31 January 2023

• Governance: New Public Service Broadcasting Guidelines require AIR and Doordarshan to broadcast at least 15 hours of content on education, health, agriculture and environment every month.
• Finance: The 16th Finance Commission is being constituted to recommend Centre-State fiscal relations for 2026-2031, as mandated by Article 280 of the Constitution.
• International: India, Brazil, Germany and Japan (the G4 group) renewed their call for United Nations Security Council reform, including adding permanent seats in the Council.
• Environment: World Health Organization released its 2023 report on Neglected Tropical Diseases: 1.65 billion people globally require treatment, with 16 countries accounting for 80 per cent of the burden.
• Culture: Amrit Udyan, the gardens of Rashtrapati Bhavan (formerly known as Mughal Gardens), opened to the public from 29 January 2023 for the annual spring visitor season.

GS area: Governance, Media

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued revised Public Service Broadcasting Guidelines for Prasar Bharati (AIR and Doordarshan) in January 2023.

• Mandate: Prasar Bharati channels (All India Radio and Doordarshan) must broadcast a minimum of 15 hours of public service content per month. This content must cover education, health, agriculture and environment.
• Prasar Bharati: India's public broadcaster, constituted under the Prasar Bharati Act, 1990. Operates the national television network (Doordarshan) and radio network (All India Radio, renamed Akashvani in 2023).
• Autonomy question: Prasar Bharati is legally autonomous but remains subject to government guidelines. The relationship between editorial independence and public service obligations is contested.
• Doordarshan reach: DD National reaches virtually all of India through terrestrial broadcast. DD Free Dish provides satellite access. The network is among the largest broadcast networks in the world by reach.
• Context: Private news channels face minimal public service obligations. The guidelines reaffirm Prasar Bharati's distinct mandate.

Static linkage: Governance, media regulation (GS Paper 2).

GS area: Polity (fiscal federalism), Economy

The 16th Finance Commission (FC-XVI) was being constituted in January 2023 for its five-year award covering 2026-2031.

• Constitutional mandate: Article 280 of the Constitution requires the President to constitute a Finance Commission every five years. It recommends the distribution of taxes between Union and states and grants to states.
• Functions: Recommends the vertical devolution (what share of divisible pool goes to states vs Centre) and horizontal distribution (how the state share is split among states).
• 15th Finance Commission: Chaired by NK Singh. Report submitted in November 2020 covering 2021-2026. Recommended 41 per cent of tax pool to states (down from 42 per cent), with 1 per cent earmarked for Jammu and Kashmir post bifurcation.
• Divisible pool: Taxes collected by the Union (except cess and surcharges) form the divisible pool. Cess and surcharges are NOT shared with states, which is a point of fiscal criticism from state governments.
• FC-XVI timeline: The commission must submit its report by 31 October 2025.

Static linkage: Fiscal federalism, constitutional provisions (GS Papers 2 and 3).

GS area: International Relations

India, Brazil, Germany and Japan (the G4) renewed their joint call for comprehensive UN Security Council reform, including expansion of the permanent membership.

• Current structure: The UNSC has 5 permanent members (P5): United States, United Kingdom, France, Russia and China. Each P5 member has veto power. There are 10 non-permanent members elected by the General Assembly.
• G4 position: India, Brazil, Germany and Japan seek permanent seats on an expanded UNSC. They argue the current structure does not reflect today's geopolitical realities.
• L69: A broader coalition of developing countries (mostly from Africa, Asia and Latin America) also supports UNSC reform and inclusion of developing world representation.
• India's case: India argues as a rising economy, one of the world's most populous countries and a major contributor to UN peacekeeping operations, it merits permanent membership.
• Obstacle: Any amendment to the UN Charter (Article 108) requires ratification by two-thirds of UN members, including all five P5 members. China has consistently opposed permanent membership for Japan.
• NORMS initiative: "No Reforms, No Summit" is the slogan of a pressure group of nations insisting on UNSC reform as a condition for UN summit engagement.

Static linkage: International organisations (GS Paper 2).

GS area: Health, International

The World Health Organization's 2023 NTD report found 1.65 billion people globally require preventive or curative treatment for Neglected Tropical Diseases.

• NTDs defined: A diverse group of communicable diseases that prevail in tropical and subtropical conditions. WHO recognises 20 diseases as NTDs, including kala-azar (visceral leishmaniasis), leprosy, dengue, rabies, trachoma, and soil-transmitted helminthiases.
• Burden distribution: 16 countries account for about 80 per cent of the global NTD burden. Most are low-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
• India-specific: India accounts for more than 50 per cent of global leprosy new case detection. Kala-azar is concentrated in Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh. India was close to eliminating lymphatic filariasis (2023 target).
• Kala-azar: Transmitted by sandfly (Phlebotomus argentipes) in India. Visceral leishmaniasis affecting internal organs. WHO target: elimination as a public health problem by 2030 (less than 1 case per 10,000 population in all endemic blocks).
• WHO NTD roadmap 2021-2030: Targets 90 per cent reduction in NTD burden, elimination of 10 NTDs, and prevention of 1.27 billion cases.

Static linkage: Public health, international health, India-specific diseases (GS Papers 2 and 3).

GS area: Art and Culture, History

The gardens of Rashtrapati Bhavan, renamed Amrit Udyan from their earlier name of Mughal Gardens, opened to public visitors on 29 January 2023.

• Location: Situated on the western side of the Rashtrapati Bhavan complex on Raisina Hill, New Delhi.
• Earlier name: Mughal Gardens. Renamed to Amrit Udyan in 2023 as part of the Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav (75 years of independence) initiative.
• Design: Designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens. Combines Mughal char bagh (four-part Persian garden) design with English and Japanese garden elements. Lutyens also designed Rashtrapati Bhavan (completed 1929).
• Char bagh: The classical Persian and Mughal garden layout with a central waterway dividing the garden into four quadrants. Water symbolises the four rivers of paradise in Islamic garden tradition. Notable examples: Taj Mahal garden, Humayun's Tomb garden.
• Annual opening: The gardens are opened to the public every year during the spring season (January to March). Entry is free.

Static linkage: Art and culture, garden design, colonial history (GS Paper 1).

• Urban farming in Delhi: A study found Delhi produces approximately 60 per cent of its meat consumption, 25 per cent of its milk and 15 per cent of its vegetables through within-city and peri-urban farming. Urban agriculture plays an unrecognised role in food security for large Indian cities.
• Foldscope: Manu Prakash of Stanford University invented the Foldscope (a 97-cent paper microscope). Its mass distribution in India helps children and village health workers identify parasites and pathogens. Part of India's science outreach.
• India's first hydrogen-powered bus: A hydrogen fuel cell bus trial completed its first run in New Delhi in late January 2023, operated as part of the National Green Hydrogen Mission initiative.