The Hindu Editorial Notes for UPSC 1/09/2019

UPSC current affairs-

Prime minister Modi in his Independence Day address ,called for a movement to ban single use plastics ,this mass social movement will begin from Gandhi Jayanti (Oct 2,2019)
Single use plastics are cheap one time usable plastics like spoons and boxes available in fast food shops,they are not reused and are non biodegradable.
Single use plastics waste accumulate over the years leading to land and ocean pollution
The plastic waste management(PWM) rules 2016 address these issues comprehensively and clearly allots roles and responsibility to Local municipalities ,producers.
Following PWM(2016) rules ,many state governments and local governments took steps to address this plastic menace ,these measures ranged from complete ban on polythene bag or eliminating low quality bags (>20microns) and Extended Producer Responsibility(EPR) wherein the producers of a product will reclaim the waste plastic covers from consumers at designated point

picture credits:amazon.com

The measures yielded varying success,the major obstacle in waste collection and recycling however lies in segregation of waste into biodegradable and non-biodegradable.
Alternatives to single use plastics are limited ,the alternatives available at present are either made of corn/starch mix or Potato/starch mix
The Packaging industry is projected to grow,similarly the pressure on plastic producers to streamline ,collect ,recycle plastic waste is bound to grow
Only a mass awareness and action movement involving individuals,NGOs,Urban local bodies will be able to overcome the plastic waste menace.

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RBI earns its surplus through the following : Open market operation (increase in bond interests),increase in value of its gold assets and increase in exchange rate of its dollar reserves
Although RBI transfers its surplus to Government every year,this year the huge surplus transfer of 1.76 lakh crore ( 14.6% more than last year ) has caught everyone's attention
This massive transfer has raised concerns that Government may be confiscating money from RBI to meet its urgent needs ,thereby depleting RBI buffer resources to meet emergency situations
The bigger concern however is the RBI's independence in setting monetary policy as transfers of this magnitude increase the liquidity if put into circulation

credit:business-standard.com

Those who support the move the claim that the surplus transfer was carried out according to Bimal Jalan expert committee recommendation and hence RBI still has the ability to manage contingency situation,besides the money if put to use in productive manner can stimulate the economy to grow further
As a one time measure to revive the economy from slowdown ,this move is wise but continued reliance over RBI surplus in the future may threaten the Independent existence of RBI and thereby the stability of currency.

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credit:themobileindian.com

The Union budget (2019) provided for a set of tax incentives for early adopters of Electric vehicle(EV)
In order to quickly transit from a petrol-diesel vehicles based system to EVs ,NITI Aayog in may 2019 proposed to ban all Internal Combustion Engine powered Three wheelers by 2023 and two wheeler by 2025,this proposal was however criticized by Automobile Industry as it seemed practically unrealistic.
Although the government is contemplating incentives for Electric vehicles (eg., FAME scheme) purchases,the financial viability of the vehicles in comparison to petrol-diesel vehicle make EV less attractive
The main component of the EVs is the Lithium Ion battery, the Li-ion battery cost over the year has reduced significantly ,yet due to scarce availability of Lithium and other raw materials ,the cost remains out of common man's budget
Besides India at present imports the Lithium ion cells are imported and then assembled in India,an In-House production facility may reduce import charges
Although Electric vehicles do not emit smoke and pollute the air ,the electricity on which they run are mostly generated by Thermal power plants ,which makes net emission reduction less than expected
To make it truly sustainable,EV charging infrastructure needs to be powered with renewable resource
In India ,EV adoption will be primarily driven by two wheeler than cars,the government must provide incentives accordingly

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