Editorials/Opinions Analysis For UPSC 28 January 2023

Editorials/Opinions Analysis For UPSC 28 January 2023

Contents

1. Could AI Diffusion Affect Global Migration Patterns?  
2. We the People: New and Dark Interpretations

Could AI Diffusion Affect Global Migration Patterns?

Context

• People migrate to other countries to better their lives. Better education and employment opportunities abroad are the main draws.
• How would the rapid spread of artificial intelligence (AI) tools affect international migration patterns?

Relevance

GS Paper-3: Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life

Mains Question

How would the rapid spread of artificial intelligence (AI) tools affect international migration patterns? Analyze (150 words) 

Recent Pattern

• Migration for education and employment opportunities abroad, except when forced by civil wars and the like, is a win-win situation for both parties.
• Many developed countries, including the United States, Canada, Japan, and Germany, have faced labour shortages in recent years as a result of an ageing population and lower birth rates.
  • Immigrants have filled this void on both ends of the spectrum, allowing high-productivity sectors to thrive while keeping wages in low-productivity service sectors under control.
• Indian immigrants in the United States are typical of high-skilled settlers, whereas Mexican migrants with less education and skills tend to work in low-productivity sectors. The latter are still better off in America than they would be in their home country. Overall, foreign-born US residents who are not citizens by birth made up approximately 17% of the civilian labour force in 2019, up from approximately 7% in 1980.
  • This does not include the children of previous immigrants, who are citizens of the United States by birth.

The USE of AI in Education

• The use of AI technology in education has the potential to bring personalised, high-quality education to people’s homes, eliminating the need for many people to travel abroad for education.
  • It is important to note, however, that using AI for learning necessitates a certain level of aptitude, aspiration, and motivation. Many immigrants who come to the United States for education have these characteristics.
  • Furthermore, some people may still need to travel abroad for core theoretical scientific research.
• In this scenario, the stamp of approval from a highly regarded educational institution would be more valuable than the skills gained through AI-based learning.
  • This is due to the lack of credibility and acceptance of an AI-based learning certification system.
• As a result, until such a system is developed, AI tools will be incapable of replacing the value of a degree from a prestigious university.

How Will AI Affect the Demand for Migrant Workers?

• It may result in job displacement in industries such as information technology.
  • For example, as AI develops the expertise to convert text into codes, fix bugs, and suggest improvements and extensions to existing codes, the need for a human coder for basic coding would decline.
  • The same is true for routine maintenance and bug fixes.
• In contrast, AI is likely to result in less job displacement in industries such as healthcare. Patients would prefer to speak with a human rather than a robot.
  • Demand for IT engineers is expected to fall as AI and related tools become more widely available, but not for nurses and doctors, contrary to popular belief.
• It will most likely take some time for people to accept the idea of robots performing tasks like hair cutting, babysitting, or cooking.
  • Similarly, in densely populated urban areas, drones may not be able to replace delivery people, and robot waiters are unlikely to replace human servers in most restaurants because people prefer interacting with other humans when they are not working with machines.
  • Despite advancements in autonomous vehicles, truck and bus drivers are unlikely to be replaced in the near future.

What precisely is artificial intelligence (AI)?

• The simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, particularly computer systems, is known as artificial intelligence.
• Expert systems, natural language processing, speech recognition, and machine vision are examples of AI applications.
• AI systems function by ingesting large amounts of labelled training data, analysing the data for correlations and patterns, and then using these patterns to predict future states.

The AI Specialist

• The advancement of AI technology may result in increased economic growth and job creation in certain industries.
  • A new skill category is emerging: the “prompt specialist,” who can effectively use a variety of AI tools.
  • Because these specialists could work remotely from anywhere in the world, migration could be reduced. The wage premium for remote work, on the other hand, would most likely decrease.
  • As AI technology becomes more widely available and affordable, the skill premium for highly educated individuals may fall.
  • This is true for the vast majority of people, with the exception of those who can effectively deploy AI tools, identify and correct errors, and contextualise the output within specific cultures in order to extract the most value.

Conclusion

• Because AI technology is still in its early stages of adoption, it is difficult to fully comprehend its impact on international migration patterns for education and employment.
• However, as the use of AI technology expands rapidly, it may reduce demand for certain high-skill occupations in sectors such as IT, limiting earning potential, while also creating new job opportunities. For the time being, medium and low-skill occupations in service sectors that require face-to-face interactions may be less affected by AI.

We the People: New and Dark Interpretations

Context

The raging debate over the meaning of ‘We the People’ following the Vice-President of India’s speech requires a closer examination.

Relevance

GS Paper-2: Separation of Powers between various organs Dispute Redressal Mechanisms and Institutions

Mains Question

What exactly is “separation of powers” doctrine? Is the judiciary a lesser institution than directly elected institutions such as the parliament in a constitutional democracy like India because it is non-elected? Analyze critically. (250 Words)

What exactly is the Issue?

• The Vice President’s speech, with particular reference to the judiciary, held that ‘We the People’ essentially gives primacy to elected members of Parliament and state legislatures.
• The Vice President elaborated on this theme, implying that the separation of powers does not equate to the three pillars of democracy: Parliament, the judiciary, and the executive.
• In his opinion, the judiciary and the executive are inferior because they are appointed rather than directly elected by the people.

The Real Meaning of “We the People”

• The meaning of ‘We the People’ is not defined in the Constitution. It is concerned with citizens, not with any particular group or institution.
• There are individuals in the judiciary, the executive, and the majority of the other constitutional institutions.
• There are also those in the military, police, government, and the vast private sector. They are all people no less.
• To identify representatives in the legislature to be the sole representatives of the people is a travesty.

Issue of the Primacy of Parliament

• United States: o In the United States, the President has the authority to appoint judges, though this must be approved by Congress.
  • However, the President is elected directly by the people and has prerogatives in several areas that do not apply in a parliamentary democracy.
  • The Prime Minister-in-Cabinet lacks the powers of the President of the United States. As a result, a judicial review to determine the suitability or otherwise of the candidates nominated is possible.
• United Kingdom: o It is governed by long-standing conventions and laws passed by the House of Commons.
  • It lacks a written constitution that allows for judicial review.
  • Despite the primacy of Parliament, strong conventions exist. Conventions have a long history in the United Kingdom.
  • Laws can be changed, broken, or repealed. Even in Parliament, the Speaker of the House of Commons is elected but becomes a non-party figure who decides when to step down.

The Conventions

• Speakership: o In India, the first two Speakers, G.V. Mavalankar and M. Ananthasayanam Ayyangar, and later Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, resigned from the ruling party to give the entire Parliament a sense of impartiality in ensuring a proper place for minority parties.
  • In the United Kingdom, the Speaker is retained by the House of Commons if he continues in office.
  • Despite the efforts of the first two Speakers of the Lok Sabha to establish a precedent, this does not occur in India.
  • The lack of convention has had a significant impact on the operation of Parliament. Because of our unwillingness to honour conventions, our laws and Constitution sought greater specificity, which often resulted in ambiguity in language and meaning.
• B.R. Ambedkar’s perspective on conventions: o Democracies cannot be run solely by laws passed in representative legislatures. They require conventions.
  • B.R. Ambedkar recognised that Orientals cannot be relied on to follow conventions. Institutions may even be destroyed unless conventions are solidified into constituent laws and bound by strong threads, jeopardising the very purpose of a Constitution protecting the citizen.
  • There is a cost to converting conventions into law, and B.R. Ambedkar was well aware of it.

Concerns

• Attack on institutions: o Today’s assault on the judiciary is aimed at a powerful constitutional authority that, for the most part, refuses to deviate from its constitutional responsibilities.
  • The fates of the Election Commission of India, independent investigating agencies, the civil service, and the police are classic examples of constitutional and other legal responsibilities being ignored.
• Virtual war between the centre and the states: o There is currently a virtual war in the country between elected governments in states and Governors appointed by the Centre, which has raised the question of whether the institution of Governors is even necessary in the first place.
  • The Constitution does not intend Governors to be subservient to the central government or even to be detractors of state legitimacy.
  • The danger now is that the Centre consciously believes it is superior to the States, and that their Governors serve as its proxies.
  • This violates the very dignity of a State’s people as inferior to a higher power outside their State, the constitutional validity of which rightfully requires the judiciary to be the final judge.
• Centralization: o The separation of powers acceptable to the Centre does not apply to the states, where an appointed Governor can defy both the legislature and the elected government.
• Members of the ruling party appear to be pushing for greater centralization not only within constitutional institutions at the Centre, but also in states ruled by parties other than the national ruling party.

Conclusion

• Aside from being enshrined in the Constitution, the theory of separation of powers is more fundamental to any democratic society than the letter of the Constitution.
• The legislative, judicial, and executive branches are all equally important pillars of a healthy and successful democracy.
• With judicial and measured constitutional functional overlap, these institutions’ institutional partnership is feasible. This type of collaboration bridges the legislative, executive, and judicial divides, allowing the government to function smoothly.
• The spirit of constitutionalism could only be enabled by what he called constitutional morality, which meant that the government and citizens should act by adopting constitutional principles and norms, and the central government should work to maintain the spirit of cooperative federalism with the state governments.