Dec 1, 2020 TLP Mains 2020

IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2 - ENGLISH & हिंदी): UPSC Mains Answer Writing - General Studies Paper 2 Questions[1st DECEMBER,2020] - Day 44

For Previous TLP (ARCHIVES) - CLICK HERE Hello Friends, Welcome to IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2 - ENGLISH & हिंदी): UPSC Mains Answer Writing - General Studies Paper 2 Questions[1st DECEMBER,2020] - Day 44   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 are the key features of the New Education Policy (NEP)? What are your thoughts on NEP? Discuss.  नई शिक्षा नीति (एनईपी) की प्रमुख विशेषताएं क्या हैं? NEP पर आपके क्या विचार हैं? चर्चा करें। 2. What are the factors contributing to India’s below par performance on addressing hunger and malnutrition despite having adequate food stocks? Examine.   पर्याप्त खाद्य स्टॉक होने के बावजूद भूख और कुपोषण को दूर करने में भारत के असंतोषजनक प्रदर्शन में योगदान देने वाले कारक क्या हैं? जांच करें। 3. Examine the factors that ail the primary healthcare system in India. Why is there a wide variance in the performance of states? Analyse.  भारत में प्राथमिक स्वास्थ्य प्रणाली को नकारात्मक रूप से प्रभावित करने वाले कारकों की जाँच करें। विभिन्न राज्यों के प्रदर्शन में व्यापक अंतर क्यों है? विश्लेषण करें। 4. India suffers from the twin challenges of unemployment and skill gap. Do you agree? Examine the recent initiatives taken by the government to address those.  भारत बेरोजगारी और कौशल अंतर की दोहरी चुनौतियों से ग्रस्त है। क्या आप सहमत हैं? उनको संबोधित करने के लिए सरकार द्वारा की गई हालिया पहलों की जाँच करें। 5. India’s social security infrastructure has created some wonderful frameworks. Do you agree? Substantiate your views.  भारत के सामाजिक सुरक्षा ढांचे ने कुछ अद्भुत तंत्र बनाए हैं। क्या आप सहमत हैं? अपने विचारों की पुष्टि 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 :)

Dec 1, 2020 TLP Mains 2020

SYNOPSIS [27th NOVEMBER,2020] Day 41: IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2): UPSC Mains Answer Writing (General Studies)

For Previous TLP (ARCHIVES) - CLICK HERE SYNOPSIS [27th NOVEMBER,2020] Day 41: IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2): UPSC Mains Answer Writing (General Studies)   1. What do you understand by self-awareness? Why is it important? Discuss. Approach: In the introduction you can start by explaining what is self awareness. In the first half of main body part it is expected here to explain in detail about self awareness. In the next half of main body part it is expected to give significance of self-awareness. Student can explain the significance from two perspectives i.e. from individual perspective and a civil servants perspective.  To enrich your answer it is necessary to give examples.  Introduction:  In philosophy of self, self-awareness is the experience of one's own personality or individuality. Self-awareness is how an individual consciously knows and understands their own character, feelings, motives, and desires. It is the prime element of emotional intelligence.  Body: Self Awareness:  It is the skill of being aware of and understanding one's emotions as they occur and as they evolve.  For instance, if a person gets angry easily and realises it that she is angry, then she can try to get control on it. Here, self awareness helped her to control the anger.  A person with self-awareness possess high emotional intelligence which is a prerequisite for success. For instance, as David Goleman defines self-awareness as "knowing one's internal states, preference, resources, and intuitions". Which helps a person to make right choices and take wise decisions.  Importance of Self Awareness:  Controls actions of oneself: Self-awareness helps in taking effective decisions with awareness about good and bad for oneself. For instance, Though watching movies is relaxing, marathon watching is harmful. A self-aware person knows when to stop. Regulating own emotions: Self-aware people tend to act consciously. When one is aware of the emotions which make him/her weak , he/she can control the same and act consciously. For instance,  a civil servant/ a celebrity not losing temper on provoking questions by media. Helps in SWOT analysis: Self-awareness helps an individual in picking up the tasks analyzing one's capacity to deliver. For instance,  a child picking up his talent such as Sachin Tendulkar knew cricket was his strength rather than studies. Anticipation of situations and influence: A higher level of self-awareness enables us to better predict how certain future situations will influence our state of mind. For instance, if one is aware that flattery excites him/her, actions out of excitement can be controlled beforehand. Better deal with the external factors which can’t be controlled: Self-awareness helps one to embrace the reality and helps in maintaining optimism and keep away negative influences. For instance, a person struck in heavy traffic on which he/she can do nothing about it be at least stay calm instead of being agitated or frustrated which might ruin his/her day. Better understanding the emotions of people around: It helps us in grasping the emotions of the persons we know. This also have positive influence on people around us. Thus, the situations are better handled. For instance, anticipating the reaction of public after the repeal of Article 370 and taking appropriate measures.  Self awareness built the capacity to learn from one's own mistakes. It enables a person to keep  growing.   Conclusion: In our day to day life being self aware benefits us the most in one way or other. A self aware person can do a particular work much better than the person who is not self aware. In the same way, Self-awareness is advantageous for a civil servant to handle media, handle petition-givers, protestors, elected representatives and so on and hence it forms an essential component of emotional intelligence. 2. The ability to manage emotions help attain specific goals. Do you agree? Substantiate. Approach - It expects students to write about emotions and how it help in attaining specific goal with different examples. Introduction The ability to realise, readily accept, as well as successfully control feelings in oneself and sometimes others is known as the emotion management skill. Very simply, emotion management skills refer to the ability to master your own emotions. It is not always virtuous and can be used as a tool for positive and negative goals. Body Ability in managing emotions helps in attaining specific goals as can be seen from the points given below: Conflict resolution: Emotional Management skill help people to influence and mentor others and help in resolving conflict effectively. Thus it helps in attaining goal. Motivation: Emotionally managed person work consistently toward their goals, and establish extremely high standards for the quality of their work. This drive and motivate other teammates to achieve these standards and goals. For example, when an employee’s cannot do his well in his work, the leader cannot angry with the employees; in contrast the leader should motivate or encourage his worker to make their work more efficiency. Targeting Policies better: Bureaucrats need to know emotions, moods and drives of persons at whom public policy is targeted for better acquaintance with the nature of problems in society and their possible solutions. For example Work of former IAS officer Shri O P Chaudhary in establishing an Education City in Dantewada district, Chhattisgarh was made possible only by winning the confidence of the tribals. Decision making: Emotional management skill helps in recognising such emotions that are unrelated to any specific problem and not allowing them to be influential to the final result. Managing family and work life: A civil servant with balanced family and work life can contribute more to the system due to a relaxed state of mind owing to Emotional management can help achieve specific goals in administration. Repose trust in the system: Listening attentively to the problems of people, empathising with their situation and bringing positive change in the work attitude of bureaucracy, it can help in making the system more trustworthy in the eyes of citizens and achieve citizen centric goals. For example giving priority to women, senior citizens, differently-abled in any welfare scheme thereby ensuring administrative justice and good governance. Peer relationships: Good networking skills are a staple of job effectiveness for the average worker. Networking has too often been associated with “using” other people, but well managed emotional skill help drive specific goals. For example ISRO is known not only for its technical competence but also as an organisation which is outcome oriented, change oriented and seen as pride of the nation. It is also known for ensuring friendly work environment for female employees during pregnancy. Negotiation: Whether you’re dealing with a trading partner, competitor, customer or colleague, being able to empathise and be creative in finding win-win solutions will consistently pay off in attaining goals. For example, when people are allowed to speak, and others listen, without constant interruptions, it’s a good sign. It shows a mutual respect between parties and is more likely to lead to a constructive conclusion in meetings. Self-confidence and control: This relates to complete affirmation of one’s worth and abilities. They are usually more confident and are able to make sound decisions despite any uncertainties or pressures. Realistic Goal setting: Self-awareness ability allow a person to not only know strengths and weaknesses, but also strength and weaknesses of his team members. This help a leader in setting realistic achievable goals and in managing team through using strengths. This also help in delegation of work based on strengths of team. Emotional management enable a person to work teammate’s weaknesses while using strengths optimally toward achieving a goal. Using both logic and emotion: If you only use one or the other, your decisions may either not be very balanced, or not support your emotional needs. Instead, you need to combine your emotional response with more rational consideration to attain specific goals in life. For example IPS Ms. Kiran Bedi as Inspector General of Tihar jail worked to reform the prison into a model jail where prisoners learn new life skills and later merge with the mainstream. Conclusion Poor emotional management can destroy a person’s personal and professional life. A person who doesn’t possess a well-kept check on his or her emotions is seldom well-liked or respected. We cannot respect those who cannot control themselves emotionally in life or in profession. If we have poor emotional management skills our egos and pride trump our intelligence and knowledge every time. How we manage ourselves emotionally is of even greater importance in the professional world than our skill or talent. 3. How does lack of emotional intelligence affect one’s ability to perform his/her duties? Illustrate.  Approach:  It expects students to write about emotions intelligence and how emotional intelligence affect one’s ability to perform duties with different examples. Introduction Emotional intelligence or EI is the ability to understand and manage your own emotions, and those of the people around you. Emotional intelligence is the ability to perceive emotions, to access and generate emotions so as to assist thought, to understand emotions and emotional knowledge, and to reflectively regulate emotions so as to promote emotional and intellectual growth. Body Lack of emotional intelligence affecting one’s ability to perform duties: Low motivation: The ability to self-motivate, with a focus on achieving internal or self-gratification as opposed to external praise or reward. Individuals who are able to motivate themselves in this way have a tendency to be more committed to perform duties and goal focused. Lack of Self-regulation: The ability to manage one’s negative or disruptive emotions, and to adapt to changes in circumstance affect performance. Those who are skilled in self-regulation excel in managing conflict, adapt well to change and are more likely to take responsibility. Lack of peer relationship: People with lack of emotional intelligence often make the mistake of only recognising and exercising their own emotional strengths. As a result, they fail to truly connect with their environment and the people around them and it always backfires in performing duties. Making assumptions quickly and defend them vehemently: People who lack EQ form an opinion quickly and then succumb to confirmation bias, meaning they gather evidence that supports their opinion and ignore any evidence to the contrary. For example this is especially dangerous for leaders, as their under thought out ideas become the entire team’s strategy. Lack of Empathy: The ability to recognise and understand how others are feeling and consider those feelings before responding in social situations. Empathy also allows an individual to understand the dynamics that influence relationships, both personal and in the workplace. With lack of empathy it spoils the work culture and affect performing duties. For example nurse’s love for babies, soldier’s love for country are essential in proper functioning of their duties. High stress: To stay focused, stress should be managed and it involves own reactions to stress or the reactions of others to the stress. For example High stress level affect our lifestyle, our working pattern and mental health problems. A civil servant with balanced family and work life can contribute more to the system due to a relaxed state of mind owing to EI. Lack of Social skills: Lack of social skill affect the ability to manage the emotions of others through emotional understanding and using this to build rapport and connect with people through skills such as active listening, verbal and nonverbal communication. Thus to perform duties emotional intelligence is required for social skill. For example Gandhi inspired people, rallied them up for freedom struggle, because he knew what people think, how they react, how to handle diversity, what is the endurance level of people in any civic-movement. Often feel misunderstood: When you lack emotional intelligence, it’s hard to understand how you come across to others. You feel misunderstood because you don’t deliver your message in a way that people can understand this snap relationship with people and teamwork which is essential for performing duties. Lack of Better Communication: An Emotionally Intelligent civil servant will be able to communicate and target policies better. Also, the person will be able to foster a healthy relationship with subordinates with lack of better communication he/she cannot build team to attain the goals and perform duties. Inaccurate self-assessment: Self assessment involves being aware of one’s strengths and weaknesses. One is open to feedbacks, new viewpoints low and lack of self assessment can affect achieving goals in life and narrow down our ability to perform. Migrant labour crisis due to pandemic exposed the inadequate emotional intelligence of the Indian bureaucracy towards performing the duties and welfare of the migrant labourers. Recent farmer protest and rallies obstructed by government on state borders highlights the inadequate communication and emotions with farmer this affects the trust towards system and working of bureaucracy. Conclusion The value and benefits of emotional intelligence are vast in terms of personal and professional success. It is a core competency in many vocations, can support the advancement towards academic and professional success, improve relationships, and boost communication skills, the list goes on. 4. Leadership is all about emotional intelligence. Management is taught, while leadership is experienced. Comment. Approach: It is straightforward question where it expects students to write about - in first part write about importance of emotional intelligence in leadership - while in second part write how management is taught, while leadership is experienced. Introduction: Emotional Intelligence is the ability to “Recognize, understand and manage our own emotions Recognize, understand and influence the emotions of others In practical terms, this means being aware that emotions can drive our behaviour and impact people (positively and negatively), and learning how to manage those emotions — both our own and others — especially when we are under pressure.” Body: Leadership is all about emotional intelligence: Emotional Intelligence help leaders to influence and mentor others and help in resolving conflict effectively. Emotionally Intelligent leaders work consistently toward their goals, and establish extremely high standards for the quality of their work. This drive and motivate other teammates to achieve these standards and goals. Emotionally intelligent leaders are great communicators. They know what to say and when to say. An effective communication in a team help them to develop better strategies and increase their efficiency by synchronising their efforts. Leaders should be able to adapt to changing circumstances in their workplaces. E.g if a teammate leaves, an emotionally intelligent leader will try to find a suitable replacement and know how to keep his team motivated. Ability to understand and manage their emotions and of those around them help emotionally intelligent leaders to navigate through difficult circumstances. Emotionally Intelligent leader focus on collaboration between team members, which creates synergy and a better experience for employees. They support others and always celebrate the successes of their employees and encourage them to learn more and develop their skills. This lead to confidence building and better team performance. Emotionally Intelligent leaders make objective decisions based on accumulated wisdom and understanding with time. A leader who manages his or her emotions will take quick and strong decisions without emotions being involved after proper cost-benefit analysis. Emotional Intelligence help leaders to bounce back quickly after a setback. It helps them to manage their and their teammates’ emotions motivating them to the next goal. Management is taught, while leadership is experienced: Management is more of bookish knowledge, it can be taught in school, colleges, academy. - e.g.: In training in NPA Hyderabad they can taught management but not leadership. Management only teaches how to effectively manage people as head, but apart from managing a leader needs trust of its employees and play to them with their strengths, which can be learn only from experience. Leadership needs management of emotions which is a long term achievement. Leadership is all about practice experiences which can be experienced only after long term observance. This experience includes becoming sound listener, having empathy towards people suffering, understanding one's sorrow, quick decision making depending on situation. Conclusion: Emotional intelligence in the leadership is critical for team’s effectiveness. It plays an important role in driving team and organisation together towards a goal and help in conflict resolution. It enables a leader to be more empathetic, professional, understanding and goal oriented. 5. What are the main components of emotional intelligence? Explain with the help of suitable examples. Approach: It is straightforward question where it expects students to write about different components of emotional intelligence and substantiate them with examples. Introduction: Emotional intelligence (EI) is the capability of individuals to recognize their own emotions and those of others, discern between different feelings and label them appropriately, use emotional information to guide thinking and behavior, and manage and/or adjust emotions to adapt to environments or achieve one's goal Body: Components of emotional intelligence: Self-Awareness: This is the ability to recognize and understand one’s moods, motivations, and abilities. Also understanding the effects, they have on others.  Goleman says to achieve a state of complete self-awareness, an individual must be able to monitor their emotional state and identify their emotions. Traits that prove an individual as emotionally mature include: confidence, the ability to laugh at one’s self and their mistakes, and the awareness of how you are perceived by others. Example: By reading the reaction of someone else, you know how you are perceived by them. Self-Regulation: This is the ability to control one’s impulses, the ability to think before you speak/react, and the ability to express yourself appropriately. Goleman defines emotional maturity in this component as being able to take responsibility for your actions, being able to adapt to change, and the ability to respond appropriately to other people’s irrational emotions or behaviour.  Example: If someone is screaming at you, you know that they are not always angry at you. You have the ability to understand they may be angry at a particular situation and feel they need to take it out on someone. You do not take this personally or react angry back. Motivation: This is having an interest in learning and self-improvement. It is having the strength to keep going when there are obstacles in life. It is setting goals and following through with them. Goleman would define an emotional mature individual in this category to have traits such as having initiative and the commitment to complete a task, and having perseverance in the face of adversity. Example: One who chooses internal motivation driven goals instead of exterior motivation driven goals. Internal motivation driven goals are things such as earning a college degree or becoming a healthier person; things that show self-improvement. Exterior motivation driven goals are things that flaunt wealth or status. This is setting goals such as having the next newest and nicest car.  Example: If a student fails a class, they see this as an opportunity to learn and retake the class without self-doubt. They do not let failure get in the way of their goal. Empathy: This is the ability to understand other people’s emotions and reactions. Empathy can only be achieved if self-awareness is achieved. Goleman believes that one must be able to understand themselves before they can understand others. Emotional maturity in this category includes people having traits such as perception of others, being interested in other peoples worries and concerns, the ability to anticipate someone’s emotional response to a problem or situation, and the understanding of societies norms and why people act the way they do.  Example: Being able to understand cope with someone else’s hardships or sadness. When you fully understand yourself and why you feel the things you feel, you can understand other peoples even if they are different than you.  Social Skills: This is the ability to pick up on jokes, sarcasm, customer service, maintaining friendships and relationships, and finding common ground with others. Goleman states that emotional maturity in this component defines someone who has good communication skills, good time management, the ability to be a leader or manage a group of people, and the ability to resolve difficult situations or conflicts using negotiation or persuasion.  Example: Someone in a "boss" position usually has a good grasp on handling all different types of personalities. If two of their employees are having a conflict, they can find common ground and resolve the issue in a civilized and fair manner. Conclusion: When it comes to happiness and success in life and work, emotional intelligence matters just as much as intellectual ability. Emotional intelligence helps people build stronger relationships, succeed at work, and achieve their career and personal goals, which makes it different from other aspects. TLP HOT Synopsis Day 41 PDF

Nov 30, 2020 TLP Mains 2020

SYNOPSIS [26th NOVEMBER,2020] Day 40: IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2): UPSC Mains Answer Writing (General Studies)

For Previous TLP (ARCHIVES) - CLICK HERE   SYNOPSIS [26th NOVEMBER,2020] Day 40: IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2): UPSC Mains Answer Writing (General Studies)   1. What are the most critical impediments to scientific innovation and indigenisation in India? Examine.   Approach: As the directive here is examine, it is necessary to establish a cause effect relationship besides covering various angles of the topic. In the introduction you can talk about the culture of scientific innovation and indigenisation in India. In the first half of main body part you need to explain about the challenges to scientific innovation and indigenisation in India. In the next half you need to suggest solutions. Giving government initiatives to promote innovation and indigenisation culture will fetch you more marks.  Introduction: India has an impressive scientific heritage in terms of  innovation-in fields such as mathematics, astronomy, medicine and material science which has been carried out in the Indian sub-continent since ancient times. However, in today's time a remarkable gap exist between this scientific knowledge and the 'common' man and woman, until recently, few efforts have been made by the government  to bridge this gap. Body: Critical Impediments to Scientific innovation and indigenisation in India: Institutional problems: Our educational institutions are heavily exam oriented and thus lack in focusing on creativity, critical thinking, and open-mindedness. Which hampers the innovative and indigenisation spirit.  Poor university-industry linkage: This leads to limited application oriented R&D. For instance, as per 'Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) world ranking of institutes, 2019' only three Indian institutes were placed in the top 200 universities of the world. The curriculums are outdated and they lack  focus on skill development and employability potential. Administrative bottlenecks: Dominance of bureaucratic administrative structure in Indian research units and political interference in day to day activities of research institutions by government is in conflict with intellectual sum. Public access to science and scientists is limited.  No cordial  interaction between interaction of the scientific community with administrators and lawmakers for public engagement and societal support for science and the scientific activity. Funding Issues: India (Public and Private) spends only 0.82% of GDP on R&D, Private sector spends less than 0.2% of GDP on R&D, India attracts only 2.7% of global spending in R&D whereas China attracts 17.5%. Lack of curiosity-driven research and role of indigenous knowledge or "folk science" in a diverse bio and geo sphere has pushed India backwards. There is no proper networking between practitioners and experts from diverse field into a national platform and share the same with scientific community and students. Weak IPR regime of patents and trademarks reduces incentives for entrepreneurs to invest in innovation and research.  Reducing Fiscal Deficit: For instance, India is the second largest arms importer in the world (after Saudi Arabia). Higher import dependency leads to increase in the fiscal deficit. Despite having the fifth largest defence budget in the world, India procures 60% of its weapon systems from foreign markets. World Economic Forum survey says that only 17% of Indian respondents stated that the so-called "cultural support pillar" was available in the country. Thus it hinders people from taking up research and other activities which have uncertain outcomes. It has created a cultural affinity for stability and job security over risk-taking. Large country, Diverse issues: While literacy levels are increasing, scientific literacy is still drastically low. Given India’s large population, limited resources and multitude of languages, mass science education faces particularly great challenges. Without more attention on local languages, much of the population will miss out on science communication efforts.  India’s innovation policy has to shift beyond a mere focus on R&D spending to transforming the ecosystem. Our innovation policy has to shift beyond a focus on increasing R&D spending to inculcating a mindset of "out-of-the-box" thinking in our universities, start-ups and corporate. Steps needed to be taken up:  Elimination of rote learning: India’s educational policies need to be redesigned, with a focus on building cognitive abilities, beyond rote learning and focus on quantitative subjects. For instance, recent New Education Policy is a step in such a direction.  Need to use Data analytics boom: Need to focus on taking advantage of the data analytics boom, improving educational qualities beyond our existing islands of excellence to the whole university system Greater access to public data to build innovative applications: A supporting ecosystem for this will require providing greater access to public data, through the Right to Information Act and a push to providing public data (for example, on train punctuality, water scarcity, air pollution metrics) for building innovative applications on a real-time basis. The Economic Survey 2017-18 recommends doubling national expenditures on R&D with most of the increase coming from the private sector and universities. There is a need to encourage investor-led research. In this direction, the Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) has already been established. It is a promising start that needs to expand with more resources and creative governance structures. Impetus to various indigenous start-ups under Make in India. Stand-up India is the need of the hour.  As a supplement to these steps following government initiatives also need to be implemented in their letter and spirit to inculcate culture of scientific innovation and indigenisation. Atal Innovation Mission: It was launched by the NITI Ayog as an innovation promotion platform involving academics, entrepreneurs, and researchers utilizing national and international experience to promote the culture of innovation, R&D in India particularly in technology-oriented areas. India Innovation Growth programme (IIGP) 2.0: The programme provides funding, capacity building, mentoring, incubation and business development support to the innovators.  Defence Procurement Policy: Based on the recommendations of the Dhirendra Singh committee, Defence Procurement Procedure 2016 (replaced DPP 2013) added an additional category "Buy (Indian-IDDM)" i.e. Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured, as the most preferred way of defence goods acquisition. Conclusion: With globalisation, it is easier to notice the growing contrast between the designs for promoting innovation and indigenisation in the western world and in India.  Having a young population and a strong Diaspora that is more affluent than any other country, India has the potential pioneering high-tech innovation and indigenisation. If necessary steps are implemented in letter and spirit will definitely India to be a 'Vishwaguru' in modern technological developments and their indigenisation.   2. What do you understand by intelligent transportation system? What role can they play at a time of rising population and congestion? Illustrate. Approach - It expects students to write about intelligent transport system. And highlight on role of intelligent transportation system in the time of rising population and congestion with various examples and analysis. Introduction With the conception of smart city transmuting cities into digital societies, making the life of its citizens easy in every facet, Intelligent Transport System becomes the indispensable component among all. In any city mobility is a key concern be it going to school, college and office or for any other purpose citizens use transport system to travel within the city in the time of rising population and congestion.  Body Intelligent transportation system - An intelligent transportation system is an advanced application which aims to provide innovative services relating to different modes of transport and traffic management and enable users to be better informed and make safer, more coordinated, and 'smarter' use of transport networks. How Intelligent Transport System works? Traffic Management Centre (TMC) is the vital unit of ITS. It is mainly a technical system administered by the transportation authority. Here all data is collected and analysed for further operations and control management of the traffic in real time or information about local transportation vehicle. Well-organised and proficient operations of Traffic Management Centre depends on automatised data collection with precise location information than analysis of that data to generate accurate information and then transmitting it back to travellers. Role of the Intelligent transportation system at a time of rising population and congestion in transport - Data collection: Strategic planning needs precise, extensive and prompt data collection with real-time observation. So the data here is collected via varied hardware devices that lay the base of further ITS functions. These devices are Automatic Vehicle Identifiers, GPS based automatic vehicle locators, sensors, camera etc. The hardware mainly records the data like traffic count, surveillance, travel speed and travel time, location, vehicle weight, delays etc.  Data Transmission: Rapid and real-time information communication is the Key to proficiency in ITS implementation so this aspect of ITS consists of the transmission of collected data from the field to TMC and then sending back that analysed information from TMC to travellers. Traffic-related announcements congestion, accidents and any work of construction are communicated to the traveler through internet, SMS or onboard units of Vehicle and infra-red links. Data Analysis: The data that has been collected and received at TMC is processed further in various steps. These steps are error rectification, data cleaning, data synthesis, and adaptive logical analysis. Inconsistencies in data are identified with specialised software and rectified. After that data is further altered and pooled for analysis. This mended collective data is analysed further to predict traffic scenario which is available to deliver appropriate information to users. Traveler Information: Travel Advisory Systems (TAS) is used to inform transportation updates to the traveling user. The system delivers real-time information like travel time, travel speed, delay, accidents on roads, change in route, diversions, work zone conditions etc. This information is delivered by a wide range of electronic devices like variable message signs, highway advisory radio, internet, SMS, automated cell. Why Intelligent transport system is need in congestion areas and high populations areas: Improve attractiveness of public transport system. Tackling rising congestion which increases industry cost, travel time and life style problems. Low speed and increased accident can be tackled. Reduce environment impact of transport. For Capacity and security management. Incident management. Advantage of the Intelligent transport system: Make transportation more efficient, secure, safe, affordable and reduce traffic related stress in life. Travel time improvement Speed control and improvement. Reduction in stops and delays at intersections. Conclusion With urbanisation expanding with speedy stride, number of vehicles on road is also increasing. Combination of both in return puts enormous pressure on cities to maintain a better traffic system so that the city keeps on moving without any hassle. For the purpose application of Intelligent Transport System is the only solution. ITS a win-win situation for both citizens and city administrators where it provides safety and comfort to citizens and easy maintenance and surveillance to city administrators. 3. What are the current issues related to GM crops in India? What are your views on adoption of GM technologies? Substantiate. Approach: Students are expected to write about the current issues of GM crops in India in first part, substantiate the views on adoption of GM technologies in second part. Introduction: GM crops are those crops whose DNA has been modified by introducing alien genes in the seeds to get desired effects such as resistance to pest attacks. Genes from any living organism, be it plants, or animals, is used to arrive at the desired traits. GM technology is often called “modern biotechnology” or “genetic engineering”. It allows selected individual genes to be transferred from one organism into another, also between nonrelated species. Body: Recently farmers in Maharashtra were protesting the central government’s move which bans the cultivation of GM crops and they would undertake mass sowing of GM seeds for maize, soyabean, mustard, brinjal and herbicide tolerant (Ht) cotton, although these are not approved. Issues related to GM crops: Cost effective variety of Cotton: Bt cot is the only GM crop that is allowed in India. currently farmers cite the high cost of weeding of it, which goes down considerably if they grow Ht Bt cotton and use glyphosate against weeds.  New variety of Brinjal: Brinjal growers in Haryana have rooted for Bt brinjal as it reduces the cost of production by cutting down on the use of pesticides. To challenge Government for change its regulations: This action of defying government regulations by growing unapproved Bt varieties will draw attention of authorities to the need for introduction of the latest technology in the fields as the approval process of GM seeds is lengthy, opaque and often excludes farmers. This is opposed by farmers who want access to better technology. Huge benefits of GM crops: Because of the modification in genes, GM crops has huge benefits like Increased crop yields, Reduced costs for food or drug production, Reduced need for pesticides, Enhanced nutrient composition, Resistance to pests and disease, Increased shelf life etc. hence its attracts farmers to enhance their revenue. In 2002 Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) allowed Bt cotton, since then 95 per cent of the country’s cotton area has under Bt cotton.  Concerns over the use of genetically modified (GM) technology: Ecological Balance: The capability of the GMO to escape and potentially introduce the engineered genes into wild populations thus disturbing the fragile ecological balance. Danger of Permanence: The persistence of the gene after the GMO has been harvested. The susceptibility of non-target organisms (e.g. insects which are not pests) to the gene product will be in danger. Also, the stability of the gene is another cause of worry which will Increase use of chemicals in agriculture. Health: Genetic modification brings about changes that can be harmful to humans in the long run. Awareness and Labelling issues: Manufacturers do not mention on the label that foods are developed by genetic manipulation considering it may affect their business. However, this is harmful practice. Religious issues: Many religious and cultural communities are against such foods because they see it as an unnatural way of producing foods. Views on adoption of GM technologies: Medicinal Benefits of GM technologies: GM technologies have emerged as one of the mainstays of biomedical research since the 1980. Pharmaceutical products such as hepatitis B vaccine, injectable insulin produced through GM technology.  Genetic modification of insects: GM mosquitoes have been developed that express a small protein called SM1, which blocks entry of the malaria parasite, Plasmodium, into the mosquito’s gut. Introduction of these GM mosquitoes into the wild could help reduce transmission of the malaria parasite. Also, male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes engineered so it transmits a gene to their offspring that causes the offspring to die before becoming sexually mature. Genetic modification of humans is becoming a treatment option: Genetic modification via gene therapy is becoming a treatment option for diseases ranging from rare metabolic disorders to cancer. Coupling stem cell technology with recombinant DNA methods allows stem cells derived from a patient to be modified in the laboratory to introduce a desired gene. introduction of these GM cells into the patient could cure the disease without  the need for a matched donor.  No Harm from GM Food recorded: There is a scientific consensus that currently available food derived from GM crops poses no greater risk to human health than conventional food, but that each GM food needs to be tested on a case-by-case basis before introduction. Considering all modern medicinal benefits of GM technology, introduction and responsible use of it is necessary for mankind.  Conclusion: Though there is a ban on other GM crops, cases of cultivation of GM Crops not approved by the government indicate that there may be an illegal supply of GM seeds in the country. With growing agrarian distress there is a need for innovation in agriculture that balances interests of humans and that of environment. Given the increased growth of global population and increased urbanisation, GM crops offer one of the promising solutions to meet the world’s food security needs which ultimately meet the SDG zero hunger target by 2030. Hence the government must take steps carefully keeping in the mind of interests of farmers, national biosafety and biosecurity. 4. What are the potential applications of 5G technology? How can it contribute to the vision of Digital India? Discuss. Approach: It expects students to write - in first part write about potential application of 5G - in second part write how it can contribute to vision of digital India - in end write few challenges before it. Introduction: 5G is next generation wireless network technology that's expected to change the way people live and work. It will be faster and able to handle more connected devices than the existing 4G LTE network, improvements that will enable a wave of new kinds of tech products. Body: Potential application of 5G: Workspaces: The first use cases based on 5G will pertain to company workspaces, whether they are physical or virtual. The capacities of 5G will enable a wider use of video and the manipulation of large files on the go (architectural plans for example), as well as a shift towards greater use of virtual, augmented or mixed reality. Industry 4.0: A majority of analysts believe that Industry 4.0 will emerge as one of the first concrete applications of 5G and specialized services. Customers have already shown high expectations in this sector. However, the goal is not simply to connect a factory to the web, it is also about transforming business models, production methods, processes, etc. The densification of connected objects and real-time data analysis will play an essential part in environments where autonomous machines, humans and robots will work side by side. Sales: 5G will also make it possible to manage orders in a very precise way. In the event of a problem on a production line, immediate feedback will recalculate the production plan right away and automatically inform the end customer of a possible delivery delay. It will also become possible to integrate connectivity into the product itself. In this way, it will communicate with artificial intelligence and offer predictive maintenance. It will also become possible to guide applications remotely via a hologram, showing the user exactly how to use the product and thus multiply the examples. In all these situations, it is truly a whole new field of possibility that opens up with 5G. Transport: The rising number of connected vehicles is another important issue pertaining to 5G. With communication between vehicles, as well as other road users (pedestrians, cyclists, etc.) and even infrastructure (roads, traffic signals and traffic lights, for example), new applications may be developed to reduce accident rates and journey times in order to improve the flow of traffic. 5G will also enhance operational efficiency for transport professionals. The ability to download a large amount of content in near real time will enable ships, trains and aircraft to quickly retrieve navigation information and share refuelling and predictive maintenance data when docking, landing or arriving at stations. Critical communications: In the future, it will be possible to host a vast range of critical communications in order to secure processes, goods and people. 5G will help facilitate enterprise security applications by powering connected security teams capable of responding to emergencies in real time. 5G will also improve fixed network performance until fiber is rolled out everywhere. Why not also secure fiber in 5G? This is the type of hybrid installation we are now exploring. It can contribute to vision of digital India as follows: Smart cities Video surveillance and analytics Intelligent transport and traffic management  Smart grids and metering systems with smart street light  Solid waste management  Government This revolution also provides an opportunity for the government to improve its connect with the citizens. Digitalisation could help improve delivery of government services to citizens and also lower transaction costs for citizens Public protection and disaster relief National authorities or relevant operators use Public Protection and Disaster Relief (PPDR) radio communications for managing services with regards to public safety, security, defense and emergency. To further modernise and enable reliability over critical communications, the use of 5G network is expected to be supportive in addressing the requirements. Sensors, cameras and other automated devices are significant sources of information to ensure public safety. Through building synergies across such source feeds, 5G networks could also support integrating information from diverse source feeds or devices into Public Safety operations, enabling it to become less reactive and more proactive. Manufacturing Enhance efficiency through robotics Automation through Internet of Things (IoT) Effective operations through Augmented Reality (AR) Agriculture and allied industry Soil and crop monitoring Precision farming Smart irrigation & climate change alignment Livestock monitoring Agricultural drones Energy and utilities Distribution of energy within a smart-grid Smart meters for the smart homes Remote monitoring of energy sites Energy efficiency and reducing the effects of climate change Smart Power generation, Green energy and distribution automation  Healthcare industry Mobility Monitor Health Automation Online consultations Data Management Media and entertainment Immersive experiences Enriching gaming experience User/machine generated content from smart devices Retail In-store analytics Interactive storefront windows Handheld devices However, it faces following challenges: Problem of network coverage Lack of 5G devices Lack of digital inclusion Lack of uniform policy framework Industry crippling under margin pressure Network modernisation and densification will be complex Strengthening the security apparatus with evolving technologies Conclusion: Regulatory support from the government providing the right ecosystem for research and development, regulatory framework for spectrum, data and information security, IoT, digital as well as inclusive business environment to encourage domestic and international players to invest in the technology would be key to technology implementation. 5. Innovation should be made public in exchange for a limited monopoly. Do you agree? Substantiate your views. Approach: Question is asked in context of COVID pandemic. It expects student to write about - in first part write about need for innovation to be made public - in second part write about how innovation could be made public in exchange for a limited monopoly - in end write way forward. Introduction: With the outbreak of COVID-19, there are several innovations. All these innovations may be the subject matter of patent applications around the world. It will be a few years before patents are even granted. However, friction already exists among various stakeholders. For instance, one country made attempts to obtain exclusive rights to a vaccine being developed. On the other hand, there are also collaborations taking place. Body: Need for innovation to be made public: Pandemics need disruptive solutions. Governments and international organisations need to arrive at a consensus in advance to ensure that the system is ready. Procrastination would be disastrous. Creating hindrances through exclusivity claims, in the wake of a pandemic, will result in dividing countries, corporations and international organisations. This will not benefit patients and the world as a whole. If patent owners create impediments on the strength of patent rights, the world will start despising patents and that is not a situation IP owner ought to be in. Under the TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) regime, there are several tools such as compulsory licensing that are available to ensure access to medicines. However, beyond the laws, society needs to respect innovation. To protect the sanctity and integrity of patent systems, and in order to ensure that an anti-IP sentiment is not generated globally, answers need to be found within the existing regime. In exceptional circumstances such as these, there is a likelihood that societies may resort to extreme steps to protect themselves. Before such ideas are floated, solutions should be created. Innovation could be made public in exchange for a limited monopoly by: One method by which aggregation and dissemination of innovative products can be ensured is by creating a patent pool. Patent pools are usually effective in aggregating, administering and licensing patents related to specific areas of technology. Such pools are usually managed by a central agency and the patents which become part of the pool are readily made available for licensing. Some pools even publish the royalty rates payable for such licences. Anyone who wishes to obtain a licence will be able to approach the pool, agree to the terms, and begin to manufacture and sell the products. Such pools are prevalent in, for instance, standard essential patents related to telecom and digital innovations. At the moment, individual efforts are being made by research organisations to create their own pools. A more fruitful endeavour would be to create a global pool of COVID-19-related innovations, or innovations related to rare pandemics, in respect of vaccines and medicines. This could be managed by a trustworthy international organisation. All countries ought to have the right to implement these innovations without further permission from the patent-holders and without resorting to provisions such as compulsory licensing, state acquisition, etc. Even if royalties are at a minimal level, the revenues would still be in billions of dollars owing to the large swathes of the population affected by the pandemic, who will need to be administered these products. Way forward: The purpose of creating and recognising patent rights is for the common public good, i.e., innovation should be made public in exchange for a limited monopoly. Thus, patents need to be disclosed to the public in order to enable further research. Public-private partnerships (PPP) need to be scaled up. Creation of the ‘PPP-pandemic patent pool’ at a global level, to pool all innovations, is the way forward.  Pooling of patent resources is also in line with the Doha Declaration on Public Health which is a part of the TRIPS agreement. This declaration recognises the need for taking measures to ‘protect public health’ and ‘promote access to medicines’. Conclusion: Concerns relating to patents and profits to be earned therefrom should be put aside. The world has to come out of this crisis quickly and patents ought to accelerate rather than impede the path. Combating the crisis and earning collectively is the need of the hour. TLP HOT Synopsis Day 40 PDF

Nov 30, 2020 MindMaps

Mind Maps: One Nation One Election (ONOE) - General Studies 2

Mind Maps: One Nation One Election (ONOE) - General Studies 2 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! One Nation One Election (ONOE) - General Studies 2 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) One Nation One Election (ONOE)   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

Nov 30, 2020 IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 30th November 2020

Archives (PRELIMS + MAINS FOCUS) Protest Against Resettlement of Bru tribals Part of: GS Prelims and GS-I – Society & GS-II – Policies and Interventions In news Recently, parts of north Tripura witnessed violent protests over the proposed resettlement of Bru tribals. Key takeaways In January 2020, a quadrilateral agreement was signed by the Centre, the two state governments and Bru representatives to allow Brus to permanently settle in Tripura.  The state has planned 12 resettlement spots across six districts with 300 families each in Tripura. The Centre has announced a special development project with funding of Rs. 600 crore. This agreement led to protests from Bengali and Mizo groups in Tripura.  They claim that settling thousands of migrants permanently in North Tripura district of Kanchanpur would lead to demographic imbalance, exert pressure on local resources and potentially lead to law and order problems. It was also alleged that Bengali and Mizo families from Jampui Hill range, who fled due to atrocities by Brus, were yet to be resettled two decades on. Important value addition Bru Bru or Reang is a community indigenous to Northeast India. It lives mostly in Tripura, Mizoram and Assam.  In Tripura, they are recognised as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group. In Mizoram, they have been targeted by groups that do not consider them indigenous to the state. In 1997, following ethnic clashes, nearly 37,000 Brus fled Mizoram and were accommodated in relief camps in Tripura. Since then, 5,000 have returned to Mizoram, while 32,000 still live in six relief camps in North Tripura. Subdued Northeast Monsoon Part of: GS Prelims and GS-I – Climatology In news Rainfall over the southern peninsular region of India has been deficient so far which indicates that the northeast monsoon has remained dull this year. Key takeaways Reasons for deficient rainfall this Northeast monsoon Prevailing La Niña conditions in the Pacific Ocean: La Niña conditions enhance the rainfall associated with the Southwest monsoon, but has a negative impact on rainfall associated with the Northeast monsoon. Inter Tropical Convective Zone (ITCZ): The current position of the ITCZ has also contributed to the poor rainfall during the ongoing monsoon season. Currently, the ITCZ is located to the north of its normal position. Important value addition Northeast monsoon The Northeast monsoon occurs during October to December.  It is confined to the Southern peninsula.  It is also called the winter monsoon. Northeast monsoon is important for Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Karaikal, Yanam, coastal Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, north interior Karnataka, Mahe and Lakshadweep. Tamil Nadu records about 48% of its annual rainfall during these months, making it the key factor for undertaking agricultural activities. Some South Asian countries such as Maldives, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, too, record rainfall during October to December. La Niña La Niña (Spanish for ‘little girl’) refers to the large-scale cooling of the ocean surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, along with changes in the tropical atmospheric circulation. It usually has the opposite impacts on weather and climate as El Niño, which is the warm phase of the so-called El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). ITCZ The ITCZ is a low-pressure belt, whose northward and southward movements along the equator determine the precipitation in the tropics. Sea Guardian Drones from US inducted by the Indian Navy Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Defence and Security In news Recently, two American MQ9B Sea Guardian unarmed drones have been inducted by the Indian Navy. The drones would be on lease with India for one year. Important value addition MQ9B Sea Guardian It is the maritime variant of the Predator MQ9 Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). It has a maximum endurance of 40 hours and a maximum flying altitude of 40,000 feet. It has a 3600 maritime surveillance radar and an optional multimode maritime surface search radar. It can be used in operations such as Anti-Surface Warfare, Anti-Submarine Warfare, Humanitarian Assistance/Disaster Relief, Search and Rescue, Law Enforcement (Drug Trafficking, Illegal Immigration and Piracy), etc. The drones are meant for carrying out surveillance in the Indian Ocean Region and can be deployed on the China border if asked for and if needed. PRAGATI Meeting held Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – Federalism; Governance In news Recently, the Prime Minister (PM) has chaired the 33rd PRAGATI meeting. Important value addition PRAGATI PRAGATI is the multimodal platform for Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation involving central and state governments  Launched in: 2015 Designed by: Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) team with the help of the National Informatics Center (NIC). It enables the PM to discuss the issues with the concerned central and state officials with full information and latest visuals of the ground-level situation. It is a three-tier system: PMO, Union Government Secretaries, and Chief Secretaries of the States. Objective: (1) Grievance Redressal; (2) Programme Implementation; (3) Project Monitoring The PRAGATI platform uses latest technologies such as Digital data management, video-conferencing and geo-spatial technology. Significance: (1) It promotes cooperative federalism; (2) It is a robust system for bringing e-transparency and e-accountability with real-time presence and exchange among the key stakeholders; (3) It is an innovative project in e-governance and good governance. Information Management And Analysis Centre (IMAC) Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Defence and Security In news Information Management And Analysis Centre (IMAC) was recently in news with regard to 12th anniversary of the 26/11 attacks. Important value addition IMAC was established in November 2014. It is based in Gurgaon, India. It is jointly operated by the Navy and Coast Guard. It is the nodal centre for maritime security information collation and dissemination. It is the cornerstone of the National Command Control Communication and Intelligence Network for monitoring maritime traffic in India’s area of interest. IMAC’s task is to facilitate exchange of maritime security information among various national stakeholders, and generate a common operational picture. IMAC tracks only non-military or commercial ships, known as white shipping. Military ships, or grey hull ships, are tracked by the Directorate of Naval Operations, as this is on a classified network. (Mains Focus) SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY/ DISASTER MANAGEMENT/ GEOGRAPHY Topic: General Studies 1,2,3: Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life. Disaster and disaster management.  Cyclones forecast Context: Cyclone Nivar, that barrelled through Tamil Nadu and brought copious rain in its wake, was the third major cyclone to land on India’s coast this year, besides Amphan and Nisarga. However, relatively fewer lives were lost compared to the havoc wreaked by Amphan in West Bengal in May. What aided relief operations in the anticipation of Nivar was that it largely conformed to forecasts issued by the India Meteorological Department (IMD). How are cyclones forecast? Over the years, India’s ability to track the formation of cyclones has improved significantly.  Radar Network: There is a network of 21 doppler weather radars (DWR) in the country (12 along the coast). Depending on where a storm is forming, these radars send pulses of radio waves to gauge the size as well as the speed at which water droplets are moving.  Real time feedback: The earlier generation of radars was unable to track such progress in real time, but with DWRs, now the base standard of weather radars, it is usually possible to detect a potential storm at least four-five days in advance.  International Collaborations:  The IMD also collaborates with similar international networks, such as the Japan Meteorological Agency, the U.S. National Hurricane Center, and the U.S. Central Pacific Hurricane Center, and these bodies constantly send warnings and forecasts about changes in the ocean weather. Technologies that supplement radars: The near ubiquity of ocean-buoys that track changes in ocean sea surface temperatures as well as dedicated meteorological satellites improve the odds of early detection How radar works? The basics of radars is that a beam of energy, called radio waves, is emitted from an antenna. As they strike objects in the atmosphere, the energy is scattered in all directions with some of the energy reflected directly back to the radar. The larger the object, the greater the amount of energy that is returned to the radar. That provides us with the ability to "see" rain drops in the atmosphere.  In addition, the time it takes for the beam of energy to be transmitted and returned to the radar also provides us with the distance to that object. Doppler radar By their design, Doppler radar systems can provide information regarding the movement of targets as well as their position.  When the radar transmits pulses of radio waves, the system keeps track of the phase (shape, position, and form) of those pulses. By measuring the shift (or change) in phase between a transmitted pulse and a received echo, the target's movement directly toward or away from the radar is calculated. A positive phase shift implies motion toward the radar and a negative shift indicates motion away from the radar. The phase shift effect is similar to the "Doppler shift" observed with sound waves. With the "Doppler shift", the sound pitch of an object moving toward your location is higher due to compression (a change in the phase) of sound waves. As an object moves away from your location, sound waves are stretched resulting in a lower frequency. How difficult was it to track Nivar’s progress? April-June and October-December are India’s cyclone seasons.  The arriving monsoon, as well as its retreat, stir up the surrounding seas and generate cyclones.  Though the Bay of Bengal is three times more likely to generate cyclones, the ones that originate in the Arabian Sea are trickier, as the cyclone, while ostensibly moving away from India’s western coast, can suddenly ‘recurve’ and move back in.  A challenge with re-curving cyclones is that it is hard for weather models to pick them early on. There are also fewer radars along India’s west coast than the eastern coast, and all these reasons make the Bay of Bengal cyclones more tractable.  In this context, Nivar, because it conformed to a fairly predictable trajectory and was not super cyclonic in intensity, gave State administrations in Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh time to prepare, and was far less damaging than Amphan.  However, the cyclone season is not yet over and more systems are likely to form in the coming weeks, according to the IMD. How has disaster warning changed? Tracking Depressions: The formation of cyclones is preceded by ‘depressions’, and they are often the first warnings. Not all depressions become cyclones, but many coastal States — especially those with a history of being battered — begin organising shelters and evacuation of coastal residents.  Suspension of advisories on fish catches: Sea pockets, where cyclones form, are also places that drive schools of fish and lure fisherfolk. While meteorological agencies give advisories on where fish-catches are likely, they suspend such advisories during storm formation to dissuade fishermen from venturing out.  Penetration of Mobile Phones: The ubiquity of mobile communication makes it much easier to quickly give warnings.  Collaboration with Urban Local Bodies: The IMD also issues flood forecast maps, in collaboration with urban bodies that forecast which pockets in a city are likely to be flooded and where crop damage is likely to be maximum. Conclusion Forecasts, on their own, are important, but they cannot override the importance of preparedness by State agencies.  Connecting the dots: Questions on Disaster Management along with Synopsis: Click Here HEALTH/ GOVERNANCE Topic: General Studies 2: Structure, organization and functioning of the executive  Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. Health Policy: Ayurveda doctors to practise general surgery Context: On November 20, the Central Council of Indian Medicine, a statutory body set up under the AYUSH Ministry to regulate Indian systems of medicine, issued a gazette notification allowing postgraduate (PG) Ayurvedic practitioners to receive formal training for a variety of general surgery, ENT, ophthalmology and dental procedures.  The decision follows the amendment to the Indian Medicine Central Council (Post Graduate Ayurveda Education) Regulations, 2016, to allow PG students of Ayurveda to practise general surgery. Recent step by government to increase health service providers The passing of the National Medical Commission Act in 2019 allowed for the formalisation of proposals to induct mid-level care providers — Community Health Providers — in primary healthcare in India. They would serve at health and wellness centres across the country, and focus on primary healthcare provision, with a limited range of medicines allowed for them to use for treatment of patients. This move had also attracted strong opposition from modern medicine practitioners, who branded this as a form of quackery through half-baked doctors.  Several countries have been using mid-level care providers, such as nurse practitioners, to enhance the access to healthcare, though with strict safeguards around training, certification, and standards. Is allowing non-allopathic doctors to perform surgery legally and medically tenable? The current debate revolves around allowing postgraduates students in Ayurveda undergoing ‘Shalya’ (general surgery) and ‘Shalakya’ (dealing with eye, ear, nose, throat, head and neck, oro-dentistry) to perform 58 specified surgical procedures. This was immediately opposed by many allopathic professionals, with the Indian Medical Association (IMA) decrying it as a mode of allowing mixing of systems of medicine by using terms from allopathy.  The AYUSH Ministry subsequently clarified that the ‘Shalya’ and ‘Shalakya’ postgraduates were already learning these procedures in their (surgical) departments in Ayurvedic medical colleges as per their training curriculum. Can short-term training equip them to conduct surgeries and will this dilute the medicine standards in India? As such, the postgraduate Ayurvedic surgical training is not short-term but a formal three-year course.  Whether the surgeries conducted in Ayurvedic medical colleges and hospitals have the same standards and outcomes as allopathic institutions requires explication and detailed formal enquiry, in the interest of patient safety. Will non-allopathic doctors who have undergone training be restricted to practise in rural areas having poor doctor-patient ratios? As of now, no such restriction exists that limits non-allopathic doctors, including those doing Ayurvedic surgical postgraduation, to rural areas.  They have the same rights as allopathic graduates and postgraduates to practise in any setting of their choice. With allopathic surgeons often unwilling to practise in rural areas, how can this problem be solved? The shortage and unwillingness of allopathic doctors, including surgeons, to serve in rural areas is now a chronic issue.  The government has tried to address this by mechanisms such as rural bonds, a quota for those who have served in rural service in postgraduate seats, as well as, more recently, a plan to work on increasing the number of medical colleges and postgraduate seats.  However, there is still shortage of trained specialists in rural areas.  Government needs to explore creative ways of addressing this gap by evidence-based approaches, such as task-sharing, supported by efficient and quality referral mechanisms.  The advent of mid-level healthcare providers, such as Community Health Providers in many States, is also an opportunity to shift some elements of healthcare (preventive, promotive, and limited curative) to these providers, while ensuring clarity of role and career progression. Is it sensible to allow Ayurvedic surgeons to only assist allopathic surgeons, rather than perform surgeries themselves? The AYUSH streams are recognised systems of medicine, and as such are allowed to independently practise medicine.  They have medical colleges with both undergraduate and postgraduate training, which include surgical disciplines for some systems, such as Ayurveda.  There is, however, a difference in approach in the systems of medicine, and hence models, which allow for cross-pathy.  An apprenticeship model for Ayurvedic surgeons working with allopathic surgeons might fall into a regulatory grey zone. It might require re-training Ayurvedic practitioners in the science of surgical approaches in modern medicine. Even then, there might be a limit to what they are allowed to do.  Any such experiment can put patient safety in peril, and hence, will need careful oversight and evaluation. Can this lead to substandard care? Many patients prefer to receive treatment exclusively from AYUSH providers, while some approach this form of treatment as a complement to the existing allopathic treatment they are receiving.  For invasive procedures, like surgery, the risk element can be high.  Patients have a right to know and understand who their surgeon would be, what system of medicine they belong to, and their expertise and level of training.  There should not be a difference in quality of care between urban and rural patients — everyone deserves a right to quality and evidence-based care from trained professionals. Conclusion The government has to take steps to improve healthcare service in rural areas however it should make sure that safety standards are upheld while inducting Ayurveda practitioners to perform surgery.  Connecting the dots: Medical Education: Over-centralisation is harsh (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 state recognises Bru tribe as Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group? Mizoram Assam Manipur Tripura Q.2 Consider the following statements: El Niño refers to the cooling of the ocean surface in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. La Nina is the warm phase of the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Which of the above is/are correct? 1 only 2 only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 ANSWERS FOR 28th November 2020 TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE (TYK) 1 A 2 C 3 C Must Read About farmer’s protest: The Hindu About India’s GDP Slump: The Hindu About Paris Agreement: The Hindu

Nov 30, 2020 Daily Prelims CA Quiz

UPSC Quiz - 2020 : IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs Quiz 30th Nov 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

Nov 30, 2020 TLP Mains 2020

IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2 - ENGLISH & हिंदी): UPSC Mains Answer Writing - General Studies Paper 1 Questions[30th NOVEMBER,2020] - Day 43

For Previous TLP (ARCHIVES) - CLICK HERE Hello Friends, Welcome to IASbaba’s TLP (Phase 2 - ENGLISH & हिंदी): UPSC Mains Answer Writing - General Studies Paper 1 Questions[30th NOVEMBER,2020] - Day 43   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. The disintegration of the Ottoman Empire created many fault lines for Europes’s future. Do you agree? Substantiate. ओटोमन साम्राज्य के विघटन ने यूरोपियों के भविष्य के लिए कई दोष रेखाएँ बनाईं। क्या आप सहमत हैं? पुष्टी करें। 2. Industrial revolution became the engine of European colonialism in the 19th century. Comment. औद्योगिक क्रांति 19 वीं शताब्दी में यूरोपीय उपनिवेशवाद का इंजन बन गई। टिप्पणी करें। 3. How did ideas of enlightenment affect the European history? Briefly describe. आत्मज्ञान के विचारों ने यूरोपीय इतिहास को कैसे प्रभावित किया? संक्षेप में वर्णन कीजिये। 4. The history of African decolonisation is sharply contrasted from its Asian counterparts. Elucidate. अफ्रीकी विघटन के इतिहास को इसके एशियाई समकक्षों के विपरीत माना जाता है। स्पष्ट करें। 5. Do you agree with the assertion that capitalism had triumphed with the disintegration of the USSR? Critically comment. क्या आप इस बात से सहमत हैं कि पूंजीवाद यूएसएसआर के विघटन के साथ जीत गया था? समालोचनात्मक 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 :)

Nov 29, 2020 Motivational Articles

Creative Guidance – Giving up too early – Inspirational Educative Articles

Giving up too early: It is not that most people don’t know how to put the necessary effort to get to success; they simply don’t know how much it takes. It is not hard to see that it takes effort to succeed, but the question is how much. Knowing this is an intuitive knowledge one will gain only by learning to see activities to their completion. Failure is not about being unaware of the fact that it takes effort to succeed; rather failure is not willing to hold on to something till its completion. Most people fail because they give up too early. This is probably the single biggest reason for failure. Not learning the art of completing a task is a sure way to fail. What does it mean to see an activity to its completion? It is a simple habit of picking a task and continuing to do it for as long as you can, without giving up on it for any reason whatsoever. This might sound simple, but when you begin to practice it, you will realize the sheer effort involved in doing this. There is strong impulse inbuilt in us to quickly finish a task and move on to the next thing. We don’t like to stay on one particular activity for too long. It is just in the nature of how our brains are wired; we always want to be moving on to something else. This impulse is what needs to be controlled if you have to see an activity to its completion. Our mind has an inbuilt tendency to do a particular task for a while and then get bored for the sake of getting bored, no reason is required. Success is all about recognizing this tendency of the mind and not giving into it. Instead of your mind controlling how much and when you want to complete a task, you have to take control of your mind. This starts by developing simple habits of consistency and perseverance. Not giving up, or at least not giving up too easily is one of the most important habits one can cultivate. If you observe people, you will be able to clearly identify this tendency. I am sure you know a few people who have the habit of persisting long after you have given up, and you also know a few people who give up too easily. Knowing if you are the giving up kind or the persevering kind is important to assess the changes you need to make to complete your tasks. To put it simplistically, just pick up a task that would take more than a few days to complete, requires consistent effort, and gets completed only when it is fully finished, and work on it till you get it done. Pick as many such activities as possible and continue to practice. A day will come when you would have learnt the art of completing a task. Knowing how to see an activity to its completion is all it takes to succeed. “This article is a part of the creative endeavor of Meditation Farm and IASBABA.”

Nov 28, 2020 IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam – 28th November 2020

Archives (PRELIMS + MAINS FOCUS) India’s GDP contracts 7.5% in second quarter Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Economy In news As per estimates released by the National Statistical Office, India’s GDP contracted 7.5% in the second quarter of 2020-21. In the first quarter, India had recorded 23.9% decline.  Key takeaways India has now entered a technical recession with two successive quarters of negative growth. Agriculture, which was the only sector to record growth between April and June this year, grew at the same pace of 3.4% in the second quarter. Manufacturing gross value-added (GVA) showed a sharp recovery to record 0.6% growth between July and September after collapsing 39.3% in the first quarter. Electricity, gas, water supply and other utility services also recorded 4.4% growth in the second quarter, recovering from a 7% contraction in Q1. But it remained a weak quarter for several sectors, including mining, services such as retail trade and hotels, construction and financial services. While the 7.5% contraction in GDP came as a positive surprise, there are concerns about a decline in government spending and the worsening fate of two key sectors compared to the first quarter. India Climate Change Knowledge Portal launched Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Environment In news India Climate Change Knowledge Portal was recently launched. Launched by: Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Key takeaways The portal will have all the major steps the Government is taking at both national and international levels to address the climate change issues. It will be a single-point information resource that provides information on the different climate initiatives taken by various Ministries enabling users to access updated status on these initiatives. According to the Central government, India has practically achieved its pre-2020 climate action targets. Brain Fingerprinting Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Sci & Tech In news The accused in Hathras rape case will undergo brain fingerprinting. Key takeaways Brain Electrical Oscillation Signature Profiling (BEOSP) is also known as brain fingerprinting. It is a neuro psychological method of interrogation in which the accused’s participation in the crime is investigated by studying their brain’s response. The BEOSP test is carried out via a process known as electroencephalogram, conducted to study the electrical behaviour of the human brain. Under this test, the consent of the accused is first taken and they are then made to wear caps with dozens of electrodes attached to them. The accused are then shown visuals or played audio clips related to the crime to check if there is any triggering of neurons in their brains which then generate brainwaves.  The test results are then studied to determine the participation of the accused in a crime. Blue Tide phenomenon observed in Maharashtra Part of: GS Prelims and GS-III – Environment; Science In news Over the last few days, visitors to beaches in Maharashtra have witnessed the fluorescent bluish glow when the waves hit the shoreline. Key takeaways The phenomenon is called ‘blue tide’. It appears when luminescent marine life makes the sea appear a deep shade of blue. It occurs when phytoplankton (microscopic marine plants), commonly known as dinoflagellates, produce light through chemical reactions in proteins.  Waves disturb these unicellular microorganisms and make them release blue light. Do you know? Bioluminescence is the property of a living organism to produce and emit light. Animals, plants, fungi and bacteria show bioluminescence. A remarkable diversity of marine animals and microbes are able to produce their own light.  It is found in many marine organisms such as bacteria, algae, jellyfish, worms, crustaceans, sea stars, fish and sharks. Luminescence is generally higher in deep-living and planktonic organisms than in shallow species. It is an anti-predatory response.  Bioluminescence is assumed to startle predators, causing them to hesitate. Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Bill Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – International Relations In news The Scottish parliament passed a landmark legislation that has made period products such as sanitary pads and tampons free of cost to those people who need them. The bill is titled, “Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Bill”. Key takeaways Scotland is the first country to take such a step. The bill was passed with the aim of tackling “period poverty”, which is when some people who need period products struggle to afford them. Central objective: To end the silence and stigma that surrounds menstruation. Aim: (1) To remove gendered barriers; (2) To ensure that those who menstruate have reasonably convenient access to period products free of charge. Do you know? What is ‘period poverty’? Certain circumstances make access to sanitary products difficult for women and trans people. These include homelessness, coercive, controlling and violent relationships and health conditions such as endometriosis. SDGs Investor Map For India launched  Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – International Relations In news United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and Invest India have launched the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Investor Map for India. Key takeaways It laid out 18 Investment Opportunities Areas (IOAs) in six critical SDG enabling sectors, that can help the country push forward on the trajectory of Sustainable Development. The six focus sectors: Education, healthcare, agriculture and allied activities, financial services, renewable energy and alternatives and sustainable environment. Of the 18 IOAs identified, 10 are already mature investable areas that have seen robust Private Equity and Venture Capital activity.  The remaining eight IOAs are emerging opportunities, which have seen traction from early-stage investors. The map has also identified eight ‘white spaces’, which have seen investor interest and have the potential to grow into IOAs in five to six years with policy support and private sector participation. Do you know? Invest India is the national investment promotion agency under the Commerce & Industry Ministry. Agreements Between India-Bahrain Part of: GS Prelims and GS-II – International Relations In news Recently, India and Bahrain have agreed to further strengthen their ties, including in areas of defence and maritime security. Key takeaways The bilateral issues, and regional and global matters of mutual interest, included areas of defence and maritime security, space technology, trade and investment, infrastructure, IT, FinTech, health, hydrocarbon and renewable energy. Both countries affirmed to further strengthen their Covid-19 related cooperation. Bahrain appreciated the assistance provided by India during the pandemic through the supply of medicines, medical equipment and medical professionals. They expressed satisfaction on the operationalisation of the Air Bubble arrangement between the two countries. India renewed invitation to Bahrain for visiting India for the 3rd India-Bahrain High Joint Commission meeting to be held in the upcoming months. Do you know? Air bubbles (travel corridors or travel bubbles) are systems established between two countries that perceive each other to be safe and allow carriers of both the countries to fly passengers either way without any restrictions. (Mains Focus) HEALTH/ GOVERNANCE Topic: General Studies 1, 2: Issues relating to poverty and hunger.  Mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections. Stepping out of the shadow of India’s malnutrition Context: Two recent reports — the annual report on “The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2020” by FAO and the 2020 Hunger report, “Better Nutrition, Better Tomorrow” by the Bread for the World Institute – document staggering facts about Indian food insecurity and malnutrition. The Prevalence of Undernourishment (PoU) The PoU measures the percentage of people who are consuming insufficient calories than their required minimum dietary energy requirement. In India, malnutrition has not declined as much as the decline has occurred in terms of poverty. In terms of percentages, the PoU has declined 24.7% between 2001 and 2018 for India; whereas that for China (76.4%), Nepal (74%), Pakistan (42%), Afghanistan (37.4%) and Bangladesh (18.9%).  It must be noted that the decline in China is way higher than that of India, even though it had started with lower levels of PoU in 2000. In contrast, Afghanistan (47.8%) that started with a higher base than India (18.6%) had experienced higher rates of decline. Of note is the fact that, economically, while Afghanistan is relatively much poorer and has gone through several prolonged conflicts in last two decades, it has been more successful in reducing malnutrition than India. Therefore, irrespective of the base level of PoU, most of these countries have done better than India on this dimension. Prevalence of Moderate or Severe Food Insecurity (PMSFI) These findings also get substantiated through Food Insecurity Experience Scale survey, which covers almost 90% of the world’s population.  Because it is not allowed to be conducted in India, direct estimates are not available. However, estimates indicate that between 2014-16, about 29.1% of the total population in India was food insecure, which rose up to 32.9% in 2017-19.  In terms of absolute number, about 375 million of the total population was moderately or severely food insecure in 2014, which went to about 450 million in 2019. Why National Food Security Act – 2013 failed to tackle malnutrition? Despite the act ensuring every citizen “access to adequate quantity of quality food at affordable prices”, two crucial elements that still got left out which were The non-inclusion of nutritious food items such as pulses  Exclusion of potential beneficiaries.  Dangers in coming days The problem of malnutrition is likely to deepen in the coming years with rising unemployment and the deep economic slump. The current COVID-19 pandemic would make the situation worse in general, more so for vulnerable groups. Way Ahead A major shift in policy has to encompass the immediate universalisation of the Public Distribution System which should definitely not be temporary in nature There has to be distribution of quality food items and innovative interventions such as the setting up of community kitchens among other things. The need of the hour remains the right utilisation and expansion of existing programmes to ensure that we arrest at least some part of this burgeoning malnutrition in the country. Connecting the dots: Global Hunger Index (GHI) Nobel Peace Prize 2020 POLITY/ GOVERNANCE Topic: General Studies 2: Structure, organization and functioning of the executive  Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. Charting a reformed future for the police Context: Director General of Police (DGP) conference scheduled for early December. Conference through the years Foundation of Conference: Addressing the first in Independent India on January 12, 1950, Sardar Patel, the then deputy PM & home minister, expressed hope that the provincial police would handle law and order on their own, and not depend on the military as an aid to civil power. He also expected better results in criminal investigation with greater coordination between the states Impact of Conferences: The recommendations of the annual conference, in the early years, led to a great boost to police infrastructure, induction of human resources and technological upgradation.  Concern during 1950s to 1970s: Communal violence, crimes against women, vehicle-theft and a range of other issues reflected the concerns of the prevailing times. Concern during 1950s to 1970s: Terrorism in Punjab and the insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir became dominant themes in the 1980s and 90s. Concerns of 21st Century: Modernisation of Police, Cyber Crimes, Money laundering, infodemics, mob lynching and hate crimes are new challenges that are being faced by Police of today’s times. However, important pronouncements by home ministers, during conferences in the past, have been largely ignored Police Commissionerate System In 1962, Lal Bahadur Shastri called for the introduction of the police commissioner system in cities with more than 500,000 people.  He felt that to handle crimes and law and order, the police should have all powers, even if it meant withdrawing some from the deputy commissioner, revenue.  Today, more than half of the one-million-plus towns are still without the police commissioner system. Organisational Changes in Police System In 1964, the idea of an All India Police Commission was strongly mooted In 1981, home minister Giani Zail Singh stressed on the need to post an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer as the home secretary or joint secretary in view of the specialised demands of the ministry. The home ministry shelved the proposal. Further, recommendations of Commissions under Dharamvira (1977), Ribeiro (1998), Padmanabhaiya (2000), Malimath (2000) lie buried as archival material.  The home ministry does not brief police chiefs on their status and the public, too, is unaware.  In 2005, Prime Minister (PM) Manmohan Singh announced a police mission and, in 2014, PM Narendra Modi called for a SMART Police. Both are still works-in-progress Key issues have escaped the attention of DGP conferences Police reforms, the police commissioner system, police autonomy, management of police cadre and the role of the home ministry are surprisingly never discussed The reason cited for not discussing these issues is that police is a state subject.  Ineffective Prosecution Ineffective prosecution is the bane of the criminal justice system.  While prosecution-guided investigation exists in other countries, there is no coordination between the two in India.  Way Ahead Postings at ground level: If police stations are to deliver, then posting of SHOs has to be done by superintendents of police and not on secretarial files.  Autonomy to DGP: The police should be declared a professional organisation where the CEO, here, the director-general of police (DGP), has unfettered right over transfers of his field commanders and is held accountable for his actions. Transparency in Conference: The public airing of DGPs’ resolutions would enlighten citizens and exert moral pressure on chief ministers (CMs) to implement them. Agenda of 2020 Conference: Some critical events drawing nationwide attention to the role and functioning of the police must figure on the agenda of conference this year such as the anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act agitations, Delhi riots, the Vikas Dubey encounter, the Hathras incident, the deaths in Tuticorin police station and the Sushant Singh Rajput case.  DGPs must discuss and assess handling of agitations and riots this year, while suggesting a road map for the future.  Lack of critical forensic support at police stations has to be taken up.  Sparing use of Discretionary Powers: It is time for the DGPs to decide that sedition laws, defamation and Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or National Security Act, are resorted to only in exceptional cases Avoid Politicization of Police: Finally, police leaders should resolve not to cede space to the political leadership or bureaucracy on professional matters and cooperate with each other, adhering to the spirit of the law of land Conclusion In a democracy, the police is the cornerstone for good governance and should not be taken for granted. Connecting the dots: Long History of attempted Police reforms: Click here Police reform and the crucial judicial actor (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 Consider the following statements regarding India Climate Change Knowledge Portal recently launched by India:  It will have all the major steps taken by the government at national levels.  It will provide information on the climate initiatives taken by Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change only. Which of the above is/are correct? 1 only 2 only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.2 Which of the following is not correct regarding Brain Fingerprinting?  The accused’s participation in the crime is investigated by studying his brain’s response.  The test is carried out through a process known as electroencephalogram.  The consent of the accused is not required.  The accused is shown visuals or audio clips related to the crime to study the triggering of neurons that occurs in his brain. Q.3 Consider the following statements regarding bioluminescence:  Only fungi and bacteria show bioluminescence.  It is generally higher in shallow species than in the deep-living organisms.  It is an anti-predatory response. Which of the above is/are correct?  1 and 2 only  2 only  3 only  2 and 3 only ANSWERS FOR 27th November 2020 TEST YOUR KNOWLEDGE (TYK) 1 B 2 C Must Read About India’s apps blocking spree: The Hindu About COVID-19 Vaccine race: The Hindu About QUAD: The Indian Express

Nov 28, 2020 MindMaps

Mind Maps: Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) - General Studies 2

Mind Maps: Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) - General Studies 2 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! Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) - General Studies 2 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) Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP)     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