Prelim Bits 04-03-2024 | UPSC Daily Current Affairs

New GI Tagged Products

The Geographical Indications Registry in Chennai have given GI tag for Cuttack Rupa Tarakasi, Banglar muslin, Narasapur crochet lace products among others.

• GI tag – A form of certification that recognises unique products based on their origin.
• Characteristics – Products can be natural or man-made.
• India being a member of WTO, enacted the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration & Protection) Act, 1999 that came into force from 2003.

The first product in India to be accorded with GI tag was Darjeeling Tea in the year 2004-05. Tamil Nadu has the highest number of GI tags in India.

Hyderabad Lac Bangles and Kutch rogan craft are the other products that got GI tag recently.

Reference

The Hindu| Recent GI Tagged Products

Lahore Resolution, 1940

India plans to celebrate the Pakistan National Day in March 2024 at the Pakistan’s embassy complex in New Delhi.

Pakistan National Day is observed on March 23, the day the Lahore Resolution was adopted in 1940 by the Muslim League.

• Adopted by – All-India Muslim League during its general session in Lahore from March 22 to March 24, 1940.
• Objective – To formally call for an independent state for India’s Muslims.
• Causes – Till the early 1930s, many Muslims had been agitating for better representation and safeguarding of their rights within the Indian Union.
  • Separate electorate granted to them in the Government of India Act, 1935, was a step towards that.
• However, as the decade progressed, the voices that demanded a total break from India got stronger.

The Muslim League’s 1940 Lahore session was held days after the Khaksar tragedy, when members of a Muslim group called the Khaksars, fighting for India’s independence, were shot at by the British.

• Resolution – No constitutional plan would be acceptable to Muslims unless it is designed on the following basic principle
• Demarcating geographically contiguous units with such territorial readjustments as may be necessary.
• Grouping the numerically Muslim majority areas like the North-Western and Eastern Zones of India into Independent States, where the constituent units shall be autonomous and sovereign.
• Providing constitutionals safeguards in other parts of India where the Mussalmans are in a minority and for other minorities in consultation with them.
• Response by Indian Muslims – Abul Kalam Azad and the Deoband ulema led by Husain Ahmad Madani criticised the resolution and advocated for a united India.
• Consequence – Though the resolution didn’t mention the word ‘Pakistan’, it reached a point from which the Muslim League never turned back and lead to 2 independent states ‘India & Pakistan’.
• Significance – In March 23^rd 1956, Pakistan officially adopted its 1^st Constitution, which transformed the Dominion of Pakistan to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
• Between 1960 and 1968, the Minar-e-Pakistan was built at the site where the resolution was adopted and the text of the resolution is inscribed at the base of the tower.

Reference

The Indian Express| Pakistan National Day in New Delhi

Grey Zone Warfare

In the recent 9^th edition of Raisina Dialogue, India’s Chief of Defence Staff mentioned that “grey zone warfare” is the latest in informal warfare.

The Raisina Dialogue is India’s premier annual conference on geopolitics and geo-economics that was designed on the basis of Shangri-La Dialogue.

• Grey Zone Warfare – A separate military action which generally means a middle, unclear space between direct conflict and peace in international relations.
• Here, action is often covert or indirect, meaning a country’s response needs to be appropriate in terms of its scale.
• Causes – In nuclear era, the cost of conventional conflict is high, prompting the nations to seek to covert aggressions.
  • Amid the US-USSR rivalry in cold war era, the knowledge that both were nuclear armed meant direct conflicts had to be restrained.
• They are often employed by parties who have not had access to massive resources or power, traditionally to help them gain an advantage over superior powers.
• Economic warfare – Debt traps, economic sanctions among others.
  • Economic sanctions against China and imposition of duties on Chinese imports to the US.
• Military warfare – Proxy wars
  • Chinese military’s presence in the South China Sea threatening Philippines and Taiwan.
• Geo-political warfare – Legal warfare (lawfare), Destabilizing insurgencies, mercenary operations and assassinations.
• Cyber warfare – Information warfare, cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns.

• Impact – Though it seems mild when compared to traditional strategic competition, it is not less vicious.
• Rather than escalate in one dimension, it tends to escalate in multiple dimensions and leads to unintended over-escalation, creating a nightmare for crisis management.

Reference

The Indian Express| Grey Zone Warfare

Risa Textiles

Tripura’s traditional tribal attire ‘risa’ gets Geographical Indication tag.

Geographical Indication (GI) tag is a form of certification that recognises unique products based on their origin which can be natural or man-made. India has enacted Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration & Protection) Act, 1999 for this purpose.

• Risa – It is common in almost all 19 indigenous tribal communities of Tripura but each community has its own design.
• Social relevance – Adolescent Tripuri girls are 1^st given a risa to wear in an event called Risa Sormani, at age 12 to 14.
• It is presented as a mark of honour to distinguished recipients.
• As a turban by men during weddings and festivals, a cummerbund over the dhoti, a head scarf by young girls and boys, and a muffler during winters.
• It is also used as a makeshift hanger to hold an infant on mothers’ backs.

• Religious relevance – It is used in religious festivals such as Garia Puja by tribal communities.
• Significance of GI Tag – It would increase its international popularity and marketing potential.

Handloom remains an integral part of the Tripuri household, even with the advent of powerloom-manufactured garments.

Reference

The Indian Express| GI Tag for Risa Textiles

Sri Ayya Vaikunda Swamigal

The Prime Minister of India has paid tributes to Sri Ayya Vaikunda Swamigal on his birth anniversary.

• A pioneer of the social revolutionaries of south India and Kerala.
• Birth place – Shastamkoyil near swamithoppu in Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu.
• Original name – Mudisoodum Perumal, was changed to Muthukutty due to objections raised by upper caste Hindus.
• Education – He had no opportunity to systematic schooling but acquired knowledge of various religious texts.
• Teachings – He preached ideas of equality and advocated the rights of depressed class people in the face of stiff opposition from upper castes as well as princely state of Travancore.
• He requested people to give up irrelevant rites and rituals in their worship and also campaigned against animal sacrifices.
• Thol seelai porattam – He was a part of this campaign to cover the upper part of the women of lower castes.
• Turban protest – There was restriction of wearing the headgear on certain section of caste in Travancore so he advocated wearing turban in protest.
• Samathuva Samajam – He started this to unite all people of various castes by organising inter-dining to accomplish it.
• Ayya – his followers called him respectfully as Ayya (father) and his cult was known as Ayya Vazhi (the path of Ayya).
• His ideas were collected into a text called Akila Thirattu Ammanai.
• Nizhal Thangals – A simple temple of the Ayyavazhi religion built per the instructions of Akilattirattu Ammanai by commoners in order to worship without distinction of color, race or caste.
• Thuvayal Thavasu – A religious exercise undertaken by his devotees.
• Significance – His teachings affected many social changes in southern India which resulted in the emergence of a series of social and self-respect movements such as

Sri Ayya Vaikunda Swamigal criticised the rule of the British and the rule of Rajah of Travancore as the rule of White devils and Black devils respectively.

References

1. PIB| Birth Anniversary of Vaikunda Swamigal
2. AyyaVaikundar| Sri Ayya Vaikunda Swamigal