What do you understand by Chhattisgarh model for disposal of agri-waste? Explain how it offers a solution to the pollution crisis.

Introduction:    

The pollution caused by burning of Parali (stubble or crop residue) is a unprecedented crisis which has held New Delhi and its citizens to a ransom.  The agri-waste burning has not only choked Delhi or there is a 50 per cent rise in respiratory illnesses, be it COPD or asthma cases, in the National Capital Region (NCR) area, but also there is a loss of soil fertility and there is a rise in incidents of cancer in Punjab and Haryana. Parali can be mixed with cow dung and few natural enzymes under MGNREGA to generate high-grade compost, and also reduce air pollution in North India.

Body:

Air pollution crisis in NCR:

Farmers in Haryana and Punjab burn up to 35 million tonnes of parali, which is responsible for significant percentage of Delhi-NCR’s air pollution levels.

One study estimates that crop residue burning released 149 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, nine million tonnes of carbon monoxide, 0.25 million tonnes of sulphur oxides and 1.28 million tonnes of particulate matter.

Chhattisgarh model for disposal of agri-waste:

In Chhattisgarh, we have already undertaken this innovative experiment by setting up gauthans.

A gauthan is a dedicated five-acre plot, held in common by each village, where all the unused parali (paira in Chhattisgarhi) is collected through parali daan (people’s donations) and is converted into organic fertiliser by rural youth.

This provides them a living.

It involves an integrated regenerative rural development model of narwa (rivulet regeneration), garuwa (cattle conservation), ghuruwa (composting) and baari (kitchen garden) through a participatory process using MGNREGA.

Role of state Government in the initiative:

Farmers cannot do this alone as it involves capital expenditure.

In Chhattisgarh, the government supports only the transportation of Parali from the farm to the nearest gauthan.

The state has successfully developed 2,000 gauthans.

Importance of recycling in Agriculture:

Agriculture is a regenerative process, one which recycles.

What we need is to utilise every product in the process and return it to the soil in one form or another.

From 35 million tonnes of parali, we can obtain 21 million tonnes of high-grade organic fertiliser.

The total amount of nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium and sulphur in the 23 million tonnes of parali annually burnt in Northwest India is about seven lakh tonnes, valued at Rs 1,000 crore.

This apart, organic carbon is also destroyed during stubble burning.

Thus, parali offers an important source for meeting the nutrient requirements of crops and improving soil health.

These nutrients also reduce the risk of cancers in Punjab by reducing the levels of carcinogens in soil.

Way forward:

Supreme Court could constitute a committee consisting of economists, agricultural experts, farmer delegates and bureaucrats to evaluate the parali burning crisis and explore the possibilities of expanding schemes like the MGNREGA to harvesting and composting.

The state needs to step in and engage already-existing mechanisms like the MGNREGA for this purpose.

To do this, the Centre needs to allow states to include activities like harvesting and composting in MGNREGA. This has been a longstanding demand of many states.

Conclusion:

A collective intervention using traditional wisdom and local resources and facilitated by sound administrative support can upturn this national problem.

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SC Rejects Plea for 100% EVM-VVPAT Verification - UPSC / IAS - OnlineEdge

Terms PIL petition a ‘nuisance’

The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a writ petition for 100% random physical verification of EVM-VVPAT in the Lok Sabha polls of 2019.

The court said that there were just two days left before counting and the country should be allowed to choose its government. The court would not stand in the way. Dubbing the public interest litigation filed by a collective of technocrats called ‘Tech4All’ a “nuisance”, the Vacation Bench of Justices Arun Mishra and M.R. Shah junked the PIL in a brief hearing.

The Bench pointed out that all the seven phases of polling were over and the country was looking forward to form a new government on May 23. The PIL was ill-timed and would only disrupt the electoral process which was on its last spring to the finish line, it noted.

The PIL had cited the recent allegations of changing the EVMs even as the Election Commission of India has strongly denied them.

The PIL said the Supreme Court’s order in April to raise the physical verification of votes using Voter-Verified Paper Audit Trail (EVM-VVPATs) from one EVM to five EVMs per Assembly segment was not enough of a safeguard from tampering. There was a need for 100% physical counting for foolproof poll results on May 23, it said. On May 7, a Supreme Court Bench, led by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, had dismissed a plea by 21 Opposition parties to review its April judgment.

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Comptroller and Auditor General Rajiv Mehrishi has become the Vice-Chair of the UN Panel of Auditors.

About UN Panel of Auditors:

The United Nations Panel of Auditors consists of External Auditors of the United Nations and its agencies.

The United Nations General Assembly in 1959 established the Panel of External Auditors, comprising the individual external auditors of the United Nations system, who are also Heads of Supreme Audit Institutions.

Presently, the panel consists of 11 countries — India, Germany, Chile, Canada, France, Italy, Philippines, Ghana, Indonesia, Switzerland and United Kingdom. Currently, the panel is chaired by the Comptroller and Auditor General of the UK.


Functions of the Panel of External Auditors:

Panel Members share experiences and methodologies so as to ensure uniformity of external audit practices throughout the United Nations system.

Panel Members provide independent assurance to Member States and other stakeholders in relation to the proper use of the Organizations’ resources as well as their economic, efficient and effective use.
They also play a significant role in assisting the Organizations to improve their operations and their internal control activities.

The findings and recommendations of Panel Members are taken seriously, and the status of recommendations is closely monitored to ensure timely and effective implementation.

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Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) - OnlineEdge

Context: Qatar has announced that it would leave OPEC on January 1, 2019. The decision comes just days before OPEC and its allies are scheduled to hold a meeting in Vienna, Austria. Qatar said it is leaving OPEC in order to focus on gas production.

What’s the issue?

The decision to pull out after more than five decades comes at a turbulent time in Gulf politics, with Doha under a boycott by former neighboring allies including Saudi Arabia for 18 months.

Since June 2017, OPEC kingpin Saudi Arabia — along with three other Arab states — has cut trade and transport ties with Qatar, accusing the country of supporting terrorism and its regional rival Iran. Qatar denies the claims, saying the boycott hampers its national sovereignty.

Background:

Qatar’s oil production is around 600,000 barrels per day, making it the world’s 17th largest producer of crude. It also only holds around two percent of the world’s global oil reserves.

About OPEC:

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is a group of oil-producing nations that was first established in Baghdad, Iraq, in 1961. OPEC is one of the most powerful international organizations in the world and was a major player in the shift towards state control over natural resources.

Membership:

The OPEC Statute distinguishes between the Founder Members and Full Members – those countries whose applications for membership have been accepted by the Conference.

The Statute stipulates that “any country with a substantial net export of crude petroleum, which has fundamentally similar interests to those of Member Countries, may become a Full Member of the Organization, if accepted by a majority of three-fourths of Full Members, including the concurring votes of all Founder Members.

The Statute further provides for Associate Members which are those countries that do not qualify for full membership, but are nevertheless admitted under such special conditions as may be prescribed by the Conference.

Currently, the Organization has a total of 15 Member Countries. The current OPEC members are the following: Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, the Republic of the Congo, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela.

Indonesians a former member, and Qatar will no longer be the member of OPEC starting on 1 January 2019.

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Role of WCO in Global Market and Emerging Challenges - OnlineEdge

Context: 80th Session of the Policy Commission of the World Customs Organization (WCO) was held recently in Mumbai. The Session was organized by the WCO and hosted by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC).

About WCO:

The World Customs Organization (WCO), established in 1952 as the Customs Co-operation Council (CCC) is an independent intergovernmental body whose mission is to enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of Customs administrations.

As the global centre of Customs expertise, the WCO is the only international organization with competence in Customs matters and can rightly call itself the voice of the international Customs community.

The WCO has divided its Membership into six Regions. Each of the six Regions is represented by a regionally elected Vice-Chairperson to the WCO Council.

 

Roles and Functions:

As a forum for dialogue and exchange of experiences between national Customs delegates, the WCO offers its Members a range of Conventions and other international instruments, as well as technical assistance and training services.

Besides the vital role played by the WCO in stimulating the growth of legitimate international trade, its efforts to combat fraudulent activities are also recognized internationally.

WCO has also been responsible for administering the World Trade Organization’s Agreements on Customs Valuation, which provide a system for placing values on imported goods, and the Rules of Origin, which are used to determine the origin of a given commodity.

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UPSC Current Affairs & Essay Writing Strategy & Guidance By Ojaank Shukla

Video Session for UPSC Current Affairs & Essay Writing Exams Strategy & Guidance By Ojaank Shukla Sir.

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Current Affairs Class | करंट अफेयर्स by Ojaank Shukla | Hindi Medium | UPSC/ IAS |

Today, Mr. Ojaank Shukla will be discussing the strategy to cover Current Affairs for UPSC 2019. Current Affairs is very important for an IAS aspirant and quite frequently, many questions have been asked from current affairs. In order to keep yourself updated on the current affairs, listen to the strategy provided by Mr. Ojaank Shukla. In this course, Ojaank Shukla will comprehensively cover entire Indian Art & Culture and elaborately explain topics, which will be helpful in UPSC Civil Services Prelims and Mains Examinations.

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