20 January 2023

• Society: Female wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik accused the Wrestling Federation of India president of sexual harassment. The Sports Ministry directed WFI to suspend all activities.
• International: External Affairs Minister Jaishankar visited Maldives, inaugurating a 136.6 million dollar airport and signing multiple MoUs.
• Environment: The Etalin Hydroelectric Project in Dibang Valley, Arunachal Pradesh (3,097 MW) faced fresh scrutiny for requiring felling of 2.8 lakh trees.
• Governance: PARAKH was established as India's first national school assessment regulator under NEP 2020.

GS area: Society, Governance

India's top female wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik accused Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh of sexually exploiting women athletes. The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports directed WFI to suspend all ongoing activities.

• Ministry's order: WFI was asked to suspend activities including the Ranking Tournament scheduled in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh.
• Systemic issues in women's sports: The protest highlighted gender pay disparity (women earn half or less than male counterparts), objectification, limited infrastructure access, safety concerns, and mental health pressures.
• PT Usha: Elected president of the Indian Olympic Association shortly before this episode, as the first woman to head the IOA.
• Positive example: Athletics India had appointed Anju Bobby George as Vice President, a step toward increasing women's representation in sports governance.
• Legal context: Sexual harassment at workplace is governed by the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act).

Static linkage: Social justice, governance (GS Papers 1 and 2).

GS area: International Relations

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar visited Maldives, inaugurating the Hanimadhoo International Airport (a 136.6 million dollar Indian grant project) and handing over two sea ambulances.

• Strategic significance: Maldives is central to India's Indian Ocean security architecture. Its 1,190 islands straddle key sea lanes. India maintains a "neighbourhood first" and "India First" policy relationship with Maldives.
• Projects: The Hanimadhoo Airport is India's second-largest infrastructure project in Maldives. A 100 million dollar grant for community development projects was announced.
• MoUs signed: Collaboration between Cochin University of Science and Technology and Maldives National University, among others.
• Colombo Security Conclave: A sub-regional security grouping of India, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Mauritius. India coordinates maritime security through this mechanism.
• China competition: China is also active in Maldives infrastructure, providing the China-Maldives Friendship Bridge. India-Maldives relations have historically been sensitive to Malé's political shifts.

Static linkage: India-Maldives, Indian Ocean, neighbourhood policy (GS Paper 2).

GS area: Environment, Polity (tribal rights)

The Etalin Hydroelectric Project (3,097 MW) proposed in the Dibang Valley of Arunachal Pradesh required diversion of 1,165.66 hectares of forest and the felling of over 2.8 lakh trees.

• Location: Dibang Valley, home to the Idu Mishmi community. The valley has significant biodiversity.
• Forest Advisory Committee: FAC under the Ministry of Environment had previously recommended in-principle approval but requested a fresh proposal due to scale of tree felling and inadequate biodiversity assessment.
• Concerns: Loss of habitat for tigers, snow leopards and other wildlife. Threat to river ecosystem. The Dibang River is a major tributary of the Brahmaputra.
• Tribal rights: The Idu Mishmi community's traditional land use rights are relevant under the Forest Rights Act, 2006.
• Policy tension: India's northeast has enormous hydroelectric potential. The government sees large dams as necessary for clean energy. Environmental and community rights groups argue the ecological cost is too high.

Static linkage: Environment, forest conservation (GS Papers 2 and 3).

GS area: Governance (education)

PARAKH (Performance Assessment Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development) was established as India's first national assessment regulator, housed within NCERT.

• Role: Advises all school boards on assessment reforms to bring them into alignment with the National Curriculum Framework. Establishes benchmarks for comparing student performance across states.
• NEP 2020 mandate: The National Education Policy 2020 called for a national assessment body because India has 69 school boards with vastly different standards, making cross-state comparisons meaningless.
• NCERT: National Council of Educational Research and Training. The apex body for school curriculum and textbooks. PARAKH is embedded within NCERT.
• Significance: Standardised benchmarking will for the first time allow reliable comparison of learning outcomes across states and board types (CBSE, ICSE, state boards).

Static linkage: Education governance, NEP 2020 (GS Paper 2).

GS area: Economy (financial markets)

The Securities and Exchange Board of India proposed extending the ASBA (Application Supported by Blocked Amount) mechanism to secondary market transactions.

• ASBA in IPOs: Currently used in Initial Public Offerings. Investor's money is blocked in the bank account rather than transferred to a clearing account. It is released only if shares are allotted.
• Benefit: Investors continue to earn interest on blocked funds. Reduces the float available to brokers.
• Proposed extension: Applying the same blocked-amount mechanism to buying shares in the secondary market (stock exchanges) would reduce broker risk and improve settlement safety.
• SEBI mandate: Securities and Exchange Board of India is the statutory regulator for securities and commodity markets. Headquartered in Mumbai.

Static linkage: Financial markets, regulatory bodies (GS Paper 3).

• Grameen Udyami Scheme: NSDC programme for multi-skilling rural youth. Operational in Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Gujarat.
• PRASHAD Scheme: Ministry of Tourism programme for developing pilgrimage sites. Launched 2014-15. The PRASHAD expansion in January 2023 added new pilgrimage sites.
• New basalt plateau (Maharashtra): Researchers documented a rare low-altitude basalt plateau in Thane district with 76 plant species. These plateaus are ecologically sensitive and often fall outside protected area networks.