The Civil Analyst

Every year September 16 is observed as the World Ozone Day, marking the signing day of the Montreal Protocol.   In late 1970s, American chemists F. Sherwood Rowland and Mario Molina proved that CFC (Chlorofluorocarbons) compounds used in refrigerators, aerosol cans and air conditioners combine with solar radiation and decompose in the stratospheric layer, freeing chlorine and chlorine monoxide atoms which have the potential to destroy large numbers of ozone molecules. Then, a huge hole in the ozone layer was observed over Antarctica in the year 1985, allowing dangerous level of UV radiation to reach the earth’s surface. In the same year Vienna Convention for the Protection of Ozone Layer was also signed under which UN members realized the fundamental significance of curbing damage to the ozone layer. The Vienna convention summarises states’ duties to shield human health and environment against adverse impacts of ozone depletion, established the framework under which the Montreal Proto

Recently, there was a call for expansion of the G-7 membership by the U.S. President as well as British Prime Minister. Though the expanded group looks like an anti-China grouping but the actual motive of the expansion is to discipline China and not isolate it. (You can also read the Changing Global Order to understand the issue clearly)   Evolution of the G-7 It was formed in the year 1975 with six members, namely the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, France and Japan, Canada joining a year later. When it was formed it  represented about 70% of the world economy, today it accounts for about 40% of world GDP. It was formed with a common motive of tackling issues such as the response  to oil shocks. G20 which was formed after the global financial crisis of 2007-09 has overshadowed the G-7. G-7 was for some period of time was called G-8 when Russia joined the group in 1997, but in 2017 it was debarred from the membership when it annexed Crimea. Past attempts

It is anticipated that the world will experience a change in the global order in the aftermath of Covid-19. These major changes will be on the economic and geopolitical front and we can see the failure of the international institutions and role of China and the US (refer: Expansion of G-7 ) Failure of international institutions The major international bodies such as the  United Nations , the  World Health Organization (WHO)  are seen to have failed to curb the grave challenge posed by the pandemic COVID19. The WHO is under attack for being bias and of grossly underestimating  the nature of the epidemic. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is criticized for being slow in dealing with  a situation that is far severe than any military threat in recent times. Economic crisis The COVID19 pandemic will drastically impact the world in many aspects and one is economically. The World Bank has already announced negative growth rate for most countries, including some fastest gr

When entire country is under lockdown due to the pandemic COVID19, there is something to cheer about for India. India’s foreign exchange reserves are rising and are expected to hit the $500 billion mark soon. In the month May, it jumped by $12.4 billion to an all-time high of $493.48 billion. Leaving behind the 1991 crisis Many youngsters are not aware of the Forex crisis of 1991, when India had to pledge its gold reserves to escape a major financial crisis. India can now confidently depend on its soaring Forex reserves to tackle any crisis on the economic front. There has been a massive increase of 8,400 per cent in the level of Forex from $5.8 billion as of March 1991 to the current level. What are Forex Reserves? Reserve Bank of India Act and the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 has been enacted to set the legal provisions for governing the foreign exchange reserves in the country. The Central Bank of the country accumulates foreign currency reserves by purchasing fro

It was the 3 rd Conference of Parties (COP 3) of United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) , which was held in Kyoto, Japan on 11 December 1997, when more than 150 nations negotiated the first international legally binding treaty usually referred as the Kyoto Protocol, to control and reduce emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs). It was the most significant environmental accord ever adopted to reduce the emission of six major greenhouse gases, namely: «   Carbon dioxide «   Methane «   Nitrous oxide «   Hydroflurocarbons «   Perflurocarbons & «   Sulphur hexafluoride. It came into force on 16 February 2005 after required number of at least 55 countries ratified it and directed 37 industrialized countries and the European Community to cut their GHGs emission up to 5.2% measured against 1992 levels over a period of five years (2008-2012), the first commitment period. The protocol is ratified by 192 parties with notable exception of the United State

CGN-89564-2 is another name of Flavr Savr TM tomato, the first genetically modified (GM) crop which was granted a license by the U.S. Food and Drug Adminstration (FDA) for human consumption in 1992. Subsequently, there has been a global rapid acceptance of GM crops to fulfil the ever rising demand for food and fodder. It is very important that the biotechnology must be developed with appropriate safety measures as it has great potential to improve human well-being. Taking into account the safety of biological diversity, Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety was adopted on 29 January 2000 in Montreal, Canada as a supplementary agreement under the United Nations Convention of BiologicalDiversity (UNCBD) and entered into force on 11 September 2003.  (There is one more supplementary agreement under UNCBD that is the Nagoya Protocol on Access andBenefit-Sharing .) It was named in honour of Cartagena, Colombia, where negotiations were anticipated to accomplish in February 1999.   It is a legally

The Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization, often known as the “ Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-Sharing” is an international supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). The three objectives of the CBD are conservation, sustainable use, and fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from the utilization of biological diversity and the traditional knowledge related with them. The third one is the foremost objective to the convention and is essential for the accomplishment of the first two as the benefits arising from utilisation of biological diversity would turn as enticement for the biodiverse countries and their local communities to conserve and sustainably use their biodiversity.  To achieve the implementation of the third objective, Nagoya protocol was adopted during 10 th Conference of Parties (COP) to the CBD on 29 October 2010 in Nagoya, Japan, entering