Current Affairs – August 09, 2025

{GS2 – Polity – IC – Parliament} Parliament Passes Landmark Maritime Bills

• Context (TH): Parliament passed the Merchant Shipping Bill, 2024, and the Carriage of Goods by Sea Bill, 2025, modernising India’s shipping laws.

Key Features of the New Legislation

• New laws aim to modernise maritime regulation, align with global norms, & boost ease of doing business.

Merchant Shipping Bill, 2024

• Alignment with IMO conventions on safety, emergency response, and environmental protection.
• Ease of doing business by easing compliance & attracting shipping investment.
• Seafarer welfare and ship safety through enhanced rights and improved working conditions.

Carriage of Goods by Sea Bill, 2025

• Adopts the Hague-Visby Rules (followed by the UK & other maritime nations) as global standards.
• Simplifies cargo movement regulations, reducing litigation risks.
• Promotes transparency and standardisation in maritime trade contracts.

Significance for India

• Global Competitiveness: Positions India as a trusted maritime hub and strengthens credibility in shipping governance.
• Economic Impact: With over 90% of trade by sea, modern laws lower transaction costs and support Maritime India Vision 2030 and the Blue Economy strategy.
• Environmental & Safety Standards: Stronger provisions for pollution control and environmental protection align with Sustainable Development Goal 14.
• Geopolitical Leverage: Strengthens India’s role in Indo-Pacific maritime governance, aligning with the SAGAR vision.

{GS2 – Social Sector – Health} Medical Tourism in India

• Context (PIB): India has become a leading global hub for medical tourism, which involves travelling abroad to receive affordable or locally unavailable specialised medical care.

 

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Current State of Medical Tourism in India

• India ranked 10^th among 46 countries in the Medical Tourism Index 2020–21.
• Medical tourism increased over three times from 1.8 lakh in 2020 to 6.6 lakh in 2023.
• Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) reached 1,31,856 between January and April 2025, 4.1% of total FTAs.
• Bangladesh is the top source country, followed by Iraq, Somalia, Oman, and Uzbekistan.
• India accounts for 8% of the global medical tourism market, valued at $7.69 billion.

Government Initiatives to Promote Medical Tourism

• Strategic Roadmap: The 2022 National Strategy and Roadmap for Medical and Wellness Tourism provides a framework and brand positioning.
• Heal in India Campaign: Promotes India via public-private partnerships and digital patient facilitation.
• Visa Facilitation: E-medical and E-medical Attendant visas are available for 171 countries.
• Digital Platform: Medical Value Travel portal offers single-window services in multiple languages.
• AYUSH Visa: Introduced in 2023 for foreigners seeking traditional Indian medicine treatments.
• Gujarat Model: First to integrate medical tourism, it collaborates with regional wellness retreats.
• Financial Assistance: The Market Development Assistance Scheme aids wellness tourism providers.

{GS2 – Governance – Issues} India Needs Smart Policies for E-Commerce & Retail

• Context (BS): India’s retail sector faces challenges from fast-growing e-commerce and intensifying competition for traditional retailers.

Brief Overview of India’s Evolving Retail Landscape

• E-Commerce Expansion: Backed by digital infrastructure, e-commerce is rapidly spreading across urban, rural, and tier-III/IV areas, helping small businesses access larger markets.
• Traditional Retail Resilience: Though unorganised and low-margin, it thrives on trust, personal service, and credit, and remains resilient during shocks like demonetisation and COVID-19.

Emerging Retail Synergies and Conflicts

• Converging Models: Both sectors innovate to meet evolving consumer demands (E.g., Kirana Home Delivery vs. Quick Commerce).
• Power Imbalance: Traditional retail remains fragmented, while e-commerce is dominated by a few major players with greater capital and pricing power, raising concerns over predatory practices.

Policy Options for a Hybrid Model

• Curb Predatory Pricing: Tax or levy penalties on below-cost pricing that eliminates competition.
• Fair & Balanced Competition: If competition is genuine, frame regulations that promote innovation, jobs, and consumer price benefits in both e-commerce and traditional retail.
• Protect Small Retailers: Keep entry barriers low, ensure uniform consumer protection, and provide credit, retail space, and protection from municipal harassment.

• Collaboration: Help local retailers join e-commerce supply chains to access cheaper merchandise.

{GS2 – IR – Issues} Russia-India-China (RIC) Troika

• Context (TD): Russia aims to revive the dormant RIC Troika, citing eased India-China tensions and shifting geopolitics amid increasing Western strategic pressures.

About the RIC Troika

• Nature: Informal trilateral strategic grouping proposed by Russia in the late 1990s.
• Purpose: Seeks to counter Western dominance by fostering Eurasian political & economic cooperation.
• Formation: Institutionalised in 2002, holding over 20 ministerial-level consultations since inception.
• Scope: Focuses on coordinated stances in foreign policy, trade, and multilateral reform.
• Dormancy: Became largely inactive following the India-China Galwan border confrontation in 2020.

Key Drivers Behind the Revival

• US Protectionism: Renewed US tariffs push members to counter rising trade barriers.
• Sanctions Impact: Western sanctions on Russia accelerate its alignment with Asian economies.
• Financial Autonomy: Dollar weaponisation fuels push for non-Western payment systems.
• Connectivity Gains: INSTC cargo growth showcases value of coordinated Eurasian corridors.
• Trade Diversification: Global supply disruptions drive search for secure intra-RIC trade channels.
• Institutional Reform: Members seek more decisive influence in UN, IMF, and WTO reforms.

Strategic Significance of the RIC Grouping

• Eurasian Weight: Three major powers collectively influence Eurasia’s strategic and economic balance.
• Economic Share: Over one-third of global GDP gives RIC substantial negotiating leverage.
• Multipolarity: Promotes balanced global governance, challenging dominance of single power blocs.
• UNSC Leverage: Joint backing from Russia and China strengthens India’s membership prospects.
• Security Platform: Facilitates crisis dialogue and conflict management in regional hotspots.
• Integration Synergy: Advances coordination of Eurasian connectivity, trade, & infrastructure initiatives.

Challenges to RIC Cooperation

• Border Disputes: Ongoing India-China tensions obstruct deeper political and strategic trust.
• Trust Deficit: Historical rivalries constrain meaningful defence and intelligence collaboration.
• Western Engagements: India’s growing Western ties dilute trilateral cohesion.

• Quad Factor: Indo-Pacific security commitments complicate India’s role in RIC.
• Neutrality Concerns: Intra-member rivalries undermine RIC’s credibility in mediating disputes.

{GS3 – IE – Employment} Labour Mobility as a Diplomatic Tool

• Context (ORF): India’s strategic use of labour mobility as a diplomatic tool can enhance economic integration, leverage demographic advantage, & strengthen global partnerships for mutual growth.

Mechanisms of Labour Mobility Diplomacy

• Strategic labour mobility strengthens bilateral economic integration and diplomatic leverage.
• Mobility Partnerships: Formal agreements regulate labour flows, enhancing legal and safe migration.
• Bilateral Corridors: Designated pathways ensure orderly recruitment & mutually beneficial movement.
• Occupational Mapping: Skill alignment matches migrants’ abilities with host country labour demands.
• Mutual Recognition: Qualification equivalence removes barriers, accelerating migrant employment.
• Data Portability: Cross-border data exchange improves migrant credential verification & governance.
• Worker Protections: Rights frameworks reduce exploitation, reinforcing diplomatic credibility & trust.

Strategic Advantages for India

• Remittance: Migrant flows provide countercyclical remittances, supporting economic resilience.
• Negotiating Leverage: Skilled migration strengthens India’s bargaining power in trade talks.
• Soft Power: Diaspora networks expand cultural influence and diplomatic outreach worldwide.
• Demographic Alignment: Labour supply matches global shortages, optimising workforce utilisation.
• Brain Circulation: Circular migration fosters knowledge exchange and innovation domestically.
• Minilateral Alignment: Regional labour pacts enhance India’s strategic partnerships & global influence.

Structural and Operational Challenges

• Skill Mismatch: Overseas labour demand often diverges from the Indian migrant skills supply.
• Visa Bottlenecks: Outdated frameworks restrict timely migrant access and bilateral mobility.
• Informal Recruitment: Unregulated agents expose migrants to abuse and illegal practices.
• Qualification Gaps: Non-aligned certifications delay migrants’ labour market integration abroad.
• Social Coverage: Migrants suffer from weak social security in destination countries.
• Data Deficiency: Opaque migration data obstructs policy planning and migrant support.

Government Interventions

• Country Pacts: India signs targeted bilateral mobility agreements to regulate workforce flow.
• Skill Councils: Sector councils design demand-driven training linked to foreign markets.
• Migrant Registry: e-Migrate & e-Shram centralise migrant data for effective governance and aid.
• Returnee Mapping: SWADES Initiative profiles returnee skills for reintegration and utilisation.
• Pre-Departure Training: PKVY’s PDOT module imparts cultural, legal, and safety awareness.
• Global Linkages: NSDC partners with foreign employers to facilitate direct hiring.
• Labour Attachés: Posted abroad, attachés provide migrant welfare and diplomatic liaison.

Way Forward

• Regional Frameworks: Develop South-South mobility pacts to reduce dependence on limited corridors.
• Skills Foresight: Establish a national migration observatory for real-time overseas demand forecasting.
• Integrated Governance: Create a single inter-ministerial body to align migration, trade, & policy.
• Protection Protocols: Secure host-country social security and pension access for migrants.
• Evidence Diplomacy: Use migration data to strengthen trade-labour negotiation leverage.

Read More> India’s Potential in the Global Labour Market

{GS3 – Envi – Degradation} Record Coral Loss in the Great Barrier Reef

• Context (TH): The Great Barrier Reef suffered its most significant annual coral loss in 39 years due to severe, prolonged marine heatwaves and environmental stressors.

About the Great Barrier Reef

• UNESCO WHS: Designated in 1981, it is the largest global coral ecosystem covering 344,400 km².
• Location: Located in Coral Sea off northeast Australia, extending north-south below the Torres Strait. Composition: The reef spans 2,300 km, containing about 2,500 reefs and 900 islands.
• Geological Basis: Formed on a submerged continental shelf, providing a foundation for reef growth.
• Ecological Role: Supports biodiversity, stores carbon, protects coasts, and sustains fisheries & tourism.

Key Findings

• Record Decline: Largest coral cover loss in four decades signals escalating ecosystem vulnerability.
• Disparity: The Southern sector saw the steepest decline, followed by the central and northern sectors.
• Prior Growth: Above-average coral growth last year reflects a temporary recovery amid ongoing stress.
• Bleaching Impact: Repeated mass bleaching events this decade weakened the reef’s structural integrity.
• Baseline Status: Near-average overall coral cover conceals significant localized reef degradation.
• Trend Variability: Rising annual fluctuations increase uncertainty for effective reef conservation.

Drivers of Loss

• Marine Heat: Recent ocean heatwaves triggered severe coral bleaching and mortality events.
• Algae Loss: Symbiotic algae loss in affected reefs starved corals, hindering recovery.
• Cyclone Impact: Cyclone Jasper caused localized physical destruction of coral structures.
• Flood Sediment: River plumes reduced sunlight in adjacent reefs, impairing coral growth.
• Predator Outbreak: Crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks devastated specific coral areas.
• Disease Vulnerability: Elevated water temperatures increased disease incidence and coral tissue loss.

Ecological and Economic Impacts

• Structural Loss: Reef framework collapse reduces coastal storm protection and increases erosion risks.
• Habitat Decline: Loss of diverse reef habitats endangers marine biodiversity and dependent species.
• Fishery Decline: Reduced fish stocks threaten food security and fishing livelihoods.
• Tourism Decline: Coral degradation diminishes reef attractiveness, impacting tourism revenue.
• Carbon Sink Loss: Declining coral cover reduces carbon sequestration, worsening climate impacts.

Read More> Coral Reef Bleaching

{GS4 – Ethics in Governance} Necropolitics

• Context (TH): The killing of a Gaza civilian seeking food aid reignited debate on Necropolitics.

About Necropolitics

• Necropolitics refers to the exercise of political power to decide who may live and who must die, often by normalising death through systemic violence, neglect, and abandonment.
• The term was coined by Achille Mbembe, a Cameroonian philosopher, who expanded on Michel Foucault’s concept of biopolitics, which focuses on the governance of life.

Key Features of Necropolitics

• Zones of Death: States create war-torn or neglected areas where death is normalised (E.g., Israeli bombings destroying Gaza hospitals).
• State Terror: Dissent is crushed through killings or surveillance (E.g., use of militants against opposition).
• Enemy Construction: Minorities are labelled as internal threats to justify violence (E.g., apartheid South Africa legalised killings under emergency laws).
• Structural Abandonment: Marginalised communities are denied basic rights and left to suffer (E.g., tribal displacement due to mining in India).
• Slow Violence: Long-term suffering is inflicted through systemic neglect (E.g., the 1943 Bengal famine and the COVID-induced migrant crisis).
• Selective Mourning: Global outrage varies based on victim identity and geography (E.g., Paris attacks vs. muted response to Kashmir/Yemen deaths).

{Prelims – In News} India’s First Underwater Museum

• Context (NOA): India’s first underwater museum and artificial coral reef is being developed around the decommissioned warship INS Guldar in Maharashtra.

• Objective: It aims to conserve naval heritage, enhance tourism, and promote marine biodiversity.
• Implementation Agency: Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation, supported by the Ministry of Tourism.

Read More > Artificial Reefs