
  • When the penal code was revised in 2018 to establish stronger punishments for the crime of rape, Section 376DB was added.

Arbitrariness:

  • Section 376-AB mandated a 20-year minimum punishment for anyone found guilty of raping a child under the age of 12.
  • While Section 376-DB mandates a minimum sentence of life in prison for each of the individuals participating in the gang rape of a child under the age of 12.
  • The death sentence was the harshest punishment offered in both parts.
  • A person in his twenties who receives a life sentence without the possibility of parole could spend 60–70 years in prison.

Violation of the right to life:

  • Under Section 376DB, the trial court was only given the choice of the life sentence or the more severe punishment of the death sentence.
  • The petition claimed that Section 376DB violated the Constitution's Articles 21 (right to life) and 14 (right to equality).

Global Scenario:

  • In the case of Winter v. the United Kingdom, the European Court of Human Rights determined that a life sentence without the possibility of release violated Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights.
  • It was decided that life sentences could not be regarded as just punishment since they offered the prisoner no chance to atone and were incompatible with respect for human dignity.
  • The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that in exceptional circumstances, a disproportionate sentence violated the Eighth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which forbids cruel and unusual punishment.

View of the Supreme Court

  • The SC bench stated that this issue needed to be taken into consideration because the SC had previously declared the mandatory death penalty provision to be unconstitutional.
  • Additionally, it requested that the petitioner and a second solicitor general submit written arguments and suggestions regarding the matter.

Historical Overview:

  • Additionally, the SC had held in Mithu Vs. Punjab in 1983 that Section 303 of the IPC was unconstitutional to the degree that it mandated the death penalty for murderers who were already serving life sentences in prior cases.
  • Courts were required by Section 303 to inflict the death penalty as the only sanction in these situations.

Also, Read - Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) Technology

Source: The Hindu

Period Poverty

GS-I : Social issues Women

Period Poverty

Scotland has become the first nation in the world to legally protect the right to access free period products and has made period products free for all by passing the Period Products Act.

One of its central objectives is to “end the silence and stigma” that surrounds menstruation and also aims to remove “gendered barriers”. The bill aims to ensure that those who menstruate have “reasonably convenient” access to period products free of charge.

Period poverty is when those on low incomes can't afford, or access, suitable period products.

Development in Scotland

  • Period poverty is defined as a circumstance that makes menstruation a “difficult experience” for women. These include homelessness, coercive, controlling, and violent relationships, and health conditions such as endometriosis. “Some trans people may also experience difficulties in accessing sanitary products".
  • According to the Period Products Act, public institutions like schools, colleges, and universities as well as municipal governments are required to provide free access to a variety of period products in their restrooms.
  • Scotland's local communities must work with each municipality to choose the optimum access point for menstruation products.

Accessibility:

  • PickUpMyPeriod is a mobile phone software that directs users to the closest location where they can pick up period goods, such as their local library or community centre.
  • Libraries, swimming pools, public gyms, community centres, town halls, pharmacies, and doctor's offices would all carry the period products.

State of Menstrual Hygiene in India

2011 research by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) found that just 13% of Indian girls are aware that menstruation occurs before menarche.

  • 60% of girls skipped school because of their periods.
  • 79% of menstruating women experienced low self-esteem, and 44% felt embarrassed and degraded because of the restrictions.
  • Menstruation so negatively affects women's access to education, equality, and mother and child health.

National Family Health Survey 5

  • Women aged 15 to 24 years who use period products.
  • Ninety percent or more of women used period products in seventeen states and union territories (UTs).
  • The percentage was 99% in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Puducherry.
  • Seventy percent or less of women used period products in Tripura, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Gujarat, Meghalaya, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar.
  • Only Bihar reported a number that was less than 60%.
  • Top three states where the proportion of women using period products increased from NFHS-4 to NFHS-5:
  • Bihar: 90%
  • Odisha: 72%
  • Madhya Pradesh: 61%

Initiatives are taken by the Indian Government for Menstrual Hygiene

Shuchi Scheme.

  • Teenage females are encouraged to practice good menstrual hygiene through the Shuchi Scheme.
  • It was initially a Centrally-sponsored one that began in 2013–2014.
  • However, the Center requested that States take up the program starting in 2015–16.

Menstrual Hygiene Program:

  • In 2011, the Menstrual Hygiene Program will promote good menstrual hygiene among adolescent girls (10 to 19 years old) in rural parts of particular districts.

The SABLA program

  • Initiated by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
  • It emphasizes diet, fitness, hygiene, and sexual and reproductive health (linked to rural mother and childcare centers).

National Rural Livelihood Mission

  • Under this assistance is provided to small producers who make sanitary pads as well as self-help organizations.

Swachh Bharat Vidyalaya (SB:SV) and the Swachh Bharat Mission:

  • Each educational institute has a separate restroom for girls and adequate sanitary provisions for girls.
  • The Swachh Bharat Mission also includes control of menstrual hygiene.

Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation

  • Developed guidelines for gender issues in sanitation to guarantee gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls with regard to sanitation.
  • For adolescent girls and women, managing menstrual hygiene safely and effectively is a catalyst for healthier and more robust development.

National Guidelines for the Management of Menstrual Hygiene:

  • The Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation issued it in 2015.
  • It aims to deal with every aspect of menstrual hygiene, including raising awareness, dealing with behaviour modification, creating a market for better hygiene products, capacity building, etc.

Way Forward

  • The Indian government ought to adopt Scotland's strategy and make the historical goods accessible or offered at a fair discount.
  • To increase access to affordable pads, the government might also support small-scale sanitary pad production facilities. This will also aid women by providing them with a source of income.
  • The government must fund initiatives to promote public understanding of menstruation and menstrual hygiene, access to products that are safe, and effective water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) infrastructure.
  • Menstrual health cannot be attained solely by governmental initiatives; rather, it must be addressed as a social issue that calls for interventions at the societal, local, and family levels.

Also, Read - Bioengineered Cornea Implants

Source: The Indian express

Reforms in United Nations

GS-II : International organisation United Nation

Reforms in United Nations

At the Moscow Conference on International Security-2022's plenary session recently, the defence minister pushed for UN reforms.

About General Assembly and United Nations Security Council

General Assembly

  • In addition to the Security Council, Economic and Social Council, Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice, and UN Secretariat, it is one of the six main institutions of the UN.
  • It is sometimes referred to as the United Nations Organization's parliament.
  • A two-thirds majority is required to adopt some decisions, including those regarding the budget, membership expansion, and peace and security. Other choices merely need a simple majority to be made.

United Nations Security Council

  • It is one of the United Nations Organization's six main bodies.
  • The principal duty of this organization is to maintain world peace and security.
  • There are 15 countries five as permanent power holders and the rest 10 temporary members elected for two years.
  • Permanent participants are known as the P-5 members. It is made up of the US, Russia, China, France, and the UK. They have a veto power, which essentially implies that all five P5 members must agree for a resolution to be adopted by the UNSC.
  • There are ten temporary members. They are each given a two-year term after being chosen by the General Assembly.

What makes India a potential candidate for UNSC membership?

  • Membership: In addition to being a full member of the G77, India is also a part of the G7 and G20.
  • Interests of developing nations: India has cordial strategic, economic, political, and cultural ties with the majority of the G7 nations, but it also speaks up in favour of developing nations' interests.

Global advantages:

  • India has demonstrated leadership abilities for the global advantages by actively working toward achieving climate targets herself, without waiting for everyone else to join.
  • "Made for the world" is added to even the idea of "Make in India."
  • India's talent and skill base is a recognized worldwide advantage.
  • The recent disruption of the global supply chain, the pandemic, climate change, renewable energy, and now the looming food issue, as well as the security situation in some regions of the world, all call for and demand that India plays a stronger role in international affairs and collaboration.

Equal world order:

  • To sustain democratic ideals on a global scale, a more equitable world order is required.

Pressure from G4 members:

  • As a part of the G4—a grouping of Brazil, Germany, Japan, and India—all of whom are vying for permanent representation on the UN Security Council, India has been pursuing a seat on the body.

Supporters:

  • The United States, the United Kingdom, France, and the Russian Federation all favour India and the other G4 nations receiving permanent seats.

India makes a number of assertions to support its demand.

  • India is the largest liberal democracy and the country with the second-largest population in the world.
  • As of 2020, it has the fifth-largest economy overall and the third-largest economy in terms of purchasing power parity.
  • After Bangladesh and Pakistan, all three countries in South Asia, India is the largest donor of troops to UN peacekeeping missions, with 7,860 people stationed in 10 UN Peacekeeping Missions as of 2014.
  • India has sent more than 180,000 soldiers, the most of any nation, to more than 43 missions, and 156 of its peacekeepers have given their lives while serving in UN missions.

Reason for demanding Permanent Member Status

  • Veto Power: P5 members alone have the ability to veto legislation. India could defend its interests by using the veto, for example, against Pakistan (just like Russia did last year over the civil war in Ukraine).
  • Prestige is connected to the pure prestige attached to becoming a permanent member of a multilateral organization The elevation of India will also be a recognition of its growing influence on the world stage and its readiness to contribute significantly to the goals of the Security Council for global stability and security.
  • Benefits of the General Assembly: India could gain from the type of majority needed to approve a resolution, requirement of UN Security Council approval, etc. as a permanent member.

Challenges

  • Major Powers' resistance to modernizing United Nations institutions misses changing geopolitical circumstances, as well as the economic and technological advancement that has taken place since 1945.
  • Lack of Political Will: Although there is a general consensus that the system has to reform, different nations perceive the need for change differently.
  • Coffee Club: Over the past six years, it has proved crucial in delaying UN Security Council reforms. It is an informal organization with 40 or so member states, most of which are middle-sized governments that oppose greater regional powers gaining permanent seats.
  • Chinese Opposition: China's status as a permanent member prevents India from progressing to that status.
  • US Withdrawal of Support: The current US Administration is departing from its prior course and refusing India's request.
  • India's socio-economic growth trajectory may be a factor in determining whether or not it should be granted permanent membership.

Way Forward

  • To serve as a global leader, the Council needs to be more inclusive of emerging nations.
  • uphold world order, security, and peace:
  • India requires a permanent seat at the organization that was established to uphold international peace, security, and order in order to play a vital and important role.
  • France and the five Nordic nations' backing for these ideas shows that they are increasingly being considered in how the rest of the world views India.
  • China has also previously hinted that if India ends its cooperation with Japan to gain access to the UN high table, it would abandon its opposition to India becoming a permanent member of the UNSC.

Also, Read - India-Gabon Relations

Source: PIB

India-Gabon Relations

GS-II : International Relations African Countries

India-Gabon Relations

The Indian business sector recently hosted a group from Gabon in India, and India also congratulated Gabon on its Independence Day (17th August).

Earlier, the Indian Vice President went to Gabon and signed two memorandums of understanding (Memorandum of Understanding).

Memorandum of Understanding

  • Between the governments of India and Gabon, the creation of a joint commission.
  • Sushma Swaraj Institute of Foreign Services, Gabonese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and training programs for diplomats.
  • India and Gabon agreed to cooperate to advance bilateral, regional, and international sectors of cooperation.

India-Gabon Partnership

Diplomatically:

  • Since before Gabon gained its independence, India and Gabon have had cordial relations.
  • In May 2022, a former vice president of India paid the first-ever high-level visit to the African country of Gabon.
  • Presently serving as non-permanent members of the UNSC are both India and Gabon (United Nations Security Council).

Trade & Business:

  • In 2021–2022, bilateral commerce between the two countries was USD 1.12 billion.
  • The second-largest market for Gabonese exports in India
  • In the commercial sphere, the Gabon Special Economic Zone is home to more than 50 Indian businesses.

Cooperative participation in international forums:

  • India and Gabon are both Non-Aligned Movement members (NAM).
  • NAM concentrates on current events that are important to developing nations.
  • India's candidacy at several international forums is supported by Gabon.
  • India congratulated Gabon on its election to the UN Security Council as a non-permanent member for the years 2022–2033.
  • India endorsed the Ezulwini Consensus and Sirte Declaration's Common African Position.
  • The African Union has adopted a position on international affairs and UN reform known as the Ezulwini Consensus.
  • It asks for a more democratic and representative Security Council, one that includes representation for all parts of the world, including Africa.
  • The decision to create the African Union was made in 1999 at the Sirte Declaration.

International Solar Alliance:

  • Gabon was one of the first nations to formally ratify and sign the agreement.
  • India requested that Gabon receive all available help in order to meet its renewable energy goals.
  • By 2030, Gabon wants to use only clean energy.

Education:

  • Under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) and ICCR initiatives, some Gabonese people enroll in scholarship and training programs provided by India.

Energy cooperation:

  • In 2021–2022, India imported crude oil from Gabon for approximately USD 670 million, making it a significant partner for India's need for energy security.

Indian Diaspora:

  • Members of the Indian community primarily work on infrastructure projects, engage in trade, and export scrap metal and wood.
  • In many areas in Gabon, the Indian diaspora has made a substantial impact.
  • Major Indian holidays are observed by the entire community in Gabon, where the Indian community has preserved Indian culture.

Way ahead

  • There is a need to investigate India-Gabon's cooperation in a variety of fields, including green energy, services, health, and agriculture.
  • To draw in investments, both nations should widen their economic alliance.
  • There are several opportunities for agricultural cooperation, such as the sharing of farming information between Gabon and India.

Also, Read - Period Poverty

Source: The Print

Quantum Key Distribution Technology

GS-III : S&T Computers and IT

Quantum Key Distribution Technology

By releasing a commercial Request for Proposal, the Indian Army has begun the process of acquiring Quantum Key Distribution (QKD) technology created by a cybersecurity firm based in Bengaluru (RFP).

About QKD:

It is a secure communication technique that makes use of a cryptographic protocol involving a number of quantum mechanical elements.

Process:

  • The technique enables two communicating sides to generate random secret keys that are known only to them and shared by the two of them.
  • This ensures that only the communicating sides can use the keys to encrypt and decode messages, resulting in very highly secure communication.
  • Critical data, sound, or video between the endpoints is encrypted using unhackable encryption keys created using QKD to help construct a non-hackable quantum channel.

Key exchange:

  • The fundamental element in this is how encryption keys are distributed. Sharing keys across wireless or wired connections necessitates encryption, which in turn necessitates pre-sharing of encryption keys.

Agencies in India dealing with QKD:

  • The DRDO has launched numerous efforts to advance this technology.
  • India is prepared to join the league of world leaders with its own, more sophisticated quantum communication technology to provide its armed forces with high-end defence as the nation celebrates "Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”.

Significance

  • Security agencies will be able to design an appropriate quantum communication network with an indigenous technology backbone thanks to this technology.
  • Currently, highly secure military grade communications are possible.

Secure communications are essential for several civilian applications as well as for global defence and strategic organizations.

Also, Read - STEVE Phenomenon

Source: The Indian Express

Bioengineered Cornea Implants

GS-III : S&T Health

Bioengineered Cornea Implants

A successful alternative bioengineered cornea implant comprised of collagen derived from pig skin has recently been developed by Swedish researchers.

About the recent research

According to estimates, 12.7 million individuals worldwide are blind as a result of their corneas.

Medical-grade collagen:

  • The researchers employed medical-grade collagen obtained from pig skin, a by-product of the food industry that is already utilised in medical equipment for glaucoma surgery, as a substitute for human corneas.
  • Collagen, a protein, makes up the majority of the cornea.

Important advantages:

  • In addition to being less expensive and more accessible than donated corneas, this can also be kept for up to two years in storage and requires a much less invasive operation.
  • While bioengineered corneas can be preserved for up to two years before use, donor corneas must be used within two weeks.
  • Economically advantageous:
  • Because the pig skin is a byproduct of the food business, it is simple to get and cost-effective.
  • Treatment for life:
  • The researchers discovered that two years following surgery, none of the patients were still blind.
  • The findings indicate that it is feasible to create a biomaterial that satisfies all requirements for usage as human implants, which can be mass-produced and kept in storage for up to two years, reaching even more people with visual issues.

Method

  • The researchers created a minimally invasive technique that doesn't require stitches and involves making a small incision in the patient's eye and inserting the implant over the natural cornea.
  • High-precision lasers or easily accessible surgical equipment can be used for this.

Leading causes of blindness:

  • Around 12.7 million individuals worldwide are blind due to damage to the cornea, the transparent outermost layer of the eye. This condition is more common in developing nations where there is a shortage of donated human corneas.
  • Researchers assert that there is a significant corneal shortage, with only one cornea accessible for every 70 patients.
  • People who live in low- and middle-income nations in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East are additionally burdened by logistical and storage issues in addition to pricey surgical equipment.

Keratoconus:

  • In India and Iran, the implant was used to successfully treat 20 patients with keratoconus, a condition that causes the cornea to thin and often results in blindness.

About Cornea:

  • The Cornea is the translucent, avascular portion of the eye that surrounds the iris and pupil and permits light to enter the inside.

In two ways, it benefits the eye:

  • It aids in protecting the remainder of the eye from contaminants like dust and bacteria. Together with the eyelids, the socket, tears, and the sclera, or the white component of the eye, the cornea performs this protective function.
  • It serves as the outermost lens of the eye. Similar to a window, it directs and concentrates light as it enters the eye. Between 65 and 75 per cent of the eye's entire focusing power comes from the cornea.

What happens when the cornea is harmed?

  • The ability of your eye to focus on objects both close up and far away is influenced by the curvature of this outer layer.
  • The scars or discolouration that develop from disease, infection or injury to the cornea can impair vision by obstructing or distorting light as it enters the eye.

Also Read - Validity of Child Gang-Rape Law

Source: The Indian Express

STEVE Phenomenon

GS-I : Physical Geography Structure of Atmosphere

STEVE Phenomenon

After a severe solar storm struck Earth, the astronomical phenomena known as "Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement (STEVE)" made an unexpected appearance

About STEVE phenomenon

  • STEVE first emerged in the skies in 2017, and since then, he has returned frequently.
  • The assertion that the phenomena have been visible in the sky since 1705 is supported by evidence.
  • It is an extremely uncommon, enigmatic, luminous purple arc that appears nearer to the equator and extends from east to west.

Why does it happen?

  • The phenomenon is thought to be created by a 25 km wide ribbon of hot plasma travelling at an altitude of 450 km at a speed of 6 km/s (compared to 10 m/s outside the ribbon).
  • Between October and February, it has been seen in New Zealand, Canada, Alaska, and the United Kingdom, which has led NASA experts to conclude that its prevalence is tied to seasons.

What distinguishes it from the Aurora Borealis?

  • Auroras are brought on by changes in the Earth's magnetosphere brought on by the solar wind.
  • Due to the acceleration of the solar wind brought on by coronal holes and coronal mass ejections, these disturbances take place.
  • While STEVE, the Auroras, and the skylights may appear to be identical, they are quite different.
  • To start, STEVE is a phenomenon that occurs nearer the equator than on the poles.
  • Although STEVE is not like a typical aurora, it is powered by the auroral system and is formed of light.

Also, Read - Dornier Maritime Surveillance Aircraft

Source: National Geographic

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