21 December 2023

• Criminal laws: Rajya Sabha passed all three new criminal law bills (BNS, BNSS, BSA) the day after Lok Sabha's passage.
• Telecom Bill: Lok Sabha passed the Indian Telecommunication Bill 2023, replacing the 138-year-old Indian Telegraph Act of 1885.
• US maritime coalition: The United States announced Operation Prosperity Guardian, a multinational naval coalition to counter Houthi attacks on merchant ships in the Red Sea.
• Bhutan: Bhutan announced the 1,000 square kilometre Gelephu Mindfulness City project near India's Assam border as a special administrative region attracting FDI.

GS area: Polity (legislation)

The Rajya Sabha passed the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam on 21 December 2023, one day after Lok Sabha passage:

• Opposition concern: Over 140 Lok Sabha members and several Rajya Sabha members had been suspended during this session. The suspension of opposition members during key legislative votes drew widespread criticism about the health of parliamentary debate.
• Key change in BNSS: Trials may proceed in absentia for proclaimed offenders after three months of absconding. Previously the accused's presence was required for most trial stages.
• Key change in BSA: Electronic and digital records are recognised as primary (not just secondary) evidence, a major update to align the law with digital-age realities.
• Implementation date: The laws were to come into force on 1 July 2024 after gazetted notification on 25 December 2023.

Static linkage: Criminal law, Parliament, judicial reform.

GS area: Polity (legislation), Economy

The Lok Sabha passed the Indian Telecommunication Bill 2023, which replaces:

• The Indian Telegraph Act, 1885: 138 years old at the time of replacement. Governed wired telecommunications.
• The Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933: Governed radio spectrum use.
• The Telegraph Wires (Unlawful Possession) Act, 1950.

Key provisions of the 2023 Bill:

• Spectrum assignment: All spectrum must be assigned through auction except for national security, disaster management, and defence (administrative assignment allowed).
• Trusted sources regime: Telecom equipment can only be imported from government-approved trusted sources. This is aimed at excluding Chinese equipment from sensitive networks.
• Biometric authentication: Telecom customers must authenticate with biometrics when getting a SIM. The privacy risk from biometric data handling was flagged by critics.
• OTT exclusion: Over-the-top communication services (WhatsApp, Signal, Google Meet, Zoom) are explicitly excluded from the definition of telecommunications. They will not be licensed under this Act.
• Digital Bharat Nidhi: The Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) is renamed Digital Bharat Nidhi.
• TRAI: The Chairperson of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India must have 30 years of professional experience; members require 25 years.

Static linkage: Digital economy, spectrum policy, regulatory reform.

GS area: International Relations, Security

The United States announced Operation Prosperity Guardian, a multinational naval coalition in the Red Sea:

• Purpose: Counter attacks by Houthi rebels based in Yemen on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb strait.
• Context: Houthis launched over 12 attacks on merchant ships in four weeks citing solidarity with Gaza. The attacks threatened the Suez Canal shipping route.
• Participating nations: US, UK (HMS Diamond), Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, Netherlands, and others.
• India's position: India did not join Operation Prosperity Guardian. India deployed INS Mormugao, INS Kochi, and INS Kolkata independently to escort Indian-flagged vessels.
• Bab el-Mandeb: The strait connecting the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. About 12 per cent of global trade and 30 per cent of global container traffic passes through it.

Static linkage: International Relations, maritime security, West Asia, trade routes.

GS area: International Relations, Economy

Bhutan's King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck announced the Gelephu Mindfulness City (GMC) project:

• Scale: 1,000 square kilometres, near the Assam border in southern Bhutan.
• Status: A Special Administrative Region with distinct laws designed to attract FDI.
• Connectivity: Plans include an international airport, India-Bhutan railway links, and road corridors into Assam.
• Strategic potential: Positioned as an economic corridor connecting South Asia to Southeast Asia via Assam, Myanmar, Thailand, and ultimately Singapore and Cambodia.
• India angle: The project's viability depends heavily on India's support for connectivity infrastructure through Assam and northeast India.

Static linkage: India-Bhutan relations, northeast India connectivity, FDI policy.

GS area: Economy, Fiscal Policy

22 states received permission to raise borrowings beyond the 3 per cent GSDP limit:

• Constitutional limit: Article 293 requires state governments to seek central consent for borrowing if they owe money to the central government. In practice, FRBM norms cap state borrowing at 3 per cent of GSDP.
• Additional capacity: The 22 states were permitted to raise Rs 61,000 crore beyond the standard cap. An additional Rs 1.43 lakh crore was available linked to power sector reforms (distribution company privatisation or loss reduction targets).
• Rationale: States that meet specific reform benchmarks receive more borrowing room as an incentive.

Static linkage: Fiscal federalism, FRBM, Article 293.

GS area: Environment, Ecology

The Valmiki Tiger Reserve in Bihar reported a near-doubling of its tiger population:

• Location: West Champaran district, Bihar. India's northernmost tiger reserve, bordering Nepal.
• Population growth: From 28 tigers in 2014 to 54 tigers in 2023 (per the 2022 census).
• Mining ban: A ban on mining activities in buffer zones was credited with grassland restoration, which expanded prey species populations and supported tiger recovery.
• Second reserve proposed: A second tiger reserve in Bihar's Kaimur district is under proposal.

Static linkage: Biodiversity, protected areas, Project Tiger.

• Loan evergreening ban: RBI issued norms prohibiting regulated entities (banks and NBFCs) from investing in Alternative Investment Funds that have downstream investments in companies that are debtors of the same regulated entity. Circular economy: if the AIF cannot liquidate within 30 days of the RBI notification, the bank must make 100 per cent provision against that investment.
• Touchscreen technology: Capacitive touchscreens detect changes in an electric field caused by a finger touch and have dominated since 2007. Resistive screens detect pressure. The distinction appears in technology GS questions.