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Pesticides Tragedy: Hazards of Chemical Farming Archives TOPIC: General Studies 2 Major crops cropping patterns in various parts of the country, different types of irrigation and irrigation systems storage, transport and marketing of agricultural produce and issues and related constraints In news: 9 Farmers died in Maharashtra after spraying pesticides in their cotton fields. Over 1800 farmers affected by the inhalation of these pesticides since August 2017. The main cause is unscientific use of pesticide leads to harmful effects on environment, health as well as homes. Unscientific use of chemical fertilisers only? Some of the pesticides are used for last 35-40 years. So when it is used for such a long time, there is nothing wrong with the pesticides. But something else which government has to investigate in detail is about illicit liquor or tobacco use while using pesticide. The pesticides in use for last 40 years can’t be made entirely responsible as any pesticide is highly regulated and its registered by Ministry of Agriculture after tons of data is collected and analysed. World over, chemical fertilisers as well as pesticides have been a great cause of concern on soil fertility and ill effect on human life. There is empirical evidence that pesticides and chemical fertilisers are not used as per the norms set causes the harmful damage. The bio-geo chemical systems within the soil also have to be properly treated on the fields. To go ahead with use of fertilisers, there should be policy dispensation where all the stakeholders have to come together to understand what is good and bad. Using it properly is key? Any chemical which is used to kill pests are going to cause disease in humans. On the packet, the usage has to be mentioned- how to dilute it, how to spread, see the direction of wind, and be opposite to it but sometimes, the gravity of problem is not fully realised. Sometimes, proper awareness is not there. Rather than selling pesticide, the pesticide seller should be asked to sell the pest control. In developed country, the farmer doesn’t buy pesticide and uses it. In many cases, the pesticide dealer goes to the field and applies the pesticide. This is the solution to problem of adverse effect because of use of pesticide. In India, the indiscriminate use of fertiliser is everywhere which leads to many health problems, sometimes which are fatal. Pesticide use in India- vis a vis other country.- use of pesticide per hectare is 10 times in japan than in India. But the pesticide residue on the food used in japan is not beyond the permissible limits. Hence, it is not that just the quantity matters, but also its application. The fertilizers and pesticide companies should make more awareness that pesticides and insecticides are poison and every poison affects humans. Proper mask, hand gloves are to be used to avoid contact of those pesticides otherwise it can be harmful. Ministry of agriculture- All India Network Project on Pesticide Residues- Every year they test more than 16000 samples of various food products and in 2% samples residue is found above the limits. In India, Minimum Residue Limit (MRL) is not a big problem other than Europe which has higher MRL. Pesticides are poisonous, but same time they are helping in our food security. Dr. Norman borlough said that when India’s population was 60 crore, only 40 crore people could be fed with existing technologies used in agriculture. So new tools of technology has to be used but scientifically and with right information about their right use. Stakeholders’ responsibility As long as companies are making profits out of it, they are not going to evolve. All the stakeholders have a key role- NITI ayog has a serious role in this issue as to laying down guidelines for proper use of fertilisers. Education campaign can happen across the farming community as to how to apply pesticides. The corporates have a larger stake as they are doing business and get profit out of it. They should invest the part of profit to educate the farmers about the right use of fertilisers. For example, Bio stimulants, bio fertilisers, bio pesticides have been tried in fields. The parliamentary standing committee has recommended setting up a pesticide authority to understand the issue of chemical pesticides. These are some of the ideas which need to be concretised to move forward without damaging food security. There should be a balance in short term and in long run there should be some kind of alternative. In the western world, chemical pesticides is not allowed to be used haphazardly. There is need of comprehensive policy. Education of farmers about the hazards of using chemicals is needed- Some of the farmers are not in position to buy safety equipment while using the pesticides. They need to be helped with subsidized equipment or cooperatives providing them on rent whenever they need it. Between producers of pesticides and fertilisers and users, there are dealers. These dealers do not have technical knowledge of chemicals nor of agriculture. The license for sale of these pesticides and insectoids should be given to people who have knowledge of these things. A case was made that license should be given to people who are graduates in Bsc agriculture but then there aren’t so many trained agriculturalists graduates. So then the private persons were also allowed to have the license but with training by ICARI. It is even sold by unregistered dealers and quacks. When it comes to plants and agriculture, Indians are not that sensitive. The cost of this kind of neglect is becoming heavy. With little knowledge, more harm is being made to the agriculture. Hence, now it should be obligatory for part of sellers to give required instruction to buyer, the farmer. The incidence of deadly diseases is on rise. It is not affordable to ignore it. There is responsibility of sellers as well as farmers. There is corporate law which says that 2% of profit should go into CSR. The industry can come with a plan which is for educating the farmer. Way forward Every life is important and shouldn’t be lost due to pesticide usage. Ministry of agriculture has designed a course on dealer extension education programme. More universities should use this course. Government has these Krishi Vigyan Kendras whose major role is to drive the technology and give training to dealers and farmers. But unfortunately, this system has not been very effective. In 2009, agriculture budget said that agricultural extension system has collapsed and there is need for alternate. Yet, no alternate came. Private industry is doing lot, but in a country where 14 crore farmers are there and more than 6 lakh villages, it is herculean task for individual to reach all farmers. Until all resources are put together and work in planned manner, that each farmer and dealer should be educated, there might not be effective change. Organic farming- complete replacement cannot happen in short span of time. Organic agriculture is another extreme of chemical agriculture and if moved into extremes, there is going to be problem. The need is to find how to reduce the chemical to the minimum and how to reduce chemical effect. Some examples are Intercropping, Bio pesticide and Integrated pest management. Also, phasing out of outdated chemicals like DDT should take place as soon as possible. Bring down cost of organic farming and bringing about a balance between use of various farm nutrients shall help in long run. Connecting the dots: Chemical usage in farms is harmful but is essential now. Critically analyse the pros and cons of chemical use in farming.
IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs – 9th Nov 2017 Archives NATIONAL TOPIC: General Studies 1: Poverty and developmental issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies General Studies 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. General Studies 3: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment Building Climate-Smart Cities Introduction: According to UN-Habitat’s estimates, over 64 per cent of the world population is expected to reside in cities by 2050. Cities consume enormous resources. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates that urban infrastructure accounts for two-third of the global energy use and 70 per cent of energy related Green House Gas (GHG) emissions. By 2025 megacities of 10 million or more people will house more than half the world’s population and contribute more than half of global GDP. Indian context: As India’s urban population grows from 410 million in 2014 to 814 million in 2050, with about 7 cities having more than 10 million people, there will be rise in energy consumption, degradation of forest areas and agricultural land and disturbed ecosystems, problems of water supply and solid waste management. This will be accentuated by growing risks of climate vulnerability (frequent floods, cyclones, extreme temperature and heat waves) disrupting city lives and affecting the poor who typically lack adequate resources and safeguards to fight such stresses. Lot to lose: The scale of such damages enormous- the 2011 Bangkok flood caused damages of $45 billion to the global supply chain of which only 10 billion was insured. Swiss Re, a reinsurer estimated that of the $50 billion or so losses to floods, cyclones and other disasters in Asia in 2014, only 8 per cent were covered. This provides an opportunity for cities to lead the world towards a sustainable future by becoming resilient and climate-smart and, ‘leap-frogging’ the inefficient and resource-intensive systems of the past. Climate-smart transformation: It needs set of city-specific strategies to systematically reduce city’s carbon footprint and enhance resilience to climate change through smart, affordable and, resilient infrastructure, and mixed form of adaptable land-use. Cities can use ‘predictive models’ to assess the potential risks of climate vulnerabilities (erratic rainfalls, flood, high temperature) and, monetise those risks to account for additional financial and social costs for building safeguards. Decoupling city’s economic growth from the growth of GHG emissions: Each city should have a clearly defined ‘low carbon pathway’, a series of interventions like Integrated solid waste management (ISWM). Energy efficient energy/ water supply. Harnessing rooftop solar and battery storage. Green urban mobility (including electric mobility, public and, non-motorised transport). Green and affordable building infrastructure. Smart grids. Financing climate-smart cities: Needs innovative solutions. The ability of cities to finance urban infrastructure largely depends on their budgets, revenue sources and creditworthiness. Issue: The perceived lack of creditworthiness (among 500 largest emerging market cities, only 4 per cent are creditworthy) for most cities in India becomes a critical barrier to secure affordable financing on international market or issue bonds to fund climate projects. Way out: Credit enhancement facilities such as, Guarantee Fund can help cities to overcome such barrier and raise funds by issuing bonds, etc. An effective way to catalyse private investment in urban projects is to mobilise credits through local financial institutions (LFIs). These are better positioned to assess and manage the risks inherent to the local authorities and, mobilise medium and, long-term financing in local currencies, thus eliminating the forex risk. To attract investments, cities should develop a pipeline of ‘bankable’ projects that meet broad feasibility parameters. Project preparation is expensive, typically accounts for 5-10 per cent of the project cost, and, most cities lack capacity for conducting feasibility, design and, financial structuring of the projects. Development partners and multilateral banks, equipped with global best-practices, can step in to support cities in setting project selection criteria to favour climate-smart infrastructure, laying right indicators for monitoring sustainability, and building technical and financial capacity of city officials to mainstream climate goals in planning, designing, operations and maintenance of the city. Conclusion: Transformative change is needed in how we build our cities, transport people and goods, and manage our landscapes. The need is urgent; the time-frame for making the choice is critical due to lock-in effect of capital and technology. The challenge is not simply to increase the volume of funding in the pipeline, but also to create an enabling environment to catalyse new finance flow from a broad spectrum of investors — public or private. Connecting the dots: Transforming cities into climate-smart ones is the need of the hour. Discuss. Also elaborate on ways Indian states can be made so. NATIONAL TOPIC: General Studies 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources. General Studies 1: Social empowerment Population and associated issues, poverty and developmental issues Focusing on improving nutrition Background: Many people are not eating the right food. For some, it’s simply a decision to stick with food they enjoy, but which isn’t too healthy. This is leading to an increase in non-communicable diseases. This in turn leads to major burdens on our health-care systems that have the potential to derail the economic progress that is essential for the poor to improve their lives. For others, it’s about limited access to nutritious foods or a lack of affordability, leading to monotonous diets that do not provide the daily nutrients for them to develop fully. Diets are changing, but not always for the better. Part of the reason nutrition is under threat worldwide is that our food systems are not properly responding to nutritional needs. In other words, somewhere along that long road from farm to fork, the movement is not smooth. Global efforts: There is now a major international effort to improve global food systems and link those improvements to better nutrition and diets. Last year, in Rome, the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN (FAO) and the World Health Organisation convened an International Symposium on Sustainable Food Systems for Healthy Diets and Improved Nutrition. It was a follow-up to the Second International Conference on Nutrition in 2014. These conferences are placing nutrition at the centre of the debate on improving our food systems because while improving nutrition is a personal responsibility, it also depends on how policies are framed. Way out: The vast majority of the food we eat is produced by smallholder farmers, many of whom are poor and undernourished themselves. Improvements to food systems must be achieved in ways that benefit their livelihood and nutritional needs. The Sustainable Development Goals have a target that recognises that smallholders provide a critical entry point for building dynamic rural economies and they need to be resourced with inputs and technology and linked to higher market value. Bringing together the key players in the food system- the people who grow our food, and the people who transport it, process it, market it and sell it-for policy making. This would facilitate informed decision. Conclusion: We must place nutrition at the centre of the debate on improving our food systems. We must all work together to equip our food systems to produce and deliver more nutritious food. Only then can the goal of achieving zero hunger be realised. Connecting the dots: There exists a serious disconnect between farm to folk resulting into poor nutritional status of most of the Indians. Analyze. MUST READ The great reset a year later The Hindu Right to privacy as right to life The Hindu Informal is normal The Hindu General speaks too much Indian Express Growth minus development Indian Express Not for the nation Indian Express Don't treat Big Tech as the enemy Livemint Asia's maritime quad might prove elusive Livemint Doklam dispute is far from settled Business Line
Friends, Here we are with the OCTOBER 2017, edition of Yojana and Kurukshetra. Yojana/Kurukshetra: OCTOBER 2017- Download
UPSC Quiz- 2017 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz [Day 77] Archives Q.1) Consider the following statements about ‘Kambala’ It is prevalent in all the Southern States It is similar to Spanish-style bullfighting Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.2) Consider the following statements about Anemia It is a condition when blood lacks enough haemoglobin It caused by decreased or faulty red blood cell production & destruction of red blood cells Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.3) The WTO was born out of negotiations in which round of the GATT? Geneva Round Torquay Round Uruguay Round Tokyo Round Q.4) A trade bloc is a Non-tariff barrier Tariff barrier Reason for protectionism Group of countries that have agreed to remove all trade barriers among themselves Q.5) Mansabdari System introduced by Akbar was borrowed from the system followed in Papal States Afghanistan Turkey Mongolia To Download the Solution – Click here All The Best IASbaba
Hello Friends, On the eve of over 4 lakhs subscribers, IASbaba is delighted to introduce our new website to all our family members. In life, change is inevitable and IASbaba being part of lakhs of aspirants have understood the need for such a change to serve you in more qualitative ways. The success of IASbaba is attributed to the whole community of aspirants preparing for UPSC. Catering to lakhs of aspirants and getting half the total ranks in Top 10 would never have been possible without the faith and trust bestowed on us. IASbaba has become synonymous with quality UPSC preparation. Quality triumphs over quantity! This is possible because of the pedigree, passion and quality of our team which is perhaps unparalleled. Over 4 lakhs subscribers stand testimony to it with hundreds of Rank holders from IASbaba's flagship programs Integrated Learning Programme (ILP) and Think Learn & Perform (TLP) Mains Answer Writing! We hope this association grows multifold and witness hundreds of such success stories in coming years. We hope the newness will provide more qualitative and enjoyable learning experience for each one of you :) Do share your views and feedback in the comment section! Thank You IASbaba Team
Hello Friends, It is cliche to say that UPSC is unpredictable. Of course, it is! Everyone knows that. But what unpredictability are we talking about? Is it about the pattern? Well, that changes every now and then. In fact, this aspect of UPSC has become predictable of sorts! The fact of the matter is that pattern, questions, word limit etc do change every year but that dear friends is not unpredictability. What is really unpredictable is the demand of UPSC. What exactly does UPSC want from an aspirant? Should an aspirant have critical thinking or must she possess the attributes of an honest civil servant? Should the candidates have the ability to memorise and reproduce information or should they be able to think and create a response at will? Does UPSC want to check your knowledge or does it only want to test your integrity? Being the ardent UPSC aspirants you are, the obvious response from you would be a mix of all the above! Isn’t it? But is that the case? We at IASbaba think differently. We believe that UPSC just wants to see your ability to adapt. How exactly do you respond to unlikely and difficult situations? How do you tackle a tricky scenario? How do you think vis a vis others in similar conditions posed with same problems? At the end of the day, what UPSC does is a comparative analysis of your performance. Even if you score less marks in paper 4 but somehow manage to sneak into the top 1000, UPSC can’t reject you. Is there a pre-decided cut-off in Mains or interview? No. There isn’t. So ultimately everything boils down to your ability to adapt better than others. You just have to be the least stupid candidate (don’t get offended by the choice of word). There is no absolute measurement of your performance. Its all about the way you respond to a change, the way you change your approach and the way you sync your mind, heart and soul to the demand of UPSC every year. But after all, its easier said than done. How does one adapt? What are the tools that can help one guide in changed conditions? Well, the answer lies in the game of Cricket. Of all the great Indian batsmen, the one who stands tall and garners respect from all the quarters is Rahul Dravid. While Sachin was a genius, Dravid was a fighter. He had this uncanny ability to adapt to any condition and perform despite all the odds. He could tackle spin in a dustbowl and overcome swing on a seaming wicket not only in India but anywhere in the world. That made him great. He once took 40 deliveries to open his account against Australia! That is the mark of his temperament and perseverance. People used to joke that he should be made the defence minister keeping in mind his superb defence! But then he tasted success everywhere making him the most successful player in overseas conditions. He adapted with ease and adapted to win. UPSC wants that from you also. In a traditional community that civil service aspirants belong to, the ability to transform has vanished. From thinking individuals of yesterday, aspirants have turned into internet scholars who can search, research and discover any information but hardly possess the ability to analyse them. That’s the sad truth. You have started to prepare according to the pattern (which changes almost every year) whereas your preparation should be pattern proof. Questions, marks, word limit etc are nothing but a means to check your knowledge. You should focus on getting that knowledge and not bother about the pattern much. You should also have the temperament to be defensive in a hostile scenario. GS Paper I was difficult this year and that must have led to three sets of people. The first would have filled the sheets irrespective of their lack of information and felt satisfied. The second would have left the difficult ones and started thinking about their next attempt already. The third set of aspirants are those who must have ducked the difficult ones and given their 100% to the ones that they knew. After coming out from the examination hall, they would have started to think about the next paper not worrying about the previous one. See the difference here. Even though the performance of the third set of aspirants would be poor by absolute standards, it would be better than the other two. Why? Simply because they could adapt. They could manage the temptation to attempt the unknown questions. They were clinical in their approach, just like Dravid. This examination is such that it requires peace of mind and the commitment to adapt to any situation. Read and think later. Think and contemplate later. Contemplate and evolve later. Evolve and execute later. Execute and succeed finally. That’s the mantra of success in UPSC. Many aspirants preparing for 2018 have enquired about How IASbaba was helpful for this year's Mains. Here is a brief description that will surely boost your confidence to prepare with us in coming days. Note that we have not added ILP and Offline part here since not everyone can access its content PAPER 4 Q 1. Conflict of interest in the public sector arises when (a) official duties, (b) public interest, and (c) personal interest are taking priority one above the other. How can this conflict in administration be resolved? Describe with an example. (150 Words, 10) IASbaba's Refrences: If you qualify the Civil Services Examination, you will get the opportunity to work as an administrator in public life. You will have many duties to perform, and very often you might be faced with ethical dilemmas. In the context of the scenario explained herein, do you have a role model to follow? Which famous philosopher/ leader/ administrator you would derive inspiration from? Why? Will you conduct yourself in an ethical manner even if the consequences of your actions are against national interests? Substantiate your response by taking an example. Q 2. Examine the relevance of the following in the context of civil service: (150 Words, 10) (a) Transparency “A lack of transparency results in distrust and a deep sense of insecurity.” Examine the statement in the context of governance in India. (b) Accountability Accountability is the glue that ties commitment to results. Do you agree? Discuss by giving examples. (c) Fairness and justice Why are values like impartiality, non-partisanship and objectivity fundamental to the civil services? Why can’t a civil servant discharge his duties without having these values? Substantiate by taking an example. (d) Courage of conviction (e) Spirit of service What imparts the characteristics of ‘services’ to civil services in India? Examine with the help of suitable examples. Q3. Young people with ethical conduct are not willing to come forward to join active politics. Suggest steps to motivate them to come forward. (150 Words, 10) Discuss the ideas of Swami Vivekanand about youth and patriotism. How relevant are his ideas today? Analyse. Q4. (a) One of the tests of integrity is complete refusal to be compromised. Explain with reference to a real-life example. (150 Words, 10) There is a general perception that people with impeccable integrity can’t survive long in the public services. What is your assessment of this perception? Substantiate. Lack of high pay packages and perks is often given as a justification for illegal gratification. Is it against the very concept of public service? Examine. How do you convince a constable to remain honest in a salary that might be grossly inadequate to fulfill even his basic needs? (b) Corporate social responsibility makes companies more profitable and sustainable. Analyse. (150 Words, 10) What do you understand by the principle of trusteeship? What significance does it hold today? Financial institutions, the corporate world and civil society - all must uphold high standards of probity in their working. Only a genuine partnership between the Government and its people can bring about positive change to create a just society. Q5. (a) “Great ambition is the passion of a great character. Those endowed with it may perform very good or very bad acts. All depends on the principles which direct them.” – Napoleon Bonaparte. Stating examples mention the rulers (i) who have harmed society and country, (ii) who worked for the development of society and country. (150 Words, 10) Today success is valued by the height of one’s achievements. It puts a lot of pressure on individuals. Everyone appears to be fiercely competitive to outperform each other to become successful in the eyes of the society. In this context, how relevant is the quote provided below? (b) “If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. they are father, the mother and the teacher.” – A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. Analyse. (150 Words, 10) \ “If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher.” Comment on this famous quote by Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. Q6. (a) How will you apply emotional intelligence in administrative practices? (150 Words, 10) Why should an administrator have emotionally balanced mind? Examine. Also, give suitable examples to illustrate your point of view. (b) Strength, peace and security are considered to be the pillars of international relations. Elucidate. (150 Words, 10) Q7. (a) The crisis of ethical values in modern times is traced to a narrow perception of the good life. Discuss. (150 Words, 10) Lack of high pay packages and perks is often given as a justification for illegal gratification. Is it against the very concept of public service? Examine. How do you convince a constable to remain honest in a salary that might be grossly inadequate to fulfill even his basic needs? (b) Increased national wealth did not result in equitable distribution of its benefits. It has created only some “enclaves of modernity and prosperity for a small minority at the cost of the majority.” Justify. (150 Words, 10) Social values are more important than economic values. Discuss the above statement with examples in the context of inclusive growth of a nation. Q8. (a) Discipline generally implies following the order and subordination. However, it may be counter-productive for the organisation. Discuss. (150 Words, 10) Why is it important to have a healthy work culture in an organisation? Do you think government organisations usually lack a healthy work environment? Examine. Government departments need to reinvent themselves with respect to their work culture. Do you agree? Will it have any effect on delivery of public services rendered by the departments. (b) Without commonly shared and widely entrenched moral values and obligations, neither the law, nor democratic government, nor even the market economy will function properly. What do you understand by this statement? Explain with illustration in the contemporary times. (150 Words, 10) If you are given an opportunity to lead a government initiative, how would you balance between bureaucratic compulsions that lead to delays and urgent needs of the poor requiring immediate attention? Discuss. The Indian constitution has set high moral standards for public life. Do you agree? Substantiate. SECTION – B Q9. You are an honest and responsible civil servant. You often observe the following: (a) There is a general perception that adhering to ethical conduct one may face difficulties to oneself and cause problems for the family, whereas unfair practices may help to reach the career goals. (b) When the number of people adopting unfair means is large, a small minority having a penchant towards ethical means makes no difference. (c) Sticking to ethical means is detrimental to the larger developmental goals (d) While one may not involve oneself in large unethical practices, but giving and accepting small gifts makes the system more efficient. Examine the above statements with their merits and demerits. (250 Words, 20) Means are as important as ends in ethics. Do you agree? Elucidate. There is a general perception that people with impeccable integrity can’t survive long in the public services. What is your assessment of this perception? Substantiate. The salary and perks of civil servants are not commensurate with the amount of work and responsibilities that they are burdened with. Do you think the concept of ‘public service’ needs a relook in this regard? Examine. Q10. You are aspiring to become an IAS officer and you have cleared various stages and now you have been selected for the personal interview. On the day of the interview, on the way to the venue you saw an accident where a mother and child who happen to be your relatives were badly injured. They needed immediate help. What would you have done in such a situation? Justify your action. (250 Words, 20) Q11. You are the head of the Human Resources department of an organisation. One day one of the workers died on duty. His family was demanding compensation. However, the company denied compensation because it was revealed in investigation that he was drunk at the time of the accident. The workers of the company went to strike demanding compensation for the family of the deceased. The Chairman of the management board has asked for your recommendation. What recommendation would you provide the management? Discuss the merits and demerits of each of the recommendations. (250 Words, 20) Q12. You are the manager of a spare parts company A and you have to negotiate a deal with the manager of a large manufacturing company B. The deal is highly competitive and sealing the deal is critical for your company. The deal is being worked out over a dinner. After dinner the manager of manufacturing company B offered to drop you to the hotel in his car. On the way to hotel he happens to hit motorcycle injuring the motorcyclist badly. You know the manager was driving fast and thus lost control. The law enforcement officer comes to investigate the issue and you are the sole eyewitness to it. Knowing the strict laws pertaining to road accidents you are aware that your honest account of the incident would lead to the prosecution of the manager and as a consequence the deal is likely to be jeopardised, which is of immense importance to your company. What are the dilemmas you face? What will be your response to the situation? (250 Words, 20) Q13. A building permitted for three floors, while being extended illegally to 6 floors by a builder, collapses. As a consequence, a number of innocent labourers including women and children died. These labourers are migrants of different places. The government immediately announced cash relief to the aggrieved families and arrested the builder. Give reasons for such incidents taking place across the country. Suggest measures to prevent their occurrence. (250 Words, 20) Q14. You are a Public Information Officer (PIO) in a government department. You are aware that the RTI Act 2005 envisages transparency and accountability in administration. The act has functioned as a check on the supposedly arbitrarily administrative behaviour and actions. However, as a PIO you have observed that there are citizens who filed RTI applications not for themselves but on behalf of such stakeholders who purportedly want to have access to information to further their own interests. At the same time there are these RTI activists who routinely file RTI applications and attempt to extort money from the decision makers. This type of RTI activism has affected the functioning of the administration adversely and also possibly jeopardises the genuineness of the applications which are essentially aimed at getting justice. What measures would you suggest to separate genuine and non-genuine applications? Give merits and demerits of your suggestions. (250 Words, 20) The most important instrument of social empowerment is the Right to Information (RTI). Do you agree? Also discuss the significance of transparency in governance. PAPER 3 Q.1 Among several factors for India’s potential growth, the savings rate is the most effective one. Do you agree? What are the other factors available for growth potential? (150 words, 10 marks) IASbaba's Refrences: Why having a healthy savings rate is essential for a developing economy. Where does India stand on this front? Examine. Hope for higher India economic growth Inclusive growth: Indispensable to reach India’s full economic potential Mind-map-Potential Growth Slowdown Q.2 Account for the failure of the manufacturing sector in achieving the goal of labour-intensive exports rather than capital-intensive exports. Suggest measures for more labour-intensive rather than capital-intensive exports. (150 words, 10 marks) The labour market ecosystem in India has witnessed many structural changes that include- increasing use of contract labour, competitive federalism and relocation of labour-intensive manufacturing to smaller cities. Can these changes ensure the growth of productive employment in the economy? Evaluate. A new industrial policy is in process Creating Jobs Q.3 Examine the developments of Airports in India through Joint Ventures under Public-Private Partnership(PPP) model. What are the challenges faced by the authorities in this regard? (150 words, 10 marks) What are the highlights of the new civil aviation policy? Why was this policy the needed? Discuss. Discuss the significance of small airports in India. How they can become engines of growth for the economy? Discuss. Q.4 Explain various types of revolutions, took place in Agriculture after Independence in India. How have these revolutions helped in poverty alleviation and food security in India? (150 words, 10 marks) Green revolution: as root cause of crisis Examine the factors behind the ongoing agrarian crisis in India. What can be its remedy? Discuss. Q.5 What are the reasons for poor acceptance of cost-effective small processing unit? How will the food processing unit be helpful to uplift the socio-economic status of poor farmers? (150 words, 10 marks) The food processing sector in India has got immense potential and the government has taken many initiatives to tap the same. In this light, examine the need, objective and significance of the SAMPAN scheme for the food processing industry in India. What are the demand drivers for the food processing industry in India? Also, discuss the present set of challenges being faced by the industry. Mindmap- Food Processing Q.6 Stem cell therapy is gaining popularity in India to treat a wide variety of medical conditions including leukaemia, Thalassemia, damaged cornea and several burns. Describe briefly what stem cell therapy is and what advantages it has over other treatments? (150 words, 10 marks) Q.7 India has achieved remarkable successes in unmanned space missions including the Chandrayaan and Mars Orbiter Mission, but has not ventured into manned space mission, both in terms of technology and logistics? Explain critically. (150 words, 10 marks) Discuss India’s recent advances on the space front. Should commercialization of India’s space programme be promoted? Give your views. Q.8 Not many years ago, river linking was a concept but it is becoming reality in the country. Discuss the advantages of river linking and its possible impact on the environment. (150 words, 10 marks) Before implementing the proposed River Interlinking Project, a sound scientific and technical assessment needs to be undertaken to make it techno-economically feasible. Comment Rethinking on River-Linking Project Rethinking on Interlinking of rivers- Part II Q.9 Discuss the potential threats of Cyberattack and the security framework to prevent it. (150 words, 10 marks) The cybersecurity ecosystem in the country requires to be more robust and agile in order to realise the objectives of Digital India. In view of the statement, examine the necessity of having a National Encryption Policy. What has been the recent controversy over the draft National Encryption Policy? Examine the need to review India’s National Security Cyber Policy 2013 in light of the emerging cyber security challenges. Making Indian companies cybersecure Mindmap- Cyber Security Q.10 The north-eastern region of India has been infested with insurgency for a very long time. Analyze the major reasons for the survival of armed insurgency in this region. (150 words, 10 marks) Discuss the reasons behind the ongoing crisis in Nagaland. Why does North East India remain a theatre of political crisis even after 70 years of independence? Analyse. Analyse the security challenges associated with Indo-Myanmar border Q.11 One of intended objectives of the Union Budget 2017-18 is to transform, energise and clean India’. Analyse the measure proposed in the Budget 2017-18 to achieve the objective. (15 Marks) Budget 2017-18 and agriculture- The ‘Transform, Energise and Clean India’ TEC agenda of budget may seem like a new term but is, in fact, a continuation of various earlier initiatives of the Government. What budgeting reforms have been taken in the latest budget? Discuss. Q.12 “Industrial growth rate has lagged-behind in the overall growth of Gross-Domestic-product (GDP) in the post-reform period.” Give reasons. How far the recent changes in Industrial-policy are capable of increasing the industrial growth rate? (15 Marks) Recalibrating Industrial Policy A new industrial policy is in process Framing of A New Industrial Policy Redefining MSMEs Q.13 What are the salient features of inclusive growth? Has India been experiencing such a growth process? Analyse and suggest measures for inclusive growth. (15 Marks) What is inclusive growth? Explain. Also comment on the Government schemes which intend to bridge the inclusion gap. Social values are more important than economic values. Discuss the above statement with examples in the context of the inclusive growth of a nation. Q.14 What are the major reasons for declining rice and wheat yield in the cropping system? How crop diversification is helpful to stablise the yield of the crops in the system? (15 Marks) India being an agrarian country is suffering from Agricultural pollution. How is agriculture responsible for degradation of land, air and water? What measures can be taken to reduce it? Solving the issue of burning crop residue Q.15 How do subsidies affect the cropping pattern, crop diversity and economy of farmers? What is the significance of the crop insurance, minimum support price and food processing for small and marginal farmers? (15 Marks) How will the new crop insurance benefit the farmer Critically analyse Centre’s crop insurance schemes, their performance and further scope for improvement. Centre’s Approval on Interest Subsidy to Farmers Agricultural subsidies not only distort the market but also have serious implications for the environment. Examine. Focussing on marginal farmers Farmers’ Agitation: Reasons, Solutions Food Processing What are the demand drivers for the food processing industry in India? Also discuss the present set of challenges being faced by the industry. Q.16 Give an account of the growth and development of nuclear science and technology in India. What is the advantages of fast breeder reactor programme in India? (15 Marks) Q.17 ‘Climate change’ is a global problem. How India will be affected by climate change? How Himalayan and coastal states of India will be affected by climate change? (15 Marks) The Big Picture – Climate Change and Pollution Fight against climate change Q.18 On December 2004, tsunami brought havoc on fourteen countries including India. Discuss the factor responsible for occurrence of tsunami and its effects on life and economy. In the light of guidelines of NDMA (2010) describe the mechanisms for preparedness to reduce the risk during such events. (15 Marks) What triggers a tsunami? Discuss at least four factors that lead to tsunami-genesis. Also explain the effects of tsunami in the coastal regions. All India Radio – Progress Made in Early Tsunami Warning System in India Q.19 Mob violence is emerging as a serious law and order problem in India. By giving suitable example, analyze the causes and consequences of such violence. (15 Marks) Framing an anti-lynching law Lynching/Mob violence: Article 21 at stake There is a thin line between collective bargaining and mob extortion. Examine the given statement in the light of the role played by pressure groups in India. Q.20 The scourge of terrorism is a grave challenge to national security. What solutions do you suggest to curb this growing menace? What are the major sources of terrorist funding? (15 Marks) What are the sources of terror financing? Examine the nexus between terrorism and organised crime. What steps have been taken to stifle terror financing in India? Discuss. What is ‘state sponsored terrorism’? Give suitable examples. Is India a victim of this type of terrorism? Substantiate. Youth radicalization in Kashmir valley is a serious national security threat. Comment Terrorism has changed in reach, scale and methodologies, thereby exacerbating its threat. Comment. PAPER 2 Q.1 “The local self-government system in India has not proved to be an effective instrument of governance”. Critically examine the statement and give your views to improve the situation. (150 words) Q.2 Critically examine the Supreme Court’s judgement on ‘National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014’ with reference to the appointment of judges of higher judiciary in India. (150 words) IASbaba's Refrences: Collegium System – Past and Present The Big Picture – Judicial Appointments- Why is it Still Eluding Solution? Q.3 ‘Simultaneous election to the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies will limit the amount of time and money spent in electioneering but it will reduce the government’s accountability to the people’ Discuss. (150 words) The Big Picture – Simultaneous Elections: Is it Legally and Practically Possible? Recently, the Prime Minister suggested holding of simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections all over the country. Do you think its a good idea? What are its pros and cons? Discuss. Mind Map- Feasibility of Simultaneous Polls-I Mind Map- Feasibility of Simultaneous Polls-II Q.4 How do pressure groups influence Indian political process? Do you agree with this view that informal pressure groups have emerged as powerful than formal pressure groups in recent years? (150 words) Pressure groups and their roles in a democracy are not always unharmful. Do you agree? What are the fallouts of having notorious pressure groups in a democratic polity? Examine with the help of suitable examples. The nature and role of pressure groups have changed in the last decade. Do you agree? Substantiate. Q.5 Discuss the role of Public Accounts Committee in establishing accountability of the government to the people. (150 words) In a recent move, Public Account Committee (PAC) had intended for bringing about a legislative change to make the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) accountable to the Parliament. Critically examine the consequences if this decision is carried out in India. Q.6 ‘To ensure effective implementation of policies addressing water, sanitation and hygiene needs, the identification of beneficiary segments is to be synchronized with the anticipated outcomes’ Examine the statement in the context of the WASH scheme. (150 words) Bottlenecks in Policy Implementation and Formulation – Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Q.7 Does the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 ensure an effective mechanism for empowerment and inclusion of the intended beneficiaries in the society? Discuss (150 words) Right of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2016- An overview Disability-inclusive development and digital push Q.8 Hunger and Poverty are the biggest challenges for good governance in India still today. Evaluate how far successive governments have progressed in dealing with these humongous problems. Suggest measures for improvement. (150 words) Mind Map- Global Hunger Index Tackling hunger in India All India Radio – India in Global Hunger Index What is hidden hunger? What steps have been taken to address it? Discuss. RSTV- The Big Picture: Eradication of Poverty: What Steps need to be taken to Achieve this Goal? Q.9 ‘China is using its economic relations and positive trade surplus as tools to develop potential military power status in Asia’, In the light of this statement, discuss its impact on India as her neighbour. (150 words) RSTV- The Big Picture: Should India Recalibrate its China Policy? Checking China’s inroads in South Asia Q.10 What are the main functions of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)? Explain different functional commissions attached to it. (150 words) Q.11 Explain the salient features of the Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016. Do you think it is efficacious enough ‘to remove cascading effect of taxes and provide for a common national market for goods and services’? (250 words) Discuss the advantages of GST. How does GST help in unifying the market in the country? Explain All India Radio (AIR): GST- Integrated Tax Reforms Q.12 Examine the scope of Fundamental Rights in the light of the latest judgement of the Supreme Court on Right to Privacy. (250 words) The right to privacy has been declared as a fundamental right by a 9 judge bench of Supreme Court. What implications will this judgement have on India’s data security regime? Examine Mind Map- Right to Privacy RSTV- The Big Picture: SC Ruling on Privacy: Implications Q.13 The Indian Constitution has provisions for holding a joint session of the two houses of the Parliament. Enumerate the occasions when this would normally happen and also the occasions when it cannot, with reasons thereof. (250 words) Q.14 To enhance the quality of democracy in India the Election Commission of India has proposed electoral reforms in 2016. What are the suggested reforms and how far are they significant to make democracy successful? (250 words) Mind Map- Electoral Reforms Certain electoral reforms were introduced by Budget, 2017. Comment on their features, suitability and adequacy in India’s current democratic context. Q.15 Is the National Commission for Women able to strategize and tackle the problems that women face at both public and private spheres? Give reasons in support of your answer. (250 words) Q.16 ‘The emergence of Self Help Groups (SHGs) in contemporary times points to the slow but steady withdrawal of the state from developmental activities’. Examine the role of the SHGs in developmental activities and the measures taken by the Government of India to promote the SHGs. (250 words) SHGs in India are the living embodiment of a concept that has led to women empowerment. However, the success stories are few and far in between. Do you agree? Do you think the successful models of SHGs should be adopted on a much wider scale? What are the constraints? In the quest for financial inclusion, SHGs have played a prominent role in India. Examine the guiding principles of the working of SHGs in the area of financial inclusion. Q.17 ‘Poverty Alleviation Programmes in India remain mere show pieces until and unless they are backed by political will’. Discuss with reference to the performance of the major poverty alleviation programmes in India. (250 words) RSTV- The Big Picture: Eradication of Poverty: What Steps need to be taken to Achieve this Goal? Universal Basic Income: is it coming to India? Q.18 Initially, Civil Services in India were designed to achieve the goals of neutrality and effectiveness, which seems to be lacking in the present context. Do you agree with the view that drastic reforms are required in Civil Services? Comment (250 words) Lateral entry into the civil services is a step in the right direction. However, the rigid bureaucratic superstructure of India needs overhauling before such entry is allowed. Comment. Civil Services Reforms Q.19 The question of India’s Energy Security constitutes the most important part of India’s economic progress. Analyze India’s energy policy cooperation with West Asian Countries. (250 words) The structural change in the global energy market has contributed to the changing paradigm of West Asian strategic thinking. Discuss. In this light, examine the approach that India has adopted to cultivate ties with this region of the world. India’s Energy Transformation Nuclear deal with Iran: In question Understanding 2107 Qatar diplomatic crisis- Important point under Energy Security of India Q.20 Indian Diaspora has an important role to play in South-East Asian countries’ economy and society. Appraise the role of Indian Diaspora in South- East Asia in this context (250 words) Is diaspora important? Substantiate by taking suitable examples. The recent visits of the PM abroad have indicated a more inclusive policy for the Indian Diaspora. Analyze the role of the Indian Diaspora in India’s soft power diplomacy. PAPER 1 Q.1 How do you justify the view that the level of excellence of the Gupta numismatic art is not at all noticeable in later times? (150 words, 10 marks) Q.2 Clarify how mid-eighteenth century India was beset with the spectre of a fragmented polity. (150 words, 10 marks) IASbaba's Refrences: The economic life in 18th century India had imprints of the contemporary political scenario of the country. Examine. Q.3 Why did the ‘Moderates’ fail to carry conviction with the nation about their proclaimed ideology and political goals by the end of the nineteenth century? (150 words, 10 marks) Why the nationalist movement during 1885 to 1905 is branded as the moderate phase? Discuss. Did the moderate phase achieve any success? Critically examine. Q.4 What problems are germane to the decolonization process in the Malay Peninsula? (150 words, 10 marks) Q.5 How does the Juno Mission of NASA help to understand the origin and evolution of the Earth? (150 words, 10 marks) Q.6 “In spite of adverse environmental impact, coal mining is still inevitable for development”. Discuss (150 words, 10 marks) Discuss the significance of coal as an energy resource. What reforms are needed to cure the ailing coal sector? Opencast mining poses serious threats to the river ecosystem and other hydrological bodies. Do you agree? Substantiate by taking at least two case studies from India Q.7 Mention the advantages of the cultivation of pulses because of which the year 2016 was declared as the International Year of Pulses by United Nations. (150 words, 10 marks) Q.8 How does the cryosphere affect global climate? (150 words, 10 marks) Discuss the significance of polar ice caps. Why are they receding? What would be its consequences? Examine Melting of Arctic and Antarctic ice caps Q.9 In the context of the diversity of India, can it be said that the regions form cultural units rather than the States? Give reasons with examples for your viewpoint. (150 words, 10 marks) Regionalism has various strands in India. Do you agree? Substantiate by giving suitable examples. Regionalism in the Indian context hasn’t necessarily been a bad experience. Critically comment. Q.10 What are the two major legal initiatives by the State since Independence addressing discrimination against Scheduled Tribes(STs)? (150 words, 10 marks) Protecting the Tribal Rights Tribal rights can’t be pushed aside in the name of development. What do you understand by ‘tribal rights’? From where do these rights come? Why they need to be protected? Elaborate. National Commission for Scheduled Tribes and National Commission for Scheduled Caste Q.11 The spirit of tolerance and love is not only an interesting feature of Indian society from very early times, but it is also playing an important part at the present. Elaborate. (250 words, 15 marks) Tolerance as a duty Q.12 Examine how the decline of traditional artisanal industry in colonial India crippled the rural economy. (250 words, 15 marks) The process of industrialization in Europe and that of deindustrialization in India were two faces of the same coin. Elucidate Q.13 Highlight the importance of the new objectives that got added to the vision of Indian Independence since the twenties of the last century. (250 words, 15 marks) Q.14 Account for variations in oceanic salinity and discuss its multi-dimensional effects. (250 words, 15 marks) Q.15 Petroleum refineries are not necessarily located nearer to crude oil producing areas, particularly in many of the developing countries. Explain its implications. (250 words, 15 marks) Q.16 In what way can floods be converted into a sustainable source of irrigation and all-weather inland navigation in India? (250 words, 15 marks) Shifting focus from flood protection to flood governance Flood Protection to Flood Governance- Part II Q.17 What characteristics can be assigned to monsoon climate that succeeds in feeding more than 50 percent of the world population residing in Monsoon Asia? (250 words, 15 marks) Q.18 The women’s questions arose in modern India as a part of the 19th-century social reform movement. What are the major issues and debates concerning women in that period? (250 words, 15 marks) The nature of the struggle for women’s issues has been changing with time. Draw a comparison between the nature of movements centered around women in the 19th century India and post-independence India. Q.19 Distinguish between religiousness/religiosity and communalism giving one example of how the former has got transformed into the latter in independent India. (250 words, 15 marks) MINDMAP: Issue – Religion and Indian Constitution The Big Picture – Religious beliefs V/S Constitutional Morality: Challenges for the Republic of India What is secularism? Discuss the concept of communalism as a threat to secularism. Q.20“The growth of cities as I.T. hubs has opened up new avenues of employment, but has also created new problems”. Substantiate this statement with examples (250 words, 15 marks) The Big Picture – Layoffs in IT firms: Reasons and Gravity The ongoing layoffs in IT firms is a disturbing signal for the economy. Do you agree? Critically analyse. On the Ending note, We are happy to announce and share with you certain things and one of them is our NEW WEBSITE in the offing. Second is the New TLP Mains Answer Writing 2018 Phase I to be started very soon. Third, is a surprise to be disclosed in a few days. With all the Best Wishes IASbaba
Hello Friends, It is cliche to say that UPSC is unpredictable. Of course, it is! Everyone knows that. But what unpredictability are we talking about? Is it about the pattern? Well, that changes every now and then. In fact, this aspect of UPSC has become predictable of sorts! The fact of the matter is that pattern, questions, word limit etc do change every year but that dear friends is not unpredictability. What is really unpredictable is the demand of UPSC. What exactly does UPSC want from an aspirant? Should an aspirant have critical thinking or must she possess the attributes of an honest civil servant? Should the candidates have the ability to memorise and reproduce information or should they be able to think and create a response at will? Does UPSC want to check your knowledge or does it only want to test your integrity? Being the ardent UPSC aspirants you are, the obvious response from you would be a mix of all the above! Isn’t it? But is that the case? We at IASbaba think differently. We believe that UPSC just wants to see your ability to adapt. How exactly do you respond to unlikely and difficult situations? How do you tackle a tricky scenario? How do you think vis a vis others in similar conditions posed with same problems? At the end of the day, what UPSC does is a comparative analysis of your performance. Even if you score less marks in paper 4 but somehow manage to sneak into the top 1000, UPSC can’t reject you. Is there a pre-decided cut-off in Mains or interview? No. There isn’t. So ultimately everything boils down to your ability to adapt better than others. You just have to be the least stupid candidate (don’t get offended by the choice of word). There is no absolute measurement of your performance. Its all about the way you respond to a change, the way you change your approach and the way you sync your mind, heart and soul to the demand of UPSC every year. But after all, its easier said than done. How does one adapt? What are the tools that can help one guide in changed conditions? Well, the answer lies in the game of Cricket. Of all the great Indian batsmen, the one who stands tall and garners respect from all the quarters is Rahul Dravid. While Sachin was a genius, Dravid was a fighter. He had this uncanny ability to adapt to any condition and perform despite all the odds. He could tackle spin in a dustbowl and overcome swing on a seaming wicket not only in India but anywhere in the world. That made him great. He once took 40 deliveries to open his account against Australia! That is the mark of his temperament and perseverance. People used to joke that he should be made the defence minister keeping in mind his superb defence! But then he tasted success everywhere making him the most successful player in overseas conditions. He adapted with ease and adapted to win. UPSC wants that from you also. In a traditional community that civil service aspirants belong to, the ability to transform has vanished. From thinking individuals of yesterday, aspirants have turned into internet scholars who can search, research and discover any information but hardly possess the ability to analyse them. That’s the sad truth. You have started to prepare according to the pattern (which changes almost every year) whereas your preparation should be pattern proof. Questions, marks, word limit etc are nothing but a means to check your knowledge. You should focus on getting that knowledge and not bother about the pattern much. You should also have the temperament to be defensive in a hostile scenario. GS Paper I was difficult this year and that must have led to three sets of people. The first would have filled the sheets irrespective of their lack of information and felt satisfied. The second would have left the difficult ones and started thinking about their next attempt already. The third set of aspirants are those who must have ducked the difficult ones and given their 100% to the ones that they knew. After coming out from the examination hall, they would have started to think about the next paper not worrying about the previous one. See the difference here. Even though the performance of the third set of aspirants would be poor by absolute standards, it would be better than the other two. Why? Simply because they could adapt. They could manage the temptation to attempt the unknown questions. They were clinical in their approach, just like Dravid. This examination is such that it requires peace of mind and the commitment to adapt to any situation. Read and think later. Think and contemplate later. Contemplate and evolve later. Evolve and execute later. Execute and succeed finally. That’s the mantra of success in UPSC. Many aspirants preparing for 2018 have enquired about How IASbaba was helpful for this year's Mains. Here is a brief description that will surely boost your confidence to prepare with us in coming days. Note that we have not added ILP and Offline part here since not everyone can access its content PAPER 4 Q 1. Conflict of interest in the public sector arises when (a) official duties, (b) public interest, and (c) personal interest are taking priority one above the other. How can this conflict in administration be resolved? Describe with an example. (150 Words, 10) IASbaba's Refrences: If you qualify the Civil Services Examination, you will get the opportunity to work as an administrator in public life. You will have many duties to perform, and very often you might be faced with ethical dilemmas. In the context of the scenario explained herein, do you have a role model to follow? Which famous philosopher/ leader/ administrator you would derive inspiration from? Why? Will you conduct yourself in an ethical manner even if the consequences of your actions are against national interests? Substantiate your response by taking an example. Q 2. Examine the relevance of the following in the context of civil service: (150 Words, 10) (a) Transparency “A lack of transparency results in distrust and a deep sense of insecurity.” Examine the statement in the context of governance in India. (b) Accountability Accountability is the glue that ties commitment to results. Do you agree? Discuss by giving examples. (c) Fairness and justice Why are values like impartiality, non-partisanship and objectivity fundamental to the civil services? Why can’t a civil servant discharge his duties without having these values? Substantiate by taking an example. (d) Courage of conviction (e) Spirit of service What imparts the characteristics of ‘services’ to civil services in India? Examine with the help of suitable examples. Q3. Young people with ethical conduct are not willing to come forward to join active politics. Suggest steps to motivate them to come forward. (150 Words, 10) Discuss the ideas of Swami Vivekanand about youth and patriotism. How relevant are his ideas today? Analyse. Q4. (a) One of the tests of integrity is complete refusal to be compromised. Explain with reference to a real-life example. (150 Words, 10) There is a general perception that people with impeccable integrity can’t survive long in the public services. What is your assessment of this perception? Substantiate. Lack of high pay packages and perks is often given as a justification for illegal gratification. Is it against the very concept of public service? Examine. How do you convince a constable to remain honest in a salary that might be grossly inadequate to fulfill even his basic needs? (b) Corporate social responsibility makes companies more profitable and sustainable. Analyse. (150 Words, 10) What do you understand by the principle of trusteeship? What significance does it hold today? Financial institutions, the corporate world and civil society - all must uphold high standards of probity in their working. Only a genuine partnership between the Government and its people can bring about positive change to create a just society. Q5. (a) “Great ambition is the passion of a great character. Those endowed with it may perform very good or very bad acts. All depends on the principles which direct them.” – Napoleon Bonaparte. Stating examples mention the rulers (i) who have harmed society and country, (ii) who worked for the development of society and country. (150 Words, 10) Today success is valued by the height of one’s achievements. It puts a lot of pressure on individuals. Everyone appears to be fiercely competitive to outperform each other to become successful in the eyes of the society. In this context, how relevant is the quote provided below? (b) “If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. they are father, the mother and the teacher.” – A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. Analyse. (150 Words, 10) \ “If a country is to be corruption free and become a nation of beautiful minds, I strongly feel there are three key societal members who can make a difference. They are the father, the mother and the teacher.” Comment on this famous quote by Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. Q6. (a) How will you apply emotional intelligence in administrative practices? (150 Words, 10) Why should an administrator have emotionally balanced mind? Examine. Also, give suitable examples to illustrate your point of view. (b) Strength, peace and security are considered to be the pillars of international relations. Elucidate. (150 Words, 10) Q7. (a) The crisis of ethical values in modern times is traced to a narrow perception of the good life. Discuss. (150 Words, 10) Lack of high pay packages and perks is often given as a justification for illegal gratification. Is it against the very concept of public service? Examine. How do you convince a constable to remain honest in a salary that might be grossly inadequate to fulfill even his basic needs? (b) Increased national wealth did not result in equitable distribution of its benefits. It has created only some “enclaves of modernity and prosperity for a small minority at the cost of the majority.” Justify. (150 Words, 10) Social values are more important than economic values. Discuss the above statement with examples in the context of inclusive growth of a nation. Q8. (a) Discipline generally implies following the order and subordination. However, it may be counter-productive for the organisation. Discuss. (150 Words, 10) Why is it important to have a healthy work culture in an organisation? Do you think government organisations usually lack a healthy work environment? Examine. Government departments need to reinvent themselves with respect to their work culture. Do you agree? Will it have any effect on delivery of public services rendered by the departments. (b) Without commonly shared and widely entrenched moral values and obligations, neither the law, nor democratic government, nor even the market economy will function properly. What do you understand by this statement? Explain with illustration in the contemporary times. (150 Words, 10) If you are given an opportunity to lead a government initiative, how would you balance between bureaucratic compulsions that lead to delays and urgent needs of the poor requiring immediate attention? Discuss. The Indian constitution has set high moral standards for public life. Do you agree? Substantiate. SECTION – B Q9. You are an honest and responsible civil servant. You often observe the following: (a) There is a general perception that adhering to ethical conduct one may face difficulties to oneself and cause problems for the family, whereas unfair practices may help to reach the career goals. (b) When the number of people adopting unfair means is large, a small minority having a penchant towards ethical means makes no difference. (c) Sticking to ethical means is detrimental to the larger developmental goals (d) While one may not involve oneself in large unethical practices, but giving and accepting small gifts makes the system more efficient. Examine the above statements with their merits and demerits. (250 Words, 20) Means are as important as ends in ethics. Do you agree? Elucidate. There is a general perception that people with impeccable integrity can’t survive long in the public services. What is your assessment of this perception? Substantiate. The salary and perks of civil servants are not commensurate with the amount of work and responsibilities that they are burdened with. Do you think the concept of ‘public service’ needs a relook in this regard? Examine. Q10. You are aspiring to become an IAS officer and you have cleared various stages and now you have been selected for the personal interview. On the day of the interview, on the way to the venue you saw an accident where a mother and child who happen to be your relatives were badly injured. They needed immediate help. What would you have done in such a situation? Justify your action. (250 Words, 20) Q11. You are the head of the Human Resources department of an organisation. One day one of the workers died on duty. His family was demanding compensation. However, the company denied compensation because it was revealed in investigation that he was drunk at the time of the accident. The workers of the company went to strike demanding compensation for the family of the deceased. The Chairman of the management board has asked for your recommendation. What recommendation would you provide the management? Discuss the merits and demerits of each of the recommendations. (250 Words, 20) Q12. You are the manager of a spare parts company A and you have to negotiate a deal with the manager of a large manufacturing company B. The deal is highly competitive and sealing the deal is critical for your company. The deal is being worked out over a dinner. After dinner the manager of manufacturing company B offered to drop you to the hotel in his car. On the way to hotel he happens to hit motorcycle injuring the motorcyclist badly. You know the manager was driving fast and thus lost control. The law enforcement officer comes to investigate the issue and you are the sole eyewitness to it. Knowing the strict laws pertaining to road accidents you are aware that your honest account of the incident would lead to the prosecution of the manager and as a consequence the deal is likely to be jeopardised, which is of immense importance to your company. What are the dilemmas you face? What will be your response to the situation? (250 Words, 20) Q13. A building permitted for three floors, while being extended illegally to 6 floors by a builder, collapses. As a consequence, a number of innocent labourers including women and children died. These labourers are migrants of different places. The government immediately announced cash relief to the aggrieved families and arrested the builder. Give reasons for such incidents taking place across the country. Suggest measures to prevent their occurrence. (250 Words, 20) Q14. You are a Public Information Officer (PIO) in a government department. You are aware that the RTI Act 2005 envisages transparency and accountability in administration. The act has functioned as a check on the supposedly arbitrarily administrative behaviour and actions. However, as a PIO you have observed that there are citizens who filed RTI applications not for themselves but on behalf of such stakeholders who purportedly want to have access to information to further their own interests. At the same time there are these RTI activists who routinely file RTI applications and attempt to extort money from the decision makers. This type of RTI activism has affected the functioning of the administration adversely and also possibly jeopardises the genuineness of the applications which are essentially aimed at getting justice. What measures would you suggest to separate genuine and non-genuine applications? Give merits and demerits of your suggestions. (250 Words, 20) The most important instrument of social empowerment is the Right to Information (RTI). Do you agree? Also discuss the significance of transparency in governance. PAPER 3 Q.1 Among several factors for India’s potential growth, the savings rate is the most effective one. Do you agree? What are the other factors available for growth potential? (150 words, 10 marks) IASbaba's Refrences: Why having a healthy savings rate is essential for a developing economy. Where does India stand on this front? Examine. Hope for higher India economic growth Inclusive growth: Indispensable to reach India’s full economic potential Mind-map-Potential Growth Slowdown Q.2 Account for the failure of the manufacturing sector in achieving the goal of labour-intensive exports rather than capital-intensive exports. Suggest measures for more labour-intensive rather than capital-intensive exports. (150 words, 10 marks) The labour market ecosystem in India has witnessed many structural changes that include- increasing use of contract labour, competitive federalism and relocation of labour-intensive manufacturing to smaller cities. Can these changes ensure the growth of productive employment in the economy? Evaluate. A new industrial policy is in process Creating Jobs Q.3 Examine the developments of Airports in India through Joint Ventures under Public-Private Partnership(PPP) model. What are the challenges faced by the authorities in this regard? (150 words, 10 marks) What are the highlights of the new civil aviation policy? Why was this policy the needed? Discuss. Discuss the significance of small airports in India. How they can become engines of growth for the economy? Discuss. Q.4 Explain various types of revolutions, took place in Agriculture after Independence in India. How have these revolutions helped in poverty alleviation and food security in India? (150 words, 10 marks) Green revolution: as root cause of crisis Examine the factors behind the ongoing agrarian crisis in India. What can be its remedy? Discuss. Q.5 What are the reasons for poor acceptance of cost-effective small processing unit? How will the food processing unit be helpful to uplift the socio-economic status of poor farmers? (150 words, 10 marks) The food processing sector in India has got immense potential and the government has taken many initiatives to tap the same. In this light, examine the need, objective and significance of the SAMPAN scheme for the food processing industry in India. What are the demand drivers for the food processing industry in India? Also, discuss the present set of challenges being faced by the industry. Mindmap- Food Processing Q.6 Stem cell therapy is gaining popularity in India to treat a wide variety of medical conditions including leukaemia, Thalassemia, damaged cornea and several burns. Describe briefly what stem cell therapy is and what advantages it has over other treatments? (150 words, 10 marks) Q.7 India has achieved remarkable successes in unmanned space missions including the Chandrayaan and Mars Orbiter Mission, but has not ventured into manned space mission, both in terms of technology and logistics? Explain critically. (150 words, 10 marks) Discuss India’s recent advances on the space front. Should commercialization of India’s space programme be promoted? Give your views. Q.8 Not many years ago, river linking was a concept but it is becoming reality in the country. Discuss the advantages of river linking and its possible impact on the environment. (150 words, 10 marks) Before implementing the proposed River Interlinking Project, a sound scientific and technical assessment needs to be undertaken to make it techno-economically feasible. Comment Rethinking on River-Linking Project Rethinking on Interlinking of rivers- Part II Q.9 Discuss the potential threats of Cyberattack and the security framework to prevent it. (150 words, 10 marks) The cybersecurity ecosystem in the country requires to be more robust and agile in order to realise the objectives of Digital India. In view of the statement, examine the necessity of having a National Encryption Policy. What has been the recent controversy over the draft National Encryption Policy? Examine the need to review India’s National Security Cyber Policy 2013 in light of the emerging cyber security challenges. Making Indian companies cybersecure Mindmap- Cyber Security Q.10 The north-eastern region of India has been infested with insurgency for a very long time. Analyze the major reasons for the survival of armed insurgency in this region. (150 words, 10 marks) Discuss the reasons behind the ongoing crisis in Nagaland. Why does North East India remain a theatre of political crisis even after 70 years of independence? Analyse. Analyse the security challenges associated with Indo-Myanmar border Q.11 One of intended objectives of the Union Budget 2017-18 is to transform, energise and clean India’. Analyse the measure proposed in the Budget 2017-18 to achieve the objective. (15 Marks) Budget 2017-18 and agriculture- The ‘Transform, Energise and Clean India’ TEC agenda of budget may seem like a new term but is, in fact, a continuation of various earlier initiatives of the Government. What budgeting reforms have been taken in the latest budget? Discuss. Q.12 “Industrial growth rate has lagged-behind in the overall growth of Gross-Domestic-product (GDP) in the post-reform period.” Give reasons. How far the recent changes in Industrial-policy are capable of increasing the industrial growth rate? (15 Marks) Recalibrating Industrial Policy A new industrial policy is in process Framing of A New Industrial Policy Redefining MSMEs Q.13 What are the salient features of inclusive growth? Has India been experiencing such a growth process? Analyse and suggest measures for inclusive growth. (15 Marks) What is inclusive growth? Explain. Also comment on the Government schemes which intend to bridge the inclusion gap. Social values are more important than economic values. Discuss the above statement with examples in the context of the inclusive growth of a nation. Q.14 What are the major reasons for declining rice and wheat yield in the cropping system? How crop diversification is helpful to stablise the yield of the crops in the system? (15 Marks) India being an agrarian country is suffering from Agricultural pollution. How is agriculture responsible for degradation of land, air and water? What measures can be taken to reduce it? Solving the issue of burning crop residue Q.15 How do subsidies affect the cropping pattern, crop diversity and economy of farmers? What is the significance of the crop insurance, minimum support price and food processing for small and marginal farmers? (15 Marks) How will the new crop insurance benefit the farmer Critically analyse Centre’s crop insurance schemes, their performance and further scope for improvement. Centre’s Approval on Interest Subsidy to Farmers Agricultural subsidies not only distort the market but also have serious implications for the environment. Examine. Focussing on marginal farmers Farmers’ Agitation: Reasons, Solutions Food Processing What are the demand drivers for the food processing industry in India? Also discuss the present set of challenges being faced by the industry. Q.16 Give an account of the growth and development of nuclear science and technology in India. What is the advantages of fast breeder reactor programme in India? (15 Marks) Q.17 ‘Climate change’ is a global problem. How India will be affected by climate change? How Himalayan and coastal states of India will be affected by climate change? (15 Marks) The Big Picture – Climate Change and Pollution Fight against climate change Q.18 On December 2004, tsunami brought havoc on fourteen countries including India. Discuss the factor responsible for occurrence of tsunami and its effects on life and economy. In the light of guidelines of NDMA (2010) describe the mechanisms for preparedness to reduce the risk during such events. (15 Marks) What triggers a tsunami? Discuss at least four factors that lead to tsunami-genesis. Also explain the effects of tsunami in the coastal regions. All India Radio – Progress Made in Early Tsunami Warning System in India Q.19 Mob violence is emerging as a serious law and order problem in India. By giving suitable example, analyze the causes and consequences of such violence. (15 Marks) Framing an anti-lynching law Lynching/Mob violence: Article 21 at stake There is a thin line between collective bargaining and mob extortion. Examine the given statement in the light of the role played by pressure groups in India. Q.20 The scourge of terrorism is a grave challenge to national security. What solutions do you suggest to curb this growing menace? What are the major sources of terrorist funding? (15 Marks) What are the sources of terror financing? Examine the nexus between terrorism and organised crime. What steps have been taken to stifle terror financing in India? Discuss. What is ‘state sponsored terrorism’? Give suitable examples. Is India a victim of this type of terrorism? Substantiate. Youth radicalization in Kashmir valley is a serious national security threat. Comment Terrorism has changed in reach, scale and methodologies, thereby exacerbating its threat. Comment. PAPER 2 Q.1 “The local self-government system in India has not proved to be an effective instrument of governance”. Critically examine the statement and give your views to improve the situation. (150 words) Q.2 Critically examine the Supreme Court’s judgement on ‘National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014’ with reference to the appointment of judges of higher judiciary in India. (150 words) IASbaba's Refrences: Collegium System – Past and Present The Big Picture – Judicial Appointments- Why is it Still Eluding Solution? Q.3 ‘Simultaneous election to the Lok Sabha and the State Assemblies will limit the amount of time and money spent in electioneering but it will reduce the government’s accountability to the people’ Discuss. (150 words) The Big Picture – Simultaneous Elections: Is it Legally and Practically Possible? Recently, the Prime Minister suggested holding of simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections all over the country. Do you think its a good idea? What are its pros and cons? Discuss. Mind Map- Feasibility of Simultaneous Polls-I Mind Map- Feasibility of Simultaneous Polls-II Q.4 How do pressure groups influence Indian political process? Do you agree with this view that informal pressure groups have emerged as powerful than formal pressure groups in recent years? (150 words) Pressure groups and their roles in a democracy are not always unharmful. Do you agree? What are the fallouts of having notorious pressure groups in a democratic polity? Examine with the help of suitable examples. The nature and role of pressure groups have changed in the last decade. Do you agree? Substantiate. Q.5 Discuss the role of Public Accounts Committee in establishing accountability of the government to the people. (150 words) In a recent move, Public Account Committee (PAC) had intended for bringing about a legislative change to make the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) accountable to the Parliament. Critically examine the consequences if this decision is carried out in India. Q.6 ‘To ensure effective implementation of policies addressing water, sanitation and hygiene needs, the identification of beneficiary segments is to be synchronized with the anticipated outcomes’ Examine the statement in the context of the WASH scheme. (150 words) Bottlenecks in Policy Implementation and Formulation – Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Q.7 Does the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 ensure an effective mechanism for empowerment and inclusion of the intended beneficiaries in the society? Discuss (150 words) Right of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2016- An overview Disability-inclusive development and digital push Q.8 Hunger and Poverty are the biggest challenges for good governance in India still today. Evaluate how far successive governments have progressed in dealing with these humongous problems. Suggest measures for improvement. (150 words) Mind Map- Global Hunger Index Tackling hunger in India All India Radio – India in Global Hunger Index What is hidden hunger? What steps have been taken to address it? Discuss. RSTV- The Big Picture: Eradication of Poverty: What Steps need to be taken to Achieve this Goal? Q.9 ‘China is using its economic relations and positive trade surplus as tools to develop potential military power status in Asia’, In the light of this statement, discuss its impact on India as her neighbour. (150 words) RSTV- The Big Picture: Should India Recalibrate its China Policy? Checking China’s inroads in South Asia Q.10 What are the main functions of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC)? Explain different functional commissions attached to it. (150 words) Q.11 Explain the salient features of the Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016. Do you think it is efficacious enough ‘to remove cascading effect of taxes and provide for a common national market for goods and services’? (250 words) Discuss the advantages of GST. How does GST help in unifying the market in the country? Explain All India Radio (AIR): GST- Integrated Tax Reforms Q.12 Examine the scope of Fundamental Rights in the light of the latest judgement of the Supreme Court on Right to Privacy. (250 words) The right to privacy has been declared as a fundamental right by a 9 judge bench of Supreme Court. What implications will this judgement have on India’s data security regime? Examine Mind Map- Right to Privacy RSTV- The Big Picture: SC Ruling on Privacy: Implications Q.13 The Indian Constitution has provisions for holding a joint session of the two houses of the Parliament. Enumerate the occasions when this would normally happen and also the occasions when it cannot, with reasons thereof. (250 words) Q.14 To enhance the quality of democracy in India the Election Commission of India has proposed electoral reforms in 2016. What are the suggested reforms and how far are they significant to make democracy successful? (250 words) Mind Map- Electoral Reforms Certain electoral reforms were introduced by Budget, 2017. Comment on their features, suitability and adequacy in India’s current democratic context. Q.15 Is the National Commission for Women able to strategize and tackle the problems that women face at both public and private spheres? Give reasons in support of your answer. (250 words) Q.16 ‘The emergence of Self Help Groups (SHGs) in contemporary times points to the slow but steady withdrawal of the state from developmental activities’. Examine the role of the SHGs in developmental activities and the measures taken by the Government of India to promote the SHGs. (250 words) SHGs in India are the living embodiment of a concept that has led to women empowerment. However, the success stories are few and far in between. Do you agree? Do you think the successful models of SHGs should be adopted on a much wider scale? What are the constraints? In the quest for financial inclusion, SHGs have played a prominent role in India. Examine the guiding principles of the working of SHGs in the area of financial inclusion. Q.17 ‘Poverty Alleviation Programmes in India remain mere show pieces until and unless they are backed by political will’. Discuss with reference to the performance of the major poverty alleviation programmes in India. (250 words) RSTV- The Big Picture: Eradication of Poverty: What Steps need to be taken to Achieve this Goal? Universal Basic Income: is it coming to India? Q.18 Initially, Civil Services in India were designed to achieve the goals of neutrality and effectiveness, which seems to be lacking in the present context. Do you agree with the view that drastic reforms are required in Civil Services? Comment (250 words) Lateral entry into the civil services is a step in the right direction. However, the rigid bureaucratic superstructure of India needs overhauling before such entry is allowed. Comment. Civil Services Reforms Q.19 The question of India’s Energy Security constitutes the most important part of India’s economic progress. Analyze India’s energy policy cooperation with West Asian Countries. (250 words) The structural change in the global energy market has contributed to the changing paradigm of West Asian strategic thinking. Discuss. In this light, examine the approach that India has adopted to cultivate ties with this region of the world. India’s Energy Transformation Nuclear deal with Iran: In question Understanding 2107 Qatar diplomatic crisis- Important point under Energy Security of India Q.20 Indian Diaspora has an important role to play in South-East Asian countries’ economy and society. Appraise the role of Indian Diaspora in South- East Asia in this context (250 words) Is diaspora important? Substantiate by taking suitable examples. The recent visits of the PM abroad have indicated a more inclusive policy for the Indian Diaspora. Analyze the role of the Indian Diaspora in India’s soft power diplomacy. PAPER 1 Q.1 How do you justify the view that the level of excellence of the Gupta numismatic art is not at all noticeable in later times? (150 words, 10 marks) Q.2 Clarify how mid-eighteenth century India was beset with the spectre of a fragmented polity. (150 words, 10 marks) IASbaba's Refrences: The economic life in 18th century India had imprints of the contemporary political scenario of the country. Examine. Q.3 Why did the ‘Moderates’ fail to carry conviction with the nation about their proclaimed ideology and political goals by the end of the nineteenth century? (150 words, 10 marks) Why the nationalist movement during 1885 to 1905 is branded as the moderate phase? Discuss. Did the moderate phase achieve any success? Critically examine. Q.4 What problems are germane to the decolonization process in the Malay Peninsula? (150 words, 10 marks) Q.5 How does the Juno Mission of NASA help to understand the origin and evolution of the Earth? (150 words, 10 marks) Q.6 “In spite of adverse environmental impact, coal mining is still inevitable for development”. Discuss (150 words, 10 marks) Discuss the significance of coal as an energy resource. What reforms are needed to cure the ailing coal sector? Opencast mining poses serious threats to the river ecosystem and other hydrological bodies. Do you agree? Substantiate by taking at least two case studies from India Q.7 Mention the advantages of the cultivation of pulses because of which the year 2016 was declared as the International Year of Pulses by United Nations. (150 words, 10 marks) Q.8 How does the cryosphere affect global climate? (150 words, 10 marks) Discuss the significance of polar ice caps. Why are they receding? What would be its consequences? Examine Melting of Arctic and Antarctic ice caps Q.9 In the context of the diversity of India, can it be said that the regions form cultural units rather than the States? Give reasons with examples for your viewpoint. (150 words, 10 marks) Regionalism has various strands in India. Do you agree? Substantiate by giving suitable examples. Regionalism in the Indian context hasn’t necessarily been a bad experience. Critically comment. Q.10 What are the two major legal initiatives by the State since Independence addressing discrimination against Scheduled Tribes(STs)? (150 words, 10 marks) Protecting the Tribal Rights Tribal rights can’t be pushed aside in the name of development. What do you understand by ‘tribal rights’? From where do these rights come? Why they need to be protected? Elaborate. National Commission for Scheduled Tribes and National Commission for Scheduled Caste Q.11 The spirit of tolerance and love is not only an interesting feature of Indian society from very early times, but it is also playing an important part at the present. Elaborate. (250 words, 15 marks) Tolerance as a duty Q.12 Examine how the decline of traditional artisanal industry in colonial India crippled the rural economy. (250 words, 15 marks) The process of industrialization in Europe and that of deindustrialization in India were two faces of the same coin. Elucidate Q.13 Highlight the importance of the new objectives that got added to the vision of Indian Independence since the twenties of the last century. (250 words, 15 marks) Q.14 Account for variations in oceanic salinity and discuss its multi-dimensional effects. (250 words, 15 marks) Q.15 Petroleum refineries are not necessarily located nearer to crude oil producing areas, particularly in many of the developing countries. Explain its implications. (250 words, 15 marks) Q.16 In what way can floods be converted into a sustainable source of irrigation and all-weather inland navigation in India? (250 words, 15 marks) Shifting focus from flood protection to flood governance Flood Protection to Flood Governance- Part II Q.17 What characteristics can be assigned to monsoon climate that succeeds in feeding more than 50 percent of the world population residing in Monsoon Asia? (250 words, 15 marks) Q.18 The women’s questions arose in modern India as a part of the 19th-century social reform movement. What are the major issues and debates concerning women in that period? (250 words, 15 marks) The nature of the struggle for women’s issues has been changing with time. Draw a comparison between the nature of movements centered around women in the 19th century India and post-independence India. Q.19 Distinguish between religiousness/religiosity and communalism giving one example of how the former has got transformed into the latter in independent India. (250 words, 15 marks) MINDMAP: Issue – Religion and Indian Constitution The Big Picture – Religious beliefs V/S Constitutional Morality: Challenges for the Republic of India What is secularism? Discuss the concept of communalism as a threat to secularism. Q.20“The growth of cities as I.T. hubs has opened up new avenues of employment, but has also created new problems”. Substantiate this statement with examples (250 words, 15 marks) The Big Picture – Layoffs in IT firms: Reasons and Gravity The ongoing layoffs in IT firms is a disturbing signal for the economy. Do you agree? Critically analyse. On the Ending note, We are happy to announce and share with you certain things and one of them is our NEW WEBSITE in the offing. Second is the New TLP Mains Answer Writing 2018 Phase I to be started very soon. Third, is a surprise to be disclosed in a few days. With all the Best Wishes IASbaba
India’s Energy Sector Reforms: A wish List Archives TOPIC: General Studies 2 Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. General Studies 3 Infrastructure: Energy In news: Recently, PM said that the status of energy sector in India has been highly uneven and the scope of reforms in many areas still exist. There is a need for a comprehensive energy policy. Subjects such as need for unified energy policy, requirement of seismic data sets and encouragement of biofuels, improving gas supplies, setting up of gas hub and regulatory issues were discussed. Need for reforms India imports about 80% of its crude oil requirement. This needs to come down by 10% by 2022 as suggested by PM. For this, the exploration opportunities in India has to be explored. About 50% of sedimentary basins are yet to be surveyed. About 75% of sedimentary basins are yet to be explored properly. So the need for acquiring, processing data, interpreting is urgent. Similarly, exploration efforts for the last 20 years had a policy called NELP. This has not yielded any significant production to the country. Thus there is new exploration policy- Hydrocarbon Exploration Licensing Policy (HELP). They started with discovering small fields policy which has yielded encouraging results. One major reform gradually happening in petroleum sector is deregulation of diesel and petrol prices. This was major as till then private sector was not interested in entering the downstream business. Only LPG remains in distortion which is on decline curve and kerosene is practically disappearing. For exploration, there is a revised framework in position. The stakeholders have been consulted. There is expectation of better response. The energy sector which includes oil, gas and electricity has to be brought into the GST framework as soon as possible. The oil and gas sector provides lot of tax revenues to the government. But electricity has not yet been tax friendly. If the tax rates can be gradually brought down, within a forceable time future, there will be a roadmap for bringing it towards highest level of GST which will be beneficial. Major chunk of revenue comes from petroleum and its by-products. The GST is difficult to apply as the taxes are more than 100% of refinery gate prices of petrol and nearby to diesel. To bring it down to 28% is not easy. This is one of the reason it is kept out. Overall energy reform issue is how much renewables- thermal, natural gas will contribute. The stranded gas based power plants. They have about 25000MW capacity which needs attention. If it is gone bad, there will be huge NPAs and clean energy production assets will be missed. Securing energy future India is going to be largest consumer of energy in the years to come as per capita income rises. India has relatively free and open market situation as far as energy supplies are concerned. As long as international market system for energy sources works reasonably well, India’s needs can be taken care of. India has to look beyond fossil fuels. The price of renewable fuels is slowly coming down. India has to increase share of clean energy fuels like natural gas in energy composition. Clean energy did not appear viable initially to India for sometime. But the way energy economics is currently operating in a way which is increasing the viability of renewable energy. The existing projects which are reliant on fossil fuels are actually beginning to look uncompetitive. The large number of utilities in the state sector in various states which are keen on renegotiating their power purchasing contracts because they find that new renewable energy sources are going to be cheaper. With success of electric vehicles, there can be a situation where road transport is free of fossil fuels. There can be a situation of carbon free economy. India has to think and act strategically and try in leapfrog in forefront. Leapfrogging also helps in creating domestic manufacturing capacity. For now, India’s all solar equipment are imported from china. However, India produces wind power which cannot satisfy adequate energy needs. There is need for factor reforms- land, labour capital reforms are long overdue. For this, the enablers- infrastructure and energy requirement should be made right. Till all this is going, domestic manufacturing remains a problem. The need for next generation reforms is to look at factors, improve efficiency and productivity and India has to become globally competitive. Natural gas and electricity to be brought into GST. From economics perspective, it is a much needed reform. To get Input Tax Credit, it is necessary to have all under GST. If this reform is done, there is major finance challenge to conquer. Only 43% tax from GST and cess may not be enough. 3/4th of states and centre revenue is on this one sector. So, proper There is major investment drive in infrastructure sector. The technology is changing rapidly and investment priorities are not reflecting the same direction. There is 300billion dollars of investment in energy sector. But there is a need to project a scenario how much of that capacity is present and needed. Way forward Short term reforms on pricing and subsidies Energy sector can give subsidies as cash transfers and get rid of pricing distortions in short run. There is a need to think strategically for next 15-30 years. No car registration which is not an electric vehicle by 2040 in UK. China has invested heavily in increasing its solar manufacturing capacity. Today it is largest exporter of solar equipment. India can do same. India’s dependence on imports in crude and gas sector is not expected to come down soon. Japan imports coal yet it is one of the most efficient coal producers. So India needs to get its economic strategy right. The energy sector needs the regulator. Only power sector till now has the regulator. Hydrocarbon sector is yet to see such effective regulator. Connecting the dots: India’s energy needs have to be diverse to fulfil India’s Energy Mix. Explain in detail with suitable examples.
A Reform Agenda for Indian Judiciary Archives TOPIC: General Studies 2 Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary The SC collegium has decided to make public all its decision regarding judicial appointments in future. The collegium will also ascribe the reasons for the decision. The resolution by CJI and five senior most judges of SC is being hailed by lawyers and activists calling for more transparency and accountability in appointment process. About three decades after collegium system came into existence, this paradigm shift within the Collegium, critcised for its opaque mode of functioning while recommending judicial appointments, came after the recent public furore over the resignation of Karnataka High Court judge Justice Jayant Patel shortly after his transfer to the Allahabad High Court. Working of collegium Collegium is an extraconstitutional system. The SC has created it and it is a judge made law. It was abstract judicial review which was not under challenge when it was created. After obtaining the opinion of intelligence agencies, the government appoints judges recommended by the collegium. However, the collegium’s decision is final. The recommendations of the collegium cannot be challenged in court, and information cannot be sought even under the Right to Information Act. The position that judiciary holds in the mind of public is very essential and it should be above controversies. Today, the judiciary is facing credibility challenge. It has gone into negativity and it shouldn’t have come into negative focus as projected all the time. The collegium system can be reformed to make it effective and work properly. Is it a revolutionary decision? As per some opinions, this decision is to protect the status quo and it’s not revolutionary statement as being portrayed. The collegium system was under attack for opacity so they tried to give an impression that they are becoming transparent. They are still opaque in the sense that they are disclosing the decision and may be reasons but not on what basis. There would be transparency if the criteria of judges would have been declared. Eligibility criteria, selection process and how they will select it should be made public first. Only if the reason of selecting the judge can be compared to criteria given, it makes sense. The need is to institutionalize the system where the criteria is well known, process is well known and the names of short listed candidates should be made public so that if any feedback comes before the decision, it can be used to best suitable conditions. This will help the collegium to take a well-informed decision. What reforms can be taken in Indian judiciary? The judicial academies should be trained well enough. They should improve their quality and competence. They can improve their evaluation as well as improve courses. National judicial academy is there but what it is the content, syllabus, evaluation process is hardly known. The judicial academia doesn’t consider themselves part of the judiciary and thus there is no impact assessment of judgements or judgement analysis. The behavior of judges is not studied and it is also needed. This will bring out various things which are embedded somewhere or people are not looking at them. Judicial infrastructure- many courts don’t have the basic necessities such as furniture, electricity supply, basic building. In many cases, the central government is funding the states. Even SC is monitoring the court infrastructure. E-court projects are also being encouraged with entire court system being computerized and connected with each other. Many problems of delay can be solved due to technological advancement The judiciary has made itself available to criticism by bringing in more transparency. Though it is not a solution to have full transparency, it is a step in right direction. Connecting the dots: Judiciary is no longer a ‘secret’ organisation when it comes to its functioning. Discuss the various transparency initiatives taken by Indian judiciary.
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