Prelim Bits 08-07-2019

Jaipur gets UNESCO World Heritage tag

Jaipur is a fortified city in Rajasthan.
It is known for its iconic architectural legacy and vibrant culture.
It is also known as the Walled City, the Pink City.
It was founded in 1727 by Sawai Jai Singh II.
Unlike other cities in the region located in hilly terrain, Jaipur was established on the plain and built according to a grid plan interpreted in the light of Vedic architecture.
The city's urban planning shows an exchange of ideas from ancient Hindu and modern Mughal as well as Western cultures.
Its iconic monuments such as the Govind Dev temple, City Palace, Jantar Mantar and Hawa Mahal excel in artistic and architectural craftsmanship of the period.
Jaipur is an expression of the astronomical skills, living traditions, unique urban form.
The city was nominated for its value of being an exemplary development in town planning and architecture and got UNESCO World Heritage tag.
With this inclusion, the number of UNESCO World Heritage sites across India has grown to 38, including 30 cultural properties, 7 natural properties and 1 mixed site.
Ahmedabad became the first Indian city to get into the list.
Apart from Jaipur, other cultural sites that have been designated as World Heritage site recently are,

World Heritage Site

It is listed by the ‘United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’ (UNESCO)
The UNESCO is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN). It has 195 member states.
The UNESCO seeks to encourage the identification, protection and preservation of cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity.
This is embodied in an international treaty called the ‘Convention concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage’, adopted by UNESCO in 1972.
The World Heritage Committee is the main body in charge of the implementation the Convention.
It consists of representatives from 21 of the States Parties to the Convention elected by their General Assembly, it meets once a year.
The site should have an Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) for World Heritage nomination.
To determine OUV for World Heritage nomination, there are 10 enlisted criteria.
The proposed nomination must satisfy at least one of these ten criteria.

$5 trillion economy

The Economic Survey- 2019 has drawn up a ‘blueprint’ to make India a $5-trillion economy by 2024-25.
The reference to the size, $5-trillion of an economy is measured by the annual ‘Gross Domestic Product’ or GDP.
The GDP of an economy is the total monetary value of all goods and services produced in an economy within a year.
For most international comparisons, GDP is calculated via the production method and the monetary value is arrived at by using current prices in US $.
5 major points from the economic survey that could help to achieve the $5-trillion economy status are,

Investment - a 'virtuous cycle' of saving, investment and exports.
Jobs - The survey says job creation is mandatory to achieve the $5 trillion economy status.
Savings - higher savings preclude domestic consumption as the driver of final demand.
Demographic phase - Working age population would grow by roughly 9.7 million per year during 2021-31. This could be an ideal for India to propel its economy,
Energy conservation - Enabling inclusive growth through affordable, reliable and sustainable energy.

If India grows at 12% nominal growth (that is 8% real GDP growth and 4% inflation), then India would reach the $5.33 trillion mark in 2024.
In 2014, India’s GDP was $1.85 trillion, today it is $2.7 trillion and India is the sixth-largest economy in the world.
However to understand the wellbeing of the people in an economy in a better way, one should look at GDP per capita.
In other words, GDP divided by the total population. This gives a better sense of how an average resident of an economy might be fairing.
India is the sixth-largest economy does not necessarily imply that Indians are the sixth-richest people on the planet.

In terms of overall GDP, this data shows that India is very close to overtaking the United Kingdom and it also shows that Indonesia’s GDP is almost one-third of India’s.
On the other hand an average UK resident’s income was 21 times that of an average Indian in 2018.
Similarly an Indonesian earns double that of an Indian even though Indonesia’s overall economy is just one-third of India’s.

If by 2024 India’s GDP is $5.33 trillion and India’s population will be 1.43 billion (according to UN population projection), India’s per capita GDP would be $3,727, which will be lower than Indonesia’s GDP per capita in 2018.
So rather than just focusing on mere GDP numbers, India should focus on inclusive growth.

Antifa

It is a far-left group, short for “Antifascist”.
They clashed with those of a far-right group called Proud Boys in what is called the Portland violence in USA.
It happened during a pro-Donald Trump demonstration in Portland.
The Proud Boys are known as a white supremacist, exclusively male group based in the US.
Antifa has a more international background and has been around for several decades, dates back to Nazi Germany.
The movement has had a presence in several European countries and has now come into focus in the United States.
Antifa members follow far-left ideologies such as anti-capitalism.
Apart from public-protests, they run websites that track white extremist and ultra-right groups.
Because of Antifa’s repeated involvement in violence, many liberal figures have criticised the group for bringing disrepute to existing anti-fascism movements in U.S.
Antifa’s activities allow right-wing organisations to portray organisers of peaceful events too, as extremists.

Mahesh’s Rath Yatra

It is the second biggest rathayatra in the world after Puri's Rath Yatra.
It has been celebrated since 1396, held in Mahesh, a historical locality within Serampore city in the West Bengal.
It is referred to as ‘Naba Nilachal’, meaning new Puri. This year marks its 623^rd edition.
The establishment of this Mahesh temple indicates that religious custom of following Jagannath had spread to Bengal.
Bengali sadhu ‘Drubananda Brahmachari’ established the temple at Mahesh and the chariot festival was started by one of Sri Chaitanya’s early disciples.
The new Mahesh temple in Kolkata was built by Nayanchand Mallik of Pathuriaghata in 1755 and the present Rath was donated by Krishnaram Basu.
Unlike the idols in Puri’s Jagannath temple, which are changed every 12 years, the idols made by the temple’s founder for the first Rath Yatra are used till date.
One big part of the local ritual is treating the lord to his favourite sweet called the ‘Ghutke sandesh’.

Source: The Indian Express, PIB