21 November 2024

• International: The G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro adopted the Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty. Brazil's theme: "Building a Just World and a Sustainable Planet."
• Polity: 75.8 per cent of India's prison population are undertrials. BNSS amendments allow bail after serving one-third of maximum sentence for first-time offenders.
• Education: PM Vidyalaxmi scheme provides collateral-free education loans to 22 lakh students annually at NIRF-ranked institutions.
• Governance: The "Bhu-Neer" portal launched for groundwater permit management. "Waves" OTT platform launched by Prasar Bharati.

GS area: International Relations, Economy

The G20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro produced outcomes on hunger, climate and development.

• Theme: "Building a Just World and a Sustainable Planet."
• Troika 2024: India (2023), Brazil (2024), South Africa (2025). The troika arrangement ensures continuity across presidencies.
• Global Alliance Against Hunger and Poverty: A new multi-country initiative to coordinate anti-hunger programmes. 81 countries and 26 organisations joined at launch.
• Key outcomes:
  • Task Force on Climate Change (TF-CLIMA) for climate action coordination.
  • Tropical Forest Forever Facility for forest conservation financing.
  • G20 Bioeconomy Initiative.
  • Energy Transition Principles to guide fossil fuel phasedown.
  • Pandemic preparedness financing commitments.
  • Multilateral Development Bank reform progress.
  • AI Governance Framework endorsed.

Static linkage: G20, international institutions, climate finance.

GS area: Polity, Social Justice

India's prison population is dominated by undertrials who have not been convicted.

• Undertrial share: 75.8 per cent of India's prison population of 573,220 (2022 NCRB data). That is 434,302 undertrials.
• Women undertrials: 76.33 per cent of incarcerated women are undertrials.
• BNSS modification: The Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (successor to CrPC) allows first-time offenders to apply for bail after serving one-third of the maximum sentence for their offence.
• Key SC judgments:
  • Hussainara Khatoon v. Bihar (1979): Established the right to speedy trial as part of Article 21.
  • Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI (2023): Directed courts to consider bail liberally, especially for offences with low maximum sentences.
• Root causes: Delays in trial; inadequate legal aid; cash bail requirements that poor defendants cannot meet.

Static linkage: Criminal justice, prisons, fundamental rights.

GS area: Government Schemes, Education

The PM Vidyalaxmi scheme was financed with a fresh allocation for 2024-2031.

• Allocation: 3,600 crore rupees for 2024 to 2031.
• Target: 22 lakh students per year.
• Eligibility: Students admitted to 860 NIRF-ranked institutions.
• Loan features: Collateral-free, guarantor-free. 75 per cent government credit guarantee on loans up to 7.5 lakh rupees. 3 per cent interest subvention for families earning up to 8 lakh rupees.
• Implementation: Ministry of Education through scheduled commercial banks.
• Gap it fills: Student loan rejection rates are high for students without collateral. This scheme removes that barrier for merit-based admissions.

Static linkage: Education policy, government schemes, financial inclusion.

GS area: Governance, Media

Prasar Bharati launched the "Waves" OTT platform.

• Content: 12-plus Indian languages. 65 live TV channels including DD and AIR.
• BharatNet integration: Designed to use BharatNet broadband infrastructure to reach rural viewers.
• Creator support: Open to Indian content creators to upload original content.
• Prasar Bharati: India's public broadcaster. Established under the Prasar Bharati Act, 1990. Oversees Doordarshan (DD) and All India Radio (AIR).
• Context: The government launched Waves to provide a domestic OTT option, especially for content in Indian languages that is underserved by commercial platforms.

Static linkage: Media, digital India, Prasar Bharati.

GS area: Environment, Governance

The Central Ground Water Authority launched the Bhu-Neer portal for groundwater permit management.

• Developer: Central Ground Water Authority with the National Informatics Centre.
• Features: PAN-based single identity for applicants. NOC with QR code for easy verification. Centralised database of permits. Faceless processing (no physical appearance required).
• Central Ground Water Authority: A statutory body under the Environment Protection Act, 1986. Regulates groundwater extraction at the national level.
• Why it matters: Over-extraction of groundwater is a critical problem. More than 60 per cent of India's agriculture depends on groundwater. Regulation is essential to prevent aquifer depletion.

Static linkage: Water resources, environmental governance, e-governance.

• AI Data Bank: Launched by the Ministry of Science and Technology at the ASSOCHAM AI Leadership Meet 2024. Provides high-quality datasets for researchers, startups and developers, targeting applications in national security, disaster management and public services.
• St. Francis Xavier: Called "Goencho Saib" (Lord of Goa). Spanish Jesuit missionary who arrived in Goa in 1542. Died in 1552 on Shangchuan Island off China. Canonised in 1622. His relics are in the Basilica of Bom Jesus, Old Goa (since 1624). The relics are exposed to public view approximately every 10 years.
• Salt chimneys of the Dead Sea: Formed when hypersaline brine upwells through the lake bed, depositing halite (salt) crystals. Height: 1 to 7 metres. Growth rate: several centimetres daily. The Dead Sea is 430.5 metres below sea level, the lowest land-based elevation on Earth. Salinity: about 34 per cent.