16 April 2023

• Sudan: Day two of fighting between the SAF and RSF. Khartoum's airport was hit; civilian infrastructure was damaged across the city.
• Polity: Multiple petitions on communal violence during Ram Navami processions were listed before the Supreme Court.
• Economy: March trade data showed India's merchandise exports at $38.4 billion, and the services trade surplus remained a buffer for the current account deficit.
• Ecology: The wetland count update confirmed India at 75 Ramsar sites.

GS area: International Relations, Geography

Fighting continued across Sudan on 16 April, the second day of the SAF-RSF conflict.

• The two sides: The Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) under General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan is the official military. The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) under General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (Hemedti) is a paramilitary that grew out of the Janjaweed militias used in Darfur.
• The RSF background: The Janjaweed were accused of atrocities in Darfur in the 2000s. The RSF was formed in 2013 as a formal security force. Its fighters are outside the integrated SAF chain of command.
• Khartoum's geography: Sudan's capital at the confluence of the Blue Nile (from Ethiopia) and the White Nile (from Uganda/South Sudan). The Blue Nile provides about 85 per cent of the Nile's total flow.
• Indian nationals: The approximately 3,000 to 4,000 Indian nationals in Sudan were mostly clustered in Khartoum and its suburb Omdurman. The fighting made immediate evacuation impossible; India began diplomatic efforts to arrange ceasefire windows.
• Geopolitical context: Sudan has significant gold reserves. The RSF's gold operations in Darfur provided Hemedti with independent revenue. Russia's Wagner Group had a presence in Sudanese gold mining, adding an external actor to the conflict.
• The UN Security Council: The UNSC held emergency consultations. Russia and China abstained from resolutions calling for ceasefires, complicating international response.

Static linkage: African geopolitics, India's evacuation operations, Nile river geography.

GS area: Polity (Judiciary, Communal harmony)

Petitions before the Supreme Court sought directions to several state governments to assess damage and pay compensation to victims of violence during Ram Navami processions on 30 March 2023 and subsequently.

• Ram Navami: The Hindu festival commemorating the birth of Lord Rama, observed on the ninth day of Chaitra Navratri (Shukla Paksha). In 2023 it fell on 30 March.
• The violence: Communal violence was reported in Howrah and Uttar Dinajpur (West Bengal), Sasaram and Nalanda (Bihar), Hyderabad (Telangana), Aurangabad (Maharashtra), Vadodara (Gujarat) and Jamshedpur (Jharkhand). Stone pelting, arson and property damage were reported across multiple states.
• The petitions: Filed by Hindu Front for Justice, seeking preventive measures and compensation. The Supreme Court agreed to hear the matter on 17 April.
• Constitutional provisions: Article 25 guarantees freedom of conscience and religion. Article 26 guarantees religious denominations the right to manage their affairs. Both rights are subject to public order, morality and health.
• State responsibility: Public order is a State List subject (Entry 1). States bear primary responsibility for preventing and managing communal violence. The Communal Violence (Prevention, Control and Rehabilitation of Victims) Bill has been pending in Parliament since 2005.

Static linkage: Communal harmony, fundamental rights, public order.

GS area: Economy (Trade, Macroeconomics)

March 2023 trade data released in April showed India's merchandise export performance.

• Merchandise exports: $38.4 billion in March 2023, a decline from $40.4 billion in March 2022. The global export slowdown and weaker commodity prices affected the headline.
• Petroleum products: India's largest export category. Exports of refined petroleum products benefited from elevated refining margins as Europe sought alternatives to Russian fuel.
• Non-oil, non-gems exports: A better measure of underlying export health. Engineering goods, chemicals and pharmaceuticals showed resilience.
• Services surplus: India's services export surplus (software, IT, business process services, financial services) provides an offset to the merchandise trade deficit. Services exports exceeded $25 billion per month in early 2023.
• Current account deficit: India's CAD was approximately 2.2 per cent of GDP in FY 2022-23. The RBI considers below 2.5 per cent sustainable. The oil price rise from OPEC+ cuts posed a risk to this target in FY 2023-24.

Static linkage: India's trade, current account, balance of payments.

GS area: Environment (Wetlands, Biodiversity)

April 2023 context confirmed India's count of 75 Ramsar sites, one of the highest in Asia.

• Recent additions: India added 28 wetlands to the Ramsar list between 2021 and 2022 in a significant expansion drive. Tamil Nadu has the highest number of Ramsar sites of any Indian state.
• Chilika Lake: Odisha's Chilika is India's largest coastal lagoon (1,100 sq km) and the largest wintering ground for migratory birds in Asia. It was removed from the Montreux Record (list of threatened Ramsar sites) in 2002.
• Kolleru Lake: Andhra Pradesh. Important for pelicans and other waterbirds.
• Keoladeo National Park: Rajasthan. A World Heritage Site and a Ramsar site, facing threats from reduced water availability. On the Montreux Record.
• Loktak Lake: Manipur. Famous for phumdis (floating islands of vegetation). The Keibul Lamjao National Park on a phumdi is the only floating national park in the world. On the Montreux Record.
• Wular Lake: J&K. India's largest freshwater lake. Ramsar site.

Static linkage: Wetlands, Ramsar Convention, biodiversity hotspots.

• Global Buddhist Summit preparations: The Ministry of Culture was finalising preparations for the Global Buddhist Summit on April 20-21 in New Delhi. The summit's New Delhi Declaration would emphasise peace, harmony and environmental values.
• National Quantum Mission: The government had approved the National Quantum Mission with a budget of Rs 6,003 crore for quantum computing, communication and sensing R&D over eight years.
• Heat wave advisory: The National Disaster Management Authority issued an advisory on heat wave preparedness ahead of the summer season, recommending heat action plans, ORS distribution and vulnerable population monitoring. Heat-related deaths were reported from multiple states.