Daily News Simplified -

DNS
06 08 20
Notes
SL. THE HINDU
TOPICS
NO. PAGE NO.

1 Centre formulating R&D policy to bolster drug discovery 15

2 Taking nuclear vulnerabilities seriously – Article 07

Title 3 EWS quota challenge

1. Centre referred
formulating R&Dtopolicy
Constitution Bench
to bolster 10- Pg 15)
drug discovery (The Hindu
Syllabus Prelims: General Science
4 Brus reject resettlement site offer 11
Mains: GS Paper III – Science & Technology; GS Paper II – Social Issues – Health
Theme New R&D Policy on drug discovery
5 The urban migrant and the ‘ritual’ tug of home – Lead Article 06
Highlights Context: The Indian Medical device Industry is a sunrise segment in healthcare space. The
production of medical Devices is a growing sector and its potential for growth is the highest
among all sectors in the healthcare market. It is presently valued at Rs. 50,000 crore and is
expected to reach to Rs. 86,000 crores by 2021-22. However, India depends on imports up
to an extent of 85% of total domestic demand of medical devices.
Hence, in order to achieve self-sufficiency and become major exporter of medical devices,
the Union Cabinet has approved the following schemes in March 2020:
 Promotion of Medical Device Parks
 Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme   for   promoting   domestic
manufacturing of medical devices.

Present Status of Medical Device Industry in India

The Indian healthcare Industry was valued at over $ 100 billion in 2016 and is expected to
reach
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$ 175 billion with CAGR of 20%.The medical device Industry was accorded the status of
independent Industry in 2014 when it was included as one of focus sectors of "Make in
India Program".
The Indian Medical device Industry is highly fragmented. Currently, this sector is dominated
by MNCs and with 80-85% of demand met through imports. Approximately, around 30% of
the domestically manufactured devices are exported, in which consumables and
disposables segment has the largest share.

Problems faced by Medical Devices:

 Lack of favorable policy and regulatory framework
 Unlike Pharmaceuticals, manufacturing of medical devices is dependent on a mix of
technologies such as engineering, electronics, material science and IT. Hence, India
has failed to emphasis on domestic manufacturing of medical devices.
 Medical Device sector in India suffers on account of lack of adequate infrastructure,
domestic supply chain and logistics, high cost of finance, inadequate availability of
quality power, limited design capabilities and low focus on R&D and skill
development, etc.
 
 Promotion of Medical Devices Parks
Aim: The Scheme aims to promote Medical Device Parks in the country in partnership with
the States.
Financial Assistance: A maximum grant-in-aid of Rs.100 crore per park will be provided to
the States.
Implementation agency: Implemented by a state Implementing Agency (SIA)
Target: Provide financial assistance for Common Infrastructure Facilities for 4 Medical
Device parks.
 
Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme
Aim: Boost domestic manufacturing by attracting large investments in medical device
sector.
Incentives provided: Under the Scheme, incentive @ 5% of incremental sales over base
year 2019-20 will be provided on the segments of medical devices identified under the
Scheme.
Implementation agency: Project Management Agency (PMA) to be nominated by
Department of Pharmaceuticals. 
Target: Provide assistance to about 25-30 manufacturers under the following categories of
medical devices: -
1. Cancer care/Radiotherapy medical devices,
2. Radiology & Imaging medical devices (both ionizing & non-ionizing   radiation
products) and Nuclear Imaging Devices,
3. Anesthetics & Cardio-Respiratory medical devices including Catheters of
Cardiorespiratory Category & Renal Care Medical Devices and
4. AII Implants including implantable electronic devices like Cochlear Implants and
Pacemakers
 
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Benefits of the Schemes

 Boost domestic manufacturing and attract large investments in the medical device
sector
 Setting up of Common Infrastructure Facilities in 4 Medical Device Parks is expected
to reduce manufacturing cost of medical devices.
 Generation of additional employment of 34,000 jobs over a period of five years.
 Substantial reduction in import of medical devices.

Personal
Notes

Title 2. Taking nuclear vulnerabilities seriously – Article (The Hindu - Pg 7)

Syllabus Prelims: Current events of international importance, General Science
Mains: GS Paper III – Security; GS Paper II – International Relations – Arms Race
Theme Nuclearisation and its probable future impact
Highlights Context: This article talks about the threats due to Nuclearisation of the world. It also
elucidates the vulnerabilities regarding current arguments in favour of the Nuclear arms. So
in this discussion we will understand: (Description)
o Two instances of use of Nuclear weapons so far (Prelims perspective)
o Current status of Nuclearisation across the globe
o Vulnerabilities regarding Nuclear weapons

Prelims Perspective
 There are only two instances of use of Nuclear weapons so far:
o On August 6, 1945 USA dropped a uranium gun-type bomb ("Little Boy")
on Hiroshima.
o Three days later USA dropped a plutonium implosion bomb ("Fat Man")
on Nagasaki.
 Impact
o Those two bombs killed over 2,00,000 people, some of them
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instantaneously, and others within five months.

o Another 2,00,000 people or more who survived the bombings of these two
cities, most of them injured, have been called the hibakusha.
o Because of the long-lasting effects of radiation exposure as well as the
mental trauma they underwent, the plight of these survivors has been
difficult.

While Hiroshima and Nagasaki have been the last two cities to be destroyed by nuclear
weapons, we cannot be sure that they will be the last.

So what is the current status of Nuclearisation across the globe?

 Countries:
o Since 1945, the United States, the Soviet Union/Russia, the United Kingdom,
France, China, Israel, India, Pakistan, and North Korea have armed
themselves with nuclear weapons that have much more destructive power in
comparison to those that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
 Numbers:
o Over 1,26,000 nuclear weapons have been built since the beginning of the
atomic age.
o Over 2,000 of them have been used in nuclear tests, above and below the
ground, to demonstrate their explosive power, causing grave and long-
lasting damage to the environment and public health.

But this damage is nothing compared to what might happen if some of the existing weapons
are used against civilian populations. An appreciation of the scale of the potential damage
and a realisation that nuclear weapons could be launched at any moment against any target
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around the world should instil a sense of vulnerability in all of us.

Vulnerabilities
 No real defence because of the speed and accuracy of delivery systems:
o There is no realistic way to protect ourselves against nuclear weapons,
whether they are used deliberately, inadvertently, or accidentally.
o The invention of ballistic missiles at the end of the 1950s, with their great
speed of delivery, has made it impossible to intercept nuclear weapons once
they are launched.
o Neither fallout shelters nor ballistic missile defence systems have succeeded
in negating this vulnerability.
o Nuclear weapon states are targets of other nuclear weapon states, of course,
but non-nuclear weapon states are vulnerable as well.
 The problems of deterrence:
o People think that nuclear deterrence is enough to prevent its use:
 The idea
 Nuclear weapons are so destructive that no country would
use them, because such use would invite retaliation in kind,
and no political leader would be willing to risk the possible
death of millions of their citizens.
 What the supporters of this idea claim?
 Nuclear weapons do not just protect countries against use of
nuclear weapons by others, but even prevent war and
promote stability.
o But, these claims are not correct:
 Countries with nuclear weapons have in fact gone to war quite often,
even with other countries with nuclear weapons, albeit in a limited
fashion or through proxies.
 Cold war events
 Conflicts between India and Pakistan, India and China.
 Crimea by Russia
 To the contrary, nuclear threats have often lead to escalation, as was
the case during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
 The illusion of Controllability of nuclear weapons
o In the real world, it is not possible for planners to have complete control.
o However, the desire to believe in the perfect controllability and safety of
nuclear weapons creates overconfidence, which is dangerous.
o Overconfidence, as many scholars studying safety will testify, is more likely
to lead to accidents and possibly to the use of nuclear weapons.

In several historical instances, what prevented the use of nuclear weapons was not control
practices but either their failure or factors outside institutional control. The most famous of
these cases is the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. There are likely many more cases during which
the world came close to nuclear war but because of the secrecy that surrounds nuclear
weapons, we might never know.
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Personal
Notes

Title 3. EWS quota challenge referred to Constitution Bench (The Hindu Page 10)
Syllabus Prelims: Polity & Governance
Mains: GS Paper II - Polity & Governance
Theme EWS Criteria judicially challenged

Highlights Context: The Supreme Court has referred to a five-judge Bench the matter of reservation
provided to Economically Weaker Sections (EWS).
Grounds of Challenge
 The primary question for the Constitution Bench to decide is whether “economic
backwardness” can be the sole criterion for granting quota in government jobs
and educational institutions for those who would otherwise have to compete in
the general category.
 The other “substantial question of law” is whether grant of 10% reservation to
economically weaker sections of the society is unconstitutional and violates the
50% ceiling cap on quota declared by the Supreme Court itself.

Centre’s View on granting 10 per cent reservation

 The Centre had argued that it was every State’s prerogative to provide 10 per cent
economic reservation in State government jobs and admissions in State-run
education institutions.
 So, whether or not to provide reservation to the economically weaker section
(EWS) of the society for appointment in State government jobs and for admission
to State government educational institutions, as per provisions of the newly
inserted Articles 15(6) and 16(6) of the Constitution, is to be decided by the State
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government concerned

Constitution (One Hundred and Third Amendment) Act, 2019

 The reservation of 10% will be over and above the existing 50 per cent reservation
enjoyed by the members of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and the Other
Backward Classes. This will take the total reservation to 60 per cent.
 The reservations intends to include such members who do not avail the benefits of
reservation, This includes members in the general category as well as members of
the minority communities including Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, Christian and other
communities who do not enjoy any kind of reservation.

Note* "Economically Weaker Sections" shall be notified by the State from time to time
on the basis of family income and other indicators of economic disadvantage.’

Ensuring fair opportunity

 The directive principles of State policy contained in Article 46 of the Constitution
mentions that the State shall promote with special care the educational and
economic interests of the weaker sections of the people, and, in particular, of the
Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. But, economically weaker sections
of citizens were not eligible for the benefit of reservation.
 Thus, the proposed amendment aims to ensure that economically weaker sections
of citizens get a fair chance of receiving higher education and participation in
employment in the services of the State. This will also fulfill the mandate of Article
46.

Amendment in Article 15
 The Act inserts a new provision – Article 15(6), whereby
(a) State can make any special provision for the advancement of any
“economically weaker sections of citizens”
(b) State can make any special provision for the advancement of any
“economically weaker sections of citizens” relate to their admission to
educational institutions including private educational institutions,
whether aided or unaided by the State.
(c) However, such reservation will not apply to minority educational
institutions.
(d) Reservation to such educational institutions would be in addition to the
existing reservations and subject to a maximum of 10 per cent.

Amendment in Article 16
 The Act amends Article 16 by inserting a new provision Article 16(6) where the
state may make any provision for the reservation of appointments or posts in
favour of any economically weaker sections of citizens in addition to the existing
reservation and subject to a maximum of ten per cent.

Personal
Notes
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Title 4. Brus reject resettlement site offer (The Hindu Page 11)
Syllabus Prelims: Human Geography, Polity & Governance
Mains: GS Paper II: Social Issues – Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections
Theme Resettlement of Bru Refugees in Tripura

Highlights Context: Three organisations representing the Bru community displaced from Mizoram
have rejected the sites proposed by the Joint Movement Committee (JMC), an umbrella
group of non-Brus in Tripura, for their resettlement. Let us understand the issue of
resettlement of Bru Refugees in Tripura.
The issue highlighted in the news
 The Mizoram Bru Displaced Peoples’ Forum, Mizoram Bru Displaced Peoples’
Coordination Committee and Bru Displaced Welfare Committee have also trashed
the demand for inclusion of four JMC members in the monitoring team for the
resettlement of the Brus.
 The JMC comprising the Bengali, Mizo, Buddhist Barua and other communities had
on July 21 submitted a memorandum to the Tripura government specifying six
places in Kanchanpur and Panisagar subdivisions of North Tripura district for the
resettlement of the Brus who fled ethnic violence in Mizoram since 1997. The JMC
also proposed settling 500 families at most in these places.

About Bru Refugees

 The Brus are spread across Tripura, Mizoram and parts of southern Assam are the
most populous tribe in Tripura.
 Also known as Reangs in the state, they are ethnically different from the Mizos,
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with their own distinct language and dialect and form one of the 21 scheduled
tribes of Tripura. In Mizoram, they are largely restricted to Mamit and Kolasib
districts.
 Over two decades ago, they were targeted by the Young Mizo Association (YMA),
Mizo Zirwlai Pawl (MZP), and a few ethnic social organisations of Mizoram who
demanded that the Bru be excluded from electoral rolls in the state. 
 In 1997, following ethnic tension, around 5,000 families comprising around 30,000
Bru-Reang tribals were forced to flee Mizoram and seek shelter in Tripura. These
people were housed in temporary camps at Kanchanpur, in North Tripura.
 Since then, over 5,000 have returned to Mizoram in nine phases of repatriation,
while 32,000 people from 5,400 families still live in six relief camps in North
Tripura.
 Since 2010, Government of India has been making sustained efforts to
permanently rehabilitate these refugees. The Union government has been
assisting the two State governments for taking the care of the refugees. Till 2014,
1622 Bru-Reang families returned to Mizoram in different batches. 
 On 3rd July, 2018, an agreement was signed between the Union government, the
two State governments and representatives of Bru-Reang refugees, as a result of
which the aid given to these families was increased substantially.
 Subsequently, 328 families comprising of 1369 individuals returned to Mizoram
under the agreement. There had been a sustained demand of most Bru-Reang
families that they may be allowed to settle down in Tripura, considering their
apprehensions about their security.
 In Tripura, they are recognised as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG). 

Settlement of Bru Refugees in Tripura

 Under the new agreement, around 34,000 Bru refugees will be settled in Tripura
and would be given aid from the Centre to help with their rehabilitation and all
round development, through a package of around Rs 600 crores.
 These refugees will get all the rights that normal residents of the States get and
they would now be able to enjoy the benefits of social welfare schemes of Centre
and State governments. 
 Under the new arrangement, each of the displaced families would be given 40x30
sq.ft. residential plots, in addition to the aid under earlier agreement of a fixed
deposit of Rs. 4 lakhs, Rs. 5,000 cash aid per month for 2 years, free ration for 2
years and Rs. 1.5 lakhs aid to build their house. The government of Tripura would
provide the land under this agreement.
 All cash assistance will be through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), and the state
government will expedite the opening of bank accounts and the issuance
of Aadhaar, permanent residence certificates, ST certificates, and voter identity
cards to the beneficiaries.

How did the Agreement happen?

 In June 2018, Bru leaders signed an agreement in Delhi with the Centre and the
two state governments, providing for repatriation to Mizoram. Most residents of
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the camps, however, rejected the “insufficient” terms of the agreement.

 Only 328 families returned to Mizoram, rendering the process redundant. The
camp residents said the package did not guarantee their safety in Mizoram, and
that they feared a repeat of the violence that had forced them to flee.
 On November 16, 2019, Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, scion of Tripura’s erstwhile
royal family, wrote to Home Minister Amit Shah seeking the resettlement of the
Bru in the state which was also supported by Chief Minister of Tripura.

When will the settlement take place?

 Physical verification to identify beneficiaries will be carried out within 15 days of
the signing of the deal. The land for resettlement will be identified within 60 days,
and the land for allotment will be identified within 150 days.
 The beneficiaries will get housing assistance, but the state government will build
their homes and hand over possession.
 They will be moved to resettlement locations in four clusters, paving the way for
the closure of the temporary camps within 180 days of the signing of the
agreement.
 All dwelling houses will be constructed and payments completed within 270 days.

Personal
Notes
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Title 5. The urban migrant and the ‘ritual’ tug of home (The Hindu Page 16)
Syllabus Mains: GS Paper III: Economy, GS Paper II: Social Issue, Governance

Theme Migration during COVID-19

Highlights Context: The article focuses in the issue of Migration that happened during the lockdown
in the background of COVID-19 Pandemic. It is argued that the migration happened not
because of the economic crisis but because of the fear of dying alone and with nobody to
perform the last rites.
 
So mainly the article provides arguments in favour of this hypothesis.
 
Unemployment is a part of life for urban migrant labourer
 The Indian labouring classes are much less rattled by joblessness
 
 It is because 93% of our economy is informal.

 the Industrial Disputes Act further encourages  trend.

 It mandates employers to pay severance wages, and other benefits, only if workers
are hired, and on the rolls, continuously for over 248 days.

 This law has had the unintended consequence of making it attractive for
management to periodically hire and fire labour . As a result, only a minuscule
minority stays employed for long.

Industrial opportunity vs the family glue

 When faced with a threat the attraction towards family is stronger than the
opportunity provided by the industry to the migrant labourer.
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 In Surat in 1979, when there was a widespread fear that a satellite was going to fall
smack in the city centre, causing untold deaths, a large number of migrants there
left for their villages.

 Again, in Surat, in 1994, the plague scare prompted over 6,00,000 to leave their
work

 In both these instances, jobs were not threatened, but there was this perceived
fear of death.

 On the other hand, when demonetisation happened in 2016, only a few migrant
workers left because this distress was primarily economic, without a threat to life.

 During COVID 19 men without families went home because they did not want to
die alone.

 So the argument is that unemployment does not send migrant workers to their
villages because their families there are in no position to help them financially.

Rituals and customs in different communities

 Among Muslims, washing of the body as well as the lowering of the shrouded
corpse are important aspects of death rituals and ought to be performed by the
immediate family

 among Hindus, male blood kin alone can perform the pind daan and the ritual
erasure of debts, or (rin), of the dead relative.

 If these, and other rules, are not followed correctly, the soul of the dead person
would keep wandering

 Why less number of Woman migrated

 Women  form 55%  of rural migrants to urban India

 But only few of them started moving back home during the lockdown.

 It was because arranged marriages have brought most of them to the city, not the
job prospect.

 Thus women stay with their families in the urban areas and it is the single rural
men who work as migrant labourers who migrate during threats back to their
villages.

When urban workers rush to their rural homes, it is because they fear a death where
nobody prays for them more than a life where nobody pays them.

Personal
Notes
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