14 April 2024

• History: The nation observes the 133rd birth anniversary of Dr B.R. Ambedkar. Lok Sabha election campaigning intensifies five days before Phase 1 polling.
• Polity: Ambedkar's contributions to the Constitution: framing of Fundamental Rights, the Preamble's ideals of justice and equality, and reservations as an instrument of social transformation.
• Elections: Phase 1 is five days away. Campaigning in 102 constituencies across 17 states and 4 UTs is at its peak. The Election Commission's Model Code of Conduct is in full force.
• Health: World Health Organisation marks progress on Universal Health Coverage. India's National Health Mission covers 741 districts.
• Economy: The RBI releases data showing household financial savings fell to 5.3 per cent of GDP in FY 2023, a 47-year low.

GS area: Modern Indian History, Polity

Dr Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar was born on 14 April 1891 in Mhow (now Dr Ambedkar Nagar), Madhya Pradesh. He shaped the Indian Constitution as Chairman of the Drafting Committee.

Key facts about Ambedkar's constitutional contributions:

• Fundamental Rights (Part III): Ambedkar insisted on justiciable rights enforceable by the courts. His most cited contribution is Article 17, which abolishes untouchability.
• Article 32: Ambedkar called Article 32 "the most fundamental of all rights" because it provides the right to move the Supreme Court for enforcement of Fundamental Rights. The SC is the guardian of the Constitution under this provision.
• Reservations: Ambedkar negotiated the Poona Pact (1932) with Gandhi, converting separate electorates for depressed classes into reserved seats within a joint electorate. Constitutional reservations for SCs and STs flow from Articles 15(4), 16(4), and 330-342.
• Annihilation of caste: His 1936 work argued that caste cannot be reformed from within Hindu society and must be annihilated through intermarriage and interdining.
• Buddhist conversion: Ambedkar converted to Buddhism on 14 October 1956 in Nagpur along with approximately 600,000 followers, in what is called the Dhamma Diksha.
• Awards: Bharat Ratna, awarded posthumously in 1990.
• Death: 6 December 1956. The day is observed as Mahaparinirvana Diwas.

Static linkage: modern Indian history, polity, social justice.

GS area: Polity (elections, electoral process)

Phase 1 of the 2024 Lok Sabha election is scheduled for 19 April. Campaigning is at peak intensity.

Key facts:

• Scale of Phase 1: 102 constituencies across 17 states and 4 union territories. Approximately 16.63 crore registered voters.
• States voting entirely in Phase 1: Arunachal Pradesh (along with state assembly elections), Sikkim, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Andaman and Nicobar, Lakshadweep, and Puducherry.
• Model Code of Conduct: In force since the election schedule was announced by the ECI on 16 March 2024. Prohibits government announcements of new schemes, use of government resources for campaigning, and communal or divisive appeals.
• BJP manifesto: Released ahead of Phase 1. Focuses on infrastructure, economic growth, and national security.
• INDIA bloc: The opposition alliance of 26 parties including Congress, AAP, and TMC. The bloc's seat-sharing arrangements differ by state.
• Heatwave preparation: The ECI deployed cool zones, water stations, and shade at booths after IMD warned of heatwave conditions on polling day.

Static linkage: elections, constitutional provisions on elections, ECI.

GS area: Health, Governance

India's National Health Mission (NHM) covers all 741 districts. The WHO tracks Universal Health Coverage (UHC) through a composite index.

Key facts:

• NHM launch: 2013 (merged the National Rural Health Mission of 2005 with the National Urban Health Mission).
• Components: Reproductive, maternal, newborn, child and adolescent health; communicable and non-communicable disease control; strengthening health systems.
• UHC index: The WHO's UHC Service Coverage Index measures access to essential services including reproductive health, child health, infectious disease control, and non-communicable disease management. India scores around 61 out of 100.
• Ayushman Bharat: India's flagship secondary and tertiary care scheme. Covers up to five lakh rupees per family per year at empanelled hospitals. Targets approximately 12 crore families in the bottom 40 per cent by socio-economic status.
• Challenges: India's public health expenditure is approximately 1.84 per cent of GDP, below the National Health Policy 2017 target of 2.5 per cent.

Static linkage: health, governance, social justice, schemes.

GS area: Economy

India's net household savings fell to 5.3 per cent of GDP in FY 2023, the lowest in 47 years.

Key facts:

• Net household savings: Gross financial savings minus financial liabilities (borrowings). In FY 2022 it was 7.3 per cent of GDP.
• Household debt: Rose to 5.8 per cent of GDP, the second-highest since the 1970s.
• Contributing factors: Low interest rates (which discourage saving), sustained inflation eating into purchasing power, and a post-COVID shift toward consumption-driven growth.
• Macroeconomic consequence: Lower domestic savings means India must rely more on foreign capital to finance investment. This increases external vulnerability.
• Counterpoint: The growth in household borrowing partly reflects financial inclusion: first-time home and vehicle loans by newly middle-class households that previously had no access to credit.

Static linkage: economy, monetary policy, social indicators.

GS area: Polity (Fundamental Rights), Society

Article 17 of the Constitution abolishes untouchability in all its forms.

Key facts:

• Text: "Untouchability is abolished and its practice in any form is forbidden. The enforcement of any disability arising out of Untouchability shall be an offence punishable in accordance with law."
• The Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955: Earlier called the Untouchability (Offences) Act, this is the statutory implementation of Article 17.
• Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989: Separately addresses violence and discrimination against SCs and STs. The 2018 amendment removed anticipatory bail for accused under the Act, upheld by the Supreme Court.
• Enforcement challenge: Despite the law, manual scavenging, caste-based discrimination in access to water and temples, and violence against Dalits persist in many parts of India.
• Ambedkar's framework: He argued that political democracy alone cannot endure without social and economic democracy. Article 17 is the constitutional bridge between political equality and social reality.

Static linkage: polity, Fundamental Rights, social justice, B.R. Ambedkar.

• UPSC election nexus: UPSC postponed the Civil Services Preliminary Examination from 26 May to 16 June 2024 to avoid election-day conflicts.
• BJP manifesto key point: The manifesto includes a commitment to uniform civil code if returned to power, a commitment that has legal implications for Article 44 (Directive Principle on uniform civil code).
• State assembly elections alongside Phase 1: Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim also hold state assembly elections on 19 April alongside the Lok Sabha vote.