19 May 2023

• Polity: A Supreme Court Constitution Bench upheld Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Karnataka laws permitting Jallikattu and Kambala bull sports.
• Fisheries: India's Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana targets 22 million metric tonnes of fish production and 1 lakh crore rupees in export earnings by 2024-25.
• Society: Kudumbashree, Kerala's women's self-help network, completed 25 years.
• International: The US debt ceiling crisis threatened spillover effects on India's exports and FDI.
• Climate: WMO warned of 66 per cent probability of 1.5 degree global temperature breach by 2027.

GS area: Polity (Judiciary, State legislation, Animal rights)

A five-judge Constitution Bench overturned the Supreme Court's 2014 ban and allowed bull-taming sports including Jallikattu (Tamil Nadu), Kambala (Karnataka) and bull-cart racing (Maharashtra).

• The 2014 ban: The Court had prohibited these sports under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960 (PCA Act). It had included bulls in the list of animals prohibited from being trained and exhibited.
• State response: Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Maharashtra amended the PCA Act at the state level to carve out these sports as "cultural practices."
• 2023 ruling: The Constitution Bench held that state amendments to carve out Jallikattu and Kambala are valid legislation. The laws do not violate Articles 14, 19, 21, 48 or 51A.
• Article 48: Directs the state to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern scientific lines and prohibit slaughter of certain cattle. Used by the petitioners as a ground.
• Article 51A(g): Fundamental Duty to protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife.
• Court's note: The bench itself observed that "the Jallikattu issue is debatable" and suggested Parliament may wish to decide it definitively.

The judgment illustrates the tension between Fundamental Rights litigation (animal rights activists using Article 21 to argue animals have a right to be free from cruelty) and state cultural autonomy.

Static linkage: Articles 14, 21, 48, 51A; Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act; centre-state (Polity).

GS area: Economy (Fisheries, Schemes)

The Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana runs from 2020-21 to 2024-25.

• Production target: 22 million metric tonnes of fish.
• Export target: 1 lakh crore rupees in export earnings.
• Achievement so far: Fisheries sector growth of 14 per cent. Insurance coverage extended to over 31 lakh fish farmers.
• India's global ranking: Third largest fish producer globally. Second largest aquaculture producer globally.
• Blue Revolution: The parent policy framework for fisheries development.
• Components: Infrastructure creation (harbours, cold chains, processing units), kisan credit cards for fishers, insurance coverage.

Static linkage: Blue Revolution, fisheries, centrally sponsored schemes (Economy).

GS area: Governance, Society (Women's empowerment, SHGs)

Kerala's Kudumbashree women's self-help group network was established in 1998. It completed 25 years.

• Scale: One of the largest SHG networks in Asia.
• Janakeeya Hotels: Kudumbashree operates 125 community canteens offering meals at 20 rupees.
• Disaster response: Provided 7 crore rupees in relief during the 2018 Kerala floods. Counselled over 8,000 flood-affected families.
• National reach: Kudumbashree has extended consultancy to 13 other states.
• Community structure: Three-tier: Neighbourhood Groups (10-20 women) at the base, Area Development Societies at the ward level, and Community Development Societies at the panchayat level.
• Financial inclusion: SHGs under Kudumbashree access bank credit collectively, overcoming individual collateral barriers.

Static linkage: SHGs, women's empowerment, local governance (Governance/Society).

GS area: International Relations (Economy)

The US Congress was approaching a deadline to raise the federal borrowing limit. A potential default raised concern about global spillovers.

• What the debt ceiling is: A statutory limit on US federal borrowing. Congress must vote to raise it. A failure to raise it causes a default on US Treasury obligations.
• Global impact of a US default: Weaker dollar, financial market volatility and job losses in economies tied to US demand.
• India's exposure: US is among India's largest export markets. A slowdown reduces IT services revenues and goods export demand. FDI from the US could also contract.
• Currency impact: A weaker dollar generally strengthens emerging market currencies but the initial shock from market panic can go the other way.
• Resolution: The US debt ceiling was eventually raised before default through a bipartisan agreement.

Static linkage: International finance, India's external sector, US-India economic relations (Economy/International Relations).

GS area: Environment (Biodiversity)

The World Wildlife Fund confirmed gharials in Pakistan's Punjab province. These are believed to have migrated from India's Beas River, where gharial releases were conducted between 2017 and 2021.

• Gharial (Gavialis gangeticus): The only surviving member of the family Gavialidae. Distinguished by a long, narrow snout adapted for catching fish. The male has a distinctive nasal protuberance called a ghara.
• Distribution: Primarily found in the Chambal River system. Also in smaller numbers in the Gandak, Ken and Girwa rivers.
• Conservation status: IUCN Critically Endangered. One of India's most endangered reptiles.
• Significance of the Pakistan finding: Suggests successful wild breeding and natural dispersal from Indian reintroduction sites. A rare conservation success story.

Static linkage: Biodiversity, IUCN, wildlife conservation (Environment).

• Minimum Import Price for apples (J&K): The government introduced a Minimum Import Price for apples to protect Kashmiri growers from cheap imports. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) implements such trade protection measures.
• Uttarakhand forest fires: Chir pine forests are particularly prone to fires. The needles and resin are highly flammable. Measures include planting broad-leaved species (oak, rhododendron) to reduce fire risk, deploying fire watchers and using remote sensing for early detection.
• Heli-tourism (Kerala): Kerala's tourism department announced plans for heli-taxi services connecting Kochi with Thekkady, Munnar and Kumarakom through public-private partnerships.