21 December 2024

• Polity: The Winter Session of Parliament (concluding 20 December 2024) closed with only one Bill passed, the lowest output in six Lok Sabha terms.
• Economy: ADB approved a 350-million-dollar loan to India for the SMILE logistics programme, targeting supply chain modernisation.
• Diplomacy: PM Modi visited Kuwait, the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister in 43 years.
• Environment: IPBES published its Nexus Report linking biodiversity, water, food, health and climate change.

GS area: Polity

The Winter Session of Parliament concluded on 20 December 2024 (originally scheduled to 20 December).

• Bills passed: Only the Bharatiya Vayuyan Vidheyak 2024 (Aviation Bill). This replaces the Aircraft Act, 1934. It grants statutory status to the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and creates an independent accident investigation board.
• Productivity figures: Lok Sabha functioned at 52 per cent of scheduled time; Rajya Sabha at 39 per cent.
• Question Hour: Non-functional on 15 of 19 Rajya Sabha days and 12 of 20 Lok Sabha days.
• Deputy Speaker vacancy: The post has been vacant since 2019. Article 93 requires Lok Sabha to elect a Deputy Speaker "as soon as may be."
• Disruptions: The opposition protested on issues including the George Soros-Adani link allegations and demands for a Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Adani Group.
• Historical comparison: Parliaments before 1990 routinely passed 60 to 80 Bills per session.

Static linkage: Polity (Parliament, legislative functioning, deputy speaker).

GS area: Economy, Governance

The Asian Development Bank approved a 350-million-dollar policy-based loan for India's SMILE (Strengthening Multimodal and Integrated Logistics Ecosystem) programme.

• Ministry: Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce.
• Objectives: Enhance logistics efficiency, reduce logistics costs, expand manufacturing, and build supply chain resilience.
• Current logistics cost: About 14 per cent of GDP in India, compared to 8 per cent in advanced economies. Reducing it by 2 to 3 percentage points is a major government target.
• PM Gati Shakti: The overarching national master plan for multimodal infrastructure. SMILE supports the logistics dimension.
• ADB background: Asian Development Bank. Headquarters: Mandaluyong, Metro Manila, Philippines. Established 19 December 1966. 69 member countries. Japan and the US are the largest shareholders at 15.57 per cent each. India's share: 6.32 per cent.

Static linkage: Economy (logistics, ADB, PM Gati Shakti), governance.

GS area: International Relations

PM Narendra Modi visited Kuwait on 21-22 December 2024, the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister since Indira Gandhi visited in 1981.

• Kuwait geography: Northern Arabian Peninsula. Bordered by Iraq to the north and Saudi Arabia to the south. Maritime border with Iran in the Persian Gulf. Capital: Kuwait City.
• India-Kuwait ties:
  • About 1 million Indians work in Kuwait, making India the largest source of expatriate labour.
  • Kuwait is a major crude oil supplier to India. India imports about 10 per cent of its crude from Kuwait.
  • Bilateral trade: About 10 billion dollars annually.
• Agenda: Energy security, labour welfare, investment and defence cooperation.
• Kuwait Neutrality: Kuwait has traditionally maintained balanced ties with Iran, Saudi Arabia and Western nations. It has been part of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) since 1981.
• Indian community: The visit included interaction with the Indian diaspora. Kuwait has strict rules on expatriate worker rights; PM Modi raised welfare concerns.

Static linkage: International relations (Gulf, India-Kuwait, energy security, diaspora).

GS area: Environment, Science and Technology

The Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) released its landmark Nexus Report.

• Focus: The interconnections among biodiversity, water, food, health and climate change. These are treated as a nexus (interlinked system) rather than separate policy domains.
• Key finding: Over 60 response options can simultaneously address multiple sustainability crises rather than solving each in isolation.
• IPBES background: Established on 21 April 2012 by 94 governments. Headquarters: Bonn, Germany. Functions as the biodiversity equivalent of the IPCC.
• India: Member of IPBES. India's biodiversity data underpins several IPBES assessments.
• Five Nexus elements: Biodiversity loss drives water insecurity (watersheds), food insecurity (pollination loss) and health crises (zoonotic disease emergence). Climate change accelerates all four losses. The report documents these reinforcing feedbacks.

Static linkage: Environment (IPBES, biodiversity, nexus governance).

GS area: Environment, Science and Technology

The United States Agriculture Department confirmed the successful eradication of the Northern Giant Hornet from the continental US.

• Scientific name: Vespa mandarinia.
• Common name: Northern Giant Hornet or "Murder Hornet" (a popular media term).
• Size: Up to 2 inches (5 cm) long. World's largest hornet.
• Venom: Seven times more potent than a European honeybee sting.
• Threat: A small scout team of giant hornets can destroy an entire European honeybee colony in 90 minutes by decapitating worker bees.
• Detection in US: First confirmed in 2019 in Washington State (near British Columbia, Canada).
• Eradication method: Tracking hornets to nests using radio tags and destroying nests before they produce new queens.
• Native range: Japan, South Korea, China, Taiwan, Southeast Asia. Not native to India.
• UPSC relevance: Invasive species questions appear regularly. The mechanism and success of eradication is notable.

Static linkage: Environment (invasive species, biodiversity, pollinators).

GS area: Polity, Internal Security

The Protected Area Permit system governing foreigner access to certain border states entered the news in December 2024.

• PAP states: Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, and parts of Sikkim.
• Legal basis: Foreigners (Protected Areas) Order, 1958, issued under the Foreigners Act, 1946.
• Authority: Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
• Requirements: Foreign nationals must travel in groups of at least two; follow specified routes; register with local authorities within 24 hours of arrival.
• Rationale: These states border sensitive international boundaries (China, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Bhutan). The permit system supplements the Inner Line Permit (ILP) system for Indian nationals.
• ILP vs PAP: Inner Line Permit restricts Indian citizens (non-residents) from entering certain Northeast states (Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur). PAP applies to foreign nationals.

Static linkage: Polity (internal security, Northeast India, MHA, Foreigners Act).

• Bordoibam-Bilmukh Bird Sanctuary: Located in Dhemaji and Lakhimpur districts, Assam. Established in 1996, covering 11.25 sq km. A 27-year study found 72 per cent decline in bird species. Notable species: Spot-billed Pelican and Lesser Adjutant stork.
• Caucasus Mountains: Extends across Russia, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. Highest peak: Mount Elbrus (5,642 metres, Europe's highest peak). The range serves as a conventional Asia-Europe boundary.