1 September 2024

• Economy: The GST Council's 54th meeting decisions came into effect, reducing cancer drug rates from 12 per cent to 5 per cent.
• Space: ISRO's announcements about the Bharatiya Antariksh Station roadmap continued to draw attention as the September 2024 Cabinet approvals approached.
• Environment: September began with the Global Methane Pledge debate; India's position outside the pledge remained a policy reference point.
• Polity: The 23rd Law Commission was notified from September 1, 2024, with a three-year mandate through August 2027.

GS area: Polity, Governance

The 23rd Law Commission of India was formally notified on 2 September 2024, covering the period 1 September 2024 through 31 August 2027. The commission is the government's permanent advisory body on law reform. Key facts:

• Non-statutory status: The Law Commission is not established by statute. It is constituted by an executive order under the Ministry of Law and Justice. Its recommendations are advisory and not binding on the legislature.
• First commission: The first Law Commission of independent India was set up in 1955 under M.C. Setalvad. Colonial-era commissions date to 1834.
• Three-year term: Each commission runs for a fixed three-year period. The 23rd commission's term runs September 2024 through August 2027.
• Mandate: The commission reviews laws that align with Directive Principles of State Policy and the constitutional Preamble. It also examines the impact of globalization on food security and unemployment, and proposes judicial administration reforms to reduce delays.
• Historical note: India currently has about 5 crore pending cases across courts. The Commission's reform recommendations directly target this backlog.

Static linkage: Union government and Parliament (Polity), DPSP (Article 39-51).

GS area: Economy (taxation)

The 54th GST Council meeting, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, took decisions that reshaped tax rates in two areas directly relevant to public welfare. The decisions took effect from 1 September 2024:

• Cancer drugs: GST on cancer medicines reduced from 12 per cent to 5 per cent. Three drugs named in media coverage were targeted. The reduction directly lowers the out-of-pocket cost for patients.
• Salty and savoury foods: GST on certain namkeen-type food items reduced from 18 per cent to 12 per cent.
• GST Council structure: The Council is a constitutional body under Article 279A inserted by the 101st Constitutional Amendment (2016). It is chaired by the Union Finance Minister and includes state finance ministers. Its recommendations carry strong persuasive weight but require legislative implementation at the Union and state levels.
• Threshold context: India's GST has four primary slabs: 5, 12, 18 and 28 per cent, with a cess on luxury and sin goods over and above the 28 per cent slab.

Static linkage: Goods and Services Tax (Economy), Article 279A (Polity).

GS area: Environment and Ecology

Methane returned to policy headlines as September 2024 opened, with the International Energy Agency noting that global energy-sector methane emissions remained near record highs at approximately 120 million tonnes in 2023.

• Potency: Methane traps 84 times more heat than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period. Its atmospheric lifetime is around 12 years, which is far shorter than CO2. That short lifetime means that cutting methane yields faster climate benefits.
• Share of warming: Methane accounts for roughly one-third of observed warming since the Industrial Revolution.
• Top emitters by sector: The United States leads in oil and gas methane; Russia is second. China holds the highest emissions in the coal sector.
• Global Methane Pledge: Launched at COP26 (2021), the pledge targets a 30 per cent cut in methane emissions from 2020 levels by 2030. India is not a signatory.
• India's approach: India addresses methane through the GobarDhan scheme (converting cattle waste to biogas) and the National Biogas Programme. It treats these as development priorities rather than committing to the global pledge's specific targets.
• MethaneSAT: A satellite launched by the Environmental Defense Fund in 2024 to monitor methane from oil and gas fields globally. The 2030 target requires a 75 per cent reduction and an estimated $170 billion investment.

Static linkage: Climate change and India's commitments (Environment), COP framework.

GS area: Governance, Security

The Defence Ministry's Project NAMAN provides support to defence pensioners, veterans and their families through a network of Common Service Centres run by veterans themselves. Key features:

• SPARSH integration: SPARSH (System for Pension Administration Raksha) is the digital pension disbursement platform that Project NAMAN operates within. It processes defence pensions directly into bank accounts without intermediaries.
• HDFC Bank partnership: HDFC Bank provides banking services at NAMAN centres, enabling veterans in remote areas to access pension-related banking.
• Common Service Centres: Managed by veterans, these centres provide pension-related services across India, including in areas with limited banking infrastructure.
• Target group: The project serves defence pensioners, their widows and dependents.

Static linkage: Welfare of armed forces (GS Paper 3, Security), governance delivery models.

GS area: Economy (public sector)

The government granted Navratna status to four Central Public Sector Enterprises: SJVN (Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam), NHPC, RailTel and SECI (Solar Energy Corporation of India). This brought the total number of Navratna CPSEs to 25.

• What Navratna means: A Navratna CPSE receives enhanced financial and operational autonomy. It can invest up to Rs 1,000 crore per project or 15 per cent of its net worth (whichever is less) without government approval.
• Miniratna categories: Below Navratna sit Miniratna Category I and Category II, which have smaller investment thresholds. Above Navratna sit the Maharatna companies such as ONGC, SAIL, Coal India and NTPC.
• SECI significance: The Solar Energy Corporation of India is the nodal agency for large solar parks and the PM Kusum scheme. Its upgrade reflects the government's intent to give it more operational flexibility as renewable capacity scales.

Static linkage: Central public sector enterprises, government investment policy.

GS area: International Relations

India, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Mauritius signed a Memorandum of Understanding and charter to formally establish a secretariat for the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC). Key facts:

• Focus areas: Maritime safety, counter-terrorism, cyber security and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
• India's centrality: India is the founding and largest member. The Conclave has expanded from a trilateral (India-Sri Lanka-Maldives) to include Mauritius and Bangladesh as observer.
• Strategic context: The CSC serves as an Indian Ocean security architecture that India leads, complementing other forums such as IORA and the Quad.

Static linkage: India's maritime neighbourhood, Indian Ocean security.

• International Energy Agency (IEA): Headquartered in Paris, founded in 1974 with 31 member countries. The IEA's annual World Energy Outlook is a primary reference for global energy data used in UPSC context questions.
• Global Methane Pledge monitoring: The International Methane Emissions Observatory under the UN Environment Programme tracks national commitments. India's non-membership is a recurring exam observation.