11 Dec 2023

#GS3: – 01. Dark Pattern

The CCPA dark patterns guidelines prohibit 13 activities by online shopping platforms. These are: false urgencies, adding un required items to carts, ‘confirm shaming’, forced actions, subscription traps, interface interferences, bait and switch, drip pricing, disguised ads, nagging, trick questions, ‘SaaS billing’ and malware. These guidelines are to
stop firms from exploiting customers with interface design that is unclear, in order to get them to pay for a service that they don’t need.

Industry bodies and entities have largely remained silent, but have spoken up against over-regulating the e-commerce industry. In October, the Asia Internet Coalition, which counts Amazon, Google and Meta as members, said introducing rules and guidelines on dark patterns could “stagnate growth”. It added that new regulations may hurt the ease of
doing business in India, and lead to “regulatory overlap”—arguing that consumer protection can be implemented through existing regulations.
-Commentary in News
Key Terms/Issues : Dark Pattern, Confirm Shaming, SaaS billing, CCPA

#GS2: – 02. Climate Change

2023 is on track to becoming the hottest year in human civilizations panning over 125,000 years, as noted by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).Projections indicate a potential surge in the earth’s temperature by 2.5–3 degrees Celsius by the close of this century.

Unless prompt measures are taken, the global GDP may witness a distressing annual decline of 4.4% over the upcoming 25 to 30 years. Such an economic down-turn has the potential to sow fear, hunger, and poverty, ravaging the lives of millions. Regrettably, South Asia might bear a three times greater burden than the rest of the world. The pivotal role of farmers in nourishing the world cannot be overstated, and water stands as a crucial as set for agriculture. A substantial 70% of the water extracted from the ear this dedicated solely to agriculture. If this trend persists, the world is barrelling towards an unprecedented groundwater crisis, which could materialize within the next two years.

-Editor in Chief of Hindustan Shashi Shekhar

#GS3: -03. Trade barriers/ sops for green push

The government should not dilute the Make in India initiative and follow a Consistent policy.
-Ficci EV committee chair person Sulajja Firodia Motwani

The decision of the European Union (EU) to Impose a carb on tax on cert a in sectors like Metals from 2026 will only hurt global Trade and not helping containing carbon Emissions.

Carbon leakage is the phenomenon of Companies moving production to countries with Weaker environmental regulations to avoid Paying carbon prices in the EU. This objective Could have been achieved by merely taxing Imports from the EU firms which have shifted Production too ther countries. However, the EU Chose to tax all world imports through CBAM.
-Think tank GTRIco-founderAjaySrivastava

Key Terms/Issues : CBAM

#GS3: – 04. Viksit Bharat

‘ViksitBharat@2047: Voice of Youth’ initiative will provide a platform To the youth of the country to contribute ideas to
the vision of Viksit Bharat@2047.

India is at a turning point in its history. The 21stcentury Will be India’s century as the country pole-vaults into the future, backed by the phenomenal expansion in education, health, rural economy, infrastructure and digital public infrastructure.

It is important to channelise the innovative ideas of youth into nation-building by inviting them to ideate and contribute to the vision of Viksit Bharat (developed India) by 2047.
-Niti Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam

#GS3″ – 05. Banking Regulation

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has revised its projection of our GDP growth this fiscal year from 6.5% to 7%. Since 7.2% is the annual rate at Which an economy must grow On average in real terms to double in size every decade, 7.2% has been a marker of sorts for India’s emergence.

For price stability to serve as a firm base for sustainable 7.2% plus growth, RBI must meet its 4% inflation target. Deft liquidity modulation is crucial and credit quality mustn’t drop.

Over-regulation has been a charge leveled at RBI many times down the decades, but even though innovation can suffer as a result, let’s not for get how it favours banking stability, its relative forte. If price stability is achieved too, it would earn RBI a standing ovation.
-Health secretary Sudhansh Pantshrink
Key Terms/Issues : Price Stability

#GS2–#GS3: – 06. Technology & Elections

Almost every Indian election in the past few decades has integrated new technology into the campaign process, from phone calls in the 1990s to holograms in 2014. Poll season in 2014was dominated by Face-book and Twitter. In 2019, the election campaign centred around WhatsApp. It’s evident that voters can be tricked and perplexed by ever-evolving technology. An increase in disinformation that social media platform scan disseminate can have disturbing consequences. Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to deep fakes as a “new age sankat” or difficulty in are cent speech. How might deep fakes affect important elections and the trajectory of geopolitics? Is artificial intelligence (AI) equipped for it?

The 2023 Slovak election is Widely dubbed “test case” in the context of a series of major elections due in 2024, including those in the US,UK,EU and India(Lok Sabha polls).

In a New York Times article, Jack Nicas and Lucía Cholakian wrote that “with its expanding power and falling cost, [AI] is now likely to be a factor in many democratic elections around the globe.”

According to The State of Deep fakes report brought out by a cyber-security firm, India is the sixth most vulnerable country to deep fakes. Apprehensive of AI-generated deep fakes and misinformation, the Indian government has announced plans to take action.

To determine the extent to Which we should be concerned, however, a proper data-based assessment is required. What can be said at this point is that deep fakes have added a shade of uncertainty as we inch closer to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
-Indian Statistical Institute Professor Atanu Biswas
Key Terms/Issues : Deepfakes, AI

#GS3: -07. NPAs and Delinquency

India’s unsecured retail lending has some Emerging worries. However, system wide high delinquency is not among them. Non-performing-asset (NPA) rates by the 90+ days-past-due (DPD) rule range from 0.8% for personal loans (PLs) to 1.6% for credit card receivables, as shown in a recent TUC ibil report. These products account for 93% of unsecured consumer lending (UCL). Given the burgeoning asset growth, these coincidental NPA rates tend to understate riskiness. Loans given in the last quarter will not jump to NPA status at the quarter’ send. However, if one even considers the lagged NPA rate: i.e., current year NPAs as a proportion of exposure 12months back, it is 2.9% (first quarter of2023-24). It is an improvement from the 3.3% lagged NPA rate of 2018-19.When the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) reduced capital requirements for PLs in September 2019, the UCL delinquency numbers were not materially different from the latest ones. Yes, as pot of bother exists for small ticket personal loans (STPL) of under ₹50,000, but that is just 0.3% of the retail portfolio. This may be a symptom of a deeper malaise that an enhanced capital-cushion requirement, by itself, may not solve.