text:
Explainer: How & Why is the ‘Novel Corona Virus’ named ‘COVID-19’?
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 20, 2020
The Novel Corona Virus is officially named as ‘COVID-19’ by the WHO. But how is a disease named by the WHO? What are the guidelines that govern the naming process? Here is a detailed explainer.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on 11 March 2020 following the exponential increase in the number of cases being reported from around the world. Currently, the outbreak has reached 166 countries and the number of confirmed cases has crossed 2 Lakhs according to WHO’s dashboard. The number of lives claimed by the virus is also on the rise and has crossed 8500.
But have you wondered how the virus got its name? Did you know there isa naming convention for viruses and diseases as per WHO?
One may have come across different names for the virus that is rampantly spreading across the globe now. Corona, novel corona, coronavirus, are some of the terms. Even the American president, Donald Trump referred to the virus as ‘Chinese virus’ on twitter which sparked outrage, especially on social media.
Official name of virus and disease announced by WHO on
11 February 2020
Officially, the WHO announced that the disease is named COVID-19. It is an acronymfor coronavirus disease. The number 19 stands for the year 2019 when thedisease was first reported. The disease was first detected in Wuhan, China inDecember 2019.
The virus that causes this disease is named severe acute respiratorysyndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV- 2).
Naming of viruses and diseases follows different
procedures
Viruses are named based on their genetic structure by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV). The genetic structure helps in classification and study of virus & its behaviour, thereby, enabling scientists to develop medicines and vaccines.
ICTV named the new virus as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS- CoV- 2), the official announcement of which was made on 11 February 2020. This name has been arrived at because the virus is related genetically to the coronavirus which was responsible for the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) epidemic in 2003 which was also first discovered in 2002 in Guangdong province, China. The name ‘corona’ is the Latin word for crown. Coronaviruses have been so named because of the presence of protein spikes on their surface which resembles crown. The current coronavirus disease was initially temporarily named 2019- nCoV before virologists discovered the similarity. However, even though the viruses may be related, they are different.
Diseases are named by WHO in the International Classification of Diseases(ICD). ICD provides a standard name for human diseases as per standardguidelines. Usually, the final name is assigned by ICD which is used by medicalpractitioners, policy makers, researchers, and many others around the world inorder to classify diseases and maintain standardized health records.
WHO, in its communication with public refers to the virus as COVID-19virus or virus responsible for COVID-19 because of apprehensions that usingSARS- CoV-19 might create panic amidst people and also because there is scopefor mistaking it to be SARS. The SARS epidemic in 2003 significantly affectedAsian countries. Around 8000 cases and 800 deaths were reported world-wide.
Best practices for naming new human infectious diseases
was released by WHO in 2015
In 2015, WHO issued best practices for naming new human infectious
diseases. The main motivebehind issuing the guidelines was to ensure that no country/region, people or animalsare affected by the names assigned to diseases. The WHO, with inputs from Foodand Agricultural Organization (FAO) and World Organization for Animal Health(OIE) has prepared the best practices guidelines.
The best practices are applicable to a newly discovered disease only ifit satisfies the conditions mentioned. It must be an infection or a syndromewhich has not been identified earlier in human beings. Further, the diseaseshould be one that poses potential threat to public health.
WHO recommends using the following terms while naming a disease. Itis mandatory that the names as far as possible be consistent with that of ICD’s content model reference guide.
The following table gives examples of terms which are used while namingdiseases. Usually, the year, or month and year is also used for distinguishingbetween similar events that took place at different times.
Usage of terms which stigmatize others has been
prohibited
WHO has clearly stressed on not using certain words to namediseases as it can have a negative impact on a community or species. Geographiclocations, names of people, names of species/class of animals or food, andwords representing culture, population and occupation should not be used. Useof terms such as unknown, fatal, etc. which cause panic and fear among peopleis also discouraged. Some examples are given in the succeeding table.
It is not that such terms have not been used earlier. Middle EastRespiratory Syndrome, Japanese encephalitis, swine flu, birds flu, monkey pox,legionnaires, etc. are some of the names assigned to diseases. However, these names are misleading and dangerous.  Such names have resulted in stigma andlarge-scale culling of animals. In addition to economic impacts as a result of ban on travels, commerce and trade,there have also been instances of racism and xenophobia targeting specific communities has been reported. Thebest practices were issued to prevent such incidents.
Trump tweeted ‘Chinese Virus’ which sparked outrage
Donald Trump took to twitter to refer to the virus as ‘Chinese virus’ on 17 March 2020. This comment has been criticizedfor being racist and reports suggest that WHO officials have warned the US President for his comment since namingpractices were introduced to avoid such name calling.
However, Trump has tried to defend his usage of the term. On 19 March 2020, The White House tweeted that Spanish Flu, West NileVirus, Zika, and Ebola were all named after places.
In the same tweet, the White House went on to criticize CNN for pointingout Trump’s words, by retweeting CNN’s old tweet on 21 January 2020 where the channel had referred tothe virus as novel Chinese coronavirus. However, WHO announced the name ofvirus and disease only on 11 February 2020.
WHO has issued preventive measures
SARS-CoV-2 has been termed as the first pandemic sparked by acoronavirus. WHO has listed the following measures to prevent spreading of the disease.


text:
Explainer: India’s Fiscal deficit
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 17, 2019
Fiscal deficit is
broadly the difference between government’s total revenue and its total
expenditure. What about India’s fiscal deficit targets? Are we anywhere close
to reaching them?
Fiscal deficitis broadly the difference between government’s total revenue and its totalexpenditure. The government tries to meet this deficit through borrowings fromcentral banks or raising money from capital markets.
In this story,we explore the trends in India’s fiscal deficit, various factors influencing itand the current state of fiscal deficit in India.
Increase in the
absolute numbers relating to Gross Fiscal Deficit over the years.
The GrossFiscal Deficit (GFD) is the excess of total expenditure (including loans net ofrecovery) over revenue receipts (including external grants) and non-debtcapital receipts. In general, fiscal deficit occurs due to an increase in thegovernment expenditure or a decrease in the revenue earned.
The estimated fiscal deficit
for 2019-20 is ₹ 7.03 lakh crores. This deficit is the differencebetween GFD expenditure, which is estimated at ₹ 27.71 lakh crores, and the estimated GFD revenue of ₹ 20.67 lakh crores.
Over the years,government revenue has increased every year. However, the comparative increasein the expenditure in those years has resulted in an increasing trend in theGross Fiscal Deficit year-on- year.
While theseabsolute numbers indicate the volume of the GFD, they do not offer a holisticperspective in reference to the economy. These numbers do not account forinflation and since the size of Indian economy has expanded over the years,these numbers have also increased proportionally. Therefore, analyzing GFDfigures in context of GDP would offer better insights into the state ofeconomy.
GFD as
percentage of GDP has reduced over the years
As per the Annual Handbook of Statistics on Indian Economy, the government of India estimates GFD for 2019-20 to be at 3.34% of country’s GDP. The revised estimate for year 2018-19 was also 3.34%.
The estimates for these two years are lower than the actual GFD of earlier year i.e. 3.46 % in 2017-18.  For the last decade, GFD as a share of GDP has been on a decreasing trend except for 2011-12, where it was 5.91% (higher than 4.8% of previous year). However, the rate of decline has slowed down over the last four years. With a bleak economic outlook and lower than expected tax revenues, the GFD target for 2019-20 may not be met.
Estimate for share
of Total Expenditure as a % of GDP is higher for 2019-20
A decade ago,in 2010-11, the total expenditure of the Central government as share of GDP was15.38%. In the subsequent years, it has shown a gradual decline. The lowestbeing recorded are the actual figures of 2017-18 when the total expenditure wasonly at 12.93% of the GDP.
This has been the lowest share of Total Central Government expenditure as a % of the GDP in over 4 decades. However, the revised estimates for total expenditure for 2018-19 is now pegged at 12.93% of the GDP. The estimated share of total expenditure for the year 2019-20 is 13.21% of the GDP. This is the highest over the last five years. The last time the numbers were higher than the previous year was in 2009-10. In that year, the total expenditure share was 15.82%, which was higher than 2008-09’s 15.7%. These two years were part of a 3-year period (2007-2010), where the share of total expenditure was on the rise.
Increase in Revenue Expenditure in the last three years
RevenueExpenditure forms a major share of the total expenditure of the CentralGovernment. An increase in the same has a corresponding impact on the totalexpenditure.  For 2019-20, the estimatefor Revenue expenditure as a share of GDP is 11.6%.  In 2016-17 and 2017-18 it was 11% and 10.99%respectively with an increase in the revised estimate for 2018-19 and theestimate for 2019-20.
Meanwhile, theshare of Capital Expenditure has witnessed a decline since 2015-16 except forthe revised estimates of last year where it was 1.67% (in 2017-18 it was 1.54%). The estimates of other components ofexpenditure by Central Government have also witnessed an increase over the lasttwo years. (the numbers for 2018-19 and 2019-20 are estimated figures and thereal values could vary).
While, theincrease in share of non-capital expenditure has pushed up the overallexpenditure of the central government, let us look at the state of otherinfluencing factor of GFD I.e. the Revenues.
Fiscal deficitis formed when the revenue of government is unable to match the expenditure. Agrowing economy would imply that the expenditure would also be on ascendance, however,increase in the revenues would help to cut down the fiscal deficit.
So, what is the state of revenues of Central Government?
As per government estimates, share of Tax revenue in GDP to reduce in  2019-20
Tax revenue(both Direct and Indirect) is a major source of Revenue for the CentralGovernment. The government figures peg the estimate share of Total Tax Revenueat 11.66% of the total GDP for 2019-20.
Meanwhile, therevised estimate of Total Tax Revenue for 2018-19 is 11.83% of GDP.  Within the Tax Revenue, the share of DirectTaxes has witnessed an increase over the years and the government estimates anincrease for both 2018-19 and 2019-20.
However, amajor concern is with the share of Indirect Tax revenue. The Goods and ServicesTax (GST) is an indirect tax. After two years of implementation of GST,government itself pegs the share of Indirect taxes at 5.34% of the GDP, less thanthe revised Estimate of 5.51% of last year i.e. 2018-19.
Reducing Fiscal Deficit to 3% of GDP is a recommendation of FRBM Act
The Fiscal
Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2003 was passed byParliament of India to institutionalize Financial discipline, reduce FiscalDeficit, improve macroeconomic management and the overall management of Publicfunds in India.
One of thetargets set as part of the act was to reduce the Fiscal Deficit
to be 3% of the GDP by 31 March 2021.
For 2003-04 theFiscal deficit was 4.34% of GDP which then eventually reduced to 2.54% by2007-08. However, during the global recession of 2008, the Fiscal deficitincreased to 5.99% in 2008-09 and further increased in ensuing years. Since2012-13, when the Fiscal deficit reduced to 4.93%, there has been a gradual decreasetowards the 3% target.
For 2019-20,the fiscal deficit estimate is pegged at 3.34%, same as that of 2018-19. Inabsolute terms, government’s estimate of Fiscal Deficit is ₹ 7.03 lakh crores for 2019-20. However, by the end of first quarter of 2019-20,the Fiscal deficit
is ₹ 4.32 lakh crores. This is already 61.45% of the fiscal deficitestimated for the whole year.  This caneventually impact the 3.34% estimated for the entire year and the deficit couldeventually be much higher by the end of the financial year.
The concessions given in Corporate tax, and with GST revenues not picking up, we are potentially staring at a larger fiscal deficit this fiscal.
Featured Image:India’s Fiscal deficit

source: news-factly

created: October 17, 2019

license: Creative Commons - Attribution - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

author: Sai Krishna Muthyanolla


text:
Explainer: Is there anything like a ‘Zero FIR?
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
December 3, 2019
Ever
since it was reported that the police refused to register a FIR citing
jurisdictional issues, in the case of the veterinary doctor who was raped &
killed in Hyderabad, a message about the ‘Zero FIR’ provision has gone viral on
social media. But what exactly is ‘Zero FIR’?
Numerous incidentsof rape were reported across the country in the previous week alone. NCRB’s 2017
Crime in India report revealed that around 32,559cases of rape were registered in India in 2017. In other words, four rape caseswere reported every hour.
On 27 November2019, a veterinary doctor was gang raped and murdered in Hyderabad. Thisgruesome incident shook the entire nation. The four alleged perpetrators werearrested the next day. At the same time, three policemen were also suspended asthey did not register the FIR of missing person when the victim’s family hadbrought it to the notice of the nearest police station. Media reports suggest that the police did not register the FIR claiming it was outside theirjurisdiction. It is in this context that a viral message about ‘Zero FIR’ isfloating across social media. But what is ‘Zero FIR’?
What is FIR?
FIR is theabbreviation for First Information Report which is prepared by the police basedon a complaint or available information in the case of cognizable offences. Theinformation or the complaint is provided by an informant as per Section 154 ofthe Code
of Criminal Procedure. The informant can beanyone, the victim, relatives, witness or a bystander. This helps the police takeimmediate steps to register & investigate the crime. Here is an explainer
video on understanding FIR.
What is Zero FIR?
Following the gruesomeNirbhaya incident in Delhi in December 2012, the then government set up Justice
Verma Committee to recommend amendmentsto the Criminal Law. Based on the committee’s
report, the Home Ministry, on 10
May 2013, issued an advisory
to all states and union territoriesasking the police to register Zero FIR if an informant comes with the detailsof a cognizable crime irrespective of the jurisdiction. This is to helpinitiate investigation at the earliest. Otherwise, a lot of time is lost ingoing from one police station to another, with adverse effect on victim andalso gives an opportunity to the offender to escape. Cognizable crimes/offencesare those which do not require an order from magistrate, and which requires thepolice to take immediate action on receipt of complaint or information.
Zero FIR is a FIRlodged in any police station irrespective of the location of incidence orjurisdiction. The FIR is later transferred to the jurisdictional police station.In 2007,  in a writ Petition, Bimla
Rawal and Ors Vs NCT of Delhi,the Delhi High Court directed the police to transfer the case immediately tothe police station in-charge of the jurisdiction where the incident took place.The Delhi police had not filed ‘Zero FIR’ in spite of evidence at the time ofreporting the incident that took place in Mumbai.
Refusal to fileZero FIR will result in the prosecution of the police officers. Advisories werealso issued to states in 2014 and 2015.
How to file a Zero FIR?
The procedure tofile a ‘Zero FIR’ is similar to that of an ordinary FIR. The variation is inthe serial number. The case will be entered with the serial number ‘0’ untilthe FIR is transferred to the respective police station. The procedure to lodgea FIR is given in Section 154 of the CrPC. In the case of cognizable crimes,the officer in charge of the police station need not get the permission of theMagistrate to start investigation. The following are some of the other thingsto be kept in mind.
However, lodging afalse complaint is a punishable offence under the Indian Penal Code.
What will happen if the police refuse to lodge the
FIR?
If the policeofficer in charge of the station refuses to file the FIR, the informant has theright to write to the Superintendent of Police directly following which the SPeither starts investigation or direct some other official to take the necessaryaction.
Disciplinaryaction will be taken against the officer who refused to lodge the FIR. Erringofficers are liable to serve up to two years’ imprisonment in addition to apenalty. In the Writ Petition in 2008, Lalita
Kumar Vs. state of Uttar Pradesh and others,the Supreme Court had addressed the issue of mandatory registration of FIRs bythe police.
Zero FIR was filed in the Asaram Bapu case
The infamousAsaram Bapu case in which the self-proclaimed godman was arrested in 2013 forraping a minor girl in Jodhpur, Rajasthan is an instance where the Zero FIR wasused. The parents of the victim filed Zero FIR against the perpetrator inDelhi, according
to reports.

created: December 3, 2019


text:
Explainer: Lockdown Measures across the World
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 21, 2020
India is currently in the period of an extended lockdown. However, India is not the only country to have chosen lockdown measures to contain the spread of COVID-19. More than 90 countries around the world have imposed a partial or full lockdown. Here is a detailed explainer on lockdown measures in some of the important countries around the world.
Addressing the nation on 14 April 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced the extension of the Nation-wide lockdown till 03 May 2020. This extension is in continuation of the initial 21 day lockdown which was announced on 24 March 2020, in an effort to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
Thelockdown being imposed in India is a complete lockdown, which means that thepeople are required not to step out of their houses, except for essentials andemergencies. The 2 phase of lockdown, however, includes certainrelaxations in non-hotspot districts and areas.
On 15 April 2020, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued the revised guidelines in view of the lockdown extension. Prior to the nationwide lockdown, few states like Telangana, Maharashtra, Karnataka etc. had already announced state-wide lockdowns in view of the prevalence of COVID-19 in the respective states.
Withits initial lockdown announcement on 24 March 2020, India joined a growing listof countries which have announced lockdown as a preventive measure in wake ofCOVID-19 epidemic. More than 90 countries have imposed partial or completelockdowns. In this story, we take a look at lockdown & other containmentmeasures implemented by countries across the globe.
Lockdown
as a pre-emptive measure
Lockdownis an emergency protocol imposed by someone in authority and prevents people fromleaving a designated area. Although in recent times it is being associated withpublic health concern, it is not always the case. Lockdowns have been earlierused as a response to an emergency situation. For e.g. terrorist attack orthreats, rioting etc.
Inhealth-related terms, ‘Quarantine’  is the technical term which is used inreference to contain and restricting the movement of an infected person or asuspect, to contain the spread of an infectious disease.
TheWorld Health Organization (WHO) has issued guidelines for quarantine of individuals in context of containment of COVID-19.
However,implementing lockdown measures for a health-related issue is beyond thesuggested actions and guidelines of WHO. The first instance of the same wasannounced in the place of origin of COVID-19 i.e. Wuhan, China.
In the wake of outbreak of COVID-19, in Wuhan (China), quarantine measures were announced on 23 January 2020 which not only restricted the movement in and out of Wuhan & other cities in Hubei province, but also movement within the city with the exception of emergency services. The WHO albeit terming the lockdown as ‘unprecedented in Public Health History’ supported it as a key move towards containing the epidemic.
Thisaction has been later replicated in other countries like Italy and Spain wherethe number of people infected with COVID-19 was increasing at alarming levels. Manyof the countries which have announced the lockdown have termed it as a pre-emptivemeasure to:
Lockdown
in Wuhan and other infected areas helped in containing COVID-19
Asper available information, during mid-December, a new cluster of people inWuhan linked to the Huanan Seafood Market were diagnosed with pneumonia. Thecause was traced to a new strain of Coronavirus.
Therehave been cases of initial panic among the public as well as on the economic
front post the announcement of the lockdown. However, WHO backedthis move. While few
experts thought of this as an overreaction on part of thegovernment, few other experts supported the lockdown measures whose studies indicate that the lockdown hashelped in containing the spread.
Italy
and France among the first countries in Europe to announce lockdowns
Europehas been badly hit by COVID-19, with many  countries like Italy, Spain, France, UnitedKingdom, Germany, Switzerland, Portugal etc. reporting a high number ofCOVID-19 cases. The responses of each of these countries has been varied.
Italy
Ason date, Italy is the second worst affected country in terms of fatalities. Itis also the first COVID-19 epicentre beyond Wuhan. The first cases of thisdisease were confirmed by the Italian government on 30 January 2020. These were two Chinese touristsvisiting Italy. Lombardy was the first region which was majorly hit by the disease.
France
Spain
Spaincurrently has the second highest number of infected cases and the third highestnumber of deaths caused due to COVID-19.
United
Kingdom
UnitedKingdom was comparatively late in announcing a nation-wide lockdown, in spiteof the increasing COVID-19 positive Cases. On 23 March 2020, Prime MinisterBoris Johnson announced a Nationwide lockdown. These measures are considered to be the strictest Peace-time measures. As perthe measures, people can leave their home sparingly for:
Apartfrom these, few of the other European countries (but not restricted to) whichannounced National lockdowns include – Austria, Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland,Greece, Netherlands, Ireland, Poland etc.  Germany & Russia have city/state specificlockdowns.
National
Lockdown not announced in USA as yet
UnitedStates has emerged as the country with the highest number of COVID-29 infectedcases as well as the country with highest deaths caused due to the disease.More than 7.5 lakh people are infected and more than 35 thousand have died.
On 31 January 2020, USA announced restriction on entry of immigrants and other persons who come from infected areas especially from China. USA has not announced a nationwide lock down yet.
However,in view of the prevailing situation, few of the states have announcedlockdowns. These states include – California,Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New
York, Oregon, Wisconsin & Michigan.Apart from these, Kansas City and Clark Country have announced lockdowns intheir own jurisdiction.
No
National lockdown in South Korea and Iran despite being early hotspots.
SouthKorea was one of the first countries which was impacted by COVID-19, outside ofChina due to its geographical proximity which influences its travel andbusiness. The country has since then been applauded for the proactive action ittook in testing and identifying the cases.
However,South Korea has not announced any region wise lockdown. It however did have alockdown for its military
bases after three soldiers were tested positive.
Meanwhile,Iran has also not announced any national wide lockdown to contain the epidemic.It was the second hotspot after China where the disease spread rapidly.However, they did announce the closure of schools and Universities. Sports Events, Friday prayers and cultural eventswere cancelled. Further, Iranian Parliament was shutdown with 23 of the 290 members being tested positive.
Apartfrom India, Singapore,Thailand, UAE, Bangladesh, Pakistan are among the countries which have announced for a nationwide lockdown. WhereasJapan, Philippines & Saudi Arabia are among the Asian countries that haveimposed lockdowns restricted to specific provinces, cities or states.
New
Zealand among the countries which effectively used lockdown
New Zealand recorded its first case on 20 February 2020. Since then, the spread and fatalities have been among the lowest with more than 1400 cases and 12 deaths.
NewZealand has introduced a 4-level alert system based on the severity, with eachlevel introducing different set of restrictions. The system is implementedacross the country.
Asper recent developments, the lockdown is expected to end within a week as the Nation moves back to Level 3.  The country was in a nationwide lockdowncorrelating to Level 4 for  the past 4weeks.
Among the other countries across the world, South Africa has announced a Nationwide lockdown on 28 March 2020 for a period of 21 days, which was later extended.
Amongthe Latin American countries, Chile, Columbia, Argentina, Peru have announced Nation-wide lockdowns whereas Brazil with the highest number ofcases in the region has locked down only two of its states.
No conclusive evidence yet on the real impact of Lockdown
Theofficial number of cases from China indicates that a major portion of theCOVID-19 cases are restricted to Hubei province with the rest of the country accountingfor far fewer numbers. One of the reasons attributed to the limit of the spreadis the lockdown of Wuhan and the Hubei province.
Meanwhilethe lockdowns imposed in Europe were after the infection spread across thecountry. Especially in Italy, it was initially limited only to Lombardy, thenthe northern Italy and then being extended to whole of Italy. In thesecountries, lockdown has been a reactive measure rather than a proactive one.Whether the numbers have subsided because of lockdown will only be known infuture.
Ashighlighted, New Zealand stands out as an example controlling the spreadthrough proactive lockdown measures.  Meanwhile,South Korea does seem to have managed to control the spread without any suchmeasures.
Inaddition to lockdowns, proactive testing and identification does appear to bethe way forward for countries which are still in the early stages of COVID-19spread.
The case of India is no different as the current nation-wide lockdown coupled with increased testing are being seen as measures to control the rapid spread. The state of Kerala where the first case was reported does offer a model in terms of containing the spread by taking the required measures.
Featured Image: Lockdown Measures across the World


text:
Explainer: Lockdown Relaxations across the World
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 30, 2020
Various countries across the world have begun to announce phase-wise relaxation from the lockdown & curfews. Here is a brief summary about the relaxation plans of various countries around the world.
In Factly’s earlier article, we looked at lockdown measures across the world in detail. The date of announcement of lockdown measures in different countries along with the nature of their lockdowns was highlighted. In this article, let’s look at how different countries plan to gradually lift or re-impose lockdowns in the coming days.
As countries seek to get businesses and industriesgoing again, the World Health Organization (WHO) is giving advice and warningsover the easing of coronavirus lockdowns. The organisation has warned that itshould be done slowly and only when there is capacity to isolate cases andtrace contacts.
Most countries plan to gradually lift the lockdown andtheir crucial decisions are based on the condition that their COVID-19infection rate becomes stable in the coming days. While a variety of relaxations are being announcedacross the world, wearing of masks has been prescribed as mandatory in allpublic spaces.
Asia-Pacific
In China, authorities have been easing restrictionsgradually and regionally. From end March itself, authorities had begun easingWuhan’s lockdown after the infection rate dropped, allowing people fromcertified ‘epidemic-free’ residential compounds out of their homes for twohours a day. Travel restrictions were also eased in Hubei province and in otherparts as well. Public transport has been reinstated but schools remain closed.In China’s other regions and cities, where the outbreak was less severe,many factories, shops and restaurants have been open, although officeworkers have continued to work from home where possible.
India is under lockdown until 03 May, but conditionalrelaxations in certain selected sectors have come into effect. The government hadannounced allowing some industries, such as farming and construction in ruralareas, to open after 20 April.  Variousagricultural and commercial shops can now operate during the lockdown. Whathappens after 03 May, remains to be seen.
Pakistan, which extended its shutdown to end of April,has announced that some industries would reopen in phases. This will start withconstruction and export industries, such as garments.
In Japan, a month-long state of emergency has been inforce in cities since 07 April, but nationwide businesses have been allowed tooperate during the lockdown.
Singapore aimed to relax restrictions to allow forschools and most workplaces to reopen on 04 May, but the country has decided toextend it to 01 June.
New Zealand has no immediate easing plans withschools, restaurants, cafes and gyms. Similarly, Australia has not announcedany definite end date for lockdown or relaxations.
Countries like South Korea and Taiwan have avoidedfull lockdown but continue to promote social distancing.
United States, Canada & Latin
America
The United States is moving toward a gradualresumption of business. New York Governor announced that they would begin withreopening the most essential businesses and those with the lowest infectionrisk. However, some governors have warned there was no return to a pre-pandemic‘normal’ until a vaccine becomes available.
Canada has announced to keep non-essential businessesshut for several more weeks. The lockdown was extended for another 28 days insome provinces after it was due to expire on 23 April.
In Argentina, the government is considering wideningthe list of essential services to allow some businesses back.
In Brazil and Mexico, lockdowns are set to continuetill April end. Further announcements are awaited.
Middle East and Africa
In Iran, social distancing measures were eased from 11April to allow ‘low-risk’ business activity to resume. The suspension of‘high-risk activities’ – schools, universities and various social, cultural,sports and religious events – has not been relaxed yet.
Saudi Arabia has stopped year-round pilgrimages toMecca and extended a nationwide lockdown indefinitely.
Egypt has closed places of worship, schools andtourist sites and banned public religious gatherings during the month ofRamadan.
Israel keeps ‘stay-at-home’ orders for all exceptthose who work in vital industries and said any exit strategy will be ‘slow andresponsible’.
South Africa has extended a complete lockdown untilthe end of April and said key sectors could be reopened gradually under‘strictly controlled conditions’.
Nigeria has also extended the lockdown of the statesof Lagos, Abuja and Ogun until end of April, exempting only critical workers.Most large African nations so far have no plans to ease restrictions.
Europe
France has presented plans to unwind a nationwidelockdown starting 11 May, but only if the rate of infections stays below 3,000per day. The plan would see non-essential shops reopen. Schools would alsogradually reopen — starting with primary schools and kindergartens, withhigh schools to follow from 18 May. The Paris metro would be operating ataround 70% capacity, but people would be encouraged to continue working fromhome.
In Italy, a series of restrictions will be lifted on 04May, allowing people to move around their own regions. More restrictions willbe lifted on 18 May and 01 June, to get the economy going. They also announcedthat bars and restaurants would only be allowed to reopen 01 June, onwards.Schools are to remain closed until after the summer holidays, reopening inSeptember.
In Belgium, a plan for a progressive lockdown relaxation similar to Italy’s strategy has been presented. During the first phase (starting 04 May), an increased number of public transport vehicles will be in use. Shops will be closed initially, except those of a business-to-business nature. People will be allowed to engage in sports activities with two other people who do not belong to the same household. During the next stage, (starting  11 May), all shops will be allowed to reopen while adhering to strict guidelines. Hairdressers will follow on 18 May, which is also the date from which school education will progressively return back to normal. Working from home is to remain the norm.
Spain has announced that if the number of COVID-19cases remains stable, citizens will be able to go out with others from the samehousehold from 02 May. Right now, strict rules are still in place for citizens.They can only leave the house for a maximum of one hour between the hours of 9am and 9 pm and must remain within a 1-kilometer (about half a mile) radius ofhome. A maximum of three children per household are allowed out at one time,with only one parent.
Norway declared that it aims to have all school childrenback in their classes in a suitable way until summer. Students aged 6 to 10 areback in their classrooms and nursery schools are also open now. Those childrenwho belong to a risk group continue to receive online education.
In Slovenia, hardware stores, shops selling technicalgoods and furniture are now open again, as well as dry cleaners, garages andrepair shops. Hair salons, beauty parlours and shops with a selling space ofless than 400 square meters, however, will only be allowed to reopen by the endof April with due considerations.
In Netherlands, day-care centers and elementaryschools will re-open on 11 May, and secondary schools are to follow on 01 June.Initially, children are to be given lessons in small groups only. Children andadolescents are again allowed to engage in sports activity in clubs. All otherbans, however, have been extended by up to 1  week of May. Large events such as festivalsand sports competitions will continue to be banned until 01 September.
In Austria, a large number of shops have reopened byend of April. The next stage will follow at the beginning of May; mid-May is tosee the reopening of restaurants, cafes and bars, with limited business hours. Day-carecenters and schools have been permanently open for those children who cannot belooked after otherwise.
In Turkey, the curfew expired on 26 April andpeople are now allowed to leave their homes again. During the month of Ramadan,there is a ban on fast breaking in groups.
In Switzerland, starting 27 April, hair salons, beautyparlours, hardware stores, and gardening shops are allowed to receive customersagain. If the number of infections does not increase significantly, vocationalschools, universities, museums, libraries and zoos will be open again from 08 June.
In Denmark, outdoor activities are still allowed. However,a ban is in force against gatherings of more than 10 people – provisionallyuntil 10 May.
In Portugal, stores and businesses would gradually beable to reopen 02 May onwards if there is a slowdown in the spread of thevirus.
Countries like Greece, Poland and United Kingdom have yet not announced their plans about relaxations or lifting of the current lockdown. However, like most countries, their return to normalcy has been announced to take place in a slow and gradual manner during May and June and be reviewed on a regular basis.
Featured Image: Lockdown Relaxations across the World


text:
Explainer: Locust Swarms & their history in India
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 2, 2020
Locust swarms were seen to have emerged in many places of Rajasthan & Uttar Pradesh. But what are these locust swarms? Have they caused damage earlier in India? Here is a detailed explainer.
Over the past few days there are reports of emergence of swarms of locusts in India, especially in different places of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, with possible spread to Gujarat and other states.
With the country already reeling due to the impact of COVID-19 and the lockdown, the potential damage that can be caused by locust swarms has added to the apprehension and panic among public.
However, the emergence of locust swarms is not a new phenomenon and India has a history of regular occurrence of the locusts. In this story we take a look at the type of locusts, their emergence and distribution, economic impact and other details relating to the locusts.
Desert Locust is one of the four species found in India
The locust swarms that are currently being reported in India belong to the species of Desert Locust (Scientific Name: Schistocerca gregaria). Locusts are short-horned grasshoppers whose behaviour includes :
In certain circumstances, the locusts are capable of forming swarms i.e. congregation of adults as well as hopper bands (congregation of nymphs/immature insects). This ability to form large swarms and migrate at rapid rates over large areas along with their gregarious feeding habit makes them a threat to crops and other vegetation.
There are 10 important species of locusts, whose details are below.
Out of these, four species are found in India – Desert Locust, Migratory Locust, Bombay Locust & Tree Locust.
Desert locusts in gregarious condition form Swarms.
As highlighted earlier, locusts are a type of grasshoppers. The life cycle of Locusts consists of three stages : (1) Eggs (2) Hopper (3) Adult.
The eggs are laid in pods in moist sandy soil at a depth of 10 cm. The rate of development of eggs depends on soil moisture and temperature. The incubation period is 10-12 days with an optimum temperature between 32-35 °C. No development of egg takes place below 15°C.
In most cases, these grasshoppers are solitary creatures. However, certain circumstances like scarcity of food or drought conditions drive them to form groups.
Once the population of the group increases, they tend to become gregarious i.e. tendency to form large groups to hunt or eat together.  As per experts, Locusts tend to become gregarious when they constantly touch each other on the hind legs and release a chemical called serotonin.
These gregarious locusts start co-ordinating their movements and form swarms.
There are three forms of swarms identified :
There are marked changes observed in the locusts in terms of their behaviour as well as their appearance, once they enter this gregarious phase.
As per UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), locusts have the ability to multiply nearly 20-fold in span of 3 months when the conditions become favourable, like good rains.
In general, there are three breeding seasons for locusts:
India has only one breeding season i.e. Summer breeding, meanwhile Pakistan has both spring and summer.
Desert Locusts are transboundary pests ranging from Northwest Africa to Indian Subcontinent
As per government information, parts of around 64 countries come under the area covered by desert locusts i.e. around 30 million sq. kms. The Geographical extent includes:
They inhabit a broad range belt of Arid and Semi-arid region from Atlantic Ocean to North West India, during their quiet period.
The Scheduled Desert Area in India encompasses 16 districts across the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana. This covers a total area of around 2.05 lakh sq. kms.
Current Locust Swarming has its origins in East Africa
The size of the locust swarms being seen in India currently are larger compared to recent years. The locusts generally arrive in India during their Summer breeding season i.e. July-October.  The current swarm of locusts entering India is attributed to the spate of heavy cyclones and rainfall over the past two years due to  climate change.
The arid regions of Arabian Peninsula and East Africa are among the typical regions where the desert locusts reside. The Horn of Africa region experienced heavy rains in 2018, which followed a phase of severe drought in previous years. This resulted in severe floods in countries like Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia. The resultant wet climate created conditions favourable for breeding of the locust. Even the hitherto, dormant eggs were re-awakened, and this has resulted in near 8,000-fold increase in the locust numbers and reaching swarm levels by early 2019.
These then moved to Iran, Yemen, Saudi Arabia and into Pakistan. Here, newer swarms were formed. Eventually they landed in India. The unexpected rainfall during November 2019 in Thar desert has created favourable conditions for breeding of locusts. As per FAO’s bulletin, the spring breeding is continuing in Iran and Pakistan. The availability of less vegetation due to summer in these countries has resulted in the swarms moving out from these areas and enter their breeding areas along Indo-Pakistan borders.
The strong westerly winds from Cyclone Amphan has driven the swarm further east.
Last upsurge of locust swarms was observed in 1997
India has a history of locust plagues and upsurges. The most recent significant upsurge was in 1997, where in there was incursion of 4 swarms. The number of recorded swarm incursions has varied earlier. The highest upsurge was observed in 1993, where in there were 172 swarms.
Post 1997, there have only been small and isolated instances of locust swarms until 2010, with relatively silent periods in the ensuing years.
Prior to 1962, there have been multiple instances of Locust Plague inflicted on India. This used to occur in phases of plague cycles i.e. a period of more than two years of wide-spread breeding, swarm production and damage of crops (Plague Period) followed by a period of 1-8 years of very little locust activity (recession), again followed by Plague period.
Since 1812, there have been multiple Plague periods observed. The last recorded plague cycle was during 1959-62 post which there have been instances of only Locust upsurges as indicated earlier.
Economic Loss due to Locust swarms
One of the major effects of a locust invasion is the economic loss, especially due to the damage caused by them to crops.
For the current year, the harvest for Rabi season is already completed, therefore the country has escaped from any major potential loss which could have occurred due the current locust swarming. Over the previous years as well, the conclusion of Rabi season prior to the Summer breeding season of locusts has helped the country from incurring major crop losses.
The locust swarms used to subside mostly by the Kharif season there by keeping the losses a minimum. However, with the potential size of the swarms increasing and favourable weather encouraging the breeding, it is yet to be seen if there would be any impact on the Kharif season.
Locust Warning Organization plays a key role in identifying & controlling locust invasion
The impact and damage of locusts swarming has gradually reduced over the years. As highlighted in this story earlier, there has been no instance of Locust plague since 1962 and no major locust upsurge was recorded since 1997. This success can be majorly attributed to the efforts put in by Locust Warning Organization (LWO) under the Ministry of Agriculture.
The origins of this organization can be traced back to the British Era, where in concerted efforts were made during 1930s to address the challenge posed by Locust invasions. This led to the establishment of Central Locust Bureau on 1930, a precursor to Locus Warning Organization, established in 1939.
In 1946, this was amalgamated into Directorate of Plant Protection Quarantine and Storage (PPQS) of Ministry of Agriculture. The Central Headquarters of LWO is located in Faridabad. Its Field headquarters, which handles the technical aspects and mentoring is located in Jodhpur, Rajasthan.  It has 10 Circle offices in different locations.
The main objective of LWO is to protect the standing crops and other vegetation from the damage caused by Desert Locusts.
The LWO performs various functions in line with these objectives.
The LWO runs its operation in line with the guidelines of Food & Agriculture Organization (FAO).  The fortnightly bulletin published by LWO is key to understanding the current situation relating to locusts.  Latest Locust Bulletin is issued for the period 1 -15 May, 2020.
Government takes cognizance of the Locust situation in India
Recent news reports suggest a wider spread over the last fortnight. As per a press release by Ministry of Agriculture on 27May 2020, the government confirmed that locust swarms have swept over North India and responsive action is initiated in affected areas in Rajasthan, Punjab, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
It also stated that :
The press release also highlights the effort put in previous year i.e. 2019-20 in controlling the massive locust attack.
On 28 May 2020, the Union Agriculture Minister conducted a high-level meeting to review the Locust Control Operations. As per a press release made after the meeting,
Featured Image: History of Locust Swarms in India


text:
Explainer: PMNRF Vs PM CARES – What are these funds for?
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
April 3, 2020
The PM recently announced the launch of a dedicated fund ‘PM CARES’ to cater to situations like the ones created by COVID-19 and similar disasters. However, the PMNRF already exists for a similar purpose. What is the difference between these funds and why is there a controversy around the setting up of this fund?
On 24 March 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a nationwide lockdown to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the country. This epidemic has been declared as a natural disaster and Disaster Management Act-2005 was invoked. Subsequently, the Central Government and several state governments announced relief packages to those who are affected by the lockdown.
Meanwhile,on 28 March 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced via Twitter that the PrimeMinister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PMCARES) is being constituted.
As per the initial tweet, the fund was created as a response to people expressing their desire to contribute towards the fight against COVID-19. In the following tweet, the Prime Minister, apart from the appeal to contribute to the fund, also stated that this fund would be used to address future situations of distress. The official press release also offers only minimal information beyond what is provided in the tweets.
From thepress release, it is learnt that the objective of creating this fund is thefollowing.
Based on this, it can be inferred that the fund is a Public Charitable Trust and is set up as a dedicated national fund that deals with any kind of emergency or distress. However, it does not offer any additional information on the need for setting up this fund when the ‘Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund’ (PMNRF) already exists to serve a similar purpose.
PMNRF has
been providing relief assistance for over 70 years
The PMNRFwas started in 1948, following an
appeal by the then Prime Minister of India, JawaharlalNehru, to support people displaced from Pakistan.
Over theyears, PMNRF resources are being used to provide relief to families of victimskilled in natural calamities like floods, cyclones, earthquakes etc and also tovictims of major accidents and riots. The fund is also used to meet expensesrelated to treatments like – heart surgeries, kidney transplantation, cancertreatment, acid attack etc.
Features ofPMNRF are the following.
As per the PMNRF’s Statement of Income and Expenditure for the year 2018-19, the balance of funds available at the end of FY 2018-19 was Rs. 3,800.44 crores. The availability of these funds further raises questions around the need for creating a new fund ‘PM CARES’ for tackling COVID-19 and other disasters.
In the year2018-19, the total income of PMNRF through contributions, interest & refundwas Rs. 783.18 crores while the expenditure in the form of relief was Rs. 212.5crores. It is not even the cases of dwindling funds as except for 2010-11, overthe 10-year period between 2009-19, the income of PMNRF has always been higherthan the expenditure. Because of this reason, with the exception of 2010-11,the balance of funds available with PMNRF at the end of a year has seen ayear-on-year increase over the past 10 years.
Donations to PM CARES to be 100% tax-exempt
With anational fund to provide disaster relief already existing and that too withconsiderable corpus, the rationale for constituting a new fund is not clear. Ashighlighted earlier, the press release by PMO does not provide enough clarityon different aspects of the trust fund.
From the detailsprovided, apart from the information provided regarding its purpose as a fundto tackle disaster, it is understood that:
The extent of IT exemption was not provided in the initial press release. However, as per the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation of Certain Provisions) Ordinance, 2020 issued by Finance Ministry on 31 March 2020, donations made to ‘PM CARES’ fund would be 100% tax exempt under Section 80(G).
Furthermore,as per a Memorandum
of Corporate Affairs Ministry, any contributions made to PM CARES fund wouldqualify as CSR expenditure of companies.
Many
unanswered questions regarding the need for this fund
The
Hindu reported the apprehensions raised by Congress leadersother prominent voices about the opaqueness in the rules and expenditure of thetrust as well as non-utilization of the available funds in PMNRF.
While, thebalance in PMNRF is being shown at Rs. 3,800.44 crores, there are reports whichhighlight the low liquidity of only 15% of this fund, which makes it achallenge to be used in case of emergency. According to these reports, bulk ofthe corpus is invested in fixed deposits, state development loans etc.
Further, astory in The
Wire highlights the lack of information on the publicdomain in respect to – Trust Deed of PM CARES, compliance with the rules ofPublic Trust, constitution & announcement of the fund and the membersinvolvement.
Meanwhile,there are arguments in public domain that are in favour of creating the newfund. As per story on Business
Line, few legal experts are of the opinion that attachingthe fund to COVID-19 and allowing micro donations would encourage more peopleto come forward and donate.
However,all these are opinions interpretations & assumptions. The true rationale ofsetting up a new fund despite the existence of PMNRF with similar objectivescan be explained only by the government.
Factly haswritten to PMO asking for the rationale of setting up PM CARES. This articlewill be updated as soon as a response is received. We contacted the PMO contactin the Press Information Bureau (PIB) who directed us to the press release anddid not provide any additional information.


text:
RBI releases the ‘BE(A)WARE’ booklet listing the common modus operandi of online financial fraud
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 12, 2022
There has been a significant increase in the digital transactions & digital modes of payment in the recent years. Demonetization, movement restrictions during COVID-19 contributed significantly to this increase. The increase in transactions is also resulting in an increase in financial fraud through the online means. To help customers, the RBI recently released a ‘BE(A)WARE’ booklet listing the common modus operandi of fraudsters and the general precautions to be taken by customers.
In recent years, there has been a substantial increase in the usage of a digital or online medium for financial transactions. This was made possible with a combination of the availability of data & smartphones at lower prices, the introduction of easy & convenient modes of payments such as UPI & IMPS, and the explosion of payment apps. The ease & convenience of making such transactions has also contributed to this increase.
Further, the government has been incentivizing multiple modes of digital transactions. In the aftermath of demonetization, the government had announced a slew of measures for the promotion of digital transactions. The government has recently approved an incentive scheme to promote RuPay Debit cards and low value [up to Rs. 2,000) BHIM-UPI transactions in the country. The scheme is aimed at reimbursing the merchant discount rate (MDR) to banks, which was brought down to zero in December 2019 for UPI transactions up to Rs. 2,000.
Internet subscribers base more than tripled in 5 years and digital transactions increased 8 times in 6 years
According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the total number of broadband subscribers (both wireless & wireline) in the country was 23.61 crore as of 31 December 2016 which went up to 79.21 crores as of 31 December 2021, a more than threefold increase in 5 years. Along with the increased penetration of the internet, demonetization of high denomination notes in 2016 and safety concerns & movement restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic are two major events that have also contributed to the increase in digital transactions in the country. Since 2016-17, the volume of digital transactions in India has increased by around 8 times in six years. While 2016-17 witnessed only a total volume of 1,004 crore digital transactions, the number has reached 7,869 crores in 2021-22 with a few more days left for the year to complete, according to the government’s DigiDhan Dashboard.
Rs. 4.5 crores worth frauds involving card/internet – debit cards, credit cards and internet banking were reported in two years
Though the speed and ease of transactions improved with digitization, the number of frauds reported in retail financial transactions is also increasing. Innovative methods are being employed by fraudsters to extract money from people, especially those who are not entirely familiar with the techno financial eco-system. In Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs), under the category of ‘frauds involving Card/Internet – Debit Cards, Credit Cards and Internet Banking’, a total of 73,552 cases of fraud involving Rs. 2.51 crores were reported in 2019-20 and 69,818 cases involving 2.07 crores were reported in 2020-21 as per data released by the RBI. The actual number might be higher due to underreporting, and this head does not cover all types of fraud.
To tackle the increasing instances of fraud in digital transactions, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has issued guidelines/circulars from time to time advising banks to take measures to prevent frauds to ensure customer protection. Helplines, websites, etc. are also made available for customers to report unauthorized transactions. Apart from these, RBI also runs awareness campaigns on safe digital banking.
RBI released a booklet on the common modus operandi used by fraudsters
As part of the public awareness initiative by the Consumer Education and Protection Department, RBI, the country’s central bank recently released a booklet, “BE(A)WARE” on the common modus operandi used by fraudsters and precautions to be taken while carrying out various financial transactions. The booklet aims to increase public awareness about various types of financial fraud perpetrated on customers while carrying out digital payments and other financial transactions. The book has been divided into three parts- Part A and B list out the commonly observed modus operandi and precautions to be taken against fraudulent transactions relating to banks and non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), and Part C explains the general precautions and digital hygiene measures to be taken by the public.
RBI has emphasized keeping one’s personal information confidential
Sharing of confidential information like username, password, card details, CVV and OTP by the customers, knowingly or unknowingly, was identified to be one of the major causes leading to the financial frauds, based on RBI’s analysis of complaints. Noting this, emphasis has been given on the need to always keep one’s personal information confidential, taking cognizance of unknown calls, emails, & messages, etc.
The RBI’s booklet lists the following 14 different modus operandi used by fraudsters with respect to Banks.
Modus operandi used by fraudsters in NBFCs have also been listed
The booklet also lists the modus operandi in the case of NBFCs. The common modus operandi used by fraudsters in the case of NBFCs are Fake advertisements for grant of loans by fraudsters, SMS/Email/Instant Messaging/Call scams, OTP based frauds, Fake loan websites or Apps, Money circulation/Ponzi/Multi-Level Marketing (MLM) scheme, and through loans with forged documents.
General precautionary measures should be taken by customers and depositors
The booklet also lists the general precautions to be taken by customers to avoid falling prey to these frauds.
To file complaints on any such fraud, one may use the following contact details-


text:
Explainer: The Complexity around Minimum Wage rates
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
June 25, 2020
The implementation of minimum wages has always been a cause for concern. The tardy implementation is in part a result of the complex system around determining minimum wage with 100s of employment criterion. Here are the details.
In the earlier story, we explored the concept of Minimum Wage in India and the related legislation. The Government of India notified ‘The Code of Wages, 2019’ in August 2019 which replaces a few labour & employment related laws, of which Minimum Wages Act -1948 is one. The purpose of the new act is to regulate wage and bonus payments for all the employees across industry, trades, businesses etc.
One of the key tenets of ‘The Code of Wages, 2019 is ‘Floor Wage’. The Central Government would be fixing a floor wage which takes into consideration the minimum living standards of a worker. The Central government can fix different floor wages for different geographical locations.
Furthermore, the Minimum Wage fixed by the Central and State governments should not be less than the floor rates. The revision of these minimum wages needs to be done at an interval of not more than five years.
In this story, we look at  the prevailing minimum wage rates across the country at central and state level. We also explore the difference in the wages across different sectors in states. Labour Welfare & Compensation, being part of the concurrent list, both central & state governments exercise authority in determining the minimum wages in respective sectors and that is the reason for variances in the minimum wages across the country.
Revised VDA has resulted in revision of Minimum wages from 01 April 2020
On 08 May 2020, Central Government has revised the Variable Dearness Allowance (VDA) being paid to the workers, resulting in changes to the Minimum Wage Rates set by Central Government for employment in various sectors. The change in VDA was as a result of increase in the average Consumer Price Index for Industrial workers. It increased to 324 from 310.83 as on 31 December 2019 (Base Index Year 2001).
The resultant increase in Minimum wages was affected for workers employed in Agricultural sector and various industries.
Minimum wages fixed by Centre for employees in Agriculture
The Minimum wage rates fixed by the Centre for those employed in Agricultural sector varies as per the skill of the workers as well as the geographical location. Larger Urban locations like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad etc. are categorized under Area A. Comparatively smaller Urban areas fall under Area B and all those not falling under both these areas fall under Area C.
As per the new Minimum Wages which are effective from 01 April 2020, an Unskilled worker employed in Agricultural sector needs to receive a minimum of ₹ 400 if employed in Area A. The wages for Area B and Area C are lower at ₹ 365 and ₹ 362 respectively. The wages for Semi-skilled and Skilled workers are comparatively higher.
A Highly Skilled Worker engaged in Agriculture sector receives ₹ 526 in Area A and ₹ 489 in Area B. However, a large portion of the agricultural workers are employed in Area C geographical location (rural), whose latest minimum wage fixed by the centre is ₹ 438 per day.
Workers employed in different Industrial Sectors
The Centre has fixed varying minimum wages for employment in different types of Industrial Sectors. The broad categories of employment under industrial sector include:
The Unskilled workers in Mining activities above the ground receive the least minimum wages i.e. ₹ 420 per day. Their minimum wage rates are equal to other Unskilled workers involved in activities – construction, cleaning, loading & unloading and belong to locations under Area C.
The Unskilled workers working below the ground in Mines fare comparatively better at par with other unskilled workers in locations of Area B. Highly skilled workers involved in construction (Area A) and those employed in watch and ward services and possess arms, have the highest wage rates with minimum wage of ₹ 831 per day. Highly Skilled workers in mining activities and working under the ground have the next highest minimum wage rate of ₹ 819 per day.
The workers involved in Stone Mining activities have different criteria for setting minimum wage rates. The rates vary depending on the activity they are involved in and their skills. Few of these workers have among the highest minimum wage rates.
Among the lowest minimum wages is the workers who are involved with excavation of Soft soil, whose minimum wage rate is ₹ 424 per day. The workers involved with removal and stacking of rejected stones receive even less with ₹ 340 per day.
Meanwhile the workers who handle excavation of rocks have minimum wage rate of ₹ 844.
The highest minimum wage rate in the whole of Industrial Sector is received by those employed in Stone breaking and Stone Crushing activities. Among them, the least is those working on stones larger than 5 inches  (₹ 1,071 per day), while the highest is the workers who deal with stones of size 1 – 1.5 inches (₹ 2,600 per day).
States have set their own minimum wage rates for different types of Employment
Labour Welfare & Compensation is in the Concurrent List as per the constitution of India. This essentially means that both the Centre and State can enact legislation for Labour related matters, with few reserved for Centre.
The sectors discussed earlier in the story i.e. Agricultural and few of the Industrial related employment are in the purview of the centre. The States can provide a higher minimum for wage for these employments specified by Centre but should not pay less than Centre’s amount.
Apart from these, there are various other types of employment for which the states determine the minimum wage rates.  Here is a look at few of these types of employment in different states.
Highly Skilled Employees
A common definition used by the states to categorize highly skilled employees is ‘Job requires high degree of skill, judgement and capacity to supervise’.
Supervisor, Foremen, Shift Supervisor, Technical Supervisor, Senior Mechanic, Computer Programmer, Assistant Engineer, Assistant Production Manager, are few of the employment types that are categorized as Highly Skilled by the States.
The types of employments listed by each of states are quite varied. While most of the states have provided wage listings under the broad category by their proficiency, few of the states like Tamil Nadu have listed wide ranging jobs.
Few states have also used geographical locations and provided minimum wage rates as per the Zones (I-IV). For the sake of this analysis, we have considered the highest wage earned by Highly Skilled workers in the respective states. Where the skill category is not specified, we have considered the jobs from the roles categorized under High Skill.
Among the major states, Delhi has the highest Minimum wage for high-skilled and supervisory jobs with ₹17,508 per month, closely followed by Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Assam.
Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan are among the states with lowest minimum wage for high skilled employees.
Apart from the high skilled employment, office related jobs such as Manager, Data Operators, administrative clerks etc. also have higher minimum wage compared to other employments.
Technicians, Operators, Mechanics etc. categorized as Skilled workers
Skilled employment includes those that a worker is capable of handling the work on their own. Technicians, different types of operators, Mechanics, Carpenters, Black Smiths etc. assistant roles like Production Assistant, Field Assistant etc. are categorized as Skilled employment.
As with the trend observed in case of Highly Skilled and Supervisor roles, States like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi etc. are among the ones with higher minimum wage rates.
Delhi has an average of ₹17,000 pm, while Karnataka is around ₹15,000 pm and A.P around ₹13,000 pm. Haryana, Odisha, Punjab etc. have Minimum wages just above ₹10,000 per month. Meanwhile, the minimum wage for a skilled worker in Rajasthan just above ₹6,000 per month.
The employment falling under Semi-skilled category mostly constitute of assistant roles to the Skilled employment jobs. The minimum wages have the same trends across the states.
High disparity among states for unskilled employment
Unskilled workers constitute a major portion of the workforce. Helpers, Attenders, Watchmen, Ayahs, workers engaged in loading & unloading, general workers in shops & establishments, workers in repair shops and a host of other non-technical, non-operating and non-administrative employments are categorized under unskilled unemployment.
Large variance exists in the minimum wage fixed by the states for these workers. The minimum wage rate for unskilled worker in Delhi is ₹ 14,468 per month, which is higher than the minimum wage rate for high-skilled workers in most of the states.
Andhra Pradesh fixed the minimum wage for unskilled workers at ₹ 9,155. Meanwhile, Karnataka has identified various employments under unskilled category and has specified the minimum wage in the range of ₹ 11,000 – ₹ 12,500. There are variances based on zones, with workers in Zone 1 having higher minimum wage compared to other zones. This is similar to the categorization followed by the central government for metro, urban and other areas.
The minimum wages of unskilled workers in Rajasthan is around ₹ 5,500 that is just over 1/3 of the wage in Delhi.  While Meghalaya and Mizoram are more centrally placed among the states, the rest of North eastern states like Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura & Manipur have lower minimum wage, slightly better than Rajasthan.
Most of the States have higher minimum wages under NREGS compared to Central’s figure
On 26March 2020, Government of India increased minimum wage under NREGS to ₹ 202 per day, an increase of ₹ 20 as part of the economic relief package announced in wake of lockdown due to COVID-19.  However, this increase in minimum NREGS wage by Centre is lower than the NREGS wage amount being paid by most of the states.
As per the notification issued on 23 March 2020, Haryana has the highest wages under NREGS with ₹ 309 per day.
Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, U.P & Uttarakhand are the states which have a lower NREGS wage than the wage announced by Centre.
(Note: Sikkim has three Districts where the Minimum wage is ₹ 308. In the Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, the wage rate for Andaman District is ₹ 257, while for Nicobar district it is ₹ 282).
Complexity around Minimum wage rates resulting in tardy implementation
Various geographical factors and local conditions influence the minimum wage rate.  Delhi for example, has a higher cost of living, hence a higher Consumer Price Index (CPI) that results in a higher minimum wage compared to other states.  However, the wage rate difference between Delhi and few other states is quite stark. There is huge variance  for similar type of employment in different parts of the country. While cost of living and other factors are understandable, such huge difference in minimum wage is a cause for concern.
Furthermore, implementation is another issue. There are over 1000 different employment criterion in states for determining minimum wages. This has created a complex mechanism to interpret and fix the minimum wage of employees, resulting in the workers getting the raw deal in most instances. This only makes the entire system more complex with discretionary in the hands of the bureaucrats. The demand for labour reforms is a result of such complex systems.
The implementation of minimum wage will not improve as long as such complex systems exist.
The need of the day is for simpler criteria  with fewer categories in determining the minimum wages that reflect the market wage rates.
Featured Image: Minimum Wage rates


text:
Explainer: The How & What COVID-19 testing in India
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
March 31, 2020
Close to 50 private labs are now authorized to conduct COVID-19 tests. But how are samples collected and tests conducted for COVID-19? Here is a detailed explainer.
As India enters the second week of lockdown, more than 1200 cases ofCOVID-19 have been reported across the country including 32 deaths, accordingto the Ministry of Health’s dashboard as of 9.30 PM on 30 March 2020.
The rapid spread of disease across the globe has challenged the healthcare systems of many countries. In an earlier story by Factly, it was observed that testing in India was low as compared to other countries which could be one of the reasons for a proportionately lower number of cases reported in India. In order to boost testing, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) which is India’s apex biomedical research body, has started approving private labs who are now authorized to carry out testing in addition to the government labs.
Private labs are being given approval to conduct
COVID-19 diagnosis tests
As on 30 March 2020, ICMR had given approval to 49 private laboratories who can conduct COVID-19 diagnosis tests.  This includes 10 laboratories in Maharashtra,8 each in Delhi and Telangana, 6 in Tamil Nadu, 5 in Haryana, 4 in Gujarat, 2each in Karnataka, West Bengal and Kerala and 1 each in Odisha and UttarPradesh. This is in addition to the 123 government laboratories which have been approved and supported by ICMR as on 30March 2020. Thus, in total, so far, more than 170 labs have been given approvalby ICMR for testing people for COVID-19.
However, the number of approved laboratories for COVID-19 testing isbound to increase in the coming days as more laboratories apply for permissionand the availability of testing kits improves.
It has to be noted that  private labs are not allowed to conduct tests for COVID-19 withoutthe approval of ICMR. Only those private laboratories which hold NationalAccreditation Board (NAB) for Testing and Calibration Laboratories’accreditation for real time Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) testing for RNAvirus and also possess all testing material will be given approval by ICMR. Thestructure of the coronavirus would be shared by ICMR once the approval is provided.
The following details must be sent to ICMR, by laboratories interested toperform COVID-19 diagnosis tests in order to get approval. The details include location,number of collection sites, available materials and machines, accreditationscope, and cost for test.
Who must get themselves tested?
In the beginning, the government had a testing strategy which included testing mostly the those individualswith history of foreign travel. This included asymptomatic individuals withhistory of foreign travel only if they show symptoms. Also included in thetesting pool were contacts of the laboratory confirmed positive cases.
On 20 March 2020, the government modified the testing strategy. As ofnow, the government has restricted tests to only symptomatic individuals who
Further, those asymptomatic persons who are in the high-risk category orhave had direct contact with those tested positive, must be tested after almostone week since the contact was made.
What sample is collected?
Samples are collected from people who are supposed to get tested. Accordingto World Health Organization and US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the following are the respiratory samples thatneed to be collected for COVID-19 diagnosis tests. It is mandatory thatbiosafety and biosecurity precautions are taken for sample collection.
From the lower respiratory tract,
From the upper respiratory tract,
In addition to these, blood sample can also be collected for testing forvirus. Furthermore, urine, stool, and even material from autopsy in case of deadpersons are collected for tests and research.
ICMR recommends private laboratories to collect samples fromsuspected persons at their homes since this helps in reducing human contactwhile travelling and in collection centers. Further, at the time of samplecollection, the government ID proof of residence and contact details of thesuspected patient is also collected.
What happens to the collected samples?
Up on ensuring that the collected samples are properly packed takinginto consideration the required precautions as the virus is highly contagious,the sample must be safely transported to the approved lab for testing.
For the detection of viral infections, there are two types of tests thatare mainly performed- one is genetic and the other is serological. Genetictests are used to identify infections which are currently active in the samplewhereas serological tests can also help trace past infections. PCR Test,abbreviation for Polymerase Chain Reaction Test, is a genetic test that isperformed to identify the presence of SARS-CoV-2 virus. For this, the RNA invirus is converted to DNA by the process of PCR. Reverse TranscriptasePolymerase Chain Reaction or RT PCR Test is also performed for qualitativestudy of gene expression. In short, there are two tests performed, one which looksat all the coronaviruses present and the other which looks for only SARS-CoV-2.
It should be noted that only those US FDA EUA/CE IVD approved kits whichhave been approved by DCGI and notified to ICMR should be used. ICMR has also established fast-track mechanism for non-US FDA EUA/CE IVD approvedkits.
What happens once tests are done?
All labs must send the samples of those tested positive to the National Instituteof Virology, Pune strictly adhering to the biosecurity and biosafetyprecautions. The negative samples must be destroyed within a week ofcollection. All biomedical waste produced must be disposed of carefully as perthe Biomedical waste management rules, 2016. The samples must be discarded, and swabs should bein sealed biohazard bag that contains 2% Lyzol or 5% freshly preparedhypochlorite solution.
No sample should be shared with other organizations. It is also illegalto culture the virus from the sample or use the same for other purposes. Thishas been strictly prohibited and any violation will result in legal action.
What is the cost for testing?
While ICMR recommends that the sample testing should be done for free orat a subsidized rate, the cost of test has been capped at Rs. 1,500 forscreening suspected cases and Rs. 3000 for confirmation test. That is, themaximum price for testing samples should not exceed Rs. 4,500 as per therecommendations of National Task Force.
One should note that the details given in the story are as per the latest details available as on 30 March 2020. The guidelines and protocols may undergo changes based on the severity of the pandemic in India.
Featured Image: COVID-19 testing in India


text:
Explainer: The US Presidential Debates – History & Format
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
September 2, 2020
One of the unique aspects of the US Presidential election is the face to face debate of the Presidential nominees. The debates are seen as an important opportunity for the candidates to put forth their points of view and for the independent voters to make up their mind. Here is an explainer on the history & format of these debates.
The United States of America (USA) is one of the oldest modern democracies in the world. Over its existence as a democracy for nearly two and half centuries, it has developed institutions and practices which strengthen the idea of democracy. Democracy wrests the choice in the people to choose a government to preside over the administration. Hence it is imperative that the people know about the political party or the individual that they would be voting for. This knowledge includes – the ideology, stance on various issues, vision etc.
In a Presidential democracy like the USA, the individual attributes of the contesting candidates may have a larger bearing than that of the political party, compared to that of a parliamentary democracy where it is vice-versa in most cases.
In the USA’s presidential election, knowing about the vision, attributes and plans of the presidential candidate becomes key for the non-partisan voters to decide, who play a key role in the election of the President.
As such, the US Presidential debates provide a platform for the voters to gain more insights about the presidential candidates. On the other hand, it gives a final opportunity to the candidates to present their point of view to the electorate. Over the past many decades, presidential debates have become a common fixture in the Quadrennial US Presidential elections.
With the first of the Presidential debates in the run up to US Presidential Election 2020 coming up later this month, we take a look at the history of the presidential debates, their framework and related information.
The first General election presidential debate was held in 1960
US Presidential Debates are not constitutionally mandated but have become an integral part of presidential elections. The first Presidential Debate was held in 1960, between Democratic Presidential nominee John F. Kennedy and Republican Nominee and Vice-president Richard M. Nixon. However, there are several others debates which are considered to have set the precedent to this debate.
Lincoln-Douglas debates – 1858
The series of seven debates in 1858 between Abraham Lincoln & Senator Stephen Douglas, for United States Senate in Illinois, are considered to be the first face to face debates between two candidates. Although, they both were contesting for the Senate in 1858, they both were nominated for president in 1860 and the debates defined the respective positions in the ensuing presidential election in 1860.
Republican Presidential primary debate – 1948 and debates in ensuing primaries
Although Republican presidential nominee in 1940, Wendell Willkie challenged his opponent, President Franklin Roosevelt, to a face to face debate, it was refused by the later. However, in 1948, candidates during Republican Presidential Primaries, Thomas.E. Dewey and Harold Stassen, engaged in a debate in Oregon, which was broadcasted on radio. This was followed by Democrats in their primaries during 1956. A televised primary debate was conducted between Adlai Stevenson and Estes Kefauver. There was another debate in 1960, again during Democrat Primaries, this time involving John F. Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey.
Kennedy – Nixon debates  in 1960 – The first presidential debates
While there have been efforts since 1956, to organize debates with the presidential candidates, it materialized during the Presidential elections in 1960. The first general election presidential debate was held on 26 September 1960 between U.S Senator John F. Kennedy (Democratic nominee) and Vice President Richard M. Nixon (Republican Nominee), at CBS’s studio. There were three other debates which followed.
The series of debates were sponsored by broadcasting networks – CBS, ABC and NBC. The moderating panel consisted of reporters & journalists and varied with each debate. Political observers have commented that Kennedy’s better performance in the first debate gave him an edge in the presidential contest, in spite of his relative inexperience to Nixon. The first debate had over 66 million viewers, more than the following three, with each of them also crossing 60 million in viewership.
Hiatus and resumption of the presidential debates in 1976
After the 1960 elections, it took 16 years to organize another presidential debate, with the next presidential debate being in 1976 between President Gerald Ford (Republican) and his opponent, Democratic nominee, Jimmy Carter.  During this gap period, there have been face to face debates organized within the party primaries, especially Democratic primaries.
League of Women Voters sponsored the debates during the 1976 election campaign, unlike the 1960 debates, which were sponsored by television networks. These debates were televised, and 3 debates were organized between the presidential candidates. There was also one debate which was organized between the vice-presidential candidates. This was followed up in the next presidential elections of 1980 and remained a regular fixture in every presidential election ever since. Since 1984, debate between Vice-presidential candidates also became a regular feature.
Most of the presidential debates were organized between the presidential nominees of the two leading parties i.e. Democratic & Republican parties. The year 1992 was an exception, with third party candidate Ross Perot, also being part of the debates along with President George Bush (Republican) and Bill Clinton (Democrat).
Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) is sponsoring the debates since 1988
As highlighted earlier, presidential debates are not constitutionally mandated, but are an initiative by media and civil society. The first General Election Presidential Debates in 1960, were organized and sponsored by the broadcasting networks i.e. CBS, ABC and NBC. In 1976, a non-partisan civic organization, League of Women Voters (LWV) took the initiative and sponsored the debates in the run-up to 1976 presidential election. They continued with organizing the presidential debates for the next two elections i.e. in 1980 and 1984. However, they withdrew from debate sponsorship for 1988 elections, citing the imposition of the major party candidates on how the debates were conducted.
The two major political parties in USA, took control of organizing the presidential debates through the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD). Since inception, CPD has been headed by former chairs of Democratic National Committee and Republican National Committee.  Since the 1988 presidential elections, CPD has sponsored presidential debates for all the ensuing elections.
The format of the debates has changed over the period of time
The format of debates has significantly changed over the years. Each debate during the initial Lincoln vs Douglas debates lasted 3 hours, with the first speaker speaking for an hour followed by the second speaker given time for 1 and half hour. The first speaker was then given 30 minutes for rebuttal.
The CPD uses three criteria in its selection of the moderators:
The moderators are announced several weeks before the debates and they select the questions to be asked, which are not known to either the CPD or to the candidates. Except for a couple of exceptions, a single moderator was used for a debate.
3 presidential and one Vice-presidential debate to be held for 2020 Presidential elections
The CPD, sponsor for the presidential debates reserves the right to determine the dates and the venues for the presidential debates. For the ongoing Presidential election, there would be three presidential debates and one vice presidential debate. The first debate would be on 29 September 2020. The incumbent president Donald Trump is the Republican nominee and former Vice President Joe Biden is the Democratic party’s nominee for the president.  All the debates have a time limit of 90 minutes.
Lack of representation of non-major party candidates has attracted criticism
The CPD has laid down criteria for the presidential candidates who can participate in these debates. With the exception of Ross Perot, an independent candidate in 1992, the debates have been between the presidential nominees of the two major parties – Democrats & Republicans. The presidential candidates are required to get at least 15% of the votes in opinion polls to be invited for the debates.
As per its 2020 Nonpartisan Candidate Selection Criteria, the candidate is required to:
Even prior to the release of these standard criteria in 2019, the 15% share in the electorate has rendered third party candidates like those from Green Party & Libertarian Party along with independents unqualified to be part of the debates.  This has long been contested and the lack of exposure on TV debates is cited as one of the reasons for getting lower poll numbers in presidential elections. The grouse expressed by third party candidates and independents, finds support in a study by PEW research, where an increasing number of participants state that the debates have aided in making up their minds. This indicates that the debates have an impact on the non-partisan electorate, who are the main focus for third-party candidates and independents.
Featured Image: US Presidential Debates

created: September 2, 2020


text:
Explainer: The What & How of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
October 3, 2019
Every year, the United
Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meets in New York. But what happens at the
UNGA? How are things decided? Here is a detailed explainer.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Imran Khan madehis maiden speech at the 74 United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).His speech, which mainly targeted the abrogation of Article 370 by the IndianGovernment exceeded the stipulated time limit for each leader by more than 30minutes. But what is the time allocated for each leader to speak? What are thelanguages that can be used? How many representatives from each country areallowed to participate? Here is a detailed explainer on what the UNGA is andwhat its Rules of Procedure are.
What is the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)?
The General Assembly is a diplomatic forum wherethe 193 member nations of the UN are represented in order to engage in discussionsand take action on international issues such as peace, security anddevelopment. The UNGA, established in 1945, is one of the six main organs of the organisation,the rest five being the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council, the TrusteeshipCouncil, the International Court of Justice and the UN Secretariat.
The objective of the UNGA is to promoteinternational co-operation among all nations in the political, social,cultural, economic, educational and also health fields while assisting inrealization of human rights and fundamental freedom for everyone. Developmentof international law and its codification also takes place at the UNGA as perthe UN charter.
When does the Assembly gather?
The Assembly would meet every year inregular session commencing on the third Tuesday of the month of September atthe UN headquarters in New York, USA. Special sessions can be summoned by theGeneral Secretary at the request of the Security Council or majority ofmembers. This year, the 74 General Assembly began on 24 September2019 and came to an end on 30 September 2019.
How are decisions made?
In order to make decisions on importantquestions related to maintenance of international peace and security, electionand admission of members, budgetary questions and more, voting takes place. Thequorum for the meetings to take place is that at least one third of the membersof the General Assembly are present. Of these, two thirds majority of themembers present and voting is required to make a decision on the abovementioned issues. Those members who have not paid their contributions may not be permitted to vote. Each membernation has only one vote.
The General Assembly elects a President andtwenty one Vice Presidents for each session. The election will be highlyrepresentative in nature. A total of six representatives from the Africanstates, five from Asian, one from Eastern Europe, three from Latin Americanstates, two from Western European states or others and five from the permanentmembers of the Security Council. All elections are held by secret ballot. ThePresident cannot vote, but in his place can designate another member of hisdelegation to vote. The President of the 74th session is TijjaniMuhammad-Bande of Nigeria.
How many representatives are allowed for each member Nation?
The delegation of a member nation can haveonly a maximum of five representatives and five alternate representatives inthe General Assembly. They are also permitted to have as many advisers,technical advisers and experts as per their requirement.
What are the languages that can be used in UNGA?
Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russianand Spanish are the official languages and the working languages of the UNGA,committees and sub-committees. If speeches are made in one of these languages,interpretation is made in the remaining five languages. If a representativespeaks in any other language apart from these six, an interpretation of his/herspeech has to be submitted in one of the six languages. Interpretation intoremaining working languages is done by the Secretariat on the basis of thesubmitted speech. Verbatim, summary records, Journals, resolutions and otherdocuments will also be published in the official languages of UNGA. Since PrimeMinister Narendra Modi spoke in Hindi, the interpretation of his speech musthave been provided in one of the six official languages.
What happens at the beginning and end of each session?
At the commencement of the first plenarymeeting and at the end of the closing of the final plenary meeting of eachsession of the General Assembly, the President invites all the representativesfor a one minute silent prayer or meditation. He/She declares the meeting open andgrants the permission for debate when at least one third of the Assemblymembers are present, which is the quorum.
Who are permitted to speak?
Only those representatives who havepreviously obtained the permission to speak are allowed to address theAssembly. The order in which the speakers are called upon by the President isbased on their desire to speak. In case the speaker does not adhere to thesubject of discussion, the President has the authority to call the speaker toorder.  The Chairman and Rapporteur ofany committee will be given precedence in order to explain the conclusionsarrived at by their committee. In this year’s UNGA, as is tradition, Brazilian PresidentJair Bolsonaro was the first to speak at the general debate podium. FollowingBrazil, USA being the host country gets its turn.
What is the time allocated for each speaker?
A detailed agenda is drawn up before every session of UNGA. The General Assembly decidesthe time allocated for each speaker and how many times each representative mayspeak on any question. The limit is set through a debate in which tworepresentatives speak in favour of and two representatives speak against theproposal which contains the details of limits. If a speaker exceeds theallocated time, the President has the authority to call him/her without delay. Duringthe course of the debate, the President announces the list of speakers. Thelist will be closed upon receiving the consent of the Assembly. However, thespeakers in the general debate are expected to observe a voluntary fifteenminutes time limit for statement.
In addition, the chairman of the delegationof each country addresses the General Assembly. In most cases, this could bethe Prime Minister of a country, the President, the Foreign Minister etc. The video recordings of all thesespeeches are available on the UN website.
How is the theme for general debate selected?
The general debate usually takes place at the beginning of every General Assembly session in which the Heads of State and Government participate. The theme for the general debate, which is usually of global relevance, is suggested by the President elect based on discussions with member nations. Usually, by early August, the President sends a letter to all the member nations in which the theme is announced so that the representatives can focus on these topics for their speeches. The theme for this year’s UNGA was ‘Galvanizing multilateral efforts for poverty eradication, quality education, climate action and inclusion.’
In this year’s Assembly, most leaders fromacross the globe stressed on the efforts taken by their nation to improvehealth care and education during the general debate. The general debate came to an end withthe President concluding that the survival of the world relies on multilateralism.He added that in the highly polarized world, multilateralism is the onlyguarantee for peace, security and sustainable development.

created: October 3, 2019