Context:

The Central Government issued an order asking all mobile phone manufacturers to pre-install the Sanchar Saathi app on phones sold in India from 2026. Within 48 hours, the government revoked (rolled back) the order.

Why the rollback?

• Strong pushback from stakeholders:
  • Phone manufacturers (including Apple) raised concerns about surveillance, unclear data flows, and unlimited data collection.
  • Apple refused to implement the mandate.
• Fear of harming manufacturing ecosystem:
  • Apple, Samsung, and other foreign manufacturers are crucial to India’s global electronics export ambitions.
  • The government did not want to disrupt investments in the Make in India electronics sector.
• Public debate over privacy and digital surveillance.

UPSC Relevance:

Polity and Governance

UPSC PYQ 2023: 

Q. “The Constitution of India is a living instrument with capabilities of enormous dynamism. It is a constitution made for a progressive society.” Illustrate with special reference to the expanding horizons of the right to life and personal liberty.

Constitutionalism v/s Digital Constitutionalism:

Constitutionalism in India refers to the principle that government authority is derived from and limited by a constitution, which serves as the supreme law of the land. 

v/s

Digital constitutionalism is the idea of extending constitutional values, like liberty and equality, into the digital space to prevent abuses in governance driven by technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and mass surveillance.

• Constitutional Basis:
  • The idea gained strength after the Supreme Court in Justice K.S. Puttaswamy (2017) held that privacy is a fundamental right and that any restriction on it must be legal, necessary, and proportionate. This judgment created a constitutional basis for protecting individual rights in the digital age.

Digital Constitutionalism is Needed:

1. Silent Surveillance:

• Modern surveillance (e.g. metadata, biometrics) is invisible.
• Leads to self-censorship and weakens freedom of speech.

2. Meaningless Consent:

• Consent = checkbox culture.
• Users often unaware how their data is used → loss of autonomy.

3. Power Concentration:

• Tech companies, law enforcement control data.
• Citizens reduced to data subjects, not rights-holders.

4. Discriminatory Technologies:

• Facial recognition, AI show bias against women, minorities.
• Results in wrongful profiling, denial of services.

5. No Transparency or Remedy:

• Automated systems make critical decisions (e.g. welfare, policing).
• Citizens lack explanation & appeal → violates natural justice.

6. Outdated Legal Framework:

• IT Act 2000 not fit for AI/data-driven age.
• No independent authority to audit algorithms or surveillance tools.

7. Democratic Risk:

• Data governance bypasses Constitution → rise of “monitoring state”.

Key Initiatives:

India:

• Puttaswamy Case (2017): Privacy = Fundamental Right.
• DPDP Act 2023: Sets data rules but wide State exemptions.
• Sanchar Saathi Rollback: Public pushback on forced installation.
• NITI Aayog AI Principles: Talk of ethics, but lacks enforcement.

Global:

• EU GDPR: Strongest data protection law.
• EU AI Act 2024: Risk-based regulation, bans harmful AI.
• UN Resolutions: Human-centric, rights-based AI approach.

Civil Society:

Internet Freedom Foundation, journalism, tech resistance (e.g. Apple) play watchdog role.

Context:

The study was conducted by the M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), Chennai. Rising extreme heat disproportionately impacts women’s physical, mental, and social health, making climate change a gendered public health crisis.

UPSC Relevance:

Health

UPSC PYQ:

Discuss the positive and negative effects of globalization on women in India? (2015)  

About Study:

M. S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), Chennai finding:

• Covered 7 Indian states:
  • Rajasthan
  • Gujarat
  • Maharashtra
  • Bihar
  • Odisha
  • Telangana
  • Tamil Nadu

• 3300 women surveyed

• Districts were classified using a Heat Vulnerability Index (HVI):
  • High vulnerability
  • Medium vulnerability
  • Low vulnerability

Major Health Risks Observed in Women:

Physical Health Impacts

• Fatigue and dizziness
• Dehydration
• Gastrointestinal distress
• Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs)
• Irregular menstruation
• Excessive bleeding
• Reproductive health complications

Mental Health Impacts

• Heightened anxiety
• Anger and irritability
• Restlessness
• Sleep disturbances
• Psychological stress

Social Consequences

• Greater economic vulnerability
• Increased household stress
• Rising domestic tensions and violence

Who Are the Most Vulnerable Women?

• Women at highest risk were:
  • From rural areasPoor and lower-caste communities
  • Working in the informal sector
  • Performing dual labour (domestic work + wage labour)
• Statistical Evidence:
  • 24% in low-HVI districts
  • 70% of women in high-HVI districts reported severe symptoms
  • 28% in medium-HVI

Failure of Health Access and Treatment:

• Only 1% of affected women sought medical treatment
• 97% remained untreated
• Reasons include:
  • Poor access to healthcare
  • Financial constraints
  • Lack of awareness
  • Social barriers

Role of Power, Water & Household Burdens

During extreme heat:

• Frequent power outages
• Water shortages
• Increase in domestic and care work
• Overcrowded housing

These factors sharply increase:

• Gendered labour burden
• Physical exhaustion
• Mental stress

Climate change is not gender-neutral; women experience climate shocks more intensely due to biological, social, and economic vulnerabilities.

Context:

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated 125 infrastructure projects of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) across India. The most prominent among them is the Shyok–Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) Tunnel near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.

UPSC Relevance:

Geography prelims

UPSC PYQ:

Q. Siachen Glacier is situated to the (2020)

(a) East of Aksai Chin
(b) East of Leh
(c) North of Gilgit
(d) North of Nubra Valley

About Shyok Tunnel:

• The centrepiece of this push is the Shyok Tunnel, a 920-metre, cut-and-cover structure at over 12,000 feet on the Darbuk–Shyok–Daulat Beg Oldie (DS-DBO) Road, a corridor whose strategic value has surged since the 2020 Galwan Valley clashes.

Shyok River:

• The Shyok River flows through Ladakh (India) and Gilgit-Baltistan (Pakistan).
• It is a major tributary of the Indus River.
• Total length: ~ 550 km
• Drains areas of both India and Pakistan.
• Known for flowing through rugged, high-altitude Himalayan terrain.

Source & Course:

• Origin: Rimo Glacier, southeast of Karakoram Pass.
• Flows northwest into the Nubra Valley (Ladakh).
• Then turns southwest into Gilgit-Baltistan.
• Joins the Indus River near Skardu (Pakistan).

Important Tributaries:

• Saltoro River – originates near the Siachen Glacier region.
• Nubra River – flows through Nubra Valley.