Mains – 8th Nov 23

UDAN Scheme

Why in News?

• Out of the 479 airport routes that were revived by the Union Government, under the Regional Connectivity Scheme – UDAN, 225 have ceased operations.

 

About Regional Connectivity Scheme – UDAN:

• UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik) is a regional connectivity scheme launched by the Government of India, as a part of the National Civil Aviation Policy in 2016.
• UDAN, which will be in operation for a period of 10 years (2016-26), envisages providing connectivity to un-served and underserved airports through revival of existing airports and air strips.
• The objective of the scheme is to take flying to the masses by improving air connectivity for tier-2 and tier-3 cities, and subsidising air travel on these routes.
• The routes are awarded after a bidding process, and the winning airlines are given certain incentives, along with viability gap funding (or a subsidy) equivalent to 50% of the seating capacity on their aircraft.
  • In return, the airlines sell 50% of their seats at a flat rate of Rs 2,500 per hour of flight, in order to make air travel affordable.
• Implementing Agency: Airport Authority of India (AAI)

Funding Pattern for the Scheme:

• Concession by Central Government, State Governments/UTs and airport operators to reduce the cost of operations on regional routes; and
• Financial Viability Gap Funding (VGF) support to meet the gap, if any, between the cost of airline operations and expected revenues on such routes.
• VGF will be shared between Ministry of Civil Aviation and the State Government in the ratio of 80:20 whereas for the States in North-Eastern region/UTs the ratio will be 90:10.

Different Phases of the Scheme:

• Phase 1 was launched in 2017, with the objective of connecting underserved and unserved airports in the country.
• Phase 2 was launched in 2018, with the aim of expanding air connectivity to more remote and inaccessible parts of the country.
• Phase 3 was launched in November 2018, with the focus on enhancing air connectivity to hilly and remote regions of the country.
• Phase 4 of the UDAN scheme was launched in December 2019, with a focus on connecting islands and other remote areas of the country.
• UDAN 4.1:
  • Launched in March 2021, the UDAN 4.1 round is focused on connecting smaller airports, along with special helicopter and seaplane routes.
  • In addition to these, some new routes have been proposed under the Sagaramala Seaplane Services in consultation with the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways.

UDAN 5.0:

• Launched in April 2023, the UDAN 5.0 round is focused on Category-2 (20-80 seats) and Category-3 (>80 seats) aircrafts.
• There is no restriction on the distance between the origin and the destination of the flight.
• Airlines would be required to commence operations within 4 months of the award of the route; earlier this deadline was 6 months.

 

Performance of the Scheme:

• The number of operational airports has gone up to 141 from 76 in 2014.
• With 479 new routes initiated, UDAN Scheme has provided air connectivity to more than 29 States/ UTs across the country.
• More than one crore passengers have availed the benefits of this scheme.

 

Challenges to RCS

• Commercial Viability:
  • Many of the routes identified under the scheme have been found to be commercially unviable for airlines. The low demand for air travel on certain routes makes it difficult for airlines to operate profitably, even with subsidies provided under UDAN.
  • Airport development under RCS involved launching 479 routes to revive under-utilized airports. However, out of these, 225 routes have ceased operations.
• Infrastructural Constraints:
  • The lack of adequate airport infrastructure in some of the remote regions poses challenges for airlines.
  • Many airports require upgradation and improvements to meet safety standards and handle increased air traffic.
  • Airlines operating in remote areas often face higher operating costs, including increased fuel expenses, maintenance costs, and logistical challenges, which can affect their profitability.

 

 

Dark Patterns in Online Advertisements

Why in news?

• The Union Consumer Affairs Ministry is concerned about the increasing dark patterns of misleading advertisements that use tactics like false urgency, confirm-shaming, forced action, subscription traps, and nagging.

 

Online space in India has experienced an impressive growth in recent years, with the number of internet connections reaching 830 million in 2021. Moreover, India’s consumer digital economy is anticipated to hit the US$1 trillion mark by 2030, growing from US$537.5 billion in 2020. This is attributed to the strong adoption of online services like eCommerce and edtech in the country.

 

What are Dark Patterns?

• Harry Brignull introduced the phrase ‘dark pattern’ in 2010 to characterise deceptive strategies used to trick clients.
• A dark pattern refers to a design or user interface technique that is intentionally crafted to manipulate or deceive users into making certain choices or taking specific actions that may not be in their best interest. It is a deceptive practice employed to influence user behaviour in a way that benefits the company implementing it.
• These deceptive practices can include creating a false sense of urgency, making people feel bad for not doing something, forcing them to take certain actions, trapping them into subscriptions, or constantly bothering them.

 

What are the different types of Dark Patterns?

• Urgency: This tactic creates a sense of urgency or scarcity to pressure consumers into making a purchase or taking an action.
• Basket Sneaking: Websites or apps use dark patterns to add additional products or services to the shopping cart without user consent.
• Confirm Shaming: It involves guilt as a way to make consumers adhere. It criticizes or attack consumers for not conforming to a particular belief or viewpoint.
• Forced Action: This involves forcing consumers into taking an action they may not want to take, such as signing up for a service in order to access content.
• Nagging: It refers to persistent, repetitive and annoyingly constant criticism, complaints, requests for action.
• Subscription Traps: This tactic makes it easy for consumers to sign up for a service but difficult for them to cancel it, often by hiding the cancellation option or requiring multiple steps.
• Interface Interference: This tactic involves making it difficult for consumers to take certain actions, such as canceling a subscription or deleting an account.
• Bait and Switch: This involves advertising one product or service but delivering another, often of lower quality.
• Hidden Costs: This tactic involves hiding additional costs from consumers until they are already committed to making a purchase.
• Disguised Ads: Disguised ads are advertisements that are designed to look like other types of content, such as news articles or user-generated content.

 

How might users be negatively affected by dark patterns?

• Lack of Transparency: Dark patterns can obscure important information, making it difficult for users to fully understand the implications of their actions. This can lead to uninformed decision-making and potential financial or privacy risks.
• Impair user autonomy: It manipulates user behaviour, limiting their freedom of choice. Users may feel coerced or pressured into making decisions they wouldn’t have otherwise made, leading to buyer’s remorse or dissatisfaction.
• Concerns related to Privacy: Some dark patterns may manipulate users into sharing more personal data than they intended or agreeing to privacy settings that compromise their confidentiality. This can have implications for data security and expose users to potential privacy breaches.
• Erode trust in brands and advertising: Dark patterns often create frustrating and confusing experiences for users. They may feel deceived or manipulated, leading to a loss of trust in the platform or brand and a diminished overall user experience.

 

Are dark patterns illegal?

• The legality of dark patterns is a complex matter as distinguishing between manipulation and fraudulent intent can be challenging. As of now, there are no specific regulations in place in most nations against dark patterns.
• However, individuals who have experienced harm as a result of dark patterns may potentially seek compensation for damages. In 2022, Google and Facebook faced repercussions due to their cookie banners. These companies violated EU and French regulations by making it more difficult for users to reject cookies as compared to accepting them.

 

Regulatory measures in India:

• The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), has been addressing issues of misleading ads through its existing code. The ASCI code applies across media, including online advertising (including companies’ own websites, pages and handles).

• Deceptive patterns that manipulate consumer choice and impede their right to be well informed constitute unfair practices that are prohibited under the Consumer Protection Act 2019.

 

What needs to be done?

• Prohibiting specific types of dark patterns.
• Industry self-regulation can play a pivotal role in addressing the issue. Online platforms can establish ethical design guidelines that discourage the use of dark patterns.
• Fostering consumer-friendly digital choice architecture and empowering regulators.
• Encouraging responsible design practices and conducting independent audits can help to identify and rectify dark pattern issues.
• Equipping users with tools and resources that allow them to make informed choices online. This could include browser extensions, apps or plugins that detect and block dark patterns or platforms providing clearer and more accessible settings and privacy options.
• In addition to promoting awareness about dark patterns among consumers, small and medium scale MSME merchants must also be made aware as they account for a huge portion of online sellers.
• Users should be encouraged to report instances of dark patterns they encounter and platforms should establish clear channels for users to provide feedback and report manipulative practices.

 

Conclusion:

The digital space has become an integral part of the consumer’s life, significantly influencing how they consume information, goods and services. Consumers must not be forced or directed towards unintended consequences without their express consent and consent by deceit is not an express consent. Consumers shall be aware what they are signing up and also should be able to get out of the same.’