Goaltide Daily Current Affairs 2023
Current Affair 1:
Indus Water Treaty
News:
Pakistan had approached the court over the design and operation of run-of-river hydro-electric plants on the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab rivers and their tributaries. India had said the Court was not competent to decide the questions placed before it and chosen not to appoint its two arbitrators to the Court of Arbitration.
Rejecting India's objections, the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague has ruled that it is competent to decide the proceedings instituted by Pakistan in relation to the Indus Water Treaty in 2016.
Learn about Treaty:
The Indus Waters Treaty was signed in 1960 after nine years of negotiations between India and Pakistan with the help of the World Bank, which is also a signatory.
The Treaty allocates the Western Rivers (Indus, Jhelum, Chenab) to Pakistan and the Eastern Rivers (Ravi, Beas, Sutlej) to India. At the same time, the Treaty allows each country certain uses on the rivers allocated to the other.
How the Treaty works:
The Treaty sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries regarding their use of the rivers, known as the Permanent Indus Commission, which has a commissioner from each country.
The Treaty also sets forth distinct procedures to handle issues which may arise: “questions” are handled by the Commission; “differences” are to be resolved by a Neutral Expert; and “disputes” are to be referred to an ad hoc arbitral tribunal called the “Court of Arbitration.”
The Neutral Expert Process:
The Neutral Expert determines the procedures under which to operate in line with the provisions of the Treaty. The Neutral Expert shall, as soon as possible, render a decision on the question or questions referred to her/him. The decision is binding.
The Court of Arbitration Process:
Subject to the provisions of the Treaty, the Court of Arbitration determines its procedure, including the time within which each Party must present and conclude arguments. These decisions are taken by majority of those present and voting. Each arbitrator, including the Chairman, have one vote. In the event of a tie of votes, the Chairman has the casting vote.
Any such Award rendered in regard to a particular dispute shall be final and binding upon the Parties with respect to that dispute.
Current Affair 2:
National Water mission
Some of the possible identified implications of climate change on water resources are listed below:
With a view to address the related issues, the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) has been prepared by the Government of India, which has been released by the Hon’ble Prime Minister on 30th June 2008. The NAPCC has laid down the principles and has identified the approach to be adopted to meet the challenges of impact of climate change through eight National Missions namely,
- National Solar Mission,
- National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency,
- National Mission on Sustainable Habitat,
- National Water Mission,
- National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Eco-system,
- National Mission for a Green India,
- National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture, and
- National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for Climate Change.
One more news related to National Water mission:
Current Affair 3:
Sago (Sabudana) production in India
From cleaning the tapioca (raw material used to manufacture sago) to crushing it and sedimenting the tapioca powder, every step of sago production is water and power intensive.
Tapioca is processed into starch, which is used as a binding ingredient in medicinal tablets and to add concentration in the food and beverage industry. Starch is later processed into sago.
Its very important to set up bio methanation plant to pay less bills. But government is not paying subsidies on these plants and producers are suffering.
Waste water treatment is also a problem:
Current Affair 4:
First ever IIT campus to be set up outside India
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for setting up of campus of IIT Madras in Zanzibar- Tanzania was signed today between India, IIT Madras and Zanzibar- Tanzania. This is the first ever IIT campus to be set up outside India. It is reflective of the longstanding friendship between India and Tanzania and a reminder of the focus India places on building people to people ties across Africa and the Global South.
