Essential key terms from the last week’s news categorised as per the relevance in the UPSC-CSE syllabus. Solve the MCQs below. Articles 64, 66, 65 and 71 Why in news? —The opposition on Sunday (July 17) named former Governor and former union minister Margaret Alva as its candidate for Vice President. Meanwhile, the NDA has announced West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar as its candidate for the post. —The Vice Presidential election is scheduled for August 6, and July 19 was the last date for filing nominations. Key takeaways Office of the Vice President —Article 63 of the Constitution states that “there shall be a Vice-President of India”. Under —Article 64 states that the Vice-President “shall be ex officio Chairman of the Council of the States” (Rajya Sabha). —Article 65 says that “in the event of the occurrence of any vacancy in the office of the President by reason of his death, resignation or removal, or otherwise, the Vice-President shall act as President until the date on which a new President…enters upon his office”. —The Vice-President shall also discharge the functions of the President when the latter is unable to do so “owing to absence, illness or any other cause”. —During this period, the Vice-President shall “have all the powers and immunities of the President and be entitled to… (the) emoluments, allowances and privileges” that are due to the President. The office of the Vice-President of India is the second-highest constitutional office after that of the President, and ranks second in the order of precedence. Election of the Vice-President —Article 66 lays down the process of the election of the Vice-President. —The Vice-President “shall be elected by the members of an electoral college consisting of the members of both Houses of Parliament in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote and the voting at such election shall be by secret ballot”. —Under the Constitution, the Vice-President “shall not be a member of either House of Parliament or of a House of the Legislature of any State”. If a member of any of these Houses is elected to the post, “he shall be deemed to have vacated his seat in that House on the date on which he enters upon his office as Vice-President”. Eligibility and term of office —Article 66(3) says “No person shall be eligible for election as Vice-President unless he — (a) is a citizen of India; (b) has completed the age of thirty-five years; and (c) is qualified for election as a member of the Council of States”. —Under Article 66(4), “A person shall not be eligible for election as Vice-President if he holds any office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any State or under any local or other authority subject to the control of any of the said Governments.” —Article 67 lays down that the “Vice-President shall hold office for a term of five years from the date on which he enters upon his office”. However, the Vice-President “shall, notwithstanding the expiration of his term, continue to hold office until his successor enters upon his office”. —The Vice-President may leave office before the end of his term by resigning to the President, or he “may be removed…by a resolution of the Council of States passed by a majority of all the then members of the Council and agreed to by the House of the People”. In case of disputed elections —Article 71 of the Constitution deals with “Matters relating to, or connected with, the election of a President or Vice-President”. It says that “all doubts and disputes arising out of or in connection with the election of a President or Vice-President shall be inquired into and decided by the Supreme Court whose decision shall be final”. —Should the Supreme Court declare the election of the President or Vice-President void, however, “acts done by him in the exercise and performance of the powers and duties of the office of President or Vice-President,…on or before the date of the decision of the Supreme Court shall not be invalidated by reason of that declaration”. —Also, “Parliament may by law regulate any matter relating to or connected with the election of a President or Vice-President”. Point to ponder: The office of the Vice-president is a unique feature of India, which follows a parliamentary system, and has no exact parallel in other democratic countries, including the Commonwealth. Discuss. MCQ 1. Consider the following statements: 1. The Chairman and the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha are not members of that House. 2. While the nominated members of the two Houses of the Parliament have no voting right in the presidential election, they have the right to vote in the election of the Vice President. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2 (CSE- 2013) Bond yield curve inversion, soft landing and reverse currency war Why in news? —Notwithstanding rapid increases in interest rates by the US central bank, the inflation rate for June came in at 9.1 per cent. This is the highest in 40 years in the US. —Many observers have pointed to an inversion of the US yield curve to argue that the US central bank will not be able to achieve a soft-landing for the economy. And yet, the US dollar continues to gain against all other currencies. —Now, in what is being seen as a reverse currency war, most central banks across the world are trying to raise their interest rates to counter the Fed’s actions and ensure their respective currency claws back value against the dollar. Key takeaways —Bonds are essentially an instrument through which governments (and also corporations) raise money from people. Typically government bond yields are a good way to understand the risk-free interest rate in that economy. —The yield curve is the graphical representation of yields from bonds (with an equal credit rating) over different time horizons. In other words, if one was to take the US government bonds of different tenures and plot them according to the yields they provide, one would get the yield curve. —Under normal circumstances, any economy would have an upward sloping yield curve. That is to say, as one lends for a longer duration — or as one buys bonds of longer tenure — one gets higher yields. —However, there are times when this bond yield curve becomes inverted. For instance, bonds with a tenure of 2 years end up paying out higher yields (returns/ interest rate) than bonds with a 10 year tenure. Such an inversion of the yield curve essentially suggests that investors expect future growth to be weak. —However, when investors suspect that the economy is heading for trouble, they pull out money from short-term risky assets (such as stock markets) and put them in long-term bonds. This causes the prices of the long-term bonds to rise and their yields to fall. —Over the years, inversion of the bond yield curve has become a strong predictor of recessions. Of course, for it to be taken seriously, such an inversion has to last for several months. —Soft-landing- When a central bank is successful in slowing down the economy without bringing about a recession, it is called a soft-landing — that is, no one gets hurt. But when the actions of the central bank bring about a recession, it is called a hard-landing. —Currency war- A flip side of the US Fed’s action of aggressively raising interest rates is that more and more investors are rushing to invest money in the US. This, in turn, has made the dollar become stronger than all the other currencies. That’s because the dollar is more in demand than yen, euro, yuan etc. —On the face of it, this should make all other countries happier because a relative weakness of their local currency against the dollar makes their exports more competitive. For instance, a Chinese or an Indian exporter gets a massive boost. In fact, in the past the US has often accused other countries of manipulating their currency (and keeping its weaker against the dollar) just to enjoy a trade surplus against the US. This used to be called the currency war. —However, today, every central bank is trying to figure out ways to counter the US Fed and raise interest rates themselves in order to ensure their currency doesn’t lose too much value against the dollar. —The important thing to understand is that a stronger dollar has had a key benefit — importing cheaper crude oil. A currency which is losing value to the dollar, on the other hand, finds that it is getting costlier to import crude oil and other commodities that are often traded in dollars. —But raising the interest rate is not without its own risks. Just like in the US, higher interest rates will decrease the chances of a soft-landing for any other economy. Point to ponder- How is India going to be impacted by the reverse currency war. Discuss. MCQ 2. Consider the following statements: 1. When the actions of the central bank bring about a recession, it is called a soft-landing. 2. Under normal circumstances, any economy would have an upward sloping yield curve. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2 Sindhudhwaj Why in news? —The Indian Navy’s dwindling submarine fleet got further depleted on Sunday with the decommissioning of INS Sindhudhwaj, a Kilo Class diesel-electric submarine. Key takeaways —INS Sindhudhwaj was in service of the Indian Navy for 35 years. It was commissioned upon acquisition from the Soviet Union in 1987 under a deal wherein ten Kilo Class diesel-electric submarines were purchased by the Indian Navy. —Kilo Class submarines have a life of 30 years though after refit they can remain in service for ten more years. At least three Indian Navy Kilo Class submarines got a second medium refit in a Naval shipyard in Russia a few years back. The strength of the hull and the state of repair of the propulsion system are some of the elements which decide whether a submarine is still fit to be put out at sea after completion of its shelf life and refits. —There are now a total of 16 submarines in service in the Indian Navy, including one nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine and seven Kilo Class submarines. All Kilo Class submarines will be decommissioned in the next few years as they come to an end of their service life. —Apart from the seven Kilo Class submarines, four are Shishumar Class submarines of German origin named INS Shishumar, Shankush, Shalki and Shankul and four Scorpene or Kalvari Class submarines of French origin named INS Kalvari, Khanderi, Karanj and Vela. —Two more Scorpene class submarines are expected to be commissioned into service by 2023. The Navy has one Arihant Class ballistic missile submarine and another one, INS Arighat, under production but its date of completion is not known. —Six attack submarines were supposed to be built in India under Project 75I for which sanction had been accorded by the government in 2020 but nothing has come off the project due to issues of vendors with the qualitative requirements. As per latest reports, the government has extended the date for response to the Request for Proposal till the end of this year in the Rs 40,000 crore project. Point to ponder: Pakistan and Chinese leaders describe their ties using metaphors such as “higher than the mountains” and “deeper than the oceans”. How should India prepare itself against Pakistan-China ties in the area of defence? MCQ: 3. Project 75(I) refers to- a) India's navy plan for India's submarine construction. b) India's NHAI plan to connect seventy-five cities by six lane roads network c) Collaborative project of Indian airforce and ISRO. d) India's project for the application of AI in the defence sector. Aneurysm Why in news? —Actor Emilia Clarke, who played the role of Daenerys Targaryen in the series Game of Thrones, recently told BBC One in an interview that she had suffered two brain aneurysms while filming for the series, in 2011 and 2013. Key takeaways —Aneurysm is a swelling of the arteries and veins in any part of the body, and is caused by weakening of the walls. It occurs most commonly in the aorta, back of the knees, brain or intestines. If the aneurysm gets ruptured, it can even cause internal bleeding and stroke. —Potential risk factors for aneurysm include smoking, age, high cholesterol, obesity, hypertension or tissue disorders. Pregnancy can also increase risk of aneurysm of the spleen. —Usually, an aneurysm remains undetected and screening may be required for patients needing monitoring or treatment. —A device called flow diversion stent is a new innovative intervention for treatment of aneurysm for the initial stages, when it has not ruptured. —Most cases being congenital, it is not always possible to prevent aneurysm, but certain lifestyle changes can help reduce risk. —These include quitting smoking; maintaining a healthy blood pressure by sticking to a balanced diet; maintaining a healthy body weight; and avoiding a high cholesterol diet. Point to ponder: Lifestyle is a shield to many diseases. Discuss. MCQ: 4. Consider the following statements: 1.Aneurysm is neurological disease in which a virus causes inflammation of the nerves involved in facial movements. 2. Ramsay Hunt Syndrome is a swelling of the arteries and veins in any part of the body, and is caused by weakening of the walls. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2 Kali Bein Why in news? —Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has been admitted to Delhi’s Apollo Hospital, days after he had drunk a glass of water directly from the Kali Bein, a holy rivulet in Sultanpur Lodhi. Key takeaways —The 165-km rivulet starts from Hoshiarpur, runs across four districts and meets the confluence of the rivers Beas and Sutlej in Kapurthala. Along its banks are around 80 villages and half a dozen small and big towns. —Waste water from there as well as industrial waste used to flow into the rivulet via a drain, turning its waters black, hence the name Kali Bein (black rivulet). Dense grass and weeds grew on the water until a cleaning project started. —The occasion was the 22nd anniversary of the cleaning project, which had started on July 16, 2000. The project has been slow for years after having made remarkable progress in the initial years. Nevertheless, when Mann drank water from it directly, it was a much cleaner Kali Bein than it was before 2000. —The Kali Bein is of great significance to Sikh religion and history, because the first Guru, Nanak Dev, is said to have got enlightenment here. When Guru Nanak Dev was staying at Sultanpur Lodhi with his sister Bebe Nanki, he would bathe in the Kali Bein. —He is said to have disappeared into the waters one day, before emerging on the third day. The first thing he recited was the “Mool Mantra” of the Sikh religion. Point to ponder: River clean-up activities are end-of-pipe solutions that mean nothing unless the drivers of the problems are fixed. Discuss. MCQ: 5. Which of the following is not correctly matched? River Tributary a) Brahmaputra Manas b) Chambal Kali Sindh c) Yamuna Tons d) Krishna Kabini Answer to MCQs : 1 (b), 2 (b), 3 (a), 4 (d), 5 (d)
