Red Sea Crisis: India turns to West Asia to replace US oil supply
Syllabus: GS-II
Subject: International Relations
Topic: Global issues
Issue: Red Sea Crisis.
Context: India’s crude oil imports from the US halted due to Red Sea crisis, prompting a shift to West Asian suppliers.
Synopsis:
- US crude supply to India reduced due to Red Sea disruptions and high freight rates, making Persian Gulf suppliers more favourable.
- Iraq became a primary source, reaching a high, followed by UAE and Saudi Arabia
- Russia, the largest supplier to India, experienced a 5.6% increase in imports.
- India, heavily reliant on oil imports, pivoted towards Russian oil following Western sanctions post-Ukraine conflict.
Take away point:
| India is the world’s third-largest consumer of crude oil, relying on imports for over 85% of its needs. |
| Red sea (Places in News):
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Source: Indian Express
The big all-India exam leak: Over 5 years, 1.4 crore job seekers in 15 states bore the brunt
Syllabus: GS-I
Subject: Society and Social Justice
Topic: Education
Issue: Exam_Paper_Leak.
Context: The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024 introduced in the parliament.
Key Provisions:
- To address widespread exam malpractices disrupting recruitment processes.
- Aim for transparency, fairness, and credibility in the examination system.
- It lists various unfair actions including leaking question papers and tampering with answer sheets.
- Applies to exams by designated authorities and central government ministries.
- Offences are non-bailable, and non-compoundable, with punishments including imprisonment and fines.
Source: Indian Express
CBSE urges schools to prepare for National Credit Framework rollout.
Syllabus: GS-I
Subject: Society and Social Justice
Topic: Social Sector – Education
Issue: National Credit Framework
Context: Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) advised schools affiliated to the board to start allocating credits to students in line with the National Credit Framework (NCrF).
National Credit Framework
- Focus: Creditization of learning across various fields and levels including sports, vocational training, science projects, art and craft activities.
- In line with the emphasis of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 on integration of academic education with vocational and skill education.
- All credits collected by students will be stored in their academic bank of credit in the students’
- Academic Bank of Credit is essentially a digital storehouse that centrally records the academic credits earned by students throughout their learning journey.
| National Education Policy 2020
● Emphasis on ensuring universal access to school education ● The 10+2 structure of school curricula is to be replaced by a 5+3+3+4 curricular structure. ● Calls for setting up of a National Mission on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy. ● Emphasis mother tongue as the medium of instruction at least till Grade 5, but preferably till Grade 8 and beyond. ● Aims to increase the Gross Enrolment Ratio in higher education including vocational education from 26.3% (2018) to 50% by 2035. ● Recommends expenditure of nearly 6% of GDP on education. |
DigiLocker, is a unique cloud-based platform that enables the storage, sharing and verification of certificates and documents.
Source: The Hindu
‘States welcome private investors but push back on PSU privatization’
Syllabus: GS- III
Subject: Economy
Topic: Industry and Industrial policies
Issue: Disinvestment
- Disinvestment refers to the government’s policy of selling its assets in public sector enterprises, either partially or fully.
- Strategic disinvestment is the specific type of disinvestment where a majority stake (50% or more) in a company is sold.
- This leads to transfer of control and management to the buyer.
Government’s policy:
- In India, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) under the Finance Ministry is concerned with disinvestments.
- Policy of Govt. of India:
- In strategic sectors (Atomic Energy, Space PSUs) – “bare minimum presence” of the government.
- In non-strategic sectors – complete exit of govt. share.
- Disinvestment targets
| Financial year and target set (in lakh crore) | Target Achieved |
| 2020-21 : 2.10 | Only 16% of the target. |
| 2021-22 : 1.75 | Only 8% of the target |
| 2022-23 : 0.65 | 48% of the target |
| 2023-24 : 0.51(lowest target set in 7 years) | – |
Source: The Hindu
Quad summit more likely after the U.S. elections in November: American envoy Garcetti
Syllabus: GS-II
Subject: International Relations
Topic: Regional and Global Groupings
Issue: QUAD
Context: American envoy Garcetti’s speech at the Jaipur Literature Festival.
| QUAD (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue):
● Quad 1.0: it was proposed by the then Japan Prime Minister Abe in 2007 as a formal multilateral dialogue among India, Japan, the United States and Australia. ● However, Australia backed out of the proposal in 2008. ● Quad 2.0: Revived in 2017, as a strategic security dialogue. ● Goals: ● Promote a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. ● Address shared security challenges, including maritime security, terrorism, and climate change. ● Cooperate on economic initiatives and disaster relief.
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Statement (Mains): “The Quad is a “force for good” for the Indo-Pacific region.” – P.M. Narendra Modi
Source: The Hindu