25 December 2023

• Good Governance Day: 25 December is observed as Good Governance Day to mark the birth anniversary of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1924-2018).
• Presidential assent: President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to all three new criminal law bills (BNS, BNSS, BSA) and they were notified in the Gazette.
• CEC Bill assented: The Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners Bill also received presidential assent.
• Vajpayee birth centenary: India observed the birth centenary of Atal Bihari Vajpayee across government-organised events.

GS area: Governance, History (contemporary)

25 December is observed as Good Governance Day (Sushasan Diwas) each year:

• Occasion: Birth anniversary of Atal Bihari Vajpayee (1924-2018), India's 10th Prime Minister.
• Vajpayee's governance contributions: Known for the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (all-weather rural roads), the National Highways Development Project (Golden Quadrilateral), the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, and the telecom revolution enabled by liberalisation during his tenure (1998-2004).
• Pokhran-II: Vajpayee's government conducted five nuclear tests in May 1998 under Operation Shakti, making India a declared nuclear weapons state.
• Lahore Declaration: Vajpayee's bus diplomacy with Pakistan in February 1999 resulted in the Lahore Declaration on nuclear risk reduction, before the Kargil conflict interrupted the process.
• 2023 events: The year 2023 marked the birth centenary of Vajpayee. Events were held across the country.

Static linkage: Modern Indian history, good governance, India's nuclear programme.

GS area: Polity (legislative process)

President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam on 25 December 2023:

• Gazette notification: The laws were published in the Gazette of India on 25 December 2023.
• Coming into force: 1 July 2024 (not from the date of assent). The delayed implementation gave courts, police forces, and lawyers time to prepare.
• IPC, CrPC, and IEA: After 1 July 2024, the Indian Penal Code of 1860, Code of Criminal Procedure of 1973, and the Indian Evidence Act of 1872 ceased to have effect for new cases.
• Article 111: The President's options are to give assent, withhold assent, or return the Bill for reconsideration. For money Bills, the President cannot withhold assent. For other Bills, withholding is possible but very rare in practice.

Static linkage: Criminal law, constitutional process, Article 111.

GS area: Governance, Government Schemes

New programme elements under Mission Karmayogi were launched on Good Governance Day:

• Mission Karmayogi: India's national civil service capacity-building programme. It aims to transition the bureaucracy from "rules-based" to "roles-based" HR management.
• Platform: iGOT (Integrated Government Online Training), the technology backbone of Mission Karmayogi.
• New feature VIKAS: Variable and Immersive Karmayogi Advanced Support. It combines 33 hours of online and 30 hours of offline training.
• Target: 2 crore government users on the iGOT platform.
• 70-20-10 formula: 70 per cent learning from work experience, 20 per cent from peer interaction, and 10 per cent from formal training.
• NPCSCB: The National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building under the PM Public HR Council oversees the programme.

Static linkage: Governance, civil services reform, capacity building.

GS area: Polity (criminal law)

The key structural changes brought by the three bills receiving assent on this day:

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (replaces IPC):

• Sedition as a separate offence (IPC Section 124A) is removed. Replaced by Section 152 on "acts endangering sovereignty."
• Organised crime and terrorism are defined in a general penal code for the first time.
• Community service introduced as a punishment for certain minor offences.

Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (replaces CrPC):

• Mandatory video recording of search and seizure.
• Trial in absentia after three months for proclaimed offenders.
• 90-day limit on police custody (earlier was 60 days in some cases).
• Electronic summons recognised.

Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (replaces Evidence Act):

• Electronic records are primary evidence, not secondary.
• Definition of "documents" expanded to include digital and electronic content.

Static linkage: Criminal law, judiciary, Polity.

GS area: Science and Technology, History (modern India)

Vajpayee's birth centenary renewed focus on Operation Shakti:

• Operation Shakti: Five underground nuclear tests conducted at Pokhran in Rajasthan in May 1998.
• Test types: Three were conducted on 11 May and two on 13 May. The tests included a thermonuclear (hydrogen bomb) device, a fission device, and sub-kiloton devices.
• Nuclear doctrine: India's nuclear doctrine rests on three pillars: no first use, credible minimum deterrent, and massive retaliation in response to nuclear attack.
• Consequence: India and Pakistan (which tested in response) faced US-led sanctions under the Glenn Amendment and the Arms Export Control Act.

Static linkage: India's nuclear programme, security, modern history.

GS area: Economy, Infrastructure

Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), launched in 2000 by Vajpayee, transformed India's rural connectivity:

• Objective: Provide all-weather road access to all unconnected habitations with a population above 500 in the plains and 250 in the hills and tribal areas.
• Outcome: Over 7 lakh kilometres of rural roads constructed under PMGSY since 2000. Rural road density increased dramatically.
• Extensions: PMGSY-II (2013) focused on upgradation; PMGSY-III (2019) addressed remaining habitations and upgrades.
• Economic impact: Road access to villages is one of the most cost-effective development interventions, reducing agricultural price spreads and enabling access to health and education services.

Static linkage: Rural development, infrastructure, economic geography.

• Lahore Declaration (1999): Signed during Vajpayee's bus diplomacy visit to Pakistan. Committed both countries to resolving disputes peacefully and reducing nuclear risks. The Kargil War followed five months later.
• Global Cooling Pledge implementation: COP28's Global Cooling Pledge asked signatory countries to develop implementation roadmaps by 2025. Countries that did not sign, including India, are not bound by this timeline.