Emerging technologies have the potential to play a significant role in mitigating the impact of climate change, but they also come with their own set of risks and rewards. Here are some of the key ways in which emerging technologies can contribute to climate change mitigation efforts, as well as the potential risks and rewards associated with them:

1. Renewable Energy Technologies:
   • Emerging technologies in renewable energy, such as advanced solar photovoltaics, wind turbines, energy storage systems, and smart grids, can help reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and transition to a more sustainable energy mix.
   • Rewards: Increased access to clean, affordable, and reliable energy; reduction of greenhouse gas emissions; creation of new jobs in the renewable energy sector.
   • Risks: Potential disruption of existing energy infrastructure and markets; challenges with large-scale deployment and grid integration; cybersecurity vulnerabilities in smart grid systems.
2. Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS):
   • Emerging CCUS technologies, including direct air capture, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage, and mineralization, can help remove and store atmospheric carbon dioxide.
   • Rewards: Potential to offset hard-to-decarbonize sectors; creation of new economic opportunities in the carbon capture and utilization industries.
   • Risks: High costs associated with scaling up CCUS technologies; potential environmental impacts of storage and utilization methods; concerns about the long-term viability and safety of carbon storage.
3. Sustainable Transportation:
   • Emerging technologies in electric vehicles, hydrogen-powered vehicles, advanced biofuels, and smart mobility solutions can help decarbonize the transportation sector.
   • Rewards: Reduced emissions from the transportation sector; improved air quality; creation of new jobs in the clean transportation industry.
   • Risks: Potential strain on electricity grids due to increased demand for electric vehicles; challenges with the affordability and availability of alternative fuel technologies; concerns about the sustainability of battery and fuel production.
4. Climate Modeling and Prediction:
   • Advancements in climate modeling, data analysis, and artificial intelligence can improve our understanding of climate systems and enable more accurate predictions of climate change impacts.
   • Rewards: Enhanced ability to plan for and adapt to climate change; improved decision-making and policy development.
   • Risks: Potential for biases and uncertainties in climate models; challenges in effectively communicating complex scientific information to policymakers and the public.
5. Nature-Based Solutions:
   • Emerging technologies in areas such as precision agriculture, forest monitoring, and ecosystem restoration can support nature-based solutions to climate change mitigation.
   • Rewards: Potential to restore and protect natural ecosystems, which can sequester carbon and provide other ecological benefits.
   • Risks: Potential conflicts between technological interventions and traditional land management practices; concerns about the scalability and long-term sustainability of nature-based solutions.

Land pooling is a land acquisition strategy wherein a single agency or government body consolidates small land parcels into a large parcel, provides it with infrastructure, and returns a sizable land portion of redeveloped land to the original owners after deducting some portion as cost of infrastructure development. Presently, Pradesh. ant Presently, this scheme is in execution in Delhi and Andhra

Benefits of Land Pooling:

• For landowners:
  • They benefit from the increase in land value, as the value of the land retained increases substantially compared to his original holding.
  • They get access to substantially better infrastructure such as roads, hospitals, schools, water, etc.
  • It would lead to the conversion of irregular parcels into plots of regular sizes and shapes, which would be appropriate for further development.
  • The strategy to not displace original landowners would retain the traditional sense of belonging for the landowners.
• For the government:
  • Under this approach, the government does not have to pay any initial outlay to acquire the land.
  • The approach would face relatively less resistance from landowners, as it treats them as investors in the development projects.
  • It fast-tracks the traditional land acquisition process while addressing the associated social concerns.
  • Increased property prices lead to a higher tax base for the government.
• Increase of public-private cooperation and trust: The land pooling strategy ensures a three-way win for the private players to put their skills to use, the government to facilitate the development, and ultimately the land owners who benefit from the development.
  • Since it involves the participation of the landowners, the diversion of land for another use is prevented.

Associated challenges in this context are:

• Whether proper consent for land pooling has been given by landowners is debatable, with the speed needed for development often pressuring agencies to make land pooling compulsory.
• More needs to be done to ensure that compensation and resettlement provisions extend to tenant farmers and agricultural laborers, as compensatory packages are often insufficient for the landless. Also, capital value appreciation may take time.
• Inconsistencies in land pooling and its associated legal framework complicate the acquisition process. Moreover, it is difficult to apply for land pooling in congested urban areas.
• Restarting farming on the reconstituted plots incurs high costs, as new farm equipment must be bought.

Given the pressing need for development in India, land acquisition by the states has persistently been a key issue. Many flagship urban development projects have been delayed owing to issues with land acquisition. Moreover, the mechanism created under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation, and Resettlement (RFCTLARR) Act, 2013 further adds complications such as social impact survey, higher rates of compensation, caps on acquisition of multi-crop and agricultural land, mandatory consent of landowners as well as consent of the Gram Sabhas in the Scheduled Areas. These need to be addressed to ensure the success of the land pooling scheme.

The Swiss challenge model means a method of public procurement in which an unsolicited proposal is received by a public authority for a project that predominantly involves uniqueness and specificity of design, technology and intellectual property rights. The government then examines the proposal and if the proposal belongs to the declared policy of priorities, then it may invite competing counter proposals from third parties. In the event of a better proposal being received, the original proponent is given the opportunity to modify the original proposal. Finally, the proponent with the best plan is awarded the contract.
In a 2009 ruling, the Supreme Court had approved the Swiss Challenge method for award of contracts. Further, respective state governments were encouraged to draft guidelines for procurement using the Swiss Challenge method. For example, Maharashtra and Karnataka have adopted their own policy guidelines.
Advantages of Swiss Challenge Model

• Promotes competition: It allows the project to be put for competitive bidding and counter- bidding so as to realize the optimum cost.
• Enhances efficiency: It provides time and cost saving on pre project activities and feasibility studies for the public authority vis-à-vis other Public Private Partnership (PPP) models.
• Professionalism: With proper identification of timelines, risks and their allocation, it becomes easier for the public authority as the project preparation is done in a more professional manner and in turn reducing red-tapism.
• Creativity: Since this model allows the prospective bidders to analyse the design submitted by their competitors and come out with better design, it promotes creative designing and project execution.
• Equitability: Useful for the governments that have limited technical and financial capacity to develop projects.

Problems associated with Swiss Challenge Model

• Issue of Transparency: The biggest concerns are the lack of sufficient transparency and inadequate competition, while dealing with unsolicited proposals and thus it becomes difficult to fix accountability.
• Crony capitalism: This method could breed crony capitalism by allowing companies to employ dubious means to bag projects.
• Bidding asymmetry: There is asymmetry in bidding time given to bidders to prepare counter proposals in relation to time taken by originator for preparation.
• Issue of legal validity: There are no adequate regulatory and legal frameworks. Further, there is a problem of proper legal validity of using this method when a counter proposal contains different specifications than the original proposal.
• Difficult to measure the monetary value: It is very difficult to measure monetary value of an unsolicited proposal when a contract or project is not given to the original proponent.

However, these issues can be addressed by instituting a national policy framework for the Swiss Challenge method. There should be wider participation and greater flexibility to promote innovation at the pre-proposal stage and sufficient time for counter-bidders to respond at the post-proposal stage.

The Royal Indian Navy (RIN) mutiny started on 18th February 1946, with around 1100 naval ratings of HMIS Talwar going on a strike in Bombay to protest against the treatment meted out to them including racial discrimination, unpalatable food etc. The mutiny spread and found support throughout British India, from Karachi to Calcutta. These demands also echoed the wider national concerns including the release of INA (Indian National Army) personnel and other political prisoners, withdrawal of Indian troops from Indonesia etc. Soon people in the city joined in, which was marked by the virulent anti-British mood and resulted in the virtual paralysis of the two cities of Calcutta and Bombay. Towards the end, it was characterized by a display of solidarity by people in other parts of the country. As news reached other military establishments across India, immediate strikes began there as well.

Though the mutiny was suppressed, it is considered a landmark event in the ultimate demise of the British due to following factors:

• Widespread resentment against British rule: There was a massive outpouring of public support for the mutineers. The public transport network was brought to a halt and commercial establishments were shut down.
• Questionable loyalty of armed forces: Personnel from the other armed forces also came out in sympathetic support. In Bombay, men from the Royal Indian Air Force held strikes at work in Marine Drive, Andheri and Sion areas. Defiance of the British authority by the armed forces shook the most important pillar (armed forces) that sustained the British Empire in India.
• Naval paralysis: Since British power was hugely dependent on its naval power to maintain its offshore colonies, RIN mutiny paralyzed the navy.
• Unique show of unity: Notably, the revolting ships hoisted three flags tied together – those of the Congress, Muslim League, and the Red Flag of the Communist Party of India (CPI), signifying the unity and downplaying of communal issues among the mutineers.
• Broad scale participation: The revolt was not limited to some areas or sections of the population. The labour classes also went on strike in solidarity with the ratings. It even got the support of Communists and other Nationalists.
• Global recognition: The mutiny drew global attention towards India’s causes and issues. In the wake of the emerging cold war, both America and the Soviet Union noted this revolt. Conciliatory approach by the British: In the ensuing negotiations, the government accepted most of the demands of rebels in principle like improvement in the quality of food and living conditions of the ratings.

Many scholars have remarked that the Mutiny acted as a final nail in the coffin of the colonial government of India. The RIN Mutiny made the British government believe that it is no longer easy to rule India now, thus adding to the process of weakening of the British hold on India.

The livestock sector contributes about 4.11% to the GDP and around 25.6% to the agricultural GDP. As per the 20th Livestock Census (2019), the total livestock population shows an increase of 4.6 per cent over the Livestock Census of 2012.
Though there has been an increase in the livestock population, the livestock sector has been grappling with wider challenges that confront its growth and productivity, such as:

• Outbreak of diseases: Frequent outbreaks and increase in communicable diseases among animals such as foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), lumpy skin disease (LSD), African swine fever, black quarter infection, etc. affect livestock health and consequently lower productivity.
• Feed and fodder deficit: Rapid urbanisation has led to shrinking land sizes and reduced green cover, which has led to severe feed and fodder shortage for the livestock sector.
• Limitations in cross-breeding: Limited artificial insemination services due to deficiency in quality germplasm, infrastructure and technical manpower coupled with poor conception rate following artificial insemination have been major impediments in this regard. After more than three decades of crossbreeding, the crossbred population is only 16.6% in cattle, 21.5% in pigs and 5.2% in sheep.
• Inadequate extension services: Due to inadequate livestock extension services that include appropriate veterinary services like vaccination, prevention and control of diseases, livestock awareness and deworming, the sector has witnessed laggard productivity.
• Thermal stress: Due to heat wave conditions, the livestock are confronted with embryonic mortality and changes in reproduction cycles leading to low fertility and low disease resistance capacity.

In view of the above-mentioned challenges, there is a need to re-energise the livestock sector in order to ensure sustainable livelihood and increase the income of Indian farmers. In this context, the following measures can be taken to enhance the growth of the sector:

• Strengthening of linkages between production and markets through institutions such as co- operatives, producers’ associations, and contract farming is the need of the hour.
• Primary vaccination for livestock should be made mandatory, and regular veterinary surveillance should be conducted in a time-bound manner.
• There is a need for wider adoption of high-yielding breeds, providing easy and timely credit and insurance, development of feed and fodder markets in dryland areas, and creation of export infrastructure, such as food safety testing labs recognised by importing countries.
• Indigenous breed gene banks can be created to assist various research institutions in conducting research as well as to help in conserving indigenous breeds for their ability to adapt to diseases and fragile climatic conditions.

Additionally, existing schemes like the National Livestock Mission (NLM), Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund (AHIDF), National Programme for Dairy Development Fund (NPDD), Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM), etc. need enhanced support and impetus in the form of enhanced budgetary allocation and clear objectives to improve the productivity of the sector.