2 August 2023

• Environment: India experienced 157 plastic overshoot days in 2023. The world's first Plastic Overshoot Day fell on 28 July 2023.
• Transport: A NITI Aayog report projected that transport sector emissions will grow by 65 per cent by 2030 and 197 per cent by 2050 from the 2020 baseline unless action is taken.
• J&K: The Supreme Court began hearings on the constitutional challenge to the 2019 abrogation of Article 370, which granted special autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir.
• Parliament: The IIM Amendment Bill 2023 was passed designating the President as "Visitor" to all IIMs.

GS area: Environment, Pollution

The Environmental Action Fund's 2023 report introduced the concept of "Plastic Overshoot Day": the date in a calendar year when the amount of plastic waste generated exceeds the world's capacity to manage it. The global date was 28 July 2023. India's date was 157 days into the year.

• India's plastic waste: India contributes approximately 73 lakh tonnes of mismanaged plastic waste annually. Its Mismanaged Waste Index exceeds 98 per cent, meaning virtually all plastic that could be mismanaged is.
• Per-capita comparison: India's per capita plastic consumption is 5.3 kg per year. The United States' figure is 221 kg.
• Twelve countries: India is among 12 countries responsible for 52 per cent of global mismanaged plastic waste.
• Government response: India banned select single-use plastic items from 1 July 2022 under the Plastic Waste Management Rules. The Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) campaign promotes behavioural change on plastic use.
• Key rule framework: The Plastic Waste Management Rules, 2016 (amended 2021 and 2022) govern extended producer responsibility and ban specific items.

The gap between India's low per-capita consumption and high mismanagement rate shows that the problem is infrastructure rather than quantity. Most of India's plastic waste is informal and untracked.

Static linkage: Pollution, international environment conventions (GS Paper 3).

GS area: Environment, Economy (transport)

NITI Aayog released a report titled "Towards Decarbonising Transport 2023." Transport contributes 14 to 15 per cent of India's total greenhouse gas emissions. Road transport accounts for more than 90 per cent of transport-sector CO2.

• Baseline projections: Transport emissions are expected to grow 65 per cent by 2030 and 197 per cent by 2050 compared with the 2020 level if no additional action is taken.
• Net-zero target: India targets net-zero emissions by 2070.
• Avoid-Shift-Improve framework: The report recommends reducing the need to travel (Avoid), moving freight and passengers to less carbon-intensive modes (Shift), and making vehicles and fuels cleaner (Improve).
• Existing initiatives: Bharat Stage VI emission norms, the FAME India scheme for electric vehicle adoption, the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan, and Production-Linked Incentive schemes for advanced battery and EV components.
• FAME scheme: Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles. Phase 2 runs from 2019 to 2024 with an outlay of 10,000 crore rupees.

Static linkage: Climate change, transport policy, energy (GS Paper 3).

GS area: Governance, Education policy

Parliament passed the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill, 2023. The amendment expands the central government's role in IIM governance.

• President as Visitor: The President of India is designated as the "Visitor" to all IIMs. Previously only some IIMs had the President in this role. The Visitor has powers of inspection and the authority to call for reports from the institute.
• Director appointments: The government gains an expanded role in approving appointments to director and board positions.
• Autonomy concerns: Critics argue the amendment dilutes the institutional autonomy granted to IIMs by the IIM Act, 2017. That Act had given IIMs the power to award degrees independently and reduced direct government control.
• Inquiry powers: The amendment allows the government to order inquiries into IIM functioning.

Static linkage: Higher education governance, central educational institutions (GS Paper 2).

GS area: Science and Technology, Economy (minerals)

India announced successful extraction of lithium from mineral concentrate at the laboratory scale. This is a step toward reducing import dependency.

• Strategic significance: Lithium is a critical mineral essential for rechargeable batteries in electric vehicles and energy storage systems. India currently imports virtually all its lithium.
• Domestic deposit: A lithium reserve of approximately 5.9 million tonnes was reported in Jammu and Kashmir's Reasi district in February 2023. The reserve requires further assessment.
• 30 critical minerals: The Ministry of Mines identified 30 critical minerals for India's strategic priorities. Lithium is on the list alongside cobalt, nickel, and rare earth elements.
• Critical Minerals Mission: India is developing a framework for mining, processing, and recycling critical minerals to cut import dependence.

Static linkage: Critical minerals, EV policy, strategic resources (GS Paper 3).

GS area: Polity, Social justice

The Central government moved to grant Scheduled Tribe status to four communities in Jammu and Kashmir: the Pahari ethnic group, the Paddari tribe, the Koli community, and the Gadda Brahmin community.

• Current ST list in J&K: The existing Scheduled Tribe list for J&K was established by the Constitution (Jammu and Kashmir) Scheduled Tribes Order, 1989.
• Amending mechanism: Changes to the Schedule require a Parliamentary bill under Article 342. The bill was introduced alongside the J&K statehood reorganisation process.
• Pahari community: The Paharis are a linguistically defined group living primarily in the Pir Panjal range. Their linguistic identity does not map onto a single religious community.
• Political dimension: The move was seen as addressing long-standing demands in regions that had not benefited from existing ST reservations.

Static linkage: Scheduled Tribes, constitutional amendments, J&K reorganisation (GS Paper 2).

• UNESCO Heritage Danger List: The World Heritage Committee recommended adding Venice, Kyiv, and Lviv to the List of World Heritage in Danger. Venice faces threats from over-tourism and climate-related flooding. Kyiv and Lviv face conflict damage.
• Kuril Islands geography: The Kuril Islands are a volcanic chain stretching 1,300 km from Hokkaido, Japan to the Kamchatka Peninsula of Russia. They are a subject of an ongoing territorial dispute between Japan and Russia.
• North Sea geography: The North Sea is bordered by Great Britain to the west, Norway and Denmark to the north and east, and Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France to the south. It has an average depth of 90 metres.