Daily Mains Practice Questions 15-03-2023

KEY POINTS

·        The Supreme Court’s decision to refer to a Constitution Bench the issue of granting legal recognition to same-sex marriages can be seen as an important step towards ensuring gender equality.

·        The government, however, contends that there is no need to depart from the heteronormative understanding of marriage.

·        The Union government has argued that the decriminalisation of consensual relations between adults of the same sex has removed the stigma attached to homosexuality, but has not conferred the right of marriage.

·        In terms of the equality norm, the central question is not very complicated. It can be recognised that no civil right available to married heterosexual couples ought to be denied to those who belong to the same gender.

·        Whether the remedy ought to take the form of recognition of same-sex marriages, and, if so, whether it should be through judicial intervention or legislative action, is the question.

·        That the legislature should be involved in bringing about far-reaching changes that may impact the personal laws of all religions is indeed an acceptable proposition.

·        A responsive government that wants to treat this as a matter of policy and not cede space to the courts would act on its own to consider the right of any two people, regardless of gender, to marry or found a family.

KEY POINTS

·        Russia-Ukraine war and resulting sanctions have changed the global oil industry’s dynamics.

·        India imported a record 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) of Russian oil, up from virtually zilch a year ago.

·        Interestingly, almost all Sokol-grade oil exported from Sakhalin in which ONGC holds a 20 per cent stake is coming to India.

·        Despite India getting $10-12 discounted oil from Russia, exports haven’t risen as much as might have been expected. That’s because the refineries are already working at close to full capacity.

·        India’s oil demand and refining capacity are both slated to rise sharply in the next few decades.

·        OPEC forecasts India’s oil demand will be 5.14 million bpd in 2023. Demand is expected to rise to 7.2 million bpd by 2030 and 9.2 million bpd by 2050.

·        But India’s refinery capacity is expected to rise even quicker. India’s oil companies are expanding old refineries and building new ones at a tremendous pace.

·        Refining capacity is now at 250 million tonnes of oil annually. That’s slated to rise to 450 million tonnes by 2030.

·        It’s unlikely Europe-Russia trade will return to the ‘old normal’ for a while due to festering acrimony.

·        Indian refiners are anyway considered highly competitive. And India could become a supplier offering strong advantages to the entire Asian market.

KEY POINTS

·        The key sources of international climate finance are multilateral development banks (MDBs) such as World Bank and Asian Development Bank.

·        Typically, climate financiers use four categories of instruments to fund green projects  equity, loan, risk management instruments, and grants/technical assistance.

·        By comparison, the total disbursement of capital by World Bank Group in 2022 was only $88 billion. There is hence a clear need to unlock private capital, given the staggering need.

·        Despite the large power of leverage, guarantees represent only a small portion of the total investment portfolio of MDBs.

·        Since MDBs treat guarantees on the same basis as a loan in their book, there is no financial benefit for using guarantees instead of a loan from the shareholder perspective.

·        Similarly, a subordinate bond, junior than senior bond in the capital structure, can attract private financiers as well.

·        For example, a subordinate debt from MDBs that contributes 30 per cent of debt in the capital structure can give enough comfort to private senior debt-holders to invest in the project as the later have the first rights over the assets.

·        However, data shows that DFIs currently take the less risky senior debt positions in the capital structure of the project.

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