22 July 2023

• Society: The Manipur video of two women being paraded naked by a mob went viral on July 19, triggering national outrage and parliamentary disruptions by July 22.
• Judiciary: The Madras High Court quashed the Enforcement Directorate's arrest of Tamil Nadu minister Senthilbalaji, ruling the arrest unconstitutional.
• Health: Oral Polio Vaccine and Inactivated Polio Vaccine differ in route, immunity profile, and risk of rare vaccine-derived disease.
• Environment: The Forest Conservation Amendment Bill 2023 passed Parliament amid concerns about 1,97,159 square kilometres of forest cover at risk of exclusion.
• Science: IMD added a heat index system using the NOAA equation to communicate the "feels like" temperature to the public.

GS area: Society, Governance, Security

A video showing two Kuki women being paraded naked by a mob in Manipur's Kangpokpi district went viral on July 19, 2023. The incident occurred on May 4, the day after ethnic violence erupted across the state.

• Ethnic context: Manipur has been witnessing violence between the Meitei (valley) and Kuki-Zo (hill) communities since May 3, 2023. The trigger was a march in Churachandpur district organised by tribal bodies opposing the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe status.
• Meitei OBC: Meitei communities currently have Other Backward Class status in some designations but no ST status. The Manipur High Court issued a direction to the state government to consider their ST demand, which prompted the tribal march and the subsequent violence.
• The video: Shows at least two women of the Kuki-Zo community being led through fields by a large crowd of men. The FIR for the incident was registered in May but no arrests were made until the video surfaced.
• Parliament reaction: The Home Minister's absence during the initial debate in the Rajya Sabha triggered disruptions by the Opposition, which sought a statement from the PM.
• Article 355: Imposes a duty on the Union to protect every state against internal disturbance and external aggression. It gives constitutional backing to central intervention in a law-and-order breakdown.

Static linkage: Ethnic conflict, constitutional provisions, internal security.

GS area: Polity (Judiciary), Governance

The Madras High Court quashed the Enforcement Directorate's arrest of Tamil Nadu minister V. Senthilbalaji, holding that the arrest did not comply with the procedural guarantees of Article 22 of the Constitution.

• Article 22: Protects against arbitrary arrest. Requires that the arrested person be informed of the grounds of arrest, be allowed to consult a lawyer, and be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours.
• ED under PMLA: The Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002 empowers the ED to arrest persons believed to have committed money laundering. PMLA conditions for arrest are tighter than in the CrPC (now BNSS).
• Vijay Madanlal Choudhary 2022: The Supreme Court upheld most PMLA provisions in this ruling, holding that the ED's power of arrest and the reverse burden of proof on the accused are constitutionally valid.
• Distinction: The Madras HC did not strike down PMLA; it applied Article 22's procedural guarantee specifically to the facts of the Senthilbalaji arrest, finding the grounds were not adequately communicated.

Static linkage: Fundamental rights, PMLA, Enforcement Directorate.

GS area: Environment, Polity

Parliament passed the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023, later renamed the Van Sanrakshan Adhiniyam, amending the Forest Conservation Act 1980.

• The 1980 Act: Restricts diversion of forest land for non-forest purposes. Requires prior approval of the Central government for any diversion.
• What the amendment does: Introduces a new definition of "forest" that limits protections to recorded forests, forests declared under the Indian Forest Act 1927, and forests notified under any state law before 1996. Areas that organically grew as forests but are not officially recorded would lose coverage.
• T.N. Godavarman Judgment 1996: The Supreme Court interpreted the 1980 Act to apply to all areas fitting the "dictionary meaning" of the word forest, regardless of official classification. The amendment effectively overturns this interpretation.
• Area at risk: The Centre for Science and Environment estimated 1,97,159 square kilometres of forest area could lose central protection under the amended definition.
• Exemptions added: The amendment exempts forest land within 100 kilometres of international borders or Line of Control for security infrastructure, and certain other strategic purposes.

Static linkage: Environment law, biodiversity, constitutional law.

GS area: Science and Technology, Environment

The India Meteorological Department introduced a heat index system to communicate felt temperature alongside actual temperature.

• Heat index equation: Based on the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) Rothfusz regression formula. It combines dry-bulb temperature and relative humidity to produce a "feels like" temperature.
• Why humidity matters: At high humidity, the human body cannot cool itself effectively through evaporation of sweat. A temperature of 40°C at 70 per cent humidity feels equivalent to over 50°C.
• Colour-coded thresholds: IMD adopted a four-tier colour scale: green (no danger), yellow (caution), orange (extreme caution), and red (danger).
• India's vulnerability: India is one of the world's most heat-vulnerable countries, with a rapidly growing urban population, limited access to cooling, and outdoor livelihoods.

Static linkage: Climate change, disaster management, science and technology.

GS area: Health

India transitioned from the Oral Polio Vaccine to the Inactivated Polio Vaccine for its routine immunisation schedule, though OPV is still used in pulse polio campaigns.

• OPV (Oral Polio Vaccine): A live, attenuated (weakened) poliovirus vaccine. Administered orally. Provides mucosal immunity in the gut, which limits transmission of the virus. Low cost. Rare risk: approximately 1 in 2.7 million doses can revert to virulence, causing Vaccine-Derived Poliovirus (VDPV).
• IPV (Inactivated Polio Vaccine): A killed-virus vaccine administered by injection. Produces strong systemic immunity but weaker mucosal protection. No risk of vaccine-derived disease.
• Eradication endgame: As wild poliovirus approaches global eradication, the relative risk of VDPV cases rises compared to wild-virus cases. WHO guidelines call for switching to IPV in the routine schedule.
• India's status: India has been polio-free since 2011. The last wild poliovirus case was reported in January 2011.

Static linkage: Public health, vaccination, Universal Immunisation Programme.

GS area: Economy

The Securities and Exchange Board of India issued a circular introducing five sub-categories under ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) mutual fund schemes.

• The five sub-categories: Exclusions (companies excluded based on ESG criteria), Integration (ESG factors added to traditional financial analysis), Best-in-class (top performers within each sector on ESG metrics), Impact (funds targeting measurable social/environmental outcomes), and Sustainable Objectives (funds financing specific sustainable development objectives).
• Disclosure requirement: Fund houses must disclose the ESG framework, methodology, third-party data used, and engagement policies.
• Greenwashing concern: The SEBI circular aims to prevent funds from labelling themselves as ESG without demonstrable ESG analysis.

Static linkage: Financial markets, capital markets, ESG.

• Atal Beemit Vyakti Kalyan Yojana: ESIC scheme providing cash benefit (50 per cent of average daily earnings) to insured workers who lose their job. The waiting period was reduced from 90 days to 30 days. The scheme was extended for one more year.
• Biopiracy and nagoya protocol: Biopiracy is the unauthorized commercial use of biological resources or traditional knowledge from indigenous communities. The Nagoya Protocol (CBD) requires prior informed consent and equitable benefit-sharing.
• International Tiger Day: Observed on July 29 annually. India has the world's largest tiger population.
• Sickle cell anaemia national mission: Launched July 1, 2023 from Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh. Targets elimination by 2047 with a focus on tribal populations.