3 March 2023

• Polity: The Supreme Court ruled on the process for appointing the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners, mandating a high-level committee.
• International: Italy agreed to upgrade ties with India to a Strategic Partnership; bilateral trade crossed USD 15 billion in 2022.
• Environment: Coral reef science in focus: the planet has lost roughly half its shallow-water corals in three decades. "Biorock technology" is being used for restoration.
• Governance: Aurangabad in Maharashtra was formally renamed Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar after Ministry of Home Affairs approval.

GS area: Polity (elections, constitutional bodies)

A five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court ruled on the process for selecting the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners.

• The ruling: the Court directed that until Parliament enacts a law, appointments to the Election Commission must be made by a high-power committee comprising the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, and the Chief Justice of India.
• Election Commission Act 1991: this statute sets service conditions. It was amended in 1993 to give all three commissioners equal status and pay equivalent to a Supreme Court judge.
• Retirement: an Election Commissioner retires at 65 or after a six-year term, whichever comes earlier.
• Removal asymmetry: the Chief Election Commissioner can be removed only through the parliamentary impeachment process (like a Supreme Court judge). Election Commissioners can be removed by the President on the recommendation of the CEC. The Court noted this asymmetry creates a structural dependency.
• Constitutional anchor: Article 324 vests superintendence, direction, and control of elections in the Election Commission. The Court emphasised that independence from the executive is integral to that mandate.

This ruling is constitutionally significant because it used the "filling the gap" doctrine to create an appointment process by judicial order, pending legislation.

Static linkage: Indian polity (Election Commission, Constitutional bodies, Article 324).

GS area: International Relations

India and Italy elevated their bilateral relationship to a Strategic Partnership in March 2023.

• Diplomatic history: India and Italy established diplomatic relations in 1947. Italy is among India's top five trading partners within the European Union.
• Trade: bilateral trade reached USD 15 billion in 2022. India's balance of trade with Italy has been in India's favour since the early 1980s.
• Defence: a new Memorandum of Understanding on defence cooperation was signed. A Joint Working Group on Counter-Terrorism already existed.
• Diaspora: the Indian community in Italy is the third largest in Europe.
• Startup Bridge: a "Startup Bridge" between the two countries was established in 2023 to connect innovation ecosystems.
• Energy Transition: both countries signed a Strategic Partnership on Energy Transition in 2021.

Static linkage: India's bilateral relations, India-EU relations.

GS area: Environment

Coral reef science gained renewed urgency as global data confirmed accelerating loss.

• Scale of loss: the planet has lost approximately half its shallow-water coral reefs over the past three decades.
• Projected further loss: up to 90 per cent of reefs could be lost by mid-century if ocean warming continues on the current trajectory.
• Ecological importance: coral reefs cover less than 0.5 per cent of the ocean floor but host approximately 25 per cent of all marine species. About one billion people globally depend on reefs for food or livelihoods.
• Primary cause: elevated ocean temperatures trigger coral bleaching. A coral expels its symbiotic algae (zooxanthellae) when water temperatures rise even slightly above its tolerance limit. Repeated bleaching without recovery time is fatal.
• Biorock technology: an active restoration method that passes low-voltage electrical current through a steel frame submerged in the sea. The current accelerates limestone deposition, making corals grow up to six times faster and survive heat stress better.

Static linkage: environment (biodiversity, oceans, climate change).

GS area: Environment, International Relations

Myanmar's teak trade illustrated the global challenge of regulating illegal timber.

• Myanmar teak: considered the world's most tensile and durable hardwood. It is naturally resistant to water, termites, and rot.
• Illegal harvest scale: more than 70 per cent of logs exported from Myanmar between 2000 and 2013 were illegally harvested, according to estimates using satellite monitoring.
• Forest loss: Myanmar lost forest cover roughly equivalent to Switzerland's land area over two decades.
• EU Timber Regulation (EUTR): places due diligence obligations on timber merchants operating in EU markets. Companies must verify the legality of wood before selling it.
• India's role: India has been described as a "leakage country" in the illegal timber trade, meaning it imports timber without stringent checks and then re-exports or sells it onward into regulated markets.

Static linkage: environment (forests, biodiversity), international trade.

GS area: Polity, Governance

The Ministry of Home Affairs approved the renaming of Aurangabad in Maharashtra to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar.

• Historical significance: Chhatrapati Sambhaji (1657-1689) was the eldest son of Maratha emperor Shivaji. He resisted Mughal capture until execution.
• Heritage: the city contains the Bibi ka Maqbara, built in 1660 and often called the "Taj of the Deccan." It is roughly half the size of the Taj Mahal. Ajanta and Ellora caves, both UNESCO World Heritage Sites, are in the district.
• Renaming process: city renaming requires approval from the Ministry of Home Affairs, which coordinates with the state government, the Survey of India, and the Department of Posts.
• Nagaland parallel: the article also noted Nagaland's historic first election of women MLAs, Hekani Jakhalu and Salhoutuonuo Kruse, in the 2023 state assembly election.

Static linkage: Indian history (Marathas), UNESCO World Heritage Sites, governance.

GS area: Environment, Governance

The Greater Panna Landscape Council (GPLC) was established to coordinate the ecological management of the Ken-Betwa River Interlinking Project zone.

• Purpose: the GPLC oversees the Panna Tiger Reserve and the surrounding landscape before and after the Ken-Betwa project alters the hydrology.
• Ken-Betwa project: India's first major river-interlinking project, transferring water from the Ken River to the Betwa River. Critics argue it threatens the Panna Tiger Reserve and the critically endangered gharial.
• Species in focus: tiger, Indian vulture, and gharial are the flagship species for the GPLC's Integrated Landscape Management Plan.
• SMART-PDS: separately, the Scheme for Modernisation and Reforms through Technology in Public Distribution System was highlighted for its successful implementation in Andhra Pradesh. It uses smart ration cards with biometric authentication and provides real-time tracking of foodgrains from procurement to distribution.

Static linkage: environment (tiger conservation, river systems), government schemes (PDS).

• Porter Prize 2023: awarded to the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for India's COVID-19 vaccine management strategy. Named after economist Michael E. Porter.
• Sisupalgarh fortified city: an ASI-protected site near Bhubaneswar, Odisha, built from the 7th-6th century BCE. It served as the capital of the Kalinga kingdom and was fortified during King Kharavela's reign.
• Asia Energy Transition Initiative (AETI): Japan's programme to support clean energy transitions in South and Southeast Asia, providing USD 10 billion in financial assistance.