The GST Council agreed to establish GST Appellate Tribunals to resolve disputes under the goods and services tax (GST) regime. The proposed tribunals will help expedite resolution of GST disputes and reduce burden on the judiciary. However, the Council was informed that GST revenues were still below target levels due to rate cuts on some items between 2017 and 2021.

3. Headlines
Biden visits Kyiv, pledges more military assistance- Page No.1 , GS 2
Slow progress to creating a safe workplace for women - Page No.6 , GS 1,2
Reform reluctance - Page No.6 , GS 2,3
The problems with the Data Protection Bill - Page No.7 , GS 2
Law to raise marital age is not enough as enforcement is poor - Page No.7,GS 1,2
Text and Context - Can we use moon dust to slow down global warming?
Text and Context - South China Sea
Questions (Map, Prelims, Mains)
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4. Exercise Dustlik is a joint military
exercise between which of the
following countries?
A. India and Kazakistan
B. India and Japan
C. India and Uzbekistan
D. India and Indonesia
अभ्यास डस्टलिक निम्िलिखित में से
ककस देश क
े बीच एक संयुक्त सैन्य
अभ्यास है?
A. भारत और कजाककस्ताि
B. भारत और जापाि
C. भारत और उज्बेककस्ताि
D. भारत और इंडोिेलशया

5. Answer - C
Explanation :
A military exercise DUSTLIK (2023) will be conducted from February 20th
to 5th March 2023 in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand.
•It is a military-to-military exchange program between the Indian Army
and Uzbekistan Army.
•It is the fourth edition of the biennial training Exercise.
•The Indian contingent will be represented by the 14th Battalion, The
GARHWAL RIFLES, part of Western Command in this bilateral exercise.
•The Uzbekistan Army will be represented by troops of the North
Western Military District of Uzbekistan Army.
•This joint exercise is aimed at enhancing military capability to undertake
multi-domain operations in a Sub Conventional scenario under United
Nations Mandate.

6. Valmiki Tiger Reserve, which was
recently seen in the news is located
in which state?
A. Nagaland
B. Manipur
C. Meghalaya
D. Bihar
हाि ही में िबरों में रहा वाल्मीकक
टाइगर ररजवव ककस राज्य में स्स्ित है?
A. िागािैंड
B. मखिपुर
C. मेघािय
D. बबहार

7. Answer - D
Explanation :
Recently, the Bihar state government has decided to increase rhino-
bearing areas in Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) in the West Champaran
district by five per cent in the next two years.
•Valmiki Tiger Reserve forms the easternmost limit of the Himalayan
Terai forests in India.
•It is the only tiger reserve in Bihar which is situated in the Gangetic Plains
bio-geographic zone of the country.
•The forest of this region has a combination of bhabar and terai tracts.
•Rivers Gandak (west of VTR), Pandai, Manor, Harha, Masan and
Bhapsa flow through various parts of the reserve.

8. Consider the following statements:
1. It is a form of mask dance that uses
vigorous martial movements to narrate
mythological stories.
2. There are three main styles of the
dance named after the location where
they are performed, i.e. Purulia,
Seraikella, and Mayurbhanj.
3. Some narrations also use natural
themes such as Sarpa nritya or Mayur
Nritya.
The above statements are associated
with
a) Paika
b) Chhau
c) Garba
d) Kalbelia
निम्िलिखित कििों पर ववचार करें:
1. यह मुिौटा िृत्य का एक रूप है स्जसमें
पौराखिक कहानियों को सुिािे क
े लिए जोरदार
माशवि आंदोििों का उपयोग ककया जाता है।
2. िृत्‍
य की तीि मुख्‍
य शैलियां उस स्‍
िाि क
े िाम
पर हैं जहां उिका प्रदशवि ककया जाता है, अिावत
पुरुलिया, सरायक
े िा और मयूरभंज।
3. क
ु छ आख्याि प्राकृ नतक ववषयों का भी उपयोग
करते हैं जैसे सपव िृत्य या मयूर िृत्य।
उपरोक्त किि संबंधित हैं
a) पाइका
b) छऊ
c) गरबा
d) कािबेलिया

9. Solution: b)
Chhau dance, also spelled Chhou dance, is a semi
classical Indian dance with martial and folk traditions.
The dance ranges from celebrating martial arts, acrobatics and
athletics performed in festive themes of a folk dance, to a
structured dance with religious themes found
in Shaivism, Shaktism and Vaishnavism.
The costumes vary between the styles, with Purulia and
Serakeilla using masks to identify the character.
Chhau is found in three styles named after the location where they are
performed, i.e. the Purulia Chau of Bengal, the Seraikella Chau of
Jharkhand, and the Mayurbhanj Chau of Odisha.

10. A legislation which confers on the
executive or administrative authority an
unguided and uncontrolled discretionary
power in the matter of application of law
violates which one of the following
Articles of the Constitution of India?
(a) Article 14
(b) Article 28
(c) Article 32
(d) Article 44
एक‍कािूि‍जो‍कायवकारी‍या‍प्रशासनिक‍
प्राधिकरि‍को‍कािूि‍क
े ‍आवेदि‍क
े ‍मामिे‍में‍
एक‍अनियंबित‍और‍अनियंबित‍वववेकािीि‍
शस्क्त‍प्रदाि‍करता‍है, भारत‍क
े ‍संवविाि‍क
े ‍
निम्िलिखित‍में‍से‍ककस‍अिुच्छेद‍का
उल्िंघि‍करता‍है?
(a) अिुच्छेद‍14
(b) अिुच्छेद‍28
(c) अिुच्छेद‍32
(d) अिुच्छेद‍44

11. Answer: (a)
Explanation: Administrative discretion is against equality
and it becomes the cause of arbitrariness, discrimination
and unjust action.
In Jayantilal Kalidas Mehta vs The State of Maharashtra 1970
case, some sections were contended that gave unguided,
uncontrolled and arbitrary powers to the collector, which
were violating Article 14 of the constitution.

12. Which one of the following factors
constitutes the best safeguard of liberty
in a liberal democracy?
(a) A committed judiciary
(b) Centralisation of powers
(c) Elected government
(d) Separation of powers
निम्िलिखित‍कारकों‍में‍से‍कौि‍सा‍
एक‍उदार‍िोकतंि‍में‍स्वतंिता‍की‍
सवोत्तम‍सुरक्षा‍का‍गठि‍करता‍है?
(a) एक‍प्रनतबद्ि‍न्यायपालिका
(b) शस्क्तयों‍का‍क
ें द्रीकरि
(c) निवावधचत‍सरकार
(d) शस्क्तयों‍का‍पृिक्करि

13. Answer: (d)
Explanation: Separation of Power between
legislative, executive and judiciary maintains checks
and balances in the system.
It establishes limited government. Thus it is the best
safeguard of liberty in a liberal democracy.

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16. Pg no. 1 GS 2

18. Pg no. 6 GS 1,2

19. • Violence, in the form of sexual harassment at the workplace, is both
direct and structural.
• Vishaka guidelines were framed by the Supreme Court of India in 1997
• The Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) annual report available for 2020-
21 shows that though the participation of women in the total labour
force grew, i.e., Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) has gradually
increased from 17.5% in 2017-18 to 25.1% in 2020-21, and the Worker
Population Ratio (WPR) from 16.5% in 2017-18 to 24.2% in 2020-21, it is still
much less when compared to men.
• While LFPR is defined as the percentage of persons in the labour force
among the persons in population (i.e., both employed and unemployed or
seeking employment), WPR is the percentage of persons employed among
the persons in population.

20. • Unless the mindset of treating men and women as equals is
developed at an early stage of character formation during
childhood, the stereotyped power relation between the two
would be difficult to change later.
• the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention,
Prohibition and Redressal), Act, 2013
• Medium-term goals may include the increase of female
participation in the labour force, improvement of tooth-to-tail
ratio, and providing incentives to prevent drop-outs such as paid
maternity leave. However, in the long-run, it is essential to
address the deep-rooted structural and cultural violence which
puts women in a disadvantageous position.

21. The Vishaka guidelines (legally binding) were laid down by the Supreme Court in a judgment
in 1997. This was in a case filed by women’s rights groups, one of which was Vishaka.
•The guidelines defined sexual harassment and imposed three key obligations on institutions
— prohibition, prevention, redress.
•The Supreme Court directed that they should establish a Complaints Committee, which
would look into matters of sexual harassment of women at the workplace.
•The 2013 Act broadened these guidelines.
About the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and
Redressal) Act of 2013:
The law against sexual harassment is commonly known as the prevention of sexual
harassment or POSH Act, passed by Parliament in 2013.
Definition of sexual harassment:
Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition And Redressal) Act, 2013
defines sexual harassment:
It includes “any one or more” of the following “unwelcome acts or
behaviour”committed directly or by implication: Physical contact and advances, Sexually
coloured remarks, Showing pornography, A demand or request for sexual favours, Any other
unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.

22. Key provisions of the act:
1.This Act lays down the procedures for a complaint and inquiry
and the action to be taken.
2.It mandates that every employer constitute an Internal
Complaints Committee (ICC) at each office or branch with 10 or
more employees.
3.It lays down the procedures and defines various aspects of
sexual harassment.
4.A woman can be of any age, whether employed or not, who
“alleges to have been subjected to any act of sexual
harassment”, that means the rights of all the women working
or visiting any workplace, in any capacity, are protected under
the Act.

23. Pg no. 6 GS 2,3

24. • Meeting in person after nearly eight months, the GST Council last
Saturday reached a broad consensus on establishing GST Appellate
Tribunals to resolve disputes under the tax regime launched in July
2017.
What is GST Appellate Tribunal?
• The GST Appellate Tribunal is a quasi-judicial body proposed to be
established to resolve disputes related to the Goods and Services Tax
(GST) in India.
• It will function as an independent body to hear appeals against orders
passed by the GST authorities or the Appellate Authority.
• The tribunal will be composed of a national bench and various regional
benches, headed by a chairperson appointed by the central government.
• The proposed tribunal is expected to help expedite the resolution of
disputes related to GST and reduce the burden on the judiciary.

25. • The Council was informed that GST was still not delivering enough
revenues — with the aggregate tax rate close to 12% rather than the
15.5% revenue-neutral rate envisaged originally, “knowingly or
unknowingly” due to rate cuts on some items between 2017 and 2021.
• It is a joint forum of the Centre and the states which was set up by the
President as per Article 279A (1) of the amended Constitution.
• Members
• the Union Finance Minister (chairperson), the Union Minister of State
(Finance) from the Centre.
• Each state can nominate a minister in-charge of finance or taxation or
any other minister as a member.

26. Pg no. 7 GS 2

27. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has drafted a Digital Personal
Data Protection (DPDP) Bill.
First, the Bill seeks to dilute the provisions of the Right to Information (RTI) Act, which
has empowered citizens to access information and hold governments accountable.
The RTI Act includes a provision to protect privacy through Section 8(1)(j). In order to
invoke this Section to deny personal information, at least one of the following grounds
has to be proven: the information sought has no relationship to any public activity or
public interest or is such that it would cause unwarranted invasion of privacy and the
Public Information Officer is satisfied that there is no larger public interest that justifies
disclosure. The proposed Bill seeks to amend this Section to expand its purview and
exempt all personal information from the ambit of the RTI Act.
Justice A.P. Shah Report on privacy that the “Privacy Act should clarify that publication
of personal data for public interest… and disclosure of information as required by the
Right to Information Act should not constitute an infringement of Privacy.”

28. • Second, by empowering the executive to draft rules on a range of
issues, the proposed Bill creates wide discretionary powers for the
Central government and thus fails to safeguard people’s right to
privacy. For instance, under Section 18, it empowers the Central
government to exempt any government, or even private sector
entities, from the provisions of the Bill by merely issuing a
notification.
• The Bill does not ensure autonomy of the Data Protection Board,
the institution responsible for enforcement of provisions of the law.
The Central government is empowered to determine the strength
and composition of the Board and the process of selection and
removal of its chairperson and other members.

29. •Justice K. S. Puttaswamy (Retd) vs Union of India 2017:
• In August 2017, a nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court
in Justice K. S. Puttaswamy (Retd) Vs Union of
India unanimously held that Indians have a constitutionally
protected fundamental right to privacy that is an intrinsic part
of life and liberty under Article 21.
•B.N. Srikrishna Committee 2017:
• Government appointed a committee of experts for Data
protection under the chairmanship of Justice B N
Srikrishna in August 2017, that submitted its report in July
2018 along with a draft Data Protection Bill.

30. Pg no. 7 GS 2

31. • On Monday, the Supreme Court dismissed a petition seeking to increase
the minimum age of marriage of women in India from 18 years to 21
years. The Chief Justice of India, D.Y. Chandrachud, noted that the
power to amend the law lies with Parliament.
• The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill was introduced in
the Lok Sabha in December 2021. The Bill proposes to raise the age of
marriage for women from 18 to 21 years. But after Opposition MPs
demanded greater scrutiny of the Bill, it was referred to the
Parliamentary Standing Committee.
• Despite such a high share of women marrying before turning 18 years,
only 1,050 cases were registered under The Prohibition of Child
Marriage Act in 2021, according to the National Crime Records Bureau.
Such a small number of cases shows that reportage of underage
marriages is negligible, resulting in limited enforcement of the law.

32. Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006
• This Act replaced the Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 which
was enacted during the British era.
• It defines a child to mean a male below 21 years and female
below 18 years.
• “Minor” is defined as a person who has not attained the age of
majority as per the Majority Act.
• It envisages preventing child marriage with punishments of
rigorous imprisonment for two years and/ or fine of Rs. 1 lakh.
• The Act also provides for the appointment of Child Marriage
Prohibition Officer whose duties are to prevent child marriages
and spread awareness regarding the same.

34. Researchers from the U.S. have proposed that billions of tonnes of
dust can be launched from the moon to a point in space where the
earth’s and the Sun’s gravitational fields cancel each other out. The
dust will thus be ‘parked’ there, casting a shadow on earth and
dimming sunlight to offset carbon emissions.
While aerosols in the stratosphere, especially radiation-scattering
ones such as sulphates, do have a cooling effect
Blocking one to two per cent of the Sun's rays is all it would take to
lower Earth's surface by a degree or two Celsius -- roughly the
amount it has warmed over the last century.
The solar radiation technique with the most traction so far is the 24/7
injection of billions of shiny sulphur particles into the upper
atmosphere.

37. • The Philippines invoked the dispute settlement mechanism of the UN Convention
on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in 2013 to test the legality of China’s ‘nine-dash
line’ regarding the disputed Spratlys. In response, the Permanent Court of
Arbitration (PCA) at The Hague decreed in its July 12, 2016 judgment that the line
had “no legal basis.” China dismissed the judgment as “null and void.”
• The South China Sea (SCS) is important not just to its littoral countries. It has
been a transit point for trade since early medieval times, contains abundantly
rich fisheries, and is a repository of mineral deposits and hydrocarbon reserves.
• Vietnam has added six Kilo-class, Russian-origin submarines to its navy. France,
Germany and the Netherlands, respectively, have supplied Formidable-class
stealth ships to Singapore, patrol boats to Brunei Darussalam, and corvettes to
Indonesia.
• Japan is partially funding the upgradation of the Indonesian coast guard.
Indonesia and the Philippines are in early stages of exploring procurement of the
BrahMos missile from India. The other ASEAN countries that have shown interest
are Thailand and Vietnam.

38. •The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS),
1982 is an international agreement that establishes the legal
framework for marine and maritime activities.
•It is also known as Law of the Sea. It divides marine areas into five
main zones namely- Internal Waters, Territorial Sea, Contiguous
Zone, Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and the High Seas.
•It is the only international convention which stipulates a framework
for state jurisdiction in maritime spaces. It provides a different legal
status to different maritime zones.

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