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DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 19th October 2020

Archives (PRELIMS + MAINS FOCUS) India’s First Seaplane Project to be inaugurated on 31st October Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Economy; Infrastructure In news The first of the five seaplane services in Gujarat will be inaugurated on October 31, the birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. It shall connect Sabarmati River in Ahmedabad to the Statue of Unity in Kevadia in Narmada district. Ministry: Union Ministry of Civil Aviation. Other spots: Dharoi dam (Mehsana district) to connect Ambaji and Shatrunjay dam (Bhavnagar district) and Tapi in the next phase. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) had requested state governments of Gujarat, Assam, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and the administration of Andaman & Nicobar to propose potential locations for setting up water aerodromes to boost the tourism sector. Impact it will have on the environment The water aerodrome is not a listed project/activity in the Schedule to the Environmental Impact Assessment Notification, 2006 and its amendments.  However, the Expert Appraisal Committee was of the opinion that the activities proposed under the water aerodrome project may have a similar type of impact as that of an airport. In its proposal seeking environmental clearance, the Director of Aviation, Government of Gujarat, had expressed fears of environmental impact during the stage of construction.  Also, according to the state government, during seaplane operations, there will be turbulence created in the water while takeoff and landing of seaplanes which will lead to more mixing of oxygen in the water having a positive impact on the aquatic ecosystem near seaplane operations  Do you know? A seaplane is a fixed-winged aeroplane designed for taking off and landing on water. It offers the public the speed of an aeroplane with the utility of a boat. There are two main types of seaplane: flying boats (often called hull seaplanes) and floatplanes. Seaplanes by multiple airline carriers are operational in countries like the Philippines, Canada, Australia, the United States, etc. In India, Jal Hans, a commercial seaplane service based in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands was launched as a pilot project on 30 December 2010 by the Ministry of Civil Aviation. Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2020 released Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Hunger; Policy and governance In news Global Hunger Index report was recently released. Published by: Jointly by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Concern Worldwide, and Welthungerhilfe (WHH)  India: 94th rank among 107 countries It continues to be in the “serious” hunger category. However, it has made some progress, particularly since the enactment of National Food Security Act. Bangladesh: 75th rank Myanmar: 78th rank Pakistan: 88th rank Nepal: 73rd rank and  Sri Lanka: 64th rank  Key takeaways Last year, India’s rank was 102 out of 117 countries. The neighbouring countries of Bangladesh, Myanmar and Pakistan too were in the “serious” category. They ranked higher than India in 2020’s index. Nepal and Sri Lanka are in “moderate” hunger category. Undernourished: 14% of India’s population  Stunting: 37.4% among children under five  Wasting: 17.3%  Under-five mortality rate: 3.7% Do you know? The GHI is calculated by using a three-step process.  The indicators used are percentage of undernourished population, percentage of children under five years suffering from wasting and stunting, and child mortality. BRAHMOS supersonic cruise missile successfully test fired Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Defence & Security In news BRAHMOS, the supersonic cruise missile was successfully test fired from Indian Navy’s indigenously-built stealth destroyer INS Chennai, hitting a target in the Arabian Sea. BrahMos Aerospace is an India-Russia joint venture, produces the supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft, or from land platforms. Key takeaways BRAHMOS as a prime strike weapon will ensure the warship’s irresistibility by engaging naval surface targets at long ranges. In the last few weeks, India has test fired a number of missiles including a new version of the surface-to-surface supersonic cruise missile BrahMos and anti-radiation missile Rudram-1. The original 290-km range BrahMos has already been deployed in Ladakh as well as Arunachal Pradesh during the ongoing military confrontation with China. Khelo India State Centre of Excellence (KISCE) awarded Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Policies; schemes In news Nine States and Union Territories have been selected by the Sports Ministry for upgradation to Khelo India State Centre of Excellence (KISCE). Key takeaways States and UTs selected: Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Chandigarh, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Puducherry, Tripura and J&K. The centres have been selected based on their past performances, quality of infrastructure, management and sports culture in the State. The overall number now stands at 24 KISCEs from 23 States and UTs. The assistance to these centres will be provided in the form of bridging the gaps in sports equipment, high performance managers, coaches, sports scientists and technical support. Israel & Bahrain establish diplomatic Relations Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – International Relations In news Recently, Israel and Bahrain have formally established diplomatic relations after signing the US brokered deal in Bahrain’s capital Manama. The two countries are now expected to open embassies. Bahrain is now the fourth Arab country in the Middle East - after the UAE, Egypt and Jordan - to establish diplomatic Relations with Israel. Important value additions Bahrain is a sovereign state in the Persian Gulf. The island nation comprises a small archipelago made up of 40 natural islands and an additional 51 artificial islands, centred around Bahrain Island which makes up around 83% of the country's landmass. The country is situated between the Qatari peninsula and the north eastern coast of Saudi Arabia, to which it is connected by the 25-kilometre King Fahd Causeway. The capital and largest city is Manama. Miscellaneous Originalism US Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett had recently described originalism as her legal philosophy. It means interpreting the country’s Constitution as per the intentions of USA’s 18th-century founding leaders. In legal philosophy, this theory prescribes that while resolving disputes, judges should interpret the constitution as it was understood at the time it was ratified, irrespective of whether they personally agree or disagree with the outcome of a case decided this way. The legal philosophy which is said to be the opposite of originalism is ‘living constitution’ or ‘modernism’. This theory, supported by likes of the late Justice Ginsburg, believes that the constitution should be updated with times to encompass changing societal needs. Slinex-20 The Eighth Edition of annual Indian Navy (IN) – Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) bilateral maritime exercise SLINEX-20 is scheduled off Trincomalee, Sri Lanka from 19 to 21 October 2020. SLINEX-20 aims to enhance inter-operability, improve mutual understanding and exchange best practices and procedures for multi-faceted maritime operations between both navies. (MAINS FOCUS) POLITY/ GOVERNANCE Topic: General Studies 2: Challenges associated with Judiciary & executive Judicial Accountability Judiciary and Executive: AP CM Letter to CJI Context: Recently, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has stirred a hornet’s nest by writing to the Chief Justice of India (CJI) complaining about Supreme Court(SC) judge Justice N.V. Ramana. What were the allegations levelled in the letter? Mr. Jagan said that Justice Ramana was a legal adviser and additional advocate-general in the previous government of the TDP. AP CM has alleged that SC judge Justice N.V. Ramana (next in line to become CJI as per seniority) had been influencing the sittings and posting of cases in the State High Court. AP CM has also cited instances of how matters important to the opposition Telugu Desam Party had been ‘allocated to a few judges’ and that some High Court judges are hostile to his government & deliberately striking down his government orders In effect, he has accused many judges of misconduct, corruption and political bias.  In view of the above, the Chief Minister urged the Chief Justice of India to consider initiating steps to ensure that the State’s judicial neutrality was maintained. How are allegations of misconduct against judges dealt with?  The Constitution protects the independence of judges of the High Courts and the Supreme Court by making them removable only through a long process of impeachment.  However, not all forms of misconduct will warrant impeachment. There could be other kinds of impropriety too.  There are times when serious complaints of this sort are received, and the CJI is called upon to examine them.  Since 1997, judges have adopted an ‘in-house procedure’ for inquiring into such charges. When was the procedure adopted?  After Justice J.S. Verma took over as CJI in 1997, he circulated among judges a document called ‘Restatement of Values of Judicial life’. This was a set of principles containing the essential elements of ideal behaviour for judges.  The Full Court passed a resolution that an ‘in-house procedure’ would be adopted for action against judges for acts of commission or omission that go against these values.  A five-judge committee was constituted to come up with a procedure. Its report was adopted on December 15, 1999. It was made public in 2014. How does the in-house procedure work?  When a complaint is received against a High Court judge, the CJI should decide if it is considered frivolous or if it is serious and “directly related to the merits of a substantive decision in a judicial matter”. If it is serious, the CJI should get the judge’s response. He may close the matter if he is satisfied with the response.  If a deeper probe is considered necessary, both the complaint and the judge’s response, along with the CJI’s comments, are recorded for further action. After considering the High Court’s Chief Justice, the judge involved (accused of Political bias) and the complaint (here AP CM), the CJI, if deemed necessary, forms a three-member committee. If a Supreme Court judge faces such a charge, the in-house panel will comprise three Supreme Court judges.  The inquiry the three-member committee holds is of the nature of a fact-finding mission and is not a formal judicial inquiry involving examination of witnesses. The judge concerned is entitled to appear before it. What happens after the probe is done?  If the committee finds substance in the charges, it can give two kinds of recommendations. One, that the misconduct is serious enough to require removal from office, or that it is not serious enough to warrant removal. In the former case, the judge concerned will be urged to resign or seek voluntary retirement.  If the judge is unwilling to quit, the Chief Justice of the High Court concerned would be asked to withdraw judicial work from him.  The President and the Prime Minister will be informed of the situation. This is expected to clear the way for Parliament to begin the process of impeachment.  How will the CM’s complaint be handled?  The complaint by the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister will have to be examined by the CJI from the perspective of whether it can be rejected as baseless, or it requires a deeper investigation. In details annexed to his letter, Mr. Reddy has cited several writ petitions in which adverse orders were passed against his regime.  Consequences of this controversy Impacts Democratic Functioning:  Such type of confrontation and mistrust between two organs of State is not conducive for smooth working of Democracy. The ultimate victim will be the common man who will be bereft of better governance Politicization of Judiciary: The serious accusation by a sitting Chief Minister brings out to the foreground the weakness of Judiciary. Similar kind of charges might be levelled by opposition parties when it comes to power. All these leads to politicization of the Institution of Judiciary. Integrity of SC Judges is doubted: Every judgement delivered the judges involved in this controversy will be questioned which is not good even from Institutional perspective Legitimacy of the institution at stake: Such type of allegations and counter allegation will create doubts in minds of Public about the ability to get justice from Formal system. As a result, people will tend to fall back on undemocratic informal judicial systems like Khap Panchayats. Judiciary’s Grievance Redressal Mechanism tested: How the CJI & SC is going to handle this case will set a precedent to deal with misconduct of Judges in future. If the process is not robust, fair & transparent then the calls for greater executive control on Judiciary will increase (Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill) Connecting the dots: National Judicial Appointments Commission Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill ECONOMY / GOVERNANCE/ INTERNATIONAL Topic: General Studies 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.  Auction Theory: 2020 Economics Nobel Prize Context:  In 2020 U.S. economists Paul Milgrom and Robert Wilson won the Nobel Economics Prize for their work on commercial auctions, including for goods and services difficult to sell in traditional ways such as radio frequencies What is auction theory? Auction theory is a branch of economics that deals with, as the name suggests, auctions.  Auctions are important to economists because they are the most widely used and also the most efficient mechanism to allocate scarce resources.   In particular, auction theory deals with the various ways in which auctions can be designed to improve seller revenues, increase benefits to consumers, or even achieve both these goals at the same time. How is it relevant? Throughout history, countries have tried to allocate resources in various ways.  Some have tried to do it through political markets, but this has often led to biased outcomes. For Ex: The rationing of essential goods worked in State-controlled economies. People who were close to the bureaucracy and the political class came out ahead of others.  Lotteries are another way to allocate resources, but they do not ensure that scarce resources are allocated to people who value it the most. Auctions, for a good reason, have been the most common tool for thousands of years used by societies to allocate scarce resources.  When potential buyers compete to purchase goods in an auction, it helps sellers discover those buyers who value the goods the most.  Further, selling goods to the highest bidder also helps the seller maximise his or her revenues. So, both buyers and sellers benefit from auctions. Whether it is the auction of spectrum waves or the sale of fruits and vegetables, auctions are at the core of allocation of scarce resources in a market economy. What are the criticisms levelled against auctions and what are the economists contribution? Issue of Winner’s Curse The most common one is that auctions can lead buyers to overpay for resources whose value is uncertain to them.  This criticism, popularly known as the ‘winner’s curse’, is based on a study that showed how buyers who overpaid for U.S. oil leases in the 1970s earned low returns. Dr. Wilson was the first to study this matter.  The rational bidders may decide to underpay for resources in order to avoid the ‘winner’s curse’, and Dr. Wilson argued that sellers can get better bids for their goods if they share more information about it with potential buyers Auction formats Economists traditionally working on auction theory believed that all auctions are the same when it comes to the revenues that they managed to bring in for sellers. The auction format, in other words, did not matter.  This is known as the ‘revenue equivalence theorem’.  But Dr. Milgrom showed that the auction format can actually have a huge impact on the revenues earned by sellers. The most famous case of an auction gone wrong for the seller was the spectrum auction in New Zealand in 1990. In what is called a ‘Vickrey auction’, where the winner of the auction is mandated to pay only the second-best bid, a company that bid NZ$1,00,000 eventually paid just NZ$6 and another that bid NZ$70,00,000 only paid NZ$5,000. In particular, Dr. Milgrom showed how Dutch auctions, in which the auctioneer lowers the price of the product until a buyer bids for it, can help sellers earn more revenues than English auctions.  In the case of English auctions, the price rises based on higher bids submitted by competing buyers. But as soon as some of the bidders drop out of the auction as the price rises, the remaining bidders become more cautious about bidding higher prices. Real world Contribution of Economists through better auction model Dr. Milgrom and Dr. Wilson, however, are most popular for their contribution towards devising new, real-world auction formats.  The combinatorial auctions designed by the duo, for instance, have been used to sell complex goods such as spectrum as bundles, instead of as individual units.  Earlier, governments sold spectrum rights on a piecemeal basis, which made it unappealing to companies which demanded spectra in a bundle.  This led to private speculators earning billions in the secondary market by reselling spectrum, while the government was starved of revenues that it could have easily earned with better auction design. Conclusion The contributions of Dr. Milgrom and Dr. Wilson have helped governments and private companies design their auctions better.  This has, in turn, helped in the better allocation of scarce resources and offered more incentives for sellers to produce complex goods. Connecting the dots: Nudge Theory – 2017 Economics Nobel Prize winner (TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE) Model questions: (You can now post your answers in comment section) Note:  Correct answers of today’s questions will be provided in next day’s DNA section. Kindly refer to it and update your answers.  Comments Up-voted by IASbaba are also the “correct answers”. Q.1 Which of the following Arab countries have established diplomatic relations with Israel recently?  UAE  Egypt  Saudi Arabia  Bahrain  Select the correct code:  1, 2 and 3 only  3 and 4 only  1, 2 and 4 only  1 and 2 only Q.2 Bahrain is an island situated between:  Qatar and Saudi Arabia  Yemen and Saudi Arabia  Turkey and Syria  Kuwait and Iraq Q.3 Global Hunger Index 2020 was recently released. Consider the following statements: India is placed under serious hunger category.  India's rank has deteriorated since last year.  Which of the above is or are correct?  1 only  2 only  Both 1 and 2  Neither 1 nor 2  ANSWERS FOR 17th October 2020 TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE (TYK) 1 D 2 B 3 D 4 D Must Read On Centre borrowing for States: The Hindu On India’s low ranking on nutritional indices: The Hindu About New Legal Framework for Contract Farming: The Indian Express

Daily Prelims CA Quiz

UPSC Quiz - 2020 : IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs Quiz 19th Oct 2020

For Previous Daily Quiz (ARCHIVES) - CLICK HERE The Current Affairs questions are based on sources like ‘The Hindu’, ‘Indian Express’ and ‘PIB’, which are very important sources for UPSC Prelims Exam. The questions are focused on both the concepts and facts. The topics covered here are generally different from what is being covered under ‘Daily Current Affairs/Daily News Analysis (DNA) and Daily Static Quiz’ to avoid duplication. The questions would be published from Monday to Saturday before 2 PM. One should not spend more than 10 minutes on this initiative. This is a part of our recently launched, NEW INITIATIVE IASbaba’s INTEGRATED REVISION PLAN (IRP) 2020 – Road Map for the next 100 Days! FREE INITIATIVE! We will make sure, in the next 4 months not a single day is wasted. All your energies are channelized in the right direction. Trust us! This will make a huge difference in your results this time, provided that you follow this plan sincerely every day without fail. Gear up and Make the Best Use of this initiative. Do remember that, “the difference between Ordinary and EXTRA-Ordinary is PRACTICE!!” To Know More about the Initiative -> CLICK HERE SCHEDULE/DETAILED PLAN – > CLICK HERE Important Note: Don't forget to post your marks in the comment section. Also, let us know if you enjoyed today's test :) After completing the 5 questions, click on 'View Questions' to check your score, time taken and solutions. To take the Test - Click Here

TLP Mains 2020

IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2 - ENGLISH & हिंदी): UPSC Mains Answer Writing - General Studies Paper 2 Questions[19th OCTOBER,2020] - Day 7

For Previous TLP (ARCHIVES) - CLICK HERE Hello Friends, Welcome to IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2- ENGLISH & हिंदी): UPSC Mains Answer Writing - General Studies 2 Questions[19th October, 2020] - Day 7   We will make sure, in the next 3 months not a single day is wasted. All your energies are channelized in the right direction. Trust us! This will make a huge difference in your results this time, provided that you follow this plan sincerely every day without fail. Gear up and Make the Best Use of this initiative. We are giving 5 Mains Questions on Daily basis so that every student can actively participate and keep your preparation focused. Do remember that, “the difference between Ordinary and EXTRA-Ordinary is PRACTICE!!” To Know More about the Initiative -> CLICK HERE SCHEDULE/DETAILED PLAN – > CLICK HERE   Note: Click on Each Question (Link), it will open in a new tab and then Answer respective questions! 1. What do you understand by the concept of checks and balances in a constitutional democracy? Explain with the help of relevant examples in the Indian context.  संवैधानिक लोकतंत्र में जाँच और संतुलन की अवधारणा से आप क्या समझते हैं? भारतीय संदर्भ में प्रासंगिक उदाहरणों की मदद से समझाएँ। 2. Examine the powers and limitations of different commissions for the protection of the rights of the vulnerable sections.  कमजोर वर्गों के अधिकारों की सुरक्षा के लिए विभिन्न आयोगों की शक्तियों और सीमाओं की जांच करें। 3. What are the constitutional provisions for separation of powers in India’s three tiered government? Are they effective? Critically examine.  भारत की तीन स्तरीय सरकार में शक्तियों को अलग करने के लिए संवैधानिक प्रावधान क्या हैं? क्या वे प्रभावी हैं? समालोचनात्मक जांच करें। 4. While self reliance is important, India does not have the luxury of abandoning export orientation. Elucidate.  जबकि आत्मनिर्भरता महत्वपूर्ण है, भारत के पास निर्यात अभिविन्यास को छोड़ने का विलास नहीं है। स्पष्ट करें। 5. As global supply chains have disrupted during pandemic, India has a tremendous  opportunity to reindustrialise. Comment.  जैसा कि महामारी के दौरान वैश्विक आपूर्ति श्रृंखला बाधित हुई है, भारत के पास उद्योग को फिर से संगठित करने का एक जबरदस्त अवसर है। टिप्पणी करें। P.S: The review from IASbaba will happen from the time the question is posted till 10 pm everyday. We would also encourage peer reviews. So friends get actively involved and start reviewing each others answers. This will keep the entire community motivated. All the Best :)

Motivational Articles

Creative Guidance – Say Goodbye to Distractions – Inspirational Educative Articles

Say Goodbye to Distractions: The single biggest obstacle to living your life the way you want to is unnecessary distraction. Distractions come in all shapes and sizes, in fact most of what we experience on a daily basis on the path to our goals, are nothing but distractions. Avoiding unnecessary distractions is the single biggest change you can make to transform your life. What are these distractions? Firstly it is important to understand that each individual is unique in every which way possible. No two lives are ever the same. But, we are constantly bombarded with information, events and experiences that are general in nature which applies to everybody and nobody at the same time. Most of what you experience on a daily basis can be put in the category of general information that has nothing specific or particular to you. Without understanding this you can spend enormous amounts of time fighting and dealing with things that add nothing to your life. Staying focused is simply knowing the source of all your distractions and avoiding them. To focus, you have to first know you and your life in as much detail as possible. The more individualistic you are, the easier it becomes to pursue your goals and dreams. The easiest way to say goodbye to distractions is by strengthening your way of life and not getting sucked into anything and everything that is happening around you, unless knowing about what is happening around you is contributing to your personal or professional growth. Difference between the general crowd and your way of life has to be clear in order to pursue great dreams and desires. Mediocrity feeds on general information and experiences that everybody likes, but doesn’t add much to your personal life. To say goodbye to all your distractions, begin by spending more time on you, your life and your goals, instead of worrying about anything and everything that doesn’t concern you directly. “This article is a part of the creative endeavor of Meditation Farm and IASBABA.”

IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 17th October 2020

Archives (PRELIMS + MAINS FOCUS) ASEAN Phd Fellowship Programme (APFP) Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – International Relations In news Recently, the students from ASEAN member states who have been selected for the prestigious ASEAN PhD Fellowship Programme (APFP) were virtually addressed.  The program is funded by the Government of India. Important value additions  The ASEAN PhD Fellowship Programme was (APFP)  It was announced on 25th January 2018, by Indian Prime Minister in the presence of leaders of ASEAN member states. Under the APFP, 1,000 fellowships will be provided exclusively to the ASEAN citizens. It is also the largest capacity development programme undertaken by the Government of India for foreign beneficiaries. It will open many doors in the field of technology and research for the academicians, researchers and the scientists from India and ASEAN. The students of the ASEAN member states have got the opportunity to study in the IITs. Do you know?  ASEAN countries: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Kapila Campaign launched Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Education & GS-III – Intellectual Property In news The Ministry of Education launched the 'KAPILA' (Kalam Program for Intellectual Property Literacy and Awareness) campaign on the 89th birth anniversary of former President and Scientist Late Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. Key takeaways  Under this campaign, students pursuing education in higher educational institutions will get information about the correct system of application process for patenting their invention and they will be aware of their rights. The Institution Innovation Council (IIC 2.0) annual report was also presented on the occasion.  The launch of IIC 3.0 and its website were also announced.  It has also been decided to celebrate the week of October 15th to 23rd as 'Intellectual Property Literacy Week'.  Do you know?  The Institution Innovation Council was established by the Ministry of Education in 2018.  IICs have been established in about 1700 higher educational institutions.  They will be established in 5000 higher educational institutions under IIC 3.0. Directorate General of Shipping notified as National Authority For Recycling Of Ships Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Economy In news The Central Government has recently notified the Directorate General of Shipping as National Authority for Recycling of Ships under section 3 of the Recycling of Ships Act, 2019. Key takeaways  As an apex body, DG Shipping is authorised to administer, supervise and monitor all activities related to ship recycling.  DG Shipping will be the final authority for the various approvals.  Do you know?  Under Ship Recycling Act, 2019, India has acceded to Hong Kong Convention for Ship Recycling under International Maritime Organization (IMO).  DG Shipping is a representative of India in IMO.  All the conventions of IMO are being enforced by DG Shipping. National Authority of Ship Recycling will be set up in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.  Its location will benefit the Ship Recycling yard owners situated in Alang, Gujarat which is home of Asia’s largest ship breaking and ship recycling industry in the world. Kilo Class submarine INS Sindhuvir delivered to Myanmar Navy Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – International Relations In news India will be delivering a Kilo Class submarine INS Sindhuvir to Myanmar Navy as part of defence cooperation. This will be the first submarine of the Myanmar Navy. Key takeaways  Cooperation in the maritime domain is an important part of India's enhanced engagement with Myanmar.  It is in accordance with India's vision of SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) and in line with build capacities and self-reliance in all the neighbouring countries. Do you know?  Myanmar is one of India's strategic neighbours and shares a 1,640-kilometer-long border with a number of north-eastern states of India. Kilo class refers to diesel-electric attack submarines that were designed and built in the Soviet Union. Government Bans Imports Of Air Conditioners with Refrigerants Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Economy; Trade In news Indian Government has banned imports of air conditioners with refrigerants in order to promote domestic manufacturing and cut imports of non-essential items.  Key takeaways  Non-essential electronic goods have been under the purview of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry since the government decided to push for self-reliance in various sectors. Air conditioners have been specifically singled out by Indian Prime Minister as an example of a segment where self-reliance was required. In July 2020, the government had imposed restrictions on the imports of various colour TV sets as well. Centre to Borrow on Behalf of States to meet the GST shortfall  Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Federalism & GS-III – Taxation In news Recently, the Centre has decided to borrow an estimated revenue shortfall of Rs. 1.1 lakh crore as loans to States to meet the GST shortfall. Key takeaways  The borrowing will not have any impact on the fiscal deficit of the Government as the Centre is acting as mediator only. The Centre will borrow the loan and pass on to the states. The amounts will be reflected as the capital receipts of the state governments and it will be a part of financing its respective fiscal deficits. Background of the news The economic slowdown due to covid-19 had reduced both GST and cess collections in FY 2019-20, due to which there was 40% gap (shortfall) between the compensation paid and cess collected. The Centre distinguished the GST shortfall into two types: (1) Due to GST implementation itself; (2) due to the impact of Covid-19. The fall of GST revenue due to Covid-19 was termed as an act of God.  Also, the GST Compensation Act, 2017 guaranteed states that they would be compensated for any loss of revenue in the first five years of GST implementation, until 2022, using a cess levied on sin and luxury goods. It did not foresee an act of God. Thus, The Centre had earlier refused to compensate GST shortfall arising due to covid-19 to the states.   In August 2020 at GST Council meet, the Centre had proposed two options to states to meet the shortfall: (1) A special window could be provided, in consultation with the RBI so that the states can get Rs. 97,000 crore at a reasonable rate of interest. The amount can be repaid after five years (of GST implementation) ending 2022 from cess collection; (2) Another option is that this entire gap of Rs. 2.35 lakh crore can be met by the borrowing by the states in consultation with RBI. However, many states were against these two options and were planning to move the Supreme Court over the issue. Benefits of the recent decision The borrowing by the Centre would avoid differential rates of interest that individual states may be charged for their respective State Development Loans (SDLs). The country’s general government debt, which includes both the Centre’s and States’ borrowings will not increase due to this step. The States that get the benefit from the Special Window may borrow a lesser amount from the additional borrowing facility of 2% of Gross State Domestic Product under Atma Nirbhar Package. Important value additions  Goods and Services Tax GST was introduced through the 101st Constitution Amendment Act, 2016. It is an indirect tax on the supply of final goods and services.  It has subsumed indirect taxes like excise duty, Value Added Tax (VAT), service tax, luxury tax etc. It is levied at the final consumption point. It is levied only on the value addition.  It is collected on goods and services at each point of sale in the supply line. The GST avoids the cascading effect or tax on tax which increases the tax burden on the end consumer. Tax Structure under GST: (1) Central GST to cover Excise duty, Service tax etc.; (2) State GST to cover VAT, luxury tax etc.; (3) Integrated GST to cover inter-state trade. It has a 4-tier tax structure for all goods and services under the slabs- 5%, 12%, 18% and 28%. Supreme Court (SC) upholds the Madras High Court’s 2011 order on the Nilgiris elephant corridor Recently, the SC upheld the Madras HC's 2011 order on the Nilgiris elephant corridor.  It affirmed the right of passage of the animals and the closure of resorts in the area. Key takeaways of the SC Judgement In 2011, the Madras HC had upheld the validity of the Tamil Nadu government’s notification (of 2010) declaring an ‘Elephant Corridor’ in the Sigur Plateau of Nilgiris District. According to SC, it’s the State’s duty to protect a “keystone species” like elephants, which are immensely important to the environment. Elephant corridors allow elephants to continue their nomadic mode of survival, despite shrinking forest cover, by facilitating travel between distinct forest habitats.  These corridors play a crucial role in sustaining wildlife by reducing the impact of habitat isolation. The SC opined that the area is a fragile ecosystem, where the will of men must give way to elephants. The court has also allowed the formation of a committee led by a retired HC judge and two other persons to hear the individual objections of resort owners and private landowners within the corridor space. Important value additions  Nilgiris Elephant Corridor It is situated in the ecologically fragile Sigur plateau.  It connects the Western and the Eastern Ghats. It is situated near the Mudumalai National Park in the Nilgiris district. It also has the Nilgiri hills on its southwestern side and the Moyar river valley on its northeastern side. There are about 100 elephant corridors in India of which almost 70% are used regularly. 75% of the corridors are in the southern, central and north-eastern forests. There are an estimated 6,500 elephants in just the Brahmagiri-Nilgiris-Eastern Ghats ranges. Asian Elephant There are three subspecies of Asian elephant – the Indian, Sumatran and Sri Lankan. The Indian has the widest range and accounts for the majority of the remaining elephants on the continent. Common threats to African and Asian elephants: Escalation of poaching, habitat loss, human-elephant conflict and mistreatment in captivity  IUCN Red List status: (1) African elephants: vulnerable; (2) Asian elephants: endangered. CITES status: (1) Appendix I for Asian Elephants; (2) Appendix II for African elephants in Botswana, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe. Conservation Efforts by India: (1) Project Elephant in 1992 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme under which Elephant census is conducted once in 5 years; (2) Establishment of elephant reserves; (3) Adoption of the “World Elephant Day” (August 12); (4) Gaj Yatra -  a awareness campaign highlight the necessity of securing elephant corridors; (5) The Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) programme, launched in 2003, is an international collaboration that tracks trends in information related to the illegal killing of elephants from across Africa and Asia, to monitor effectiveness of field conservation efforts. Do you know? Keystone species: A species that has a disproportionately large effect on the communities in which it lives. Miscellaneous World Food Day World Food Day 2020 was observed on 16 October.  Theme: Grow, Nourish, Sustain Together On this day, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations was founded in 1945. (MAINS FOCUS) SOCIETY/ GOVERNANCE Topic: General Studies 1,2: Population and associated issues,  Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.  The Population Worry Context: Recently, there has been discussion in the media on India’s population future prompted by release of the Sample Registration System (SRS) Statistical Report (2018) and global population projections made by the Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), US. About Fertility Rates Total fertility rate (TFR)—the average number of children born per woman  Replacement level fertility is the TFR —at which a population exactly replaces itself from one generation to the next, without migration. This rate is roughly 2.1 children per woman for most countries, although it may modestly vary with mortality rates What is Sample Registration System (SRS)? The SRS is a demographic survey for providing reliable annual estimates of infant mortality rate, birth rate, death rate and other fertility and mortality indicators at the national and sub-national levels. Initiated on a pilot basis by the Registrar General of India in a few states in 1964-65, it became fully operational during 1969-70. The field investigation consists of continuous enumeration of births and deaths in selected sample units by resident part-time enumerators, generally anganwadi workers and teachers; and an independent retrospective survey every six months by SRS supervisors. The data obtained by these two independent functionaries are matched. Key Finding of SRS Report The report estimated the Total Fertility Rate (TFR as 2.2 in the year 2018 A comparison of 2011 and 2018 SRS statistical reports shows that TFR declined from 2.4 to 2.2 during this period Fertility is likely to continue to decline and it is estimated that replacement TFR of 2.1 would soon be reached for India as a whole As fertility declines, so does the population growth rate.   Fertility declined in all major states. In 2011, 10 states had a fertility rate below the replacement rate. This increased to 14 states in 2018. The six states with higher than national fertility rate (and their TFR) in 2018 are Bihar (3.2), Uttar Pradesh (2.9) Madhya Pradesh (2.7), Rajasthan (2.5), Jharkhand (2.5) and Chhattisgarh (2.4) Issue of sex ratio at birth The SRS reports show that sex ratio at birth in India, measured as the number of females per 1,000 males, declined marginally from 906 in 2011 to 899 in 2018.  There is considerable son preference in all states, except possibly in Kerala and Chhattisgarh.  This is a cause for concern because this adverse ratio results in a gross imbalance in the number of men and women and its inevitable impact on marriage systems as well as other harms to women. Consequences of TFR reaching replacement level Many people believe that the population would stabilise or begin to reduce in a few years once replacement fertility is reached.  This is not so because of the population momentum effect, a result of more people entering the reproductive age group of 15-49 years due to the past high-level of fertility.  For instance, the replacement fertility level was reached in Kerala around 1990, but its annual population growth rate was 0.7 per cent in 2018, nearly 30 years later.  The UN Population Division has estimated that India’s population would possibly peak at 161 crore around 2061 at the medium-fertility variant. Some of this momentum effect can be mitigated if young people delay childbearing and space their children. Fertility and Social setting Fertility largely depends upon social setting and programme strength.  Female education is a key indicator for social setting.  Broadly, higher the female education level, lower the fertility.  For instance, illiterate women in the reproductive age group of 15-49 years have higher fertility than literate women in almost all states. The percentage of illiterate women in the reproductive age group declined from 31.5 in 2011 to 13.0 per cent in 2018 as the cohort of older women with high illiteracy exited and younger women with a high proportion of them literate entered this age group. Programme strength is indicated by the unmet need for contraception, which has several components. The National Family Health Survey (2015-16) provides us estimates for the unmet need at 12.9 per cent and contraceptive prevalence of 53.5 per cent for India. Together, this puts the total demand for contraception at 66.4 per cent. Bihar, with the highest fertility rate, also has the highest unmet need at 21.1 per cent and the lowest contraceptive prevalence rate of 24.1 per cent among all the major states Although female education levels are improving in Bihar, fertility for women with any education level is higher in 2018 compared to 2011. Likewise, fertility among women with Class 10 or higher education in UP is greater in 2018 compared to 2011.  Programme’s ability to reach younger people and provide them with good quality reproductive health education and services needs to be urgently strengthened in these states (Bihar & UP) Way Ahead Increasing female education and economic prosperity help to improve the sex ratio. In view of the complexity of son preference resulting in gender-biased sex selection, government actions need to be supplemented by improving women’s status in the society. There is an urgent need to reach young people both for reproductive health education and services as well as to cultivate gender equity norms ECONOMY / GOVERNANCE/ INTERNATIONAL Topic: General Studies 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.  India Bangladesh Per capita GDP Context:  The International Monetary Fund’s latest update on the World Economic Outlook. Key Findings of Report In the IMF’s estimation, in 2020, growth of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) will witness a contraction of over 10% But more than the sharp contraction, what has caught everyone’s attention is that in 2020, the per capita income of an average Bangladeshi citizen would be more than the per capita income of an average Indian citizen. Source: Indian Express How did this happen? Isn’t India one of the world’s biggest economies? Typically, countries are compared on the basis of GDP growth rate, or on absolute GDP. India’s economy has mostly been over 10 times the size of Bangladesh, and grown faster every year, as can be seen in Charts 1 and 2 However, per capita income also involves another variable — the overall population — and is arrived at by dividing the total GDP by the total population. As a result, there are three reasons why India’s per capita income has fallen below Bangladesh this year. First, since 2017 onwards, as Chart 1 shows, India’s growth rate has decelerated sharply while Bangladesh’s has become even faster. Secondly, over the same 15-year period, India’s population grew faster (around 21%) than Bangladesh’s population (just under 18%). The combined effect of these two factors can be seen in how the per capita GDP gap had closed considerably even before Covid-19 hit (Chart 3).  Bangladesh’s per capita GDP was merely half of India’s in 2007 — but this was just before the global financial crisis. It was roughly 70% of India’s in 2014 and this gap closed rapidly in the last few years. Lastly, the most immediate factor was the relative impact of Covid-19 on the two economies in 2020. While India’s GDP is set to reduce by 10%, Bangladesh’s is expected to grow by almost 4%.  In other words, while India is one of the worst affected economies, Bangladesh is one of the bright spots. Has this ever happened earlier? Yes. In 1991, when India was undergoing a severe crisis and grew by just above 1%, Bangladesh’s per capita GDP surged ahead of India’s. Since then, India again took the lead. Is India expected to regain the lead again? Yes. The IMF’s projections show that India is likely to grow faster next year and in all likelihood again surge ahead.  But, given Bangladesh’s lower population growth and faster economic growth, India and Bangladesh are likely to be neck and neck for the foreseeable future in terms of per capita income.    Source: Indian Express How has Bangladesh managed to grow so fast and so robustly? In the initial years of its independence with Pakistan, Bangladesh struggled to grow fast. However, moving away from Pakistan also gave the country a chance to start afresh on its economic and political identity.  As such, its labour laws were not as stringent and its economy increasingly involved women in its labour force. This can be seen in higher female participation in the labour force  A key driver of growth was the garment industry where women workers gave Bangladesh the edge to corner the global export markets from which China retreated. It also helps that the structure of Bangladesh’s economy is such that its GDP is led by the industrial sector, followed by the services sector. Both these sectors create a lot of jobs and are more remunerative than agriculture.  India, on the other hand, has struggled to boost its industrial sector and has far too many people still dependent on agriculture. Beyond the economics, a big reason for Bangladesh’s progressively faster growth rate is that, especially over the past two decades, it improved on several social and political metrics such as health, sanitation, financial inclusion, and women’s political representation. Besides the advances it has made, what challenges does Bangladesh face? Bangladesh’s level of poverty is still much higher than India’s and still trails India in basic education parameters and that is what explains its lower rank in the Human Development Index. The bigger threat to Bangladesh’s prospects emerges from its everyday politics. The leading political parties are routinely engaged in violent oppression of each other. In the 2019 edition of Transparency International’s rankings, Bangladesh ranks a low 146 out of 198 countries (India is at 80th rank; a lower rank is worse off). Add to this a massive surge of radical Islam, which has resulted in several bloggers being killed for speaking out unpopular views. These developments have the ability not just to arrest Bangladesh’s progressive social reforms that have empowered women but also to derail its economic miracle. (TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE) Model questions: (You can now post your answers in comment section) Note:  Correct answers of today’s questions will be provided in next day’s DNA section. Kindly refer to it and update your answers.  Comments Up-voted by IASbaba are also the “correct answers”. Q.1 Which of the following is not a member of ASEAN? Brunei Cambodia  Myanmar  Bhutan Q.2 Consider the following statements:  National Authority of Ship Recycling will be set up in Alang, Gujarat. Alang’s beaches have become currently the world's largest ship graveyard. Which of the above is or are correct?  1 only  2 only  Both 1 and 2  Neither 1 nor 2  Q.3 Consider the following statements:  Goods and Services Tax was introduced through the 100th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2016.  According to GST Compensation Act, 2017, States would be compensated for any loss of revenue in the first five years of GST implementation including any natural disaster arising out of act of God. Which of the above is or are correct?  1 only  2 only  Both 1 and 2  Neither  1 nor 2  Q.4 Which of the following are covered under 28% slab of GST?  Fresh fruits and vegetables  Cereals Raw silk  Tobacco products ANSWERS FOR 16th October 2020 TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE (TYK) 1 D 2 B 3 A 4 A Must Read About Gupkar declaration of mainstream J&K political parties: The Hindu About IMF’s world Economic Outlook: The Hindu About India-Spain relationship: The Indian Express

Daily Prelims CA Quiz

UPSC Quiz - 2020 : IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs Quiz 17th Oct 2020

For Previous Daily Quiz (ARCHIVES) - CLICK HERE The Current Affairs questions are based on sources like ‘The Hindu’, ‘Indian Express’ and ‘PIB’, which are very important sources for UPSC Prelims Exam. The questions are focused on both the concepts and facts. The topics covered here are generally different from what is being covered under ‘Daily Current Affairs/Daily News Analysis (DNA) and Daily Static Quiz’ to avoid duplication. The questions would be published from Monday to Saturday before 2 PM. One should not spend more than 10 minutes on this initiative. This is a part of our recently launched, NEW INITIATIVE IASbaba’s INTEGRATED REVISION PLAN (IRP) 2020 – Road Map for the next 100 Days! FREE INITIATIVE! We will make sure, in the next 4 months not a single day is wasted. All your energies are channelized in the right direction. Trust us! This will make a huge difference in your results this time, provided that you follow this plan sincerely every day without fail. Gear up and Make the Best Use of this initiative. Do remember that, “the difference between Ordinary and EXTRA-Ordinary is PRACTICE!!” To Know More about the Initiative -> CLICK HERE SCHEDULE/DETAILED PLAN – > CLICK HERE Important Note: Don't forget to post your marks in the comment section. Also, let us know if you enjoyed today's test :) After completing the 5 questions, click on 'View Questions' to check your score, time taken and solutions. To take the Test - Click Here

RSTV Video

Air Pollution & COVID-19 – India Fights Back – RSTV IAS UPSC

Air Pollution & COVID-19 Archives TOPIC: General Studies 3: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment Key Statistics: India accounts for two-thirds of the world’s most polluted cities — 21 of the most polluted 30 cities; 14 of the highest 20; and 6 of the highest 10 — in the 2019 World Air Quality Report released by the pollution tracker IQAir and Greenpeace. The ranking is based on a comparison of PM2.5 levels. Among countries, when population is taken into account, average PM2.5 pollution is highest in Bangladesh, followed by Pakistan, while India is at number 5. Globally some 9 million premature deaths a year are associated with air pollutants, such as fine particulate matter, known as PM 2.5. Regrettably, 14 of the world’s 20 most polluted cities are in India. The air in Ghaziabad, Delhi, and Noida is particularly hazardous. Last year, a public health emergency was declared as post-Diwali New Delhi’s air quality index approached 500, the “severe plus emergency” category. Warning on Communicable Diseases Ranked as the world’s fifth most vulnerable country to climate change, India must respond to alerts on communicable diseases linked to GHGs.  Global warming intensifies heat waves and worsens respiratory illnesses.  Locust swarms in Jaipur and Gurugram have been linked to climate change.  Evidence is also emerging on a link between global warming and the emergence of diseases. Mosquito-borne diseases in India have been connected to global warming through both increased rainfall and heat waves. Is the Air pollution linked to the coronavirus pandemic? A study published in 2003 found that higher air pollution caused greater deaths from SARS, which was caused by a cousin of the current strain of coronavirus. A range of studies have found that air pollutants are linked to increased risk from influenza-type illnesses. Air pollution indirectly influences the transmission of COVID-19 and the improvement in air quality during the lockdown may have reduced the chances of infection, a recent study has also found. This finding was part of a research paper titled ‘Potential link between compromised air quality and transmission of the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) in affected areas’ published in Environmental Research journal. Focussed on the infection rate induced by air quality in central Kerala and other global COVID hotspots, including China, Italy and the U.S. It claims that one of the potential modes of transmission of COVID-19 is through ambient air by droplets which carry the viruses. This means that changes in the environment will affect the transmission of the infection. Air pollution is one of the elements that can change the environment. So it can be said that air pollution can indirectly influence the transmission. The dust particles exposed to humid environment have been contaminated with a water film on it. There is a possibility of the mix of saliva droplets and the dust coated with the water film becoming more airborne and spreading the infection. The researchers pointed out that the improvement in air quality during the lockdown period might have restricted the transmission of the infection in some places. The hypothesis would help design protocols for the prevention of future pandemics. What was the impact of Lockdown on the Ambient Air Quality? PM2.5 reduced by 24 per cent during the pre-lockdown phase and further reduced by almost 50 per cent during the lockdown phases as compared to levels observed during 2019. PM10 reduced by a massive 60 per cent, with NO2 levels falling by 64 per cent, Benzene by 62 per cent and SO2 by 35 per cent, during the second phase of lockdown as compared to levels in the same time period in 2019 A study revealed that sources associated with vehicular emissions, domestic/local coal combustion, waste incineration and urban organic aerosols reduced sharply from the pre-lockdown phase into lockdown phase-I and were found to steadily rise back with increasing relaxations in the lockdown. Irreversible emission reductions through sustainable process changes and long-term objectives is crucial for achieving good air quality levels. However, as the impact of various anthropogenic activities is now being quantified, actions that can be integrated in business as usual scenarios need to be identified, with emphasis on reduction of emissions at source including dust control, vehicular emissions, industrial operations, etc. The Way Forward It is critical to determine not only what type of pollutants are driving health impacts, but also to learn what level of these pollutants our bodies can tolerate. That will help us understand our susceptibility to COVID and other diseases. Ultimately, the goal is to find some type of mechanism that can block the impact of air pollution at the cellular level, so that when we're hit with things like COVID-19, hopefully, we're less susceptible to the severe complications of it. In managing health risks, emission reduction should be coupled with a stronger public health system. Right now, government spending on health is just 1.6% of GDP, low for a lower middle-income country. Most countries, including India, fail the test of readiness for health disasters, according to the 2019 Global Health Security Index. Governments would be hard-pressed to impose measures designed for an international pandemic to address environmental issues like air pollution. It is also not pragmatic to impose a blanket lockdown to address air pollution. Policy decisions will have to balance socio-economic considerations with health imperatives. Inter-generational equity should be the thrust of such efforts. The government can consider promoting innovation in the private sector in matters pertaining to the environment. Individual sectors can be made custodians of regions to curb pollution. For instance, green indices of companies can be made a factor in their market valuation. Similarly, instead of adding fuel/carbon tax at the time of issuing flight tickets, the same could be added to the yearly tax returns to make a person aware of his/her carbon footprint. Some of these measures can be scaled globally within a short time. Connecting the Dots: Why air pollution is being linked to severe cases of COVID-19? Explain. Why have governments not been able to enforce such environmental measures proactively? Why is the current situation a by-product of managing a pandemic?

TLP Mains 2020

SYNOPSIS [16th OCTOBER,2020] Day 5: IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2): UPSC Mains Answer Writing (General Studies)

For Previous TLP (ARCHIVES) - CLICK HERE SYNOPSIS [16th OCTOBER,2020] Day 5: IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2): UPSC Mains Answer Writing (General Studies)   1. The essence of ethics of an action lies in its consequences. Critically comment. Approach: As the directive is critically comment, it is expected from candidate to put forth both sides views while answering the question. The basics of this question lies in the Utilitarian and Deontological school of though.  Students need to explain what is essence of ethics and then analyse whether one should think about the consequences of an action or the means of  an action. Introduction: At the heart of ethics is a concern about something or someone other than ourselves, our own desires and self-interest. Ethics is concerned with other people's interests, with the interests of society, with the 'ultimate good'. However, essence of ethics is correlated with its means and consequences. It clearly means Ethics changes as per the means or  consequences of the action. Body: Essence of ethics in consequences:  The consequences are defined by various theories, one is utilitarianism, another theory is Deontological school of thought. Utilitarian School of thought – According to this approach result is more important than the action. Benefits should be maximized. So even if you take an unethical step but if the net result is positive, the action will be seen as good.  For example, killing your neighbour who you were finding dangerous is an unethical action. But if that person turned out to be a foreign spy, living under disguise, the net result will be good. According to utilitarian theory your action will be justified. The consequences are the effects caused by an action and the quality of these consequences depend on how much good they contain. Motives are the causes and the consequences are the effect. There are varied factors in human behaviour that determine whether it is good or bad. There are three such determinants of ethics, namely the object, the end, and the circumstances.  A very simple example of ethics can be cited from Ramayana, where Lord Ram (the good force) in the end kills Ravana (the bad force). As per normality it can be considered that Killing of other person is a sin, however when it comes to fight between the good and bad, it is justified on the ground of welfare all.  However, sometimes not the consequences but the means are important as per deontological school of thought.  Essence of ethics in means: Deontological school of thought – According to this ideology, means are more important than the result. This is generally the philosophy of most of the organized religions. For example, according to Mahatma Gandhi, wrong means can never lead to a right end. Bhagwad-Geeta justify that your duty is important rather than the consequences. Conclusion: Here, we have observed that essence of ethics is based on both i.e. sometimes it is dependent upon means and sometimes it is dependent upon consequences. Hence, it becomes situational to define whether essence of ethics lies in its means or in its consequence.  2. What do you understand by professional code of conduct? Is it always good to act as per one’s professional code even if it contradicts the conscience of a person? Examine.  Approach: It expects students to write about professional code of conduct in the first part and write about situations in which conscience contradicts with one’s professional code with appropriate example.  Introduction: A code of conduct represents the set of enforceable rules that should be followed by a person in an organisation. Codes, along with other measures, have helped some companies dig themselves out of scandals, and have helped many companies build a healthier work climate and reputation. Body: Professional code of conduct:  Ethical principles underpin all professional codes of conduct. Ethical principles may differ depending on the profession; for example, professional ethics that relate to medical practitioners will differ from those that relate to lawyers or real estate agents. However, there are some universal ethical principles that apply across all professions, including honesty, trustworthiness, loyalty, respect for others, adherence to the law, doing good and avoiding harm to others and accountability. Professional codes of conduct draw on these professional ethical principles as the basis for prescribing required standards of behaviour for members of a profession. They also seek to set out the expectations that the profession and society have of its members. The intention of codes of conduct is to provide guidelines for the minimum standard of appropriate behaviour in a professional context. Codes of conduct sit alongside the general law of the land and the personal values of members of the profession. Contradiction between professional code of conduct and conscience:  Soldiers on the border have to follow orders from their command even if it doesn’t suit their conscience. As it is necessary to avoid larger issues of breakdown in organisation’s functionality.  Conscience is the part of your mind that tells you whether what you are doing is morally right or wrong. It is based on personal set of values which may differ person to person. However, code of conduct is devised for the larger institutional objectives for optimal functioning.  It is often necessary to follow professional code of conduct to avoid questions about legality of action. To fulfil needs and demands of the profession.  However, sometimes following professional code might create crisis of conscience. Crisis of conscience is time when someone is worrying because they think that they have done something unfair or morally wrong. It may demoralise the individual and lowers her spirit.  E.g. if economically distressed patient need admission in private hospital but she doesn’t have required money to deposit before admission in emergency situation, following code of conduct may result into refusal to the patient while following conscience by management or doctor might save life of patient, which is larger objective of health services organisation.  Conclusion: Conscience is beyond law; it focuses on following spirit of law rather than sticking to letters of law. Even in the civil services, experience over a period of time suggests there is need of code of ethics along with the code of conduct to realise mission to serve people. 3. Is it possible to differentiate between ethics in private and public life? Critically examine. Approach: It expects student to write about - in first part, how ethical standard are found to be different while in second part, mention how ethical standards that should be similar in both private and public life. Introduction: Each private and personal relationship has its own irreplaceable value. Each of it has its own unique history, character, and set of implicit and explicit understandings about what is to be expected of the parties to it. Individuals should be ethical in both private and public relationships. In doing so, they should also try to achieve a right balance between private and public ethics. Body: Ethical standards are found to be different for private and public life: Choosing private interests: When it comes to private interests, individuals tend to act with personal motive and are ignorant of its effects on the public as a whole. Openness and transparency: Private lives are influenced by closed choices, secretive decisions and emphasize privacy whereas public lives delve on openness and transparency and hence render more accountability to one another. In private life, ambitions and goals, constraints and difficulties, of an individual sometimes result in a compromise of values. Freedom of choice enables the individual to make quick choices suited for them, sometimes even foregoing ethical values, just to achieve the end result in a faster pace. Public relationships are more instrumental such as organizational colleagues, politicians, strangers, and others outside of one’s relatively narrow circle of intimacy. It is the action of getting along with people we constantly come in touch with whereas private life is almost completely based on what the individual thinks is right. Example: Keshub Chandra Sen opposed child marriage but married his own underage daughter to Maharaja of Cooch Bihar. Consequently, his followers abandoned him and founded Sadharan Brahmo Samaj (1878). Thus, if there is inconsistency in the public life and private life of a person, it leads to disastrous outcomes. However, some ethical standards that should be similar in both public and private life: In both public and private life, an individual should have a sense of moral obligation in the interest of overall welfare of everyone around, and not resort to extreme actions which destroy the harmonious fabric. Virtues of compassion, cordialness, basic civic sense etc. are important in any sphere of life, and help one’s wholesome growth as both a private individual and a peer in general. In both private and public spheres of life one should have highest sense of integrity and not be influenced by any outside individual or organization which might affect their performance. Both have to have utmost honesty and sincerity in their actions and both have to take steps to resolve any conflicts arising in a way that affects their respective private and public lives. Example: Following fundamental duties by an individual like respecting national flag, not destroying public property, protect environment, wildlife etc. should be done irrespective of private or public space. Conclusion: Some ethical values should be followed in both spheres of an individual irrespective of the consequences, and some are based on their matter of influence over the individual’s life. Nevertheless, any action by an individual must be logical and work on self-betterment and contribute to the larger welfare of the public life he/she is involved in. 4. How ethical do you find the behaviour of journalists nowadays? Hasn’t journalism lost its high moral ground? Comment in the context of corporate control of media houses and the trend of intrusive media trials. Approach: It expects student to write about - In first part write few points about importance of media ethics - In second part write about how ethical journalism lost its ground nowadays due to corporate control and media trial - while in third part mention few points about how there are some journalist still work with high ethical standards. Introduction: The Journalism which provide accurate information from the source to the audience without any influence of political party, organisation is known as ethical Journalism. Ethical journalists must seek out and report on the truth, no matter how difficult or unpleasant it might be. They must ensure the information they provide is accurate, whether that means cross-checking eyewitness accounts, doing independent research, or verifying a source's credibility. At the same time, they must balance the objective reporting they strive for with the impact that reporting might have on the story's subjects or elsewhere.  Body: Journalism in developing countries like India has immense importance as: It acts as a watchdog of public interest in a democracy. It plays an important role in a democracy and serves as an agency of the people to inform them of the events of national and international significance. It is the means by which people receive a free flow of information and ideas, which is essential to intelligent self-governance, that is, democracy. Freedom of the media is part of the freedom of speech guaranteed by the Constitution under Article 19 (1) (a). One of the basic tasks of the media is to provide truthful and objective information to the people for their social, political and international awareness to reach an informed opinion. This makes media an important stakeholder in a democracy to shoulder the responsibility of presenting unbiased honest news without any vested interest. Media is considered as “Fourth Pillar” in democratic countries along with Legislature, Executive, and Judiciary. Its importance in influencing readers can be gauged by the role it played during the freedom struggle, politically educating millions of Indians who joined the leaders in their fight against the British imperialism. The role of media in Indian democracy has undergone massive changes, from the days of press censorship during Emergency in 1975 to being influential in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Due to corporate control of media and profit making attitude now days it observed that media acts less ethically & immorally on many instances:  The issues of paid news, media trial, non-issues being presented as real news while the real issues are side lined, the news is being doctored and fact distortion for profits and political favour, fake news, yellow journalism are important concerns which are influencing public and impacting national security. For instance, fear mongering through media has led to mob lynching’s, attacks on the migrant population. The absence of objective journalism leads to the false presentation of truth in a society which affects the perception and opinions of people. As observed in the case of Cambridge analytica case, the biased news coverage on social media platform affected the Presidential elections in the U.S. The chase for sensationalism and higher TRP rates as observed in the coverage of 26/11 terrorist attacks in India risked the internal security of the nation. The sensationalism-driven reporting compromised the identities of rape victims and survivors despite SC guidelines. Trial by media does not follow the due process of law and can reduce the public trust in institutions of governance like the judiciary. Paid news and fake news can manipulate public perception and can instigate hatred, violence, and disharmony among the various community within society. With the advent of social media, technological changes, the reach of media has grown profoundly. Its reach and role in impacting public opinion have made it even more important to ensure its objectivity, non-partisanship calls for the enforcement of journalistic ethics. However, earlier major chunk of journalist works from urban area but with rise of social media and increased penetration of internet there are many independent journalists who are working from rural and semi-urban area. These journalist work without any corporate support and on non-profit basis independently, while sticking to ethical principles of journalism. Conclusion: In developing countries like India, the journalist has a great responsibility to fight backward ideas such as casteism and communalism and help the people in their struggle against poverty and other social evils. Hence, having journalistic ethics in place becomes very important. It is important that the media stick to the core principles like truth and accuracy, transparency, independence, fairness and impartiality, responsibility and fair play. 5. Ethics and equity and the principles of justice do not change with the calendar. Comment. Approach: As  Comment is the directive it is expected to  expresses an opinion or reaction. Hence, a candidate needs to pick out the core points regarding ethics, equity and principles of justice and explain whether they are consistent with time. While answering this question it is expected that a candidate should interconnect between ethics-equity and the principles of justice and write accordingly.  Introduction: In general terms, Ethics are the collection of basic principles which guides human actions and its behaviour. In the context of ethics, equity is the quality of being fair or impartial and social justice amounts to Each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive total system of equal basic liberties compatible with a similar system of liberty for all. Body: Ethics is the study of what is right or wrong in human conduct. This is a branch of Philosophy which studies moral principles. Hence, Ethics is also known as Moral Philosophy. Ethics is all about reasoning about how one should act in a given circumstance – i.e. how to do the right action. They do not change with calendar in the following ways:  Ethics doesn't change with calendar due to its determinants. Determinants are the sources from which the ethical standard arises.  There are multiple determinants of ethics like Religion, Law, Society, Individual, Knowledge, Time. As these determinants of ethics are eternal and mostly have a continuous existence in society, ethics  Many of the practises of religion are continuously  followed by the people all over the world. Which keeps Ethics alive in society. For instance, ideology of "Ahimsa Paramo Dharm" tends to support a more humane society. It is still followed in some religions.   Equity in terms of Equity refers to bridging inequality in society through positive or negative means as a means of ensuring fairness.  For instance, Social reforms suggested by saints, during the medieval period continued to inspire generations of social reformers during the times of independence and it is continued even today in terms of granting reservation for the backward sections of society.  Principles of social justice emphasise on ensuring a fair and just relation between individual and society. Indian society is highly stratified in nature with high socio-economic inequalities like class/caste conflict, gender biases, etc. For instance, Principles of Justice social-economical-political as enshrined in the preamble of our constitution have their source of inspiration in French revolution and its continuation can be observed when our  government presented an IT amendment under which if person voluntary disclose his black money, more than half of its income will be send into pradhan matri garib kalyan vikas yojna which will used for poor & rural development programmes.  However, due to changing and nature of society sometimes Ethics and equity and principles of social justice sometimes undergo modification: For instance, Earlier in India, Sati was considered as sacred, moral and ethical for widowed woman, however, over the period of time it underwent change due to its inhuman nature.  Also, principles of social justice seems to be harmed when atrocities on marginalised and backward sections of society takes place. For instance, Hathras tragedy, Khairlanji incidence. Equity also seems to harmed when many of the people from vulnerable, marginalised and backward sections of society doesn't gets their natural rights. For instance, Rohingya migrants issue, Refugees in European countries.  Conclusion: Hence, we can say that  Ethics and equity and the principles of justice do not change with the calendar. However, their nature sometimes changes due to diversity in society and varied nature of societal changes. But it can be surely said that they do not change with calendar as their core values remain constant.    TLP HOT Synopsis Day 5 PDF

MindMaps

MIND-MAPS: GEOGRAPHY BASICS (PLATE TECTONICS) - General Studies - 1

MIND-MAPS: GEOGRAPHY BASICS (PLATE TECTONICS) - General Studies - 1 For Previous Important Topics (Mind Maps) - ARCHIVES Hello Friends, Recently we have come up with a NEW INITIATIVE - BRAINSTORMING THROUGH MIND-MAPS! Mind-map is an incredible powerful thinking tool, an innate human language that will have immense benefit in your preparation. The main idea is to brainstorm different aspects of an issue - think in multi-dimensions; what we call 360 degrees of an issue. The whole of this exercise will unleash your creativity to push your brain cells to recall the data learnt and to make it more relevant for your preparation. It will help you to make your Revision and Retention a far better apart from giving you more Clarity in the topics/issue at hand and improve your Concentration. You can see the drastic impact mind-maps will have in a few weeks, provided you are regular with this exercise. So here we are with Today’s TOPIC! GEOGRAPHY BASICS (PLATE TECTONICS) - General Studies - 1 NOTE – Instructions to download Mind Maps/Images Right Click on the image and ‘Open image in new tab’ Remove/Delete the resolution part from the URL. Eg. “-1536x757” and Press Enter/Load Again Right Click and Save Image As/Download (You’ll get the maximum resolution) PLATE TECTONICS YOUR PARTICIPATION? – VERY IMPORTANT Unlike what we were doing before, in this initiative we want students to learn and brainstorm through mind-maps (It is not necessary that you use a software/tool to design mind maps. You can prepare mindmaps using a pen and a sheet of paper). We will share the final printable mind map twice a week. We will also provide specific inputs on your mind maps to improve your skill of mind mapping.  To Know More about the initiative, Benefits and How to use a mind-map ->CLICK HERE Together we can, we will. The strength of the community is more powerful than individual effort. We have started it. You have to strengthen it” You can Start sharing Your Mind-maps (get feedback from IASbaba) & Topics of your interest in the comment section below!!   Thank You IASbaba

Important Articles

POLITICAL SCIENCE & INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS (PSIR) MAINS OPTIONAL TEST SERIES & MENTORSHIP-UPSC MAINS 2020!

Hello Everyone, We are excited to enter into post-Prelims phase IASbaba's Political Science & International Relations Test Series & Mentoring Program for UPSC Mains 2020.  As you all know, our previously covered Weekly Tests & Assignments have made understanding of the subject very comprehensive & a fun learning process. If you have rigorously followed those Assignments & Weekly Tests, then rest assured that you are in possession of conceptual clarity needed to meet the demand of the paper.  Now in this post prelims phase we expect you to have two-pronged strategies of: 1) Making Micro Notes &  2) Writing Tests.  Practicing a paper within a stipulated time with questions on UPSC pattern remains very crucial. Exactly for the same reason, we will write full-length tests only.  If you are a new entrant to the program, then you may go through Assignments & Weekly Tests quickly and have a discussion with your mentor.  There will be 2 mentors who will be handling the PSIR Test Series in this phase. Both of them are serving civil Servants. Mr. MADHAV WANAVE is a serving Civil Servant and has scored 301 marks in PSIR. He has been teaching and mentoring students for the last 4 years. Mr. AAMIR KHAN currently working with govt of Rajasthan, one of the topper in political science (Had scored 269 in 2014 Mains. Please note, Mains 2014 the highest score was 294 of PSIR Optional). He has vast experience of mentoring political science students which eventually got one of the highest marks in the subject. Ankit Pannu (Rank 31 UPSC 2017), Jitendra Yadav (308 Marks, one of the highest) were mentored by Aamir Sir. To Download the MOCK TEST Timelines ->  CLICK HERE 1st Mock starting on 25th October Please Note that, those who had joined the program in November 2019, no need to enroll again! If any new student wants to join the test series (8 Full-length Mock Tests) can get enrolled by paying the fees mentioned below. FEES DETAILS: Total Fees: Rs.4,500 +  18% GST = 5310 Rs /- PAYMENT  -> CLICK HERE FOR ANY QUERIES  You can reach us on Email id: psir@iasbaba.com Contact: Madhav Sir - 9810787523  (Between 6pm - 8pm) Aamir Sir - 8078671780  (Between 6pm - 8pm) Office Address: BANGALORE CENTRE: IASbaba’s TLP Centre 2– No. 1443/1444, 2nd Floor, Above Carzspa, Ganapati Circle, Chandra Layout, Vijaynagar, Bangalore 560040. Delhi CENTRE: 5B, Pusa Rd, opposite to Metro Pillar Number 110, Block B, Karol Bagh, New Delhi, Delhi 110005.   Thank You IASbaba

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