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GS Paper: GS1

  • Theri Desert in Tamil Nadu

    Most of us may not know the small desert situated in the state of Tamil Nadu. It consists of red sand dunes and is confined to the Thoothukudi district.

    Theri Desert

    • The red dunes are called theri in Tamil.
    • They consist of sediments dating back to the Quaternary Period and are made of marine deposits.
    • They have very low water and nutrient retention capacity.
    • The dunes are susceptible to aerodynamic lift.
    • This is the push that lets something move up. It is the force that is the opposite of weight.

    Mineral composition of Theris

    • The analysis of the red sand dunes reveal the presence of heavy and light minerals.
    • These include Ilmenite, Magnetit, Rutile, Garnet, Zircon, Diopside, Tourmaline, Hematite, Goethite, Kyanite, Quartz, Feldspar, Biotite.
    • The iron-rich heavy minerals like ilmenite, magnetite, garnet, hypersthene and rutile present in the soil had undergone leaching by surface water.
    • They were then oxidised because of the favourable semi-arid climatic conditions.

    How did they form?

    • Theris appear as gentle, undulating terrain.
    • The lithology of the area shows that the area might have been a paleo (ancient) coast in the past.
    • The presence of limestone in many places indicates marine transgression.
    • The present-day theris might have been formed by the confinement of beach sand locally, after regression of the sea.
    • When high velocity winds from the Western Ghats blew east, they induced migration of sand grains and accumulation of dunes.

    Another story of their formation

    • Another view is that these are geological formations that appeared in a period of a few hundred years.
    • The red sand is brought from the surface of a broad belt of red loam in the plains of the Nanguneri region (about 57 kilometres) by south west monsoon winds during May-September.
    • The winds after draining the moisture behind the Mahendragiri hill and the Aralvaimozhi gap of the Western Ghats become dry and strike the plains in the foothills, where vegetation is sparse.
    • Deforestation and the absence of vegetative cover in the Aralvaimozhi gap and the Nanguneri plains are considered to be the major causes of wind erosion.

     

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  • 16th June 2022| Daily Answer Writing Enhancement(AWE)

    Topics for Today’s questions:

    GS-1        Effects of globalization on Indian society.

    GS-2       Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections.

    GS-3         Government Budgeting

    GS-4       Aptitude and foundational values for Civil Service, integrity, impartiality and non-partisanship, objectivity, dedication to public service, empathy, tolerance and compassion towards the weaker sections.

    Question 1)

     

    Q.1 Discuss the various implications of using digital currencies on Indian society. (10 Marks)

     

    Question 2)

    Q.2 Examine the factors responsible for the prevalence of child marriages in India. Is increasing the age at marriage a solution to the problem? (15 Marks)

    Question 3)

    Q.3 In India, governments have drawn on budgetary resources for providing support to low-income households for augmenting their consumption of selected goods and services, and also offering incentives to support selected categories of investors and producers. What should be services and goods covered under such schemes and what should be their modes of delivery? (10 Marks)

    Question 4)  

    Q.4 Integrity isn’t fidelity to your beliefs. It’s fidelity to seeking the truth. Comment. (10 Marks)

     

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  • IPC Sec 295A: Dealing with Hate Speech and Blasphemy

    The debate surrounding the comments by some political spokespersons has put the spotlight on the IPC Sec 295A which deals with criticism of or insult to religion.

    What is the news?

    • India does not have a formal legal framework for dealing with hate speech.
    • However, a cluster of provisions, loosely termed hate speech laws, are invoked.
    • There are primarily some laws to deal with offences against religions.

    What is Section 295A?

    • Section 295A, define the contours of free speech and its limitations with respect to offences relating to religion.
    • It prescribes punishment for deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs.
    • It calls for imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to [three years], or with fine, or with both.
    • It has been invoked on a wide range of issues from penalising political satire and seeking bans on or withdrawal of books to even political critique on social media.

    Chapters to penalise religious offences

    Section 295A is one of the key provisions in the IPC chapter to penalise religious offences. The same chapter includes offences to penalise:

    1. Damage or defilement of a place of worship with intent to insult the religion (Section 295)
    2. Trespassing in a place of sepulture (burial) (Section 297)
    3. Uttering, words, etc, with deliberate intent to wound the religious feelings of any person (Section 298) and
    4. Disturbing a religious assembly (Section 296)

    Origins of the law

    • Colonial origins of the hate speech provisions are often criticised for the assumption that Indians were susceptible to religious excitement.
    • Section 295A was brought in 1927.
    • The antecedents of Section 295A lie in the communally charged atmosphere of North India in the 1920s.
    • The amendment was a fallout of an acquittal under Section 153A of the IPC by the Lahore High Court in 1927 in Rajpaul v Emperor, popularly known as the Rangila Rasool case.

    Frequency of use

    • The state often invokes Section 295A along with 153A of the IPC, which penalises promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc.
    • It acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony and Section 505 of the IPC that punishes statements conducing to public mischief.

    What about online hate speech?

    • In cases where such speech is online, Section 66A of the Information Technology Act was invoked.
    • However, in a landmark verdict in 2015, the Supreme Court struck down Section 66A as unconstitutional on the ground that the provision was “vague” and a “violation of free speech”.
    • However, the provision continues to be invoked.

    Issues with such laws

    • The broad, vague terms in the laws are often invoked in its misuse.
    • Lower conviction rates for these provisions indicate that the process — where a police officer can arrest without a warrant — is often the punishment.
    • Critics have pointed out that these laws are intended for the state to step in and restore “public order” rather than protect free speech.

     

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  • Child Marriage in India

    Context

    There has been an ongoing debate on whether increasing the age of marriages can solve the problem of child marriage in India.

    Background

    • It is defined as a marriage of a girl or boy before the age of 18 and refers to both formal marriages and informal unions in which children under the age of 18 live with a partner as if married.
    • The Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill, 2021, fixes 21 years as the marriageable age for women.

    Prevalence of child marriage in India

    •  NFHS-5 data show that about 25% of women aged 18-29 years married before the legal marriageable age of 18.
    • Marginal decline: The proportion has declined only marginally from NFHS-4 (28%).
    • Higher in rural India: Expectedly, the prevalence is higher in rural than urban India (28% and 17%, respectively).
    • West Bengal has the highest prevalence (42%), followed by Bihar and Tripura (40% each).
    • Oddly, the decline in child marriage has been paltry at best in these high-prevalence States.
    • At the other end of the spectrum are Goa, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala (6% to 7%).
    • 39% of child marriages in India take place among Adivasis and Dalits.
    • The share of advantaged social groups is 17% and the remaining share is of Other Backward Classes.

    Role of structural issues in adverse health and educational outcomes

    • Impact: Studies associate early marriage of women with early pregnancy, lower likelihood of accessing ante-natal care, higher risks of maternal morbidity and mortality, poor nutritional status of women and poor nutritional and educational outcomes of children.
    • These studies seem to provide a rather compelling case for increasing the age of marriage of women from 18 to 21 years, as a delayed marriage might offer significant public health dividends.
    • Structural factors at play: But a closer reading of the evidence shows that the association between child marriage and adverse health outcomes does not emerge in a vacuum. 
    • Rather, it is abetted by structural factors, including social norms, poverty, and women’s education.
    • Role of social norms: It is because of social norms in many regions and cultures that parents begin preparations for a girl’s marriage once she has reached menarche.
    • Role of poverty: A large proportion of child marriages take place primarily because of poverty and the burden of the huge costs of dowry associated with delayed marriages.
    • Role of education:  The NHFS-5 data confirm that a significant proportion of child marriages takes place among women with less than 12 years of schooling and households that are socially and economically disadvantaged.
    • The average age at marriage increases from 17 years among women who are illiterate and have had up to five years of schooling to 22 years among women who have had more than 12 years of schooling.
    • This indicates that an increase in years of schooling goes hand in hand with an increase in age at marriage.
    • While an increase in education is most likely to delay marriage, the increase in age at marriage may or may not increase women’s education.

    Why the age of marriage of women matters

    • Age of marriage has bearing on maternal mortality rates, fertility levels, nutrition of mother and child, sex ratios, and, on a different register, education and employment opportunities for women.
    • It is also argued that other factors — such as poverty and health services — were far more effective as levers for improving women’s and children’s health and nutritional status.
    • Child marriage curtail a girl’s opportunities to continue her education.
    • And in turn, the lack of educational opportunities plays an important role in facilitating child marriage.

    Way forward

    • The fact that about one-fourth of women (18-29 years) in India have married before 18 years despite the law tells us that legally increasing the age of marriage may not fully prevent child marriages. 
    • 1] Ensure education for at least up to 12 years: Much of the benefits can be reaped by ensuring that women complete education at least up to 12 years.
    • Bangladesh shows that improving women’s education and imparting modern skills to them that increase their employability reduces child marriage and improves health and nutrition.
    • 2] Educational attainment criteria in schemes: Schemes which ease the financial burden of marriage but the eligibility criteria of which should essentially link to educational attainment in addition to age demand attention.
    • The lessons from Janani Suraksha Yojana and the zeal demonstrated in ending open defecation might provide valid insights here.

    Conclusion

    A legalistic approach to increasing the age at marriage will produce positive results only if it leads to an improvement in women’s education and skill acquisition for employability. In the absence of an enhancement in women’s schooling or skills, a legalistic approach to ending child marriage might become counterproductive.

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  • 15th June 2022| Daily Answer Writing Enhancement(AWE)

    Topics for Today’s questions:

    GS-1         Salient features of Indian society, Diversity of India

    GS-2         Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India.

    GS-3         PDS, Buffer Stock and Food Security, Indian Economy

    GS-4       Aptitude and foundational values for Civil Service, integrity, impartiality and non-partisanship, objectivity, dedication to public service, empathy, tolerance and compassion towards the weaker sections.

    Question 1)

     

    Q.1 Start-ups can act as an agent of change by solving issues faced by the Indian society. Discuss. (10 Marks)

     

    Question 2)

    Q.2 As it seeks to expand, what are the challenges BRICS may encounter in its expansion? What should be India’s approach? (10 Marks)

    Question 3)

    Q.3 What are the factors responsible for the recent food prices spike at the global level? What are its implications for India and what should be India’s approach to deal with the food prices crisis? (10 Marks)

    Question 4)  

    Q.4 Elaborate on the importance of impartiality as a core value of civil service. (10 Marks)

     

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  • 14th June 2022| Daily Answer Writing Enhancement(AWE)

    Topics for Today’s questions:

    GS-1         Salient features of Indian society, Diversity of India

    GS-2         Health and Education

    GS-3         Indian Economy

    GS-4       Attitude

    Question 1)

     

    Q.1 Hate speech is the root of many forms of violence that are being perpetrated and has become one of the biggest challenges to the rule of law and societal harmony. Examine. (15 Marks)

     

    Question 2)

    Q.2. Examine the key features of the CoWIN platform that enabled India to carry out the world’s largest vaccination drive. How the experience gained from it can be used for other immunisation programs.(10 Marks)

    Question 3)

    Q.3 Why a competitive telecom market is a prerequisite for achieving India’s digital dream and why a duopoly in the sector stands to threaten that dream? Suggest the way forward. (10 Marks)

    Question 4)  

    Q.4 What is public morality? Is public morality at time antithetical to individual rights? Critically examine. (10 Marks)

     

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  • 13th June 2022| Daily Answer Writing Enhancement(AWE)

    Topics for Today’s questions:

    GS-1         Salient features of Indian society, Diversity of India

    GS-2         Parliament and State legislatures

    GS-3         Infrastructure 

    GS-4       Attitude

    Question 1)

    Q.1 What are the causes of inequality in the Indian society? Enumerate various steps that are needed ensure an equitable society. (15 Marks)

    Question 2)

    Q.2 Do you agree with the view that Rajya Sabha in India has played its intended purposes?What are the reasons for the demands to abolish it?(10 Marks)

    Question 3)

    Q.3 What are the measures taken by the government to deal with the power crisis precipitated by the coal shortage? What are the issues with the invoking of Section 11 of the Electricity Act 2003?(10 Marks)

    Question 4)  

    Q.4 Attitude is a major determinant of an individual’s behaviour. Analyse how attitude can make or break an individual citing examples.(10 Marks)

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  • Microplastics found in Antarctica

    Scientists have found microplastics — plastic pieces much smaller than a grain of rice — in freshly fallen Antarctic snow for the first time.

    What are Microplastics?

    • Microplastics are tiny bits of various types of plastic found in the environment.
    • The name is used to differentiate them from “macroplastics” such as bottles and bags made of plastic.
    • There is no universal agreement on the size of microplastics. It defines microplastic as less than 5mm in length.
    • However, for the purposes of this study, since the authors were interested in measuring the quantities of plastic that can cross the membranes and diffuse into the body via the bloodstream.
    • Hence they agreed on an upper limit on the size of the particles as 0.0007 millimetre.

    Why in news?

    • Researchers have found microplastics in the snow samples from the Ross Ice Shelf in Antarctica.

    Threats posed by Microplastics

    • Microplastics has the potential to influence the climate by accelerating melting of ice.
    • They limit growth, reproduction, and general biological functions in organisms, as well as humans.

     

    Try this PYQ:

    1. Why is there a great concern about the ‘microbeads’ that are released into environment?

    (a) They are considered harmful to marine ecosystems.

    (b) They are considered to cause skin cancer in children.

    (c) They are small enough to be absorbed by crop plants in irrigated fields.

    (d) They are often found to be used as food adulterants.

    Post your answers here.[wpdiscuz-feedback id=”l00nal2to1″ question=”Please leave a feedback on this” opened=”1″][/wpdiscuz-feedback]

    Back2Basics: Ross Ice Shelf

    • Ross Ice Shelf is the largest ice shelf of Antarctica roughly the size of France.
    • It is several hundred metres thick.
    • The nearly vertical ice front to the open sea is more than 600 kilometres long, and between 15 and 50 metres (50 and 160 ft) high above the water surface.
    • Ninety percent of the floating ice, however, is below the water surface.
    • Most of Ross Ice Shelf is in the Ross Dependency claimed by New Zealand.
    • It floats in, and covers, a large southern portion of the Ross Sea and the entire Roosevelt Island located in the east of the Ross Sea.

     

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  • Environmental Performance Index (EPI), 2022

    India has objected to a report, called the EPI, 2022, that places the country last (along with Nigeria) on a list of 180 countries on managing climate change, environmental health, and ecosystem vitality.

    Environmental Performance Index

    • The report is prepared by researchers at the Yale and Columbia universities.
    • It provides a data-driven summary of the state of sustainability around the world.
    • Using 40 performance indicators across 11 issue categories, the EPI ranks 180 countries on climate change performance, environmental health, and ecosystem vitality.
    • These indicators provide a gauge at a national scale of how close countries are to established environmental policy targets.
    • The EPI offers a scorecard that highlights leaders and laggards in environmental performance and provides practical guidance for countries that aspire to move toward a sustainable future.

    Why the report is inherently biased?

    • The US placed itself at the 20th spot of the 22 wealthy democracies in the global west and 43rd overall.
    • The relatively low ranking has put all blame on the rollback policies during the Trump administration.
    • It goes on to preach that developing countries do not have to sacrifice sustainability for economic security.

  • Festivals in news: Mela Kheerbhawani

    Kashmiri Hindus, locally known as Pandits, will celebrate the Zyestha Ashtami at the Mata Kheerbhawani temple at Tulmulla in central Kashmir’s Ganderbal.

    Kheerbhawani Temple

    • The temple is dedicated to the goddess Ragnya Devi.
    • The festival, known as Mela Kheerbhawani, is the largest gathering of Hindus in Kashmir after the annual Amarnath Yatra.
    • Situated 30 km from Srinagar city, it is one of the most sacred pilgrimage sites for Kashmiri Hindus.
    • The temple gets its name from kheer, or milk and rice pudding that pilgrims pour into the spring inside the temple complex as an offering to the goddess.
    • Hundreds of local Muslims, too, traditionally join the celebrations.

    Legend of the festival

    • Legend has it that the water of the temple’s spring changes colour from white to red and black.
    • The colour of the water is said to predict the impending future.
    • If it changes to black, it is seen as inauspicious or an impending disaster.
    • Kashmiri Pandits say that the water had turned black before they were forced to flee Kashmir during the militancy of 1990.

     

    Tap to read more about:

    Festivals, Dances, Theatre, Literature, Art in News

     

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Consider the following pairs:

    Traditions- Communities

    1. Chaliha Sahib Festival- Sindhis
    2. Nanda Raj Jaat Yatra- Gonds
    3. Wari-Warkari- Santhals

    Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

    (a) 1 only

    (b) 2 and 3

    (c) 1 and 3

    (d) None of the above

     

    [wpdiscuz-feedback id=”v159hy69b5″ question=”Please leave a feedback on this” opened=”1″]Post your answers here.[/wpdiscuz-feedback]

     

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