Agniveers to serve twin engines of Government and Corporates.

Agnipath – the scheme in news since some time is now proving to be very effective in turning into ground reality. It is being welcomed warmly by all and sundry. All the three branches of Indian Armed Forces seem to be fully geared up, carrying out the concerned processes and conducting recruitment rallies at different locations of the country. The enthusiasm among the youth for the Agnipath scheme is worth seeing first hand and it has completely cleared up the concocted air around the plan by some vested interests. It also amply exhibits how nefarious and politically motivated the ideas may be behind the ugly uproar against a great reformative initiative.

Under the Agnipath recruitment scheme, the Indian Army has issued a recruiting notice to fill 40,000 vacancies of Agniveers. Similarly, Indian Navy has released the recruitment notification for the Indian Navy Agniveers for 2800 posts. And as per the information given by the Indian Air Force, the just ended form filing process of the Air Force, has attracted 7,49,899 applications, compared to 6,31,528 applications in the past, which was the highest in any recruitment cycle.

The most fulfilling aspect of this process is the deluge of offers for the youth to be coming out of Armed Forces after four years of service to the nation. As per government directives, they would be offered employment in the Ministry of Defence, Indian Coast Guard and high profile public sector undertakings like HAL, BEL and BEML among others. The central home ministry announced in the very beginning that a 10% reservation would be given to the Agniveers in CAPF and Assam Rifles too. A number of state governments like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and others expressed preferences for recruitment of Agniveers in state police forces also.

Similarly, scores of companies are planning to roll out special opportunities for the Agniveers. Anand Mahindra, Chairman of the Mahindra and Mahindra Group, Sanjeev Bikchandani, the co-founder of Info Edge, which is the parent company of Naukri.com, Harsh Goenka, the Chairman of RPG Group, Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran, Biocon head Honcho Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, the Joint Managing Director of Apollo Hospitals, Sangita Reddy, TVS Motor company managing director Sudarshan Venu are most prominent faces among them. Several leading companies including Infosys, Mahindra, IBM and others already have special provisions for hiring military veterans.

Moreover, the Directorate of Indian Army Veterans (DIAV) helps the retired personnel to smoothly transition to civilian jobs and life. The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojna (PMKVY) through the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has training programme in place for Agniveers in sectors like automotive, agriculture, construction, healthcare, tourism, telecom, electronics, retail and logistics. The central government has had a number of meetings with several entities like telecom and other companies and organisations so as to train the Agniveers during the service years, besides having a well settled academic plan and professional curriculums.

It is no surprise that would be Agniveers are ecpected to be well-trained, disciplined, motivated, capable with high physical and mental prowess, having a flair for problem solving, young and spirited with a lot of potential to serve the nation in both the engines of growth and development, namely the Governemnt sector and the corporate world. By the time, these thousands of Agniveers would come out of the armed forces, many more corporate and government entities are expected to come up with a lot more special offers for them.

State of Sustainable Development Goals amidst Pandemic

The latest SDGs related United Nations’ report has painted a grim picture of how things are taking shape globally, forcing crores of people into extreme poverty caused by Covid-19 pandemic. Assessing the progress of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the UN has said that the pandemic has pushed 9.3 crore more people worldwide into extreme poverty in just 2020. A good number of more people might have been pressed into the same situation in 2021 and during the first half of 2022 also, however their figures are not available. The problems have been compounded because of the climate crisis and increased number of geo-political conflicts including the one between Russia and Ukraine, creating serious supply chain crisis and putting all the 17 sustainable development goals of 2030 set by the UN into jeopardy.

According to the UN report, geo-political conflicts have forcibly displaced over 10 crore people as of May 2022. The skyrocketing prices of food, fuel, fertilizers and several other essential items, caused by the international conflicts, have further aggravated the situations, cutting the projected global economic growth for 2022 by 0.9%. It becomes a priority for developing states across the globe to begin thinking of strategic welfare programs to support their bottom lot, find innovative solutions to strengthen the existing logistics structure within their economies and become more vigilant on financial matters and spending.

Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) is one such welfare programme launched to alleviate the pain and sufferings caused by Covid-19 pandemic and to feed the country’s poorest citizens by providing grains through the PDS system. The government has spent Rs. 2.60 lakh crore so far and another Rs. 80,000 crore will be spent over the coming months till September 2022. According to a report by the dept. of Food and Public Distribution, the initiative stands out as the largest food assistance program anywhere in the world during the pandemic in terms of the number of people covered, which is more than 10% of the world population. Along with food assurance, financial benefits and healthcare expenditure are also being taken care of by the government, and continuous efforts are leading to positive results as far as poverty-reduction is concerned. Due to many inter-connected new steps & initiatives, India has seen a sharp decline in extreme poverty in recent years, prompting even the top multilateral organizations like World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) appreciating India’s efforts towards reducing extreme poverty. A World Bank working paper says that extreme poverty fell by 12.3% points to 10.2% in 2019, from 22.5% in 2011.

Health, hygiene and mental health, especially in the post-COVID world, have become imperative to take care of for the entire globe. Deaths from Tuberculosis and malaria have increased. The global prevalence of depression and anxiety has increased by around 25% in 2020 with women and young people being the most affected ones. The burgeoning crisis has also caused an increase in dropouts and it is expected that around 2.4 crore students from pre-primary standard to university level, may not be able to return to their educational institutions because of these crisis and conflicts.

Hence, setting the world on a new trajectory appears much more essential than ever before. Governments across the globe must take the necessary measure to mitigate the situation by taking the UN report seriously and take the required measures to achieve 2030 SDGs targets because the worsening situations are threatening human survival. The report is also a reality check on the devastating impacts of the multiple crisis on the lives and livelihood of crores of people with equally focusing on the solution part.

Caution! China – US Space competition not to be ignored

Few years back, the entire world experienced the tremors of the bad impacts of the US-China trade tussle. This was followed by COVID-19 Pandemic and then the Ukraine-Russia Crisis. These instances are clear indication that any deviation from the Path of ‘Sustainability, growth and Peace’ is going to lead the world towards damage and disruption. The 21st century World order thus has some very serious lessons to impart to the mankind and that is understanding the reality, potential and practicality of the changing times and keeping focus on maintaining a multi-polar world order.

This makes keeping a watch on China highly imperative. When China says it will beat America in ‘space race’ also with its scientific adventures, many may disbelieve terming it a bombastic statement of sort, however Dragon has often taken the world aback by doing something which no one had earlier anticipated. Getting the facts straight, China- presently the second biggest economy of the world, plans to fly to the Mars in late 2028 to collect rock samples and then delivering them back to the earth by 2031, which is two years ahead of NASA and the European Space Agency, which jointly have planned on a multi-year mission for the red planet. It sufficiently reflects how US-China rivalry appears to be cranking up in space missions also, where Dragon now appears to be romping ahead.

Besides, it is also important to take in note China’s continuous thrust on tech-based undertakings which it may very likely be using in its economic, strategic, and even geopolitical expansion. China launched the world’s first AI-operated crewless ‘mother ship’. This unmanned carrier is capable of launching dozens of drones. The ship named ‘Zhu Hai Yun,’ has been described as epoch making as the world’s first artificial intelligence driven vessel navigates autonomously. Though, China has claimed that the ship would collect relevant data and contribute to disaster mitigation and environmental monitoring only, apprehensions are that the drone mothership could also be used to gather intelligence inputs in the contested zones for military purpose. This must not go unnoticed in a world that often irks on the growing military assertiveness of China around and beyond its territory. The disputes regarding its growing influence in the South China Sea, Tibetan territory, Doklam, Indian Ocean, Siachen, Senkaku Islands etc.

As suggested by the top strategic masters, China’s scientific ventures could be a precursor to a greater and stealthier military plan as information collection systems often have multiple use applications, helping in various ways including enhancing China’s military capabilities through surveillance and data collections. Being the world’s biggest shipbuilder, China already has ambitions to be a maritime super power, which it has reflected not vaguely on many occasions. China’s economic prowess does help it to invest considerable resources into various unmanned platforms like drones and autonomous vehicles with an objective to strengthen its navy. This puts other world powers like US, some within the EU, Japan, etc. to ramp up intelligence, defence capabilities, technology, strategic cooperation, and strong economic cover.

Besides, Pentagon is lagging behind in a new technology called ‘hypersonic weapon’ that China has demonstrated in a space launch and Russia has already used it during its ongoing conflict with Ukraine. The Pentagon has accepted that nation’s first operational hypersonic weapon is late by a year under the new schedule. This weapon is very important as it is very hard to track and destroy it, as it flies five times the speed of sound and can also be maneuvered as per the need of the moment. America’s Lockheed missile has been reported to have failed three consecutive booster motor tests last year, forcing the first test of the entire missile shifting to the end of this year.

Moreover, US and China have perennially been fighting geopolitically, ideologically and economically for decades, however, this new dimension, which is space, is something that the United States has always dominated, but the way things appear to be going on with both countries, China may march ahead its top rival as is also the case in economic competence. This needs to be taken very seriously for nations at individual level as well as on multilateral platforms when consider economic and diplomatic ties.

Crusader of Revolutionary Changes in Post Independence India

The death anniversary of Babu Jagjivan Ram demands a deep dive into life and times of the ‘Messiah of Dalits’, who truly symbolizes the dawn of an era of assertion, equality, empowerment and positive changes for the poor and downtrodden section of the society. Popularly known as Babuji, he was a crusader of social justice, a champion of the core issues confronting the depressed classes, an outstanding parliamentarian and a true democrat, who fought for social justice all through his life without bombastically claiming for all this.

On the event of him leaving Congress in Feb 1977 because of his failure to pursue Prime Minister to remove Emergency Measures, Outlook India wrote, “This dramatic gesture demoralised Mrs. Gandhi and boosted Opposition leaders, still recovering from 19 months in prison. It electrified the country into ousting the Congress from the throne of New Delhi for the first time since Independence.”

Right from the onset of his political career in 1936, Jagjivan Babu’s unflinching commitment to the developments of the country endeared him to all, paving way for a very long parliamentary and ministerial inning in successive governments spanning over half a century. He contributed immensely to the nation building process holding different portfolios at the Centre.

As India’s first Labour Minister, he brought in landmark changes in the labour laws like the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, the Indian Trade Union (Amendment) Act, 1960, the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, the Employees State Insurance Act, 1948 and the Provident Fund Act, 1952.

As an agriculture minister he was one of the pioneers of the Green Revolution, which resulted in a great increase in production of food grains, taking the country on the path of self-sufficiency and tide over the serious food crisis prevailing during that period. He also organized the much talked about public distribution system (PDS) to ensure that the food is made available to the masses at a reasonable price.

Whereas it was under his bold and inspiring leadership as defence minister, that India trounced Pakistan in 1971 war, galvanizing the entire nation and the Armed Forces to deal with this mammoth crisis.

And as a Transport Minister, he nationalized the private airlines and laid down the foundation of civil aviation revolution in the country, which later resulted in the genesis of Air India and Indian Airlines.

Similarly, as a railway minister, he modernized the lifeline of the country and took innumerable welfare measures for its employees also.

When in communication ministry, he spread postal facilities to the remote villages of the country.

Jagjivan Ram was a towering political personality, a crusader of social justice, an exceptionally gifted orator and a true democrate, who holds a world record of being a parliamentarian uninterrupted for a record 50 years between 1936 and 1986, besides being a member of the Constituent Assembly, which framed the constitution.

Widely called as the ‘Messiah of Dalits’, Babu Jagjivan Ram was in fact a ‘Crusader of revolutionary changes’, who helped transform the country. He might have missed the race for the Prime Ministership on several occasions owing to several political and social reasons, however, with his vast understanding of Indian social and political dynamics and issues, he remained very relevant in Indian politics till his last. His social-political views still hold relevance, especially for the nagging issues which need to be addressed with utmost precision.

Menace of Plastic Waste

The whole world, including plant and animal species, is trying to survive the health extremities in one form or the other, mostly being caused due to bad and unfit environment. Plastic menace is certainly one of the greatest environmental challenges of the 21st century. Tiny plastic particles are swirling around the oceans, ending up in landfills, and are responsible for harmful imprints on the environment, and perhaps human, animals and plants health. If facts are to be presented, there are about 8.3 billion tons of plastic in the world – some 6.3 billion tonnes of that in the trash! This horrifying knowledge should naturally lead the world to think of solutions and begin implementation right away.

With the Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021 coming into existence, the scourge of plastic particles spread from plains to the mountains to the ocean trenches, can be expected to be controlled in the days to come. If researches are to be believed the average person in modern society breathes in and drinks hundreds of very tiny particles of plastic every day, which causes a number of deadly diseases like cancer, birth defects, brain damage and others. Plastics have even blighted animals and bio-diversity. We may easily see scores of cows and other animals eating plastic items out of the open garbage. Similar is the case with the water bodies, where fish, turtles and other marine animals mistake plastic for food, which threatens our lives also as we eat many of these things. Moreover, when plastic items remain in the environment for long, they turn into microplastics, first entering our food sources and then our body. Besides, submicroscopic particles of broken-down plastic float in the air and can easily be inhaled. These micro-particles can pass from the digestive system of our body into the bloodstream and spread throughout our body, including the blood-brain barrier.

Over the past decades, plastic items have replaced the natural materials earlier used in manufacturing paper, glass, cotton and other things. The almost ubiquitous use of plastic led to extreme plastic pollution, which is not just an environmental issue but has a lot of grave repercussions for humanity.

Single-use plastic is intended to be used only once before being disposed of or recycled, accounting for almost one-third of all plastic produced globally with 98% manufactured from fossil fuels. Now single-use plastic has been banned completely in India and any kind of flouting it like – manufacturing, import, stocking, sale, distribution and use of the items invites punishment under the Environment Protection Act 1986, which permits jail of up to five years or a penalty of up to Rs 1 lakh, or both.

Worried by the declining environment and its grave results being reflected in rising temperature, governments across the globe have taken remedial measures in recent years. 124 countries including India, signed a resolution brought in by the United Nations Environment Assembly to draw up an agreement, which will make it legally binding for the signatories to address the full life of plastics from production to disposal to end its pollution. Bangladesh became the first country to ban thin plastic bags. Now more than 68 countries have plastic bag bans in place.

Though, it’s a fact that today preparing modern electronic, medical and other devices are impossible without plastic, as it reduces weight, transportation and other logistical costs, for sustainable development and continuity of life and nature, phasing out plastic uses is essential.