23 June 2024

• Polity: 18th Lok Sabha's first session opened on 24 June 2024. Pro Tem Speaker Om Birla administered the oath to new MPs.
• Economy: India signed the RELOS (Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement) with Russia, an operational logistics pact for Indian forces at Russian facilities.
• Health: NEET-UG 2024 controversy continued; Supreme Court heard petitions challenging the exam's integrity.
• International: India-ASEAN relations: PM Modi attended the ASEAN-India summit in the context of India's Act East Policy.

GS area: Polity, Governance

The 18th Lok Sabha's first session opened on 24 June 2024. The session was preceded by the election of a Pro Tem Speaker on 23 June 2024.

• Pro Tem Speaker: a temporary presiding officer appointed by the President to administer oath to newly elected MPs before the substantive Speaker is elected. The President appoints the Pro Tem Speaker, conventionally the most senior member by length of continuous service.
• 2024 controversy: the government nominated Om Birla (BJP, Kota, Rajasthan) as Pro Tem Speaker instead of the most senior MP (K. Suresh, Congress). Opposition parties boycotted the oath-taking ceremony in protest, arguing the seniority convention was broken.
• Article 94: the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha vacate their offices if they cease to be members of the House.
• Article 95: while the office of Speaker is vacant, the Deputy Speaker performs the functions. When both are absent, a person from the panel of presiding officers acts.
• Functions of the Speaker: presides over Lok Sabha sessions, maintains order, certifies Money Bills (Article 110), decides questions of disqualification under the Tenth Schedule (anti-defection law), certifies a joint sitting of Parliament.
• Tenth Schedule: the anti-defection law. A member incurs disqualification if they voluntarily give up membership of their party, vote against party direction, or abstain from voting against party direction. The Speaker decides such disqualifications.

Static linkage: polity, governance.

GS area: International Relations, Defence

India signed the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement (RELOS) with Russia in June 2024, enabling the Indian military to access Russian logistic facilities.

• RELOS: a logistics support agreement that allows the military of one country to access logistical support, fuel, maintenance and other services at the facilities of the other. It is a reciprocal arrangement.
• Strategic significance: RELOS with Russia complements India's existing logistics agreements: LEMOA (Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement) with the United States (2016), MLSA (Mutual Logistics Support Agreement) with Australia (2020), RLSA with Japan (2020), and logistics agreements with France and Singapore.
• India-Russia defence relationship: Russia is a major supplier of defence equipment to India. Approximately 50 to 60 per cent of India's military hardware is of Russian/Soviet origin. BrahMos is a joint India-Russia venture.
• Act East Policy: India's Act East Policy (renamed from Look East Policy in 2014) focuses on India's engagement with Southeast and East Asian countries. Russia's Far East is a focus area for Indian investment, complementing this policy.
• S-400 controversy: India's 2018 contract to purchase the S-400 air defence system from Russia (5 billion US dollars) triggered concern from the United States under CAATSA (Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act).
• Non-alignment: India's signing of RELOS with Russia, alongside its LEMOA with the United States, reflects its strategic autonomy approach of maintaining defence partnerships with multiple major powers.

Static linkage: international relations, defence.

GS area: Governance, Social Justice, Ethics

The Supreme Court continued hearing petitions challenging NEET-UG 2024's integrity.

• Grace marks controversy: approximately 1,563 candidates were awarded grace marks to compensate for "loss of time" during the examination. Several of these candidates achieved perfect 720/720 scores.
• Supreme Court response: the court directed NTA to offer re-examination to grace-mark beneficiaries. Those who chose not to re-appear were awarded marks calculated without the grace adjustment.
• UGC-NET cancellation: the UGC-NET exam was cancelled in June 2024 citing data security concerns, compounding the crisis. Both NEET and UGC-NET are conducted by NTA.
• NTA reforms demanded: the controversy triggered demands for an independent body to replace NTA, or for NTA to be restructured with greater accountability, transparency and decentralisation.
• Education reform context: NEET was introduced following the Supreme Court's 2016 judgment mandating a uniform national entrance test. Before NEET, each state and university conducted separate medical entrance tests, creating inequalities and scope for manipulation.
• Rajendra Prasad Committee: the government constituted a high-level expert committee under former ISRO chairman K. Radhakrishnan to review NTA's examination processes and governance.

Static linkage: governance, social justice, ethics.

GS area: History, Culture, International Relations

Nalanda University was inaugurated by Prime Minister Modi on 19 June 2024. The historical Nalanda University context remains relevant for UPSC preparation.

• Historical Nalanda: one of the greatest centres of learning in the ancient world. Founded in the 5th century CE (approximately 427 CE) by Kumaragupta I of the Gupta dynasty in present-day Bihar.
• Destruction: Nalanda was destroyed by Bakhtiyar Khilji's forces approximately in 1193 CE. Dharmaganja (Library of Nalanda) burned for three months, according to some accounts.
• Curriculum: subjects taught included theology, philosophy, grammar, logic, mathematics, astronomy, medicine and literature. Students came from China, Japan, Korea, Tibet, Central Asia and Southeast Asia.
• Notable alumni and visitors: Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang), the 7th-century Chinese Buddhist monk who spent approximately 17 years studying and teaching at Nalanda. Xuanzang's account in "Si-yu-ki" is a primary source for Indian history of this period.
• Nalanda University revival: Nalanda University was established by the Parliament of India in 2010 through the Nalanda University Act. It is an international institution, supported by the East Asia Summit countries.
• Campus: the new Nalanda University campus is at Rajgir, Bihar, near the ruins of ancient Nalanda.

Static linkage: history, culture, international relations.

GS area: International Relations

India's Act East Policy continues to drive India-ASEAN engagement.

• Act East Policy: announced in November 2014 at the ASEAN summit in Myanmar. It upgraded the earlier "Look East Policy" from a trade-and-cultural dialogue to a security, connectivity and strategic engagement policy.
• ASEAN: the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Ten members: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Headquarters in Jakarta.
• India-ASEAN trade: bilateral trade reached approximately 130 billion US dollars in FY 2023-24, up from 79 billion in 2018-19.
• ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement (AIFTA): in force since 2010. India is reviewing the agreement to address the large trade deficit India runs with ASEAN (India imports more than it exports to ASEAN collectively).
• Connectivity: India's connectivity projects under Act East include the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, the Kaladan Multi-modal Transit Transport Project (connecting Mizoram to Sittwe port in Myanmar), and rail and road links to Southeast Asia.
• Northeast India as gateway: the government positions India's northeastern states as the bridge to Southeast Asia, with Manipur's Moreh town as the key border crossing point.

Static linkage: international relations.

GS area: Environment, Governance

India experienced severe heat waves across northern, central and northwestern India in June 2024. Heat Action Plans were in focus.

• Heat Action Plans (HAPs): city and district-level plans to respond to extreme heat events. Typically include early warning systems, cooling centres, adjustments to outdoor work schedules, and provision of drinking water.
• NDMA guidelines: the National Disaster Management Authority has issued guidelines for heat action plans. Heat waves are classified as a notified disaster under the Disaster Management Act 2005.
• Urban Heat Island (UHI) effect: cities are significantly warmer than their rural surroundings because concrete, asphalt and reduced vegetation absorb more heat. UHI can add 2 to 4 degrees Celsius to urban temperatures.
• Vulnerability: construction workers, outdoor labourers, the elderly and those without access to cooling are most vulnerable to heat stress.
• Rajasthan and Delhi: temperatures exceeded 45 degrees Celsius in several cities in June 2024. Pilani (Rajasthan) recorded among the highest temperatures.
• Green Cover and cooling: trees reduce the UHI effect by providing shade and through evapotranspiration. The Urban Forestry programme under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change promotes tree planting in cities.

Static linkage: environment, governance.

• International Olympic Day: 23 June. Established by the International Olympic Committee in 1948. India won its highest-ever Olympic medal haul at Tokyo 2020 (7 medals). The Paris 2024 Olympics was scheduled for 26 July to 11 August 2024.
• United Nations Public Service Day: 23 June. Honours those who serve the public sector and raises awareness of the role of public service. Theme for 2024: "Public institutions for a better future for our planet."