16 August 2024

• Polity: the Supreme Court granted bail to former Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia after 17 months of detention, invoking Articles 21 and 32. The Court criticised the PMLA's use to prolong detention.
• Agriculture: the livestock sector grew at 7.9 per cent CAGR between 2014-15 and 2020-21. It now accounts for 30.1 per cent of agricultural GVA and employs 8.8 per cent of India's population.
• Geography: Galathea Bay in Great Nicobar Island is being developed as a transhipment port. The wildlife sanctuary was denotified, raising conservation concerns for leatherback turtles.
• Global: the Panama Canal faces an existential threat from persistent drought reducing Lake Gatun's water levels and limiting ship traffic.

GS area: Polity, Judiciary, Fundamental Rights

The Supreme Court granted bail to Manish Sisodia, former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, who had been in custody for over 17 months under both the PMLA and the CBI's case:

• Articles invoked: Article 13 (judicial review of laws), Article 21 (right to life and liberty), Article 32 (constitutional remedies before the Supreme Court) and Article 142 (complete justice power of the Supreme Court).
• Basis of the ruling: the Court held that the right to speedy trial is part of Article 21. Prolonged pre-trial detention without the trial making reasonable progress constitutes a violation of that right.
• PMLA bail conditions: the Prevention of Money Laundering Act imposes "twin bail conditions": the accused must satisfy the court that there are reasonable grounds for believing they are not guilty AND that they will not commit any offence while on bail. This is more stringent than ordinary bail under the CrPC.
• Key precedents: Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India (1978) established that Article 21's procedures must be "reasonable, just and fair." Navtej Singh Johar (2018) reinforced rights-based interpretation. These were invoked to argue that the PMLA's twin conditions cannot be applied to extend detention indefinitely when trial is not advancing.
• Critical note: the ruling is part of a broader judicial pushback against the way special statutes with stringent bail conditions have been used to keep accused persons in custody for extended periods before conviction or acquittal.

Static linkage: fundamental rights, criminal procedure, constitutional remedies.

GS area: Economy, Agriculture

The livestock sector's contribution to Indian agriculture is larger than most policy discourse acknowledges:

• Growth rate: 7.9 per cent CAGR from 2014-15 to 2020-21. This outpaced overall agricultural growth.
• Share of agricultural GVA: rose from 24.3 per cent to 30.1 per cent over the same period. One rupee in three of agricultural output comes from livestock.
• Employment: 8.8 per cent of India's total population is employed in livestock-related activities.
• Small farmer income: livestock contributes 16 per cent to small farm household income, providing a crucial income buffer in bad crop years.
• Gender: 75 per cent of those engaged in livestock farming are women, though they typically have less formal ownership of animals.
• Insurance gap: only 6 per cent of India's livestock is insured. Disease and natural disaster losses are therefore devastating for small holders.
• Key schemes: Rashtriya Gokul Mission (indigenous bovine conservation), National Animal Disease Control Programme (NADCP, foot-and-mouth disease and brucellosis), Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF) and National Livestock Mission (NLM).
• Emissions: livestock accounts for 63.4 per cent of India's agricultural sector greenhouse gas emissions (methane from enteric fermentation and manure management).

Static linkage: agriculture, rural economy, government schemes.

GS area: Geography, Environment, Defence

The Galathea Bay Wildlife Sanctuary in Great Nicobar Island was denotified to enable the Rs 72,000 crore development project:

• Project components: a transhipment port (Rs 35,000 crore), a military-civil dual-use airport, a township and a power plant. The project is implemented by the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation (ANIIDCO).
• Strategic location: Great Nicobar is the southernmost island of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago, near the Malacca Strait. Control of this location allows India to monitor one of the world's busiest shipping lanes.
• Conservation concern: Galathea Bay was originally designated CRZ-1A (the most restricted zone) due to its ecological sensitivity. Leatherback sea turtles nest on its beaches. These are the largest sea turtles and are classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List.
• Tribal populations: Shompen (a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group) and Nicobarese communities live on Great Nicobar. Development affects their traditional territories.
• Denotification: a wildlife sanctuary can be denotified only by the state legislature under Section 26A of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972. The Centre processed the denotification.

Static linkage: Andaman and Nicobar geography, maritime strategy, biodiversity.

• Panama Canal: the Canal relies on freshwater from Lake Gatun for lock operation. Persistent drought in 2023-24 reduced lake levels to critical points. Ship capacity was reduced and waiting times grew. The Canal handles about 5 per cent of world trade. Its vulnerability to climate-driven drought raises questions about global supply chain resilience.
• NIRF Rankings 2024: IIT Madras ranked first overall and in engineering. IISc Bengaluru topped the universities and research categories. IIM Ahmedabad led in management. AIIMS New Delhi topped the medical category. Hindu College, Delhi topped colleges. The ranking framework uses five parameters: Teaching-Learning, Research and Professional Practice, Graduation Outcomes, Outreach and Inclusivity, and Perception.
• Senior Advocates: the Supreme Court designated 39 lawyers as senior advocates, including 10 women. Designation follows a point-based evaluation system introduced in 2018, assessing reported judgments and peer evaluation. The 2023 revised guidelines reduced weightage for media publications.