29 July 2023

• Cooperatives: The Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill 2023 passed Parliament, creating a Co-operative Election Authority and tightening governance of multi-state cooperatives.
• Circular economy: The RECEIC (Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy Industry Coalition) was launched at the G20 ECSWG meeting in Chennai.
• Climate: The WMO's State of Climate in Asia 2022 report detailed 81 disasters, 50 million affected, and 36 billion US dollars in economic losses in the region.
• International: A military coup in Niger removed President Mohamed Bazoum; General Abdourahamane Tchiani assumed power.
• Glaciers: Parkachik Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir was found to be retreating rapidly, adding to evidence of cryosphere loss in the Himalayan region.

GS area: Polity, Economy

Parliament passed the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill 2023, amending the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (MSCS) Act 2002.

• What multi-state cooperatives are: Cooperatives with operations and members in more than one state. They are regulated by the central government under the MSCS Act. Examples include IFFCO (Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative), KRIBHCO, and NAFED.
• Constitutional basis: Article 43B (inserted by the 97th Constitutional Amendment 2011): the state shall endeavour to promote voluntary formation, autonomous functioning, democratic control, and professional management of cooperative societies.
• 97th Amendment and Supreme Court: The 97th Amendment to Part IX-B dealing with cooperative societies was partially struck down by the Supreme Court in 2021 in the Rajendra Shah case, holding that clauses applicable to state cooperatives were passed without ratification by state legislatures as required for amendments affecting the state list. The multi-state part survived.
• Co-operative Election Authority: The Amendment establishes a statutory Co-operative Election Authority (CEA) to superintend, direct, and control elections to all multi-state cooperative societies. This mirrors the Election Commission's role for political elections and aims to prevent management of cooperatives from being entrenched by incumbent boards.
• Board seat reservation: The Amendment requires seats for women (minimum one) and SC/ST members on the boards of multi-state cooperatives with significant members from those categories.

Static linkage: Cooperative sector, constitutional amendments, governance.

GS area: Environment, Economy, International Relations

The Resource Efficiency and Circular Economy Industry Coalition (RECEIC) was launched at the G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) meeting in Chennai.

• What circular economy means: An economic model that keeps materials in use for as long as possible, through reuse, repair, remanufacturing, and recycling, in contrast to the linear "take-make-dispose" model.
• RECEIC membership: 39 global multinationals committed to circular economy principles in their operations. Members are expected to share data and best practices under the G20 framework.
• G20 ECSWG: The Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group is the G20 track managing climate, biodiversity, and resource-efficiency negotiations. India held the chair during its G20 Presidency in 2023.
• Relevance to India: India is among the world's top producers of waste. The Extended Producer Responsibility rules for plastic (2022) and e-waste (2022) are among India's main circular economy policy tools.

Static linkage: G20, environmental governance, waste management.

GS area: Environment, Disaster Management

The World Meteorological Organization released the State of Climate in Asia 2022 report, covering the past year's climate events across the continent.

• Scale of disasters: 81 weather, climate, and water-related events in 2022; approximately 50 million people affected; 5,879 deaths; economic losses of approximately 36 billion US dollars.
• Pakistan floods: Among the most significant events. Approximately one-third of Pakistan was inundated at peak flooding. 1,700 deaths; 7.9 million displaced; agriculture losses severe.
• Temperature records: Asia as a whole recorded its second-warmest year in 2022. Several stations in China, Pakistan, and India broke all-time high-temperature records.
• Glacier loss: The WMO report noted accelerating glacier loss across the Hindu Kush Himalaya, Karakoram, and Tian Shan ranges. Third Pole (the Hindu Kush-Himalayas) glaciers are retreating at rates that could affect water availability for 240 million people in river basins.

Static linkage: Climate change, disaster management, WMO.

GS area: International Relations, Security

A military junta led by General Abdourahamane Tchiani, head of the presidential guard, seized power in Niger on 26 July 2023, overthrowing elected President Mohamed Bazoum.

• Niger's geography: A landlocked Sahelian country in West Africa. It is one of the world's largest uranium producers. It borders Mali, Burkina Faso, Algeria, Libya, Chad, Nigeria, and Benin.
• Sahel coup wave: Niger joined Mali (two coups in 2020 and 2021) and Burkina Faso (2022) in a series of military takeovers in the Sahel region, which has been destabilised by Islamist insurgencies, poverty, and perceived failures of Western counter-terrorism support.
• Strategic significance: Niger was a key partner for the United States and France in their Sahel counter-terrorism operations. A French military base and US drone base were both operating in Niger at the time of the coup.
• ECOWAS response: The Economic Community of West African States issued an ultimatum, threatened military intervention, and later imposed sanctions after the junta refused to restore constitutional government.
• Uranium dimension: Niger supplies approximately 15 per cent of France's uranium imports. France has significant commercial and strategic interests in Niger's stability.

Static linkage: Africa, international relations, resource geopolitics.

GS area: Environment, Geography

A new study found that Parkachik Glacier in the Suru River basin, Kargil district, Jammu and Kashmir, has retreated significantly over the past decade.

• Location: Parkachik lies in the western Himalaya (Zaskar range). It feeds the Suru River, a tributary of the Indus system.
• Magnitude of retreat: The glacier lost approximately 23 per cent of its area between 1971 and 2020, with acceleration since 2000.
• Implications: Suru basin communities depend on meltwater from Parkachik for irrigation and drinking water during summer. Reduction in glacier volume threatens long-term water security even as short-term meltwater may increase.
• Himalayan cryosphere: The Hindu Kush Himalaya contains approximately 54,000 glaciers, the largest concentration outside the polar regions. India's National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) addresses glacial retreat under the National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem.

Static linkage: Glaciers, water security, climate change.

• International Tiger Day: Observed July 29 annually, established at the 2010 Saint Petersburg Tiger Summit. India's All India Tiger Estimation 2022 results were released on July 29, 2023: 3,682 tigers, the world's highest single-country total.
• WMO: The World Meteorological Organization is a specialised UN agency established in 1950. It succeeded the International Meteorological Organization founded in 1873. Headquarters in Geneva.
• Islamist insurgencies in the Sahel: JNIM (Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin) and ISGS (Islamic State in the Greater Sahara) operate across Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, driving instability that the junta governments cited as justification for seizing power.
• Suru River: Originates in Kargil district of Ladakh; flows south and west before joining the Indus via the Dras River system.