1 Dec 2023

#GS3: – 01. Loss & Damage

The progress we’ve made in establishing a loss and damage fund is hugely significant for climate justice, but an empty fund can’t help our people.
– MADELEINE DIOUFSARR CHAIR, GROUP OF 46 LEAST DEVELOPEDCOUNTRIES

On the opening day of the United Nations Frame work Convention on Climate Change, or COP28, the UAE has green lit a crucial decision, making the loss and damage fund for developing nations operational. The European Union committed around $ 275 million, while the host, UAE, pledged an additional $100 million. Germany and the UK pledged $ 100 million and $ 75 million, respectively. The US will contribute $ 17.5 million and Japan has committed $10million for the climate disaster fund.
– Commentary in News

#GS3: – 02. ONDC

State-run Open Network Digital Commerce’s (ONDC) potential to transform Indian e-commerce by connecting businesses, clients and con- summers is showing results with transaction volumes jumping by1,200 in January to 4.7 million in November.

It was just started with 800 retail sellers and now increased to228,000 sellers and service providers, out of which 133,000 are mobility service providers and 94,000 are retailers. There are over 32 million products available on the ONDC network.
-ONDC Managing Director Thampy Koshy

#GS3: -03. Methane Gas Emissions

Countries gathered at the COP28 summit that started on Thursday will focus on cutting methane gas emissions as the“ easiest, quickest and cheapest” way to deal with the climate change crisis.

This year we’ll beading a very important contribution with respect to methane, which will involve both oil and gas companies as well as countries.

-US special Presidential envoy for climate John Kerry

#Essay: – 04. Women

Women, whether subtly or vociferously, have always been a tremendous power in the destiny of the world.
– Eleanor Roosevelt

#GS2: – 05. Employment & Women

As Per the latest PLFS report of July 2022- June 2023,which was released earlier, the total number of workers in the economy reached its highest level at 563 million based on ‘usual status.’ Compared to 458 million workers in 2017-18 by the same survey, India added 106 million workers in five years.

Arise in female employment must not Be mistaken for women’s empowerment. A realistic understanding is that it is women who bear the brunt of massive economic changes, including shocks to the economy. They step out to supplement house hold income sin times of distress, but tend to retreat when the situation improves for child care and other work at home.

While Women shoulder the larger burden of our care economy, they are also pushed to seek jobs in tough times. And it is usually in the worst kind of employment, with low productivity. Even though women constitute less than a third of India’s work force, they accounted for two-thirds of its incremental headcount in the last five years. And where did they find employment? In agriculture, despite our total cultivable are a declining, labour needs dropping even faster (as a result of mechanization)and farms Paying such meagre wages. Women saw their share of regular employment
shrink.
– Institutional Investor Advisory Services India Ltd (IiAS)

#GS3: -06. Developed nations & Climate commitment

Any global fund requires an agreed pat- Tern of funding. Lack of cooperation starts Right there. The US, even under Joe Biden’s presidency, wants contributions to be voluntary. Mandated contributions with the US as a lone dissenter might be possible, but un likely. Developed nations are not feeling either rich orgenerous right now. The US is in a fiscal crisis on account of its counter- covid expansionary fiscal policy, aggravated by arms support for Ukraine. The US could see possible closure of government offices in January if its public debt limit provisionally lifted in June this year is not legislatively sanctioned by then. The UK has careened towards public debt exceeding 100% of GDP, after having narrowly staved off strikes by public service employees with a modest pay increase, while at the same time protecting political supporters of the ruling Conservative Party from tax increases. France has faced down an extended protest against tightening of its pension rules.
-Economist Indira Rajaraman

#GS1: -07. Fact Checking and Indian tradition

Since ancient times, Indian society relied on faithful verbal repetition, or shruti and smriti (heard knowledge and memory in the Hindu tradition), to pass on the exactmes sage through generations without loss of information. But as the need increased for preservation of authenticity and wider dissemination, ‘writing’ became first a convenience and later anecessity. Given the natural agelessness of the written form that outlives human life, writing soon became the sine quan on of any societal activity, where by it was directly linked with literacy, formality and access to economic opportunities. Even in olden times, trade necessitated binding arrangements that were soon reflected in written documents. The Western world made material progress faster because, according to Professor Joseph Heinrich, it could transcend the boundaries imposed by having to transact within one’s own tribes or communities. In the modern era, the written contract and its associated legal sanctity have hugely facilitated dealings between strangers, thus scaling up economic activity.

Earlier, the publisher was responsible for picking wheat apart from the chaff, and now we the readers have to make that discernment, since writing now suffers from a problem of plenty and as car city of quality. Language-processing artificial intelligence (AI) will exacerbate this issue, as has already been identified in its ability to ‘hallucinate,’ a euphemism- if High costs of production and Dissemination once gave the Written word not just scarcity value but a related assurance of quality, but the digital age has seen all these variables crash. The advent of AI worsens the ity and respect for the written word is compounded by social media, where anonymity encourages frivolity, exaggeration and falsities. The chasm between reality and fiction is so deep and yet so difficult to counter that it has given rise to a new avenue of employment, ‘fact-checking,’ that now has to be checked for its own biases.

High costs of production and Dissemination once gave the Written word not just scarcity value but a related assurance of quality, but the digital age has seen all these variables crash.

The advent of AI worsens the problem. With trust inspired only By personal verifications and what’s said by the trustworthy, we must work out how best to resolve this crisis of credibility.