Ahead of the 2025 Bihar elections, parties are intensifying women-focused welfare schemes involving cash transfers. Similar strategies in Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and West Bengal mark a national trend of targeting women voters through direct benefits.
Also the gender gap in voter turnout has narrowed significantly, with female participation matching or surpassing male turnout in several states, prompting political recognition of women as a distinct electoral constituency.
Women as a Political Category:
Shift in Political Focus: Women have emerged as a distinct political category, prompting parties to design targeted welfare schemes like Ladli Behna Yojana, Urimai Thogai, and Lakshmir Bhandar aimed exclusively at female voters.
Economic Empowerment through Welfare: Direct cash transfers have provided limited but visible economic agency, allowing women some control over finances within households traditionally dominated by men.
Beneficiary Framing: The portrayal of women primarily as labharthis (beneficiaries) reinforces dependency on state-led welfare rather than promoting them as independent political actors.
Symbolic Inclusion vs. Structural Change: Women’s growing electoral visibility has not necessarily translated into greater representation or leadership, keeping them largely outside decision-making hierarchies.
How have Political Parties harnessed the Gender Gap in Voter Turnout?
Rise in Female Turnout: Over the last two decades, the gender gap in voter participation has steadily narrowed, with female turnout surpassing male turnout in several states, notably in Bihar and Odisha.
Targeted Welfare Mobilisation: Political parties have strategically used welfare schemes and direct benefit transfers to consolidate women as a reliable voter base, focusing on cash assistance, LPG subsidies, and maternal benefits.
Micro-Targeting: Manifestos and election campaigns increasingly feature women-focused promises, indicating recognition of their collective electoral strength.
Narrative of Care Politics: Political rhetoric frames women as symbols of social welfare and household well-being, enabling parties to blend economic populism with gender outreach.
Significance of Women’s Voting Behaviour:
Indicator of Political Maturity: The steady rise in women’s participation marks a structural shift in India’s democratic engagement, highlighting growing awareness of rights and entitlements.
Independent Electoral Agency: Increasing evidence shows that women are voting independently of male family influence, prioritising welfare delivery, safety, education, and dignity.
Policy Feedback Mechanism: Women’s responses to welfare schemes serve as a direct feedback loop influencing governance priorities and re-election strategies.
Catalyst for Inclusive Politics: The evolving behaviour of women voters has encouraged parties to incorporate gender equity into mainstream political discourse, beyond token representation.
Issues of Gendered Voter Turnout:
Documentation Barriers: Women face systemic exclusion from electoral rolls due to inadequate documentation, name changes after marriage, and migration-related bureaucratic lapses.
Procedural Exclusion: Administrative exercises like Special Intensive Revision (SIR) have disproportionately omitted women, reflecting institutional insensitivity to gendered realities.
Intersectional Marginalisation: Women’s political inclusion remains fragmented by caste, class, and religion, preventing the emergence of a cohesive gender-based voting bloc.
Symbolic Empowerment: While parties celebrate women as voters and beneficiaries, practical empowerment remains limited, with persistent underrepresentation in legislatures and party leaderships.
Way Forward:
Institutional Strengthening: Ensure gender-sensitive voter registration and simplify documentation norms to eliminate procedural exclusions.
Beyond Welfare Politics: Transition from cash-based welfare populism to policies promoting education, employment, and political representation.
Data-Driven Governance: Use disaggregated gender data to assess welfare effectiveness and refine electoral outreach grounded in socio-economic realities.
Leadership and Representation: Expand women’s participation in party structures, local governance, and Parliament, ensuring parity in decision-making roles.
Civic and Political Literacy: Invest in sustained grassroots voter education, enabling women to act as autonomous political citizens rather than electoral dependents.
India’s pharmaceutical industry, long known as the “pharmacy of the world,” is again under scrutiny after toxic cough syrups were linked to child deaths in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. Laboratory tests revealed dangerously high levels of diethylene glycol (DEG), an industrial chemical used in antifreeze, in syrups. The incident has triggered state bans, factory inspections, and renewed debate over the safety and accountability of India’s drug manufacturing system.
This follows earlier international tragedies in The Gambia, Uzbekistan, and Iraq, all involving India-made syrups.
Pattern of Recurring Cough Syrup Tragedies:
India has repeatedly faced incidents of DEG contamination in pharmaceuticals over the past century, reflecting systemic failure rather than isolated error.
Historical incidents: Major poisoning events were reported in Chennai (1973), Bihar (1986), Gurugram (2020), Jammu (2019), and internationally in The Gambia (2022) and Uzbekistan (2022), leading to hundreds of deaths, most of them children.
Common pattern: In each case, toxic solvents were substituted for pharmaceutical-grade compounds to cut costs, exposing the absence of strict supplier verification and testing.
Regulatory aftermath: Investigations typically result in temporary bans and arrests but rarely in structural reform, allowing recurrence.
Root cause: Weak coordination between central and state regulators, underfunded laboratories, and an enforcement system that reacts after fatalities rather than preventing them.
Toxic Component: Diethylene Glycol (DEG)
Nature: A clear, sweet-tasting industrial solvent used in brake fluids, antifreeze, and plastics manufacturing.
Why it appears in medicines: It is sometimes misused as a low-cost substitute for propylene glycol or glycerine in pharmaceutical syrups.
Toxicity: Even small doses can cause severe abdominal pain, vomiting, metabolic acidosis, kidney failure, and death.
Permissible limit: Only 0.1% is allowed in drugs; recent tests found over 46%, indicating gross manufacturing negligence.
Historical precedent: Global awareness of DEG poisoning dates back to the 1937 U.S. “Elixir Sulfanilamide” disaster, which killed over 100 people and led to the creation of the U.S. FDA’s modern drug laws.
How are Medicines regulated in India?
Legal framework: Governed primarily by the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, and the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945.
Authority structure:
The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) under the Ministry of Health regulates imports, new drugs, and quality standards.
State Drug Control Authorities license manufacturing units and monitor local sales.
Implementation challenge:
Fragmented responsibilities lead to uneven enforcement and duplication of work.
While CDSCO issues guidelines, states often lack testing infrastructure or manpower to ensure compliance.
Public health being a state subject further complicates central supervision.
Testing requirements: Manufacturers must verify both raw materials and finished formulations, but this is rarely enforced or independently audited.
Regulatory and Structural Gaps:
Weak coordination: No integrated digital system links state and central regulators to track licenses, test results, or violations.
Inspection failures: Many small and medium-sized drug firms operate without periodic inspection or third-party audits.
Resource deficit: State drug labs often face staff shortages, outdated testing equipment, and minimal budgets.
Penalties too lenient: Adulteration and misbranding attract limited imprisonment or fines, offering little deterrence.
Lack of global alignment: India’s domestic quality standards often diverge from those used by WHO or international regulators, creating dual regimes for export and domestic markets.
How such incidences impact India’s global credibility?
International scrutiny: Following deaths in The Gambia and Uzbekistan, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued global alerts on India-manufactured syrups.
Export restrictions: Several importing countries now demand independent quality certificates before allowing entry of Indian pharmaceuticals.
Erosion of trust: India’s image as a low-cost, high-quality medicine supplier is undermined by repeated safety lapses.
Diplomatic and economic cost: Quality scandals threaten a $25 billion export industry that supplies over 50% of global vaccine demand and a major share of generic drugs to Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.
Way Forward:
Centralised surveillance: Create a national digital platform integrating manufacturing, testing, and licensing data across states.
Independent quality audits: Mandate third-party verification of raw materials, excipients, and solvents used in formulations.
Stronger penalties: Introduce criminal liability for executives in cases of fatal contamination.
Laboratory strengthening: Upgrade all state drug testing labs with modern equipment and accredited quality management systems.
Export accountability: Require WHO-GMP certification for all export-bound and domestic drug batches alike.
PYQ Relevance:
[UPSC 2024] The case study focuses on a senior scientist, Dr. Srinivasan, working on a new drug, facing pressure to expedite trials and resort to unethical shortcuts, such as manipulating data to exclude negative outcomes and selectively reporting positive results.
The questions posed specifically asked the aspirant to:
• Examine options and consequences in light of the ethical questions involved.
• Discuss how data ethics and drug ethics can save humanity at large in such a scenario.
Linkage: The core issue involves the provision of quality healthcare and social services. The crisis highlights the vulnerability of populations, both domestically and internationally, to unsafe drug manufacturing practices. Questions can focus on the mechanisms, laws, and institutions designed for the protection and betterment of vulnerable sections (like consumers of essential medicines).
SC Judgements | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Indian Constitution - historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure
Why in the News?
The Supreme Court has ruled that age limits prescribed under the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021 do not apply retrospectively to couples who had frozen their embryos and initiated the surrogacy process before January 25, 2022, the date when the law came into effect.
Case Background:
Petitions: Filed by three couples who had undergone IVF and frozen embryos before Jan 25, 2022, when the Surrogacy Act came into effect.
Issue: They became ineligible under Section 4(iii)(c)(I) (age limits: women 23–50, men 26–55).
Argument: Since embryos were created pre-2022, the process was already initiated and could not be retrospectively invalidated.
Court’s View: Recognised embryo freezing as a lawful start to surrogacy; held that new age restrictions cannot retroactively disqualify such couples.
Supreme Court’s Observations and Constitutional Findings:
No Retrospective Disqualification: The age restrictions introduced by the 2021 law cannot apply retrospectively to cases where medical procedures had already begun.
Equality in Conception Modes: Justice Nagarathna emphasised that couples conceiving through assisted reproductive technologies (ART) must enjoy the same constitutional protection as those conceiving naturally.
Article 21 & Reproductive Autonomy: The Court reaffirmed that the right to reproductive choice including IVF, ART, or surrogacy, forms part of personal liberty and privacy under Article 21.
Article 14 & Equality Before Law: Retrospective age-based exclusion was termed arbitrary and unreasonable, amounting to a violation of equality.
Parenting Competence Argument Rejected: The Court rejected the notion that older parents are inherently less capable, stating that state authorities cannot retrospectively judge parenting ability once medical procedures have been initiated lawfully.
Non-Retroactivity Principle: Reinforced the rule that unless a statute explicitly states otherwise, it operates prospectively.
Precedent Applied: Relied on Suchita Srivastava v. Chandigarh Administration (2009), where the Court recognised reproductive autonomy and bodily integrity as constitutionally protected rights.
Back2Basics: Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021
Objective: To regulate surrogacy, prevent commercial exploitation, and ensure ethical, altruistic surrogacy based solely on medical necessity.
Legislative Intent: To promote ethical medical practices, protect the rights of surrogate mothers and children, and curb commercialisation while respecting constitutional morality and reproductive dignity.
Applicability: Extends to all surrogacy cases involving Indian citizens and permanent residents, and works alongside the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act, 2021.
Key Provisions:
Type Permitted: Only altruistic surrogacy (no payment except medical expenses).
Eligibility for Couples: Married for at least five years; woman 23–50 yrs, man 26–55 yrs; no living biological, adopted, or surrogate child.
Single Women: Only widows or divorcees (35–45 yrs) are eligible; unmarried women excluded (under legal challenge).
Surrogate Requirements: Must be a close relative, married, with at least one biological child; age 25–35 years.
Certification: Requires Certificate of Essentiality, infertility proof, parentage order, and insurance for the surrogate.
Penalties: Commercial surrogacy banned; violation punishable by up to 10 years’ imprisonment and ₹10 lakh fine.
Regulatory Bodies: Establishment of National and State Surrogacy Boards for implementation and oversight.
Issues Highlighted by the Supreme Court:
Absence of Transitional Provisions: The 2021 Act lacks a “grandfather clause” protecting couples already in process before its commencement.
Inconsistent Standards: The Court questioned why adoption laws have no upper age limit, while surrogacy does, creating unequal treatment among parents.
Gender Discrimination: Restricting surrogacy access to only married couples and excluding unmarried women was flagged as a potential Article 14 violation.
Fundamental Rights Impact: Retrospective restrictions infringe upon the right to equality and reproductive freedom under Articles 14 and 21.
State Overreach: The Court cautioned that the state’s intent to protect child welfare cannot override individual liberty or invalidate rights exercised under prior legal norms.
Significance of the Judgment:
Reinforcement of Reproductive Rights: Confirms that assisted reproduction and surrogacy fall within the ambit of reproductive autonomy and personal liberty.
Protection Against Legal Injustice: Shields couples who initiated lawful medical procedures from retrospective disqualification.
Constitutional Precedent: Establishes that statutory changes cannot nullify pre-existing lawful rights, strengthening India’s jurisprudence on non-retroactivity.
Judicial Balance: Maintains a balance between ethical regulation of surrogacy and protection of individual autonomy.
Wider Applicability: Permits similarly placed couples to seek relief before respective High Courts, widening the ruling’s scope.
Affirmation of Constitutional Morality: The Court underscored that justice, equity, and good conscience must guide interpretation where legislation creates unintended inequities.
[UPSC 2024] Under which of the following Articles of the Constitution of India, has the Supreme Court of India placed the Right to Privacy?
The Indian Army has initiated procurement of ‘Saksham’, an indigenously developed Counter-Unmanned Aerial System (CUAS) Grid, to enhance airspace security and counter emerging aerial threats.
Visual Representation
About Saksham Counter-Unmanned Aerial System (CUAS) Grid:
Overview: Indigenous counter-drone system developed by the Indian Army with BEL, Ghaziabad, to detect, track, identify, and neutralise unmanned aerial threats.
Purpose: Secures the Tactical Battlefield Space (TBS) or Air Littoral—airspace up to 3,000 m (10,000 ft) against low-altitude drones.
Origin: Conceived after Operation Sindoor, which revealed gaps in air defence.
Acronym: SAKSHAM – Situational Awareness for Kinetic Soft & Hard Kill Assets Management; a Command-and-Control (C2) platform integrating sensors, weapons, and AI analytics to create a Recognised UAS Picture (RUASP).
Procurement: Approved under Fast Track Procurement (FTP); aligns with Atmanirbhar Bharat and the Army’s Decade of Transformation (2023–2032).
Key Features:
Detection & Tracking: Continuous surveillance via radar, radio-frequency, and electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensors.
AI-Enabled Prediction: Uses AI to forecast hostile activity and suggest counter-responses.
Sensor–Weapon Fusion: Integrates jammers, directed-energy systems, and kinetic interceptors for unified action.
Automated Command Support: Provides real-time decision aids for threat prioritisation.
3-D Airspace Visualisation: Displays dynamic views of friendly and hostile assets.
Network Integration: Runs on the Army Data Network (ADN) and links with Akashteer Air Defence Control for unified airspace management.
Mobility & Modularity: Compact, scalable, and rapidly deployable across terrains.
Indigenous Focus: Fully designed and produced in India, demonstrating advanced self-reliant defence capability.
[UPSC 2025] With reference to Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), consider the following statements:
I. All types of UAVs can do vertical landing. II. All types of UAVs can do automated hovering. III. All types of UAVs can use battery only as a source of power supply.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
(a) Only one (b) Only two (c) All the three (d) None*
India unveiled its National Red List Roadmap and Vision 2025–2030 at the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025 in Abu Dhabi.
Global Context:
IUCN Red List: Globally, 1,69,420 species have been assessed; about 28% are classified as threatened.
Biodiversity Decline: The Living Planet Report 2024 documented a 73% decline in vertebrate populations (1970–2020), with freshwater species down by 85%.
Extinction Rate: Current extinction rates are 1,000–10,000 times higher than natural background levels due to human pressures such as habitat loss, overexploitation, and climate change.
Global Need: Strengthening regional red lists like India’s provides granular, science-based data to guide conservation financing and global biodiversity monitoring.
About National Red List Roadmap and Vision (2025–2030):
Purpose: Marks India’s first coordinated national effort to scientifically assess the extinction risk of ~11,000 species of plants and animals by 2030 using IUCN Red List methodology, the global benchmark for species assessment.
Aim: To establish a science-based, nationally coordinated red-listing system that strengthens biodiversity planning, conservation policy, and threat mitigation.
Strategic Alignment: Supports India’s commitments under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KM-GBF), reaffirming India’s leadership in global biodiversity governance.
Outcome Goal: To publish National Red Data Books on flora and fauna by 2030, serving as authoritative reference guides for ecological protection and management.
Key Features of the Initiative:
Scientific Alignment: Adopts IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria, ensuring uniformity and comparability with international conservation assessments.
Scope and Coverage: Envisions evaluation of 11,000 terrestrial and marine species, encompassing major ecological regions across India.
Core Outputs:
Peer-reviewed species assessments with global visibility.
Publication of National Red Data Books and creation of a digital public database for species data and risk analysis.
Institutional Framework:
Implemented jointly by the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) and Zoological Survey of India (ZSI).
Partner agencies include IUCN India, Centre for Species Survival: India – Wildlife Trust of India (CSS: India–WTI), and the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC).
Funding and Resources: Total outlay of ₹95 crore, comprising ₹80 crore from BSI and ZSI budgets and ₹15 crore mobilised for training and international collaboration.
Capacity Building: Creation of a cadre of 300 trained species assessors and development of national training modules on biodiversity evaluation.
Policy Integration: The data generated will inform India’s National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, legislative updates, and species recovery prioritisation through 2030.
Need for such a profile:
India’s Biodiversity Profile: Recognised as one of the 17 megadiverse nations, India hosts four biodiversity hotspots, the Himalayas, Western Ghats, Indo-Burma, and Sundaland (Nicobar Islands).
Ecological Richness: Despite covering only 2.4% of global land area, India shelters 8% of global flora and 7.5% of fauna, with 28% of plants and 30% of animals being endemic.
[UPSC 2011] The “Red Data Books’’ published by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) contain lists of:
(a) Endemic plant and animal species present in the biodiversity hotspots.
(b) Threatened plant and animal species. *
(c) Protected sites for conservation of nature and natural resources in various countries.
The UN will cut peacekeeping personnel by 25% across nine missions after U.S. funding dropped from $1 billion to $680 million under President Trump’s “America First” policy.
US and Peacekeeping Funding Dynamics:
The US and China together contribute nearly 50% of the UN’s peacekeeping budget.
The U.S. outlined its new commitment of $680 million, marking a 32% decrease from last year’s payment.
A senior UN official confirmed that China has pledged to pay its full contribution by the end of 2025, offsetting some of the financial shortfall.
Implications of Funding Cut:
The withdrawal of peacekeepers will leave several fragile regions exposed to renewed instability, especially in Africa and the Middle East.
The cuts signal a shift toward selective, donor-driven peacekeeping, prioritising geopolitical interests over collective international responsibility.
For the UN, the challenge lies in maintaining operational credibility and protecting civilian populations amid reduced resources.
Aboutthe United Nations Peacekeeping Mission:
Overview: UN Peacekeeping is a collective international mechanism established to maintain peace and security in conflict-affected regions under the leadership of the United Nations.
Personnel: Peacekeepers, known as Blue Berets or Blue Helmets, include military, police, and civilian members from contributing nations.
Origin: The idea arose after World War II with the formation of the UN in 1945, marking a new era in global conflict resolution.
First Mission (1948): The United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO) was deployed after the Arab–Israeli War to monitor ceasefires, setting the template for future operations.
Evolution: Over time, missions expanded to cover civil wars, humanitarian crises, and post-conflict reconstruction across Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.
Core Principles:
Consent of the Parties
Impartiality
Non-use of Force (except in self-defence or mandate defence)
Deployment: Missions require the consent of key conflict parties and are authorised by the UN Security Council.
Functions: Include monitoring ceasefires, disarmament, protection of civilians, humanitarian assistance, promotion of human rights, and support for democratic governance.
Finance: United States (26.95%)> China (18.69%)> Japan (8.03%) > Germany (6.11%) > United Kingdom (5.36%) > France (5.29%).
India’s Contribution:
Major Contributor: India ranks among the largest troop contributors since the inception of UN peacekeeping.
Participation Record: Contributed over 1.95 lakh troops, served in 49 missions, and made 168 supreme sacrifices in service.
[UPSC 2024] Consider the following pairs:
Country Reason for being in the news
1. Argentina: Worst economic crisis
2. Sudan: War between the country’s regular army and
paramilitary forces
3. Turkey: Rescinded its membership of NATO
How many of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
(a) Only one pair (b) Only two pairs* (c) All three pairs (d) None of the pairs
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to Laszlo Krasznahorkai, a Hungarian novelist known for his dense, philosophical narratives and apocalyptic vision of modern existence.
Back2Basics: Nobel Prize in Literature
First awarded in 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been conferred 117 times to 121 laureates.
Prize Details (2025): Each laureate receives 11 million Swedish kronor (~1.2 million USD), an 18-karat gold medal, and a diploma.
Ceremony: Held annually on December 10, marking the death anniversary of Alfred Nobel (1896), Swedish inventor and founder of the prize.
The 2024 laureate was Han Kang of South Korea, recognized for fiction confronting historical trauma and the fragility of life.
About Laszlo Krasznahorkai:
Overview: Hungarian novelist celebrated for his dense, philosophical, and apocalyptic prose that examines the fragility of modern civilization.
Background: Regarded as one of Europe’s leading postmodern writers, noted for long, flowing sentences and hypnotic rhythm.
Themes & Style: His works probe moral collapse, spiritual decay, existential isolation, and the search for meaning amid disorder.
Literary Voice: Combines dark humor with metaphysical reflection; often set in bleak, decaying landscapes where characters struggle between despair and artistic endurance.
Recognition: Known as a “writer’s writer”, his art embodies a belief in the redemptive endurance of literature.
Major Works & Adaptations:
Satantango (1985): Debut novel portraying a collapsing rural community; adapted by Béla Tarr into a seven-hour film, acclaimed for its realism and existential tone.
The Melancholy of Resistance (1989): Allegory of hysteria and conformity in a small town; adapted as Werckmeister Harmonies (2000).
War and War (1999): Follows a Hungarian archivist obsessed with preserving a manuscript symbolising human history; explores madness and transcendence.
Seiobo There Below (2008): Interlinked stories on art and divinity across cultures; won the 2015 Man Booker International Prize.
Baron Wenckheim’s Homecoming (2016): Tragicomic portrait of post-communist moral decay; won the 2019 National Book Award (Translated Literature).
The signing of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) in July 2025 marks a major milestone in India–UK relations, cementing their partnership in trade, technology, defence, and climate cooperation.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s visit to Mumbai further signals mutual intent to deepen collaboration under the evolving Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) framework of Roadmap 2030 (2021).
The agreement reflects a broader trend i.e. India’s calibrated engagement with post-Brexit Britain and the European continent, aligning trade liberalisation with strategic convergence.
India–UK Relations: A Quick Recap
Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (2021): Anchored in Roadmap 2030, covering trade, climate, defence, technology, and health.
Economic Ties: The UK contributes nearly 5% of India’s total FDI; bilateral trade exceeded USD 20 billion in FY 2024–25.
Defence Cooperation: Exercises such as Ajeya Warrior and Konkan Shakti, and collaboration in aerospace and propulsion systems strengthen military interoperability.
Technology Partnership: The Technology Security Initiative (TSI) focuses on AI, semiconductors, quantum technology, and critical minerals.
People-to-People Linkages: Over 1.7 million Indian-origin residents and 150,000 students in the UK reinforce socio-economic ties.
Global Convergence: Shared democratic values underpin cooperation on climate action, maritime security, and UN Security Council reform.
Trajectory: The relationship is transitioning from historical ties to a modern, technology-driven alliance, embedded in the emerging multipolar global order.
India–UK Economic Partnership under CETA:
Framework: The CETA (2025) combines tariff reduction, regulatory alignment, and investment facilitation, aiming to double bilateral trade by 2030.
Benefits for India:
Tariff cuts on pharmaceuticals, textiles, and agricultural exports.
Enhanced access for IT, green tech, and digital services.
Implications for the UK:
Lower duties on automobiles, Scotch whisky, and high-end machinery.
Post-Brexit diversification into South Asian markets.
Double Contributions Convention (DCC): Exempts Indian professionals in the UK from dual social security payments for up to three years.
Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT): Ensures investor protection and promotes sustainable FDI in manufacturing, renewables, and infrastructure.
Defence Industrial Partnership (2025): Facilitates joint R&D, co-production, and defence manufacturing, aligned with Atmanirbhar Bharat.
Technology Security Initiative (TSI, 2024): Coordinates semiconductors, quantum computing, AI, and critical minerals cooperation at the national security adviser level.
Parallel European Engagements:
India’s UK outreach complements its broader European diversification strategy:
EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA): In effect from October 2025, ensuring USD 100 billion investment over 15 years.
EU Negotiations: Trade with the European Union reached USD 136.5 billion (FY 2024–25) with sustained dialogue on an FTA.
This multi-vector diplomacy balances India’s engagement between continental Europe and post-Brexit Britain.
Europe’s emphasis on technological sovereignty, climate neutrality, and Indo-Pacific cooperation aligns with India’s maritime and sustainability interests.
The combined outreach enhances India’s access to capital, innovation, and strategic technologies, consolidating its role as a balancing power in global governance.
Economic and Strategic Significance:
Complementarity: India offers scale and skilled labour, while the UK contributes technology, capital, and innovation ecosystems.
Co-Development: Collaboration in green energy, fintech, advanced manufacturing, higher education, and sustainable finance.
Geostrategic Convergence:
UK’s support for India’s UNSC seat and NSG membership.
Joint naval and maritime initiatives under the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI).
Partnership on Electric Propulsion Capability Initiative in naval systems.
Diaspora Role: The Indian diaspora serves as a connective economic and cultural bridge, amplifying trade and investment flows.
The relationship now transcends transactional trade, emerging as a multi-domain strategic alliance integrating security, sustainability, and innovation.
Challenges and Negotiation Frictions:
Political Sensitivities: Colonial legacy and diaspora-linked protests periodically affect diplomatic optics.
Negotiation Hurdles: Differences on tariff schedules, rules of origin, and intellectual property.
TRIPS-Plus Provisions: India’s resistance to stronger IP norms preserves its pharmaceutical flexibility.
Immigration and Data Divergences: Require harmonised frameworks for professional mobility and digital governance.
FTA Ratification Delays: Absence of fixed timelines for CETA and BIT create investor uncertainty.
Despite frictions, both sides perceive these accords as long-term strategic enablers, not mere commercial instruments.
Conclusion:
The next phase of engagement should focus on joint innovation, co-production, and sustainability-based partnerships, moving beyond conventional tariff-based frameworks. Strengthening defence R&D and technology transfer mechanisms will foster greater self-reliance and industrial growth in both nations.
India, though the world’s largest producer and consumer of pulses, continues to face chronic supply-demand imbalance, threatening food security and farm incomes.
Introduction
The Union Cabinet (1 October 2025) approved the ₹11,440 crore “Mission for Atmanirbharta in Pulses”, a 6-year programme (FY26–FY31) to achieve self-sufficiency in pulse production.
The initiative responds to surging imports of $5.5 billion in FY25, the highest ever, amid stagnating domestic yields and acreage.
India, though the world’s largest producer and consumer of pulses, continues to facea chronic supply-demand imbalance, threatening food security and farm incomes.
Value Addition: Pulses and their Production in India
Overview: Pulses are edible seeds of leguminous plants (family Fabaceae), cultivated for dry grains such as gram, tur, urad, masoor, and moong.
Nutritional Role: Rich in protein, fiber, micronutrients, and amino acids; low in fat and vital for nutritional security.
Agro-Climatic Range: Grown in both kharif and rabi seasons, requiring 20–27°C temperature and 25–60 cm rainfall.
Production Share: India produces ~25 million tonnes, accounting for 25% of global output, yet consumes 27%, making it the largest producer, consumer, and importer.
Crop Composition: As per FY2024, Gram (~40%), Tur/Arhar (15–20%), Moong/Urad (8–10%) dominate; pulses occupy 20% of grain area but only 7–10% of total foodgrain output.
Economic Efficiency:Arvind Subramanian Committee (2016) estimated a ₹13,000/ha higher social benefit for Tur vis-à-vis rice cultivation due to water and emission savings.
Way Forward:
Seed Innovation: Intensify research through ICAR–IIPR and utilise India’s 70,000 germplasm accessions for high-yielding, climate-resilient strains.
Area Expansion: Promote rice-fallow pulse rotation in eastern India and intercropping systems in semi-arid regions.
Assured Procurement: Scale up NAFED and NCCF-led MSP operations, ensuring timely payments.
Infrastructure Support: Strengthen warehousing, milling, and processing hubs near production clusters.
Import Rationalisation: Impose variable tariffs to protect domestic farmers from global price volatility.
Sustainability Integration: Incentivise pulse cultivation under carbon farming and sustainable agriculture missions.
PYQ Relevance:
[UPSC 2017] Mention the advantages of the cultivation of pulse because of which the year 2016 was declared as the International Year of Pulses by the United Nations.
[UPSC 2020] With reference to pulse production in India, consider the following statements:
1. Black gram can be cultivated as both kharif and rabi crop.
2. Green gram alone accounts for nearly half of pulse production.
3. In the last three decades, while the production of kharif pulses has increased, the production of rabi pulses has decreased.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only * (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 2 only (d) 1, 2 and 3
Linkage: Pulses imports often strain the Balance of Payments (BoP) and affect food inflation (a topic tested in 2024 Mains). Achieving self-sufficiency saves foreign exchange and helps manage domestic price volatility.
Explained | Economics | Mains Paper 3: Effects Of Liberalization On The Economy, Changes In Industrial Policy and their effects on Industrial Growth
Introduction / Context
Recent Disasters: In 2025, three major industrial accidents — the Sigachi Industries chemical blast in Telangana (June 30), the Gokulesh Fireworks explosion in Sivakasi (July 1), and the Ennore Thermal Power Station collapse in Chennai (September 30) — killed nearly 60 workers within three months.
Scale of the Problem: According to the British Safety Council, one in four fatal workplace accidents globally occurs in India, though actual figures are higher due to underreporting in informal sectors.
Structural Failure: These tragedies expose a systemic breakdown in safety enforcement, where profit maximisation overrides worker protection.
Why Workplace Accidents Occur
Preventable Failures: Most industrial accidents occur due to negligence in hazard prevention such as poor equipment design, absence of alarms, and lack of maintenance.
Telangana Case: The chemical reactor was operated at twice its safe limit, safety alarms failed, and untrained contract workers were deployed without records or protection.
ILO Findings: The International Labour Organization (ILO) attributes most accidents to cost-cutting by managements, not random chance or individual mistakes.
Human Error Myth: Employers blame workers for “human error”, but systemic issues like excessive work hours, fatigue, and exploitative conditions are the root causes.
Lack of Safety Oversight: The absence of mandatory inspections and safety officers allows hazardous practices to continue unchecked.
Evolution of Workplace Safety Laws in India
Colonial Roots: The first Factories Act of 1881 was enacted under British rule to regulate working hours and conditions in textile mills.
Post-Independence Framework: The Factories Act of 1948 became the foundation of India’s occupational safety regime, covering licensing, rest periods, and machine maintenance.
Bhopal Legacy: The 1987 Amendment followed the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, introducing stricter safety clauses but failing in enforcement due to bribery and falsified records.
Compensation Mechanisms: The Workmen’s Compensation Act (1923) and Employees’ State Insurance Act (1948) provide for injury and income loss but remain financially inadequate.
Lack of Criminal Accountability: Employers rarely face criminal charges for fatal negligence; compensation is often paid through government relief funds, not company liability.
Post-Liberalisation Deregulation and Impact
Shift in Policy: Since the 1990s, India’s industrial policy has prioritised labour flexibility over worker protection.
Self-Certification: States like Maharashtra (2015) allowed industries to self-certify compliance, effectively dismantling inspection-based oversight.
Ease of Doing Business: Safety rules are now portrayed as regulatory hurdles, diluting mandatory standards for inspection and reporting.
Contract Labour Expansion: Informal and outsourced workforces dominate hazardous sectors, operating without registration or legal protection.
Erosion of State Capacity: Labour departments have been underfunded and depowered, reducing preventive enforcement to mere paperwork.
The Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions (OSHWC) Code, 2020
Purpose: Consolidates 13 older laws including the Factories Act (1948), Mines Act (1952), and Contract Labour Act (1970) into one unified framework.
Scope: Applies to all workplaces with 10 or more workers and covers mines, docks, and factories.
Employer Duties: Mandates risk-free work environments, medical check-ups, and welfare amenities, with provisions for National and State Safety Boards.
Penalties: Prescribes monetary penalties for violations and limited punishment for accidents causing death.
Criticism: The Code converts safety from a statutory right to administrative discretion, weakening enforceability and inspection mechanisms.
Other Key Labour Codes:
Code on Wages (2019): Ensures minimum wages, equal pay for equal work, and timely payment, reducing wage-related exploitation.
Industrial Relations Code (2020): Governs strikes, layoffs, and retrenchments, focusing on maintaining employer–employee harmony under managerial control.
Social Security Code (2020): Extends healthcare, pension, and insurance benefits to gig and platform workers, integrating fragmented welfare laws into one structure.
Current Trends and Emerging Risks
Extended Working Hours: Post-pandemic, States have increased daily limits and reduced rest periods, heightening fatigue-related risks.
Case Example: Karnataka (2023) made longer shifts permanent, undermining rest and recovery norms critical to accident prevention.
Informalisation: Over 90% of India’s workforce operates informally, with no safety records or accident insurance, leaving families uncompensated.
Weakened Enforcement: Inspections replaced by self-reporting allow companies to evade accountability for safety violations.
Outcome: India remains among the world’s most dangerous industrial economies, with preventable deaths treated as operational costs.
Institutional and Governance Failures:
Policy Shift: The State’s role has shifted from enforcer to facilitator, prioritising investment over worker welfare.
Diluted Inspections: Labour departments, understaffed and politically pressured, no longer conduct surprise or independent audits.
Token Punishment: Accident inquiries result in minor fines or temporary closures, not criminal prosecutions.
Moral Blindness: Treating workplace deaths as “inevitable” reflects a moral and administrative collapse in valuing human life.
Way Forward: Restoring Safety as a Fundamental Right
Safety as Right: Workplace safety must be reinstated as a non-negotiable constitutional right, not a regulatory privilege.
Reinforce Inspection: Mandatory and surprise inspections must replace self-certification to ensure compliance.
Criminal Liability: Employers responsible for preventable deaths must face criminal prosecution, not ex gratia settlements.
Economic Logic: Studies confirm that safe workplaces increase productivity and profitability, contradicting industry claims of cost burdens.
Moral Imperative: Until the State enforces accountability, transparency, and legal deterrence, India’s workers will remain collateral casualties of deregulated growth.
[UPSC 2024] Discuss the merits and demerits of the four ‘Labour Codes’ in the context of labour market reforms in India. What has been the progress so far in this regard?
Linkage: The topic of the erosion of workers’ rights is highly important for the upcoming UPSC Mains, particularly because it connects statutory, economic, and social issues, making it a favorite for analytical questions
The Centre has recently proposed to open conservation of protected monuments to private participation, ending the Archaeological Survey of India’s (ASI) exclusive control over this domain.
About Archaeological Survey of India (ASI):
Establishment: Formed in 1861 under the Ministry of Culture, ASI is responsible for archaeological research, exploration, and protection of India’s cultural heritage.
Legal Authority: Enforces the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 and the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972.
Scope of Work: Manages about 3,700 centrally protected monuments and archaeological sites of national importance.
Organisational Structure: Operates through 37 regional Circles and specialist wings such as Science Branch (material analysis), Horticulture Branch (site maintenance), Temple Survey Projects (documentation), and Underwater Archaeology Wing (submerged heritage).
What is the new Public–Private Partnership (PPP) Model for Conservation?
Purpose: Supplements ASI’s work by allowing private participation in conservation of heritage monuments.
Participants: Corporates, PSUs, and philanthropic bodies may fund, execute, and monitor restoration projects under ASI supervision.
Funding Mechanism: Routed through the National Culture Fund (NCF); donations qualify as CSR expenditure with 100% tax exemption.
Implementation Framework:
Empanelment of conservation architects via RFP by the Ministry of Culture.
Donors select architects, who jointly engage restoration agencies experienced in structures over 100 years old.
Each project must have a Detailed Project Report (DPR) approved by ASI and comply with the National Policy for Conservation, 2014.
Priority Monuments: 250 sites identified for initial adoption based on region or thematic interest.
Eligibility: Proven heritage conservation experience, financial competence, and technical compliance with ASI standards.
Difference from ‘Adopt a Heritage’ Scheme:
Earlier Model (2017, revised 2023): Focused on tourism amenities cafés, ticketing, signage through “Monument Mitras”; excluded structural restoration.
Current PPP Model: Extends to scientific conservation and architectural restoration under direct ASI oversight.
Regulatory Control: ASI retains authority over authenticity, ethics, and policy compliance; funding channelled via NCF with technical audit.
Policy Evolution: Marks a shift from tourism partnership to heritage stewardship, blending private resources with public accountability for monument preservation.
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has been awarded to Richard Robson, Susumu Kitagawa, and Omar Yaghi for pioneering the creation of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs).
What are Metal–Organic Frameworks (MOFs)?
Overview: They are crystalline materials composed of metal ions linked by organic molecules, forming a three-dimensional porous network capable of selectively trapping and storing gases, vapours, or liquids.
Structure: Metal ions serve as nodes or connectors, while organic ligands (carbon-based linkers) create scaffold-like frameworks with very high surface area and controllable pore size.
Porosity: MOFs possess some of the highest porosity among solids, often exceeding 7,000 square metres per gram, enabling the storage of large volumes of gases within minimal material.
Flexibility: Organic linkers can be chemically modified, allowing custom design for specific interactions, such as selective gas capture or catalysis.
Thermal and Chemical Stability: Advanced MOFs remain stable up to 300–400°C and can withstand diverse chemical environments, suitable for industrial and environmental use.
Bonding Principle: Based on coordination chemistry, MOFs combine metal rigidity with organic flexibility, enabling precise control over molecular architecture.
Functionality: Their open channels permit easy adsorption and desorption, making MOFs reusable, durable, and efficient for a range of scientific and industrial applications.
Applications of MOFs:
Water Harvesting: Capture moisture from arid air and release it upon heating — enabling portable water generation in desert regions.
Carbon Capture: Their selective pores allow efficient CO₂ capture and storage, aiding climate change mitigation.
Hydrogen and Methane Storage: Act as solid sponges essential for fuel cells and clean energy systems.
Pollutant Filtration: Remove PFAS (Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances), heavy metals, and organic contaminants from water sources.
Food Preservation: Absorb ethylene gas emitted by fruits, slowing ripening and extending shelf life.
Catalysis and Sensing: Serve as heterogeneous catalysts and chemical sensors for trace-level detection in industrial settings.
Clean Energy Systems: Integrated into batteries, fuel cells, and supercapacitors for energy storage due to high conductivity and surface area.
Scientific Development:
Richard Robson (University of Melbourne, 1970s): He pioneered the idea of linking metal atoms and ligands into extended frameworks, though early models were fragile.
Susumu Kitagawa (Kyoto University): Built porous coordination polymers, the first to demonstrate that gases could diffuse through molecular cavities—a defining MOF feature.
Omar Yaghi (University of California, Berkeley, 1990s): Created robust, heat-resistant MOFs, standardised synthesis techniques, and coined the term “Metal–Organic Framework” in a 1995 Nature paper.
Breakthrough Achievement: Yaghi’s team designed copper- and cobalt-based MOFs stable up to 350°C, capable of hosting guest molecules without collapse.
[UPSC 2024] With reference to Direct Air Capture, an emerging technology, which of the following statements is/are correct?
I. It can be used as a way of carbon sequestration.
II. It can be a valuable approach for plastic production and in food processing.
III. In aviation, it can be a source of carbon for combining with hydrogen to create synthetic low-carbon fuel.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
(a) I and II only (b) II only (c) I, II, and III* (d) None of the above statements is correct
The Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare has expanded the National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) by including 9 additional commodities, raising the total tradable items on the platform to 247.
AboutNational Agriculture Market (e-NAM):
Launch: Introduced in April 2016 by the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare under the Integrated Scheme on Agricultural Marketing (ISAM).
Implementing Agency: Managed by the Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) under the Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare.
Objective: To unify agricultural markets across India by offering farmers and traders a transparent, competitive, and quality-based digital trading platform for real-time price discovery and reduced intermediary dependence.
Legal Framework: Operates within state Agricultural Produce Market Committee (APMC) Acts, harmonised through inter-state trading licences and digital linkage.
Funding & Governance: Fully centrally funded, providing both digital infrastructure and physical market modernisation to APMCs.
Working Mechanism:
Digital APMC Integration: Each mandi connected to the e-NAM portal for online inter-state trading.
Online Auctions: Produce graded, assayed, and weighed before real-time electronic bidding.
Price Discovery & Payment: Transparent auction ensures quality-linked pricing; proceeds transferred directly to farmers’ bank accounts.
Unified Licensing: A single trading licence enables purchase from multiple mandis nationwide.
Warehouse Trading (e-NAM 2.0): Incorporates warehouses and cold storages for sale of stored produce and extended logistics support.
Coverage (2025):
Mandis Integrated: 1,522 mandis across 23 States & 4 UTs.
Commodities: 247 tradable items including cereals, pulses, oilseeds, fruits, spices, and medicinal plants.
Participants: Around 1.7 crore farmers and 4,500 FPOs registered.
Leading States: Tamil Nadu (213 mandis), followed by Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Data Analytics: Real-time insights on trade volume, prices, and demand trends aid policy decisions.
Key Features & Impact:
Pan-India Integration: Realises “One Nation, One Market” by linking mandis and private markets.
Quality Assurance: Standardised parameters framed by Directorate of Marketing & Inspection (DMI) ensure grade-based pricing.
Digital Efficiency: Electronic weighing, e-payments, and cloud-based architecture cut transaction time from 8–10 hours to 30 minutes.
The Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) plans to showcase India’s PM-KUSUM and PM Surya Ghar schemes to several African and island nations through the International Solar Alliance (ISA) platform.
India’s Global Outreach via International Solar Alliance (ISA):
Founded:2015, jointly by India and France, headquartered in Gurugram (Haryana, India).
Membership (2025):98 countries, focused on promoting solar energy deployment in developing and tropical nations.
Mandate: Facilitate affordable solar technology, finance mobilization, and policy support to achieve global energy access and climate goals.
Strategic Focus Areas (2025):
Catalytic Finance Hub: Mobilising global investments in solar infrastructure.
Global Capability Centre: Providing technical training, digital tools, and policy frameworks.
Technology Roadmap: Driving innovation in floating solar, AI-based grid management, green hydrogen, and One Sun, One World, One Grid (OSOWOG) connectivity.
Country Engagement: Strengthening regional partnerships for implementation and capacity-building.
Global Showcasing of Indian Models:
India plans to export the PM-KUSUM and PM Surya Ghar models to Africa and island nations facing low electrification and irrigation coverage.
Only 4% of Africa’s arable land is irrigated, creating a vast opportunity for solar-powered irrigation and energy access.
Significance: ISA serves as the primary vehicle for India’s renewable diplomacy, promoting clean energy cooperation, technology transfer, and South–South collaboration for sustainable development.
Back2Basics:
[1] PM-KUSUM Scheme:
Full Name:Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) launched in 2019 by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).
Objective: To promote solar energy use in agriculture, enabling farmers to generate clean electricity, replace diesel pumps, and earn additional income through sale of surplus solar power.
Targets:
Add 34,800 MW of decentralized solar capacity by March 2026.
Total outlay of ₹34,422 crore in Central financial assistance.
Structure: Three key components –
Component A: 10,000 MW of decentralized grid-connected solar/renewable plants on barren land.
Component B: 14 lakh standalone solar pumps for irrigation.
Limited progress in grid-connected plants (6%) and pump solarization (16–25%).
Scheme likely to be extended beyond 2026 due to delayed infrastructure readiness.
Benefits: Reduces input costs, ensures energy self-reliance, lowers carbon emissions, and generates sustainable farmer income through surplus power sales.
[2] PM Surya Ghar Scheme:
Full Name:PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana launched in 2025 as a flagship rooftop solar initiative for residential households.
Implementing Agency:Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE).
Objective: To promote rooftop solar installations for one crore households, especially middle-class and economically weaker sections, providing affordable or free electricity.
Budget:₹75,021 crore for implementation till FY 2026–27.
Features:
Subsidy up to 40% of total installation cost.
Annual household savings of up to ₹18,000 through self-generation.
Net metering enables sale of surplus power to the grid.
Simplified application via national portal; eligibility limited to one household per residence.
Impact: Reduces power bills, promotes decentralized renewable energy generation, and contributes to India’s target of 500 GW non-fossil energy capacity by 2030.
[UPSC 2016] Consider the following statements:
1. The International Solar Alliance was launched at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in 2015.
2. The Alliance includes all the member countries of the United Nations.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Options: (a) 1 only* (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2
A new species of wasp, Nesolynx banabitanae, has been discovered in Central Park (Banabitan), Salt Lake, Kolkata.
About ‘Nesolynx banabitanae’:
Taxonomic Family: Belongs to the Eulophidae family — known for parasitic and hyperparasitic wasps.
Type of Species: It is a hyperparasitoid, meaning it parasitises other parasitoid wasps rather than directly preying on host insects.
Host Interaction: Parasitises the ichneumonid parasitoid Charops aditya, which itself attacks caterpillars of the Common Palmfly (Elymnias hypermnestra) and Common Castor (Ariadne merione) butterflies.
Significance: Only the seventh known wasp species discovered in India, adding to the country’s limited record of Nesolynx genus.
Etymology: Named banabitanae after “Banabitan”, the local Bengali name for Central Park, where it was first identified.
Significance:
Ecological Role: Contributes to multitrophic ecological interactions by adding a fourth trophic level influencing population dynamics of butterflies and their parasitoids.
Scientific Relevance: Enhances understanding of hyperparasitoid behaviour, urban insect ecology, and biodiversity conservation in anthropogenic landscapes.
Analytical Importance: The SEM-based structural mapping provides baseline data for future phylogenetic and taxonomic comparisons within Nesolynx.
[UPSC 2024] Regarding Peacock tarantula (Gooty tarantula), consider the following statements:
I. It is an omnivorous crustacean. II. Its natural habitat in India is only limited to some forest areas. III. In its natural habitat, it is an arboreal species.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) I only (b) I and III (c) II only (d) II and III *
British PM Keir Starmer’s visit to Mumbai, the new EFTA trade pact, and ongoing EU-India trade talks in Brussels reflect Europe’s growing weight in India’s foreign policy. After years of limited engagement, Europe is emerging as a central partner in Delhi’s strategic calculus, just as the continent itself begins to assert geopolitical autonomy beyond its traditional dependence on the United States.
This marks a structural transformation in world politics, the emergence of a “multipolar West”, where Europe, North America, and Asia’s democratic powers pursue convergent but independent strategic agendas.
Historical Background: From Western Unity to Strategic Pluralism:
Post-War Western Unity: After World War II, the “West” became synonymous with political unity under US leadership, reinforced through NATO and Cold War alliances against the Soviet bloc.
Unipolar Moment after USSR Collapse: The collapse of the USSR in 1991 strengthened this unity, briefly creating a unipolar world centred on US dominance and Western liberal values.
Emergence of New Power Centres: As Russia reasserted its power and China rose to global prominence, the old Western consensus began to fracture.
India’s Advocacy for Multipolarity: Emerging powers like India called for a multipolar world — initially to balance US hegemony, but increasingly to acknowledge growing diversity within the West itself.
Shifting Dynamics: The Rise of a Multipolar West
Erosion of Transatlantic Dependence: Donald Trump’s “America First” policy disrupted long-standing alliances, forcing Europe and Asia to reconsider their strategic dependence on Washington.
Deepening Intra-Western Differences: Differences within the West have widened over Russia, China, trade policy, digital sovereignty, and technological standards.
Transactional Nature of US Power: European capitals now recognise that the US may increasingly act as a transactional power — pursuing self-interest rather than collective leadership.
Europe’s Strategic Reorientation: In response, Europe is embracing strategic autonomy to reduce vulnerability to shifting US politics and develop independent capacities in defence, technology, and industrial production.
Europe’s Quest for Sovereignty and Strategic Autonomy:
Leadership from Paris and Berlin: Leaders like Emmanuel Macron (France) and Olaf Scholz (Germany) are spearheading efforts to build a self-reliant Europe capable of defending its own interests.
Institutional Assertion of Autonomy: In her 2025 State of the Union address, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declared that Europe must “stand on its own feet, economically, technologically, and militarily.”
Defence and Security Cooperation: The EU is expanding defence collaboration through joint industrial initiatives and deeper coordination with partners such as the UK, Japan, South Korea, and Canada.
Persistent Internal Divides: Despite enduring divides between East and West over Russia, and North and South over fiscal policy Europe’s trajectory is unmistakably toward a more unified and assertive role within a plural Western order.
India’s Engagement with Europe’s Strategic Evolution:
EU–India Partnership Framework: The EU’s Joint Communication on India (September 2025) positions Delhi as a key partner in Europe’s Indo-Pacific and economic diversification strategy.
Priority Areas of Cooperation:
Trade and Technology: Collaboration in semiconductors, clean energy, and digital infrastructure.
Connectivity: Engagement through the Global Gateway initiative, aligning with India’s infrastructure ambitions.
Defence and Security: Cooperation on maritime domain awareness and joint naval presence in the Indian Ocean.
Political Dialogue: Recognition of differences on Russia, but convergence on multilateralism and democratic resilience.
Shift Beyond China-Centric Policy: Europe is moving beyond its earlier China-centric worldview, placing India at the centre of its Indo-Pacific engagement and supply-chain diversification efforts.
Implications of a Multipolar West for India
Expanded Diplomatic Flexibility: A loosely knit Western order provides India with greater strategic freedom to engage multiple Western poles — the US, EU, and UK — without rigid alignment.
Opportunity for Issue-Based Coalitions: The new order enables collaboration on shared priorities like climate action, digital governance, and critical technologies.
Risks of Fragmentation: However, a fragmented West may weaken collective responses to authoritarian aggression and reduce coherence in global governance.
Balancing Opportunity and Stability: India must simultaneously exploit Western pluralism and safeguard against the erosion of strategic stability that could undermine democratic solidarity.
Way Forward
Evolving Maturity in Foreign Policy: India’s diplomacy now shows increasing sophistication — evident in renewed engagement with Europe, balanced ties with the US, Russia, and China, and pragmatic participation in both Western and non-Western coalitions such as the Quad, BRICS, and IPEF.
Domestic Readiness as a Constraint: Despite external agility, institutional inertia, slow structural reforms, and uneven economic modernisation continue to limit India’s ability to leverage emerging global openings.
Aligning Internal and External Transformation: To fully benefit from a multipolar West, India must synchronise domestic transformation with external ambitions, ensuring that internal capacity and policy agility match the demands of an evolving global order.
[UPSC 2024] The West is fostering India as an alternative to reduce dependence on China’s supply chain and as a strategic ally to counter China’s political and economic dominance.’ Explain this statement with examples.
Linkage: “Multipolar World” theme involves focusing heavily on India’s strategic responses to new global and regional alliances (e.g., QUAD, AUKUS, I2U2), the shifting economic dominance of powers like China, and the resulting geopolitical instability.
India faces a critical policy challenge — balancing the long-term gains of global trade with the short-term risks of unemployment, stagnant wages, and inequality among vulnerable populations. The existing economic system prioritises private capital accumulation over mass welfare, requiring a realignment of capitalism toward inclusivity and public interest.
Amid global trade disruptions, tariff wars, and falling external demand, Indian capital must reinvent itself, collaborate closely with the government, and anchor domestic economic stability through investment, innovation, and equitable growth.
Evolution of Indian Capital and the Need for Reorientation:
Protected Growth Era: Historically, Indian capital thrived under state protection before liberalisation, leveraging tariff barriers and inward-looking policies to earn supernormal profits in closed domestic markets.
Global Expansion Phase: Liberalisation in the 1990s enabled Indian firms to expand globally, acquiring foreign assets and establishing international linkages. This evolution created a few industrial conglomerates that dominate key sectors.
Shift Toward Public-Interest Capitalism: With global trade slowing and protectionism rising, these firms must now redefine their role — from being beneficiaries of state incentives to partners in public-interest growth.
Reinvention of Capitalism: Capitalism, as history shows, can adapt and evolve. The moment demands an inclusive capitalism that balances private profit with national development goals.
Global Trade, Demand, and Economic Vulnerabilities
Determinants of Demand Expansion: Economic history identifies three drivers of mass-market expansion, creation of a wage-labour class, productivity gains from industrial production, and rising personal incomes leading to higher demand.
Neglect of Aggregate Demand: Growth of aggregate demand is vital for sustaining production and profits, yet most policy frameworks underestimate its role, assuming supply automatically creates demand.
Domestic vs. External Demand: In a globalised economy, demand comprises domestic and external components. While early industrial policies relied on internal markets, the post-reform phase emphasised exports.
Vulnerability to Global Shocks: Today’s volatile global trade marked by tariffs and supply-chain distortions, has weakened external demand. Thus, strengthening domestic consumption through higher wages, internal investment, and industrial diversification is the pragmatic path forward.
The Role of Domestic Capital in Stimulating Growth
Reviving Private Investment
Stagnation in Private Capex: Despite record corporate profits, private investment has stagnated, with the state driving capital formation through public infrastructure and fiscal stimulus.
Rise in Public Investment: Public capex surged from ₹3.4 lakh crore (FY20) to ₹10.2 lakh crore (FY25) — a CAGR of 25%, primarily in railways, roads, and communications.
Outward vs. Inward Investment: Private capex remains subdued even as outward FDI by Indian firms has grown 12.6% annually (2019–2024), indicating stronger foreign than domestic investment appetite.
Strategic Redirection Needed: A strategic reversal is required — redirecting capital toward domestic expansion, capacity building, and industrial diversification.
Ensuring Moderate Wage Growth
Profit–Wage Imbalance: The Economic Survey 2024–25 highlighted a growing imbalance — corporate profits at a 15-year high versus stagnant real wages.
Falling Real Incomes: Rating agencies project real wage growth to fall from 7% (FY25) to 6.5% (FY26), weakening purchasing power and domestic demand.
Labour Market Precarity: Contractualization and weakened collective bargaining in formal sectors have reduced labour’s share of income, intensifying inequality.
Need for Wage-Linked Growth: Sustainable growth requires balanced profit–wage dynamics, linking productivity with equitable income distribution to expand internal demand.
Expanding R&D and Innovation:
Low R&D Spending: India’s gross expenditure on R&D (GERD) stands at 0.64% of GDP, far below that of the U.S., China, Japan, and South Korea, where private enterprise funds over 70% of total R&D.
Weak Private Contribution: In India, the private sector contributes only 36%, with concentration in a few industries, pharmaceuticals, IT, defence, and biotechnology.
Innovation as a Structural Imperative: To ensure long-term competitiveness, Indian firms must increase basic and applied research spending, moving beyond short-term, profit-driven innovation cycles.
Way Forward: Aligning Private Capital with Public Purpose
Need for Coordination: The global economic uncertainty necessitates coordinated policy–business action to safeguard growth.
Government’s Supportive Role: The government has built a supportive framework through fiscal incentives, simplified regulation, infrastructure development, and credit facilitation. Yet, without active private participation, momentum will stall.
Reorientation of Corporate Priorities: Indian capital must realign its priorities:
National Responsibility: Treat national economic stability as a collective responsibility, not merely a policy backdrop.
Domestic Reinvestment: Reinvest profits domestically to generate employment and strengthen demand.
Wage-Led Expansion: Commit to wage-led growth, ensuring equitable income distribution.
R&D Commitment: Integrate R&D-driven innovation as a structural pillar of industrial policy.
Conclusion: A partnership model — where the state provides the framework and domestic capital drives inclusive, innovation-led expansion — can secure both growth resilience and social legitimacy in the post-globalisation era.
PYQ Relevance:
[UPSC 2023] Do you agree that Indian capitalism needs re-orientation towards inclusive and sustainable growth?
Linkage: The issue aligns with GS-III themes: Indian Economy and issues relating to growth, inclusive development, investment models, and effects of liberalisation on the economy.
It also fits Essay Paper topics like “Capitalism without conscience is a peril to society” or “Economic self-reliance and global interdependence must coexist.”
The debate concerns how Indian private capital can become a stakeholder in inclusive growth amid protectionism, global trade uncertainty, and sluggish domestic demand.
U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated a willingness to extend the New START Treaty with Russia by one year, until February 2027, as the treaty is due to expire next February.
About the New START Treaty:
About: New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START); Bilateral nuclear arms control pact between the United States and Russia.
Signed: April 8, 2010, in Prague by U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev; Came into Force: February 5, 2011.
Initial Duration: 10 years, set to be expired in February 2021; extended by 5 years to February 2026.
Proposed Further Extension: To February 2027, as hinted by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Objective: Limit and verify the number of deployed strategic nuclear weapons to ensure predictability and strategic stability between the two nuclear superpowers.
Ceilings:
1,550 deployed strategic nuclear warheads.
700 deployed intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), and heavy bombers.
800 deployed and non-deployed launchers and bombers combined.
Verification Regime:
Regular on-site inspections.
Biannual data exchanges.
Notifications of movement or deployment of nuclear assets.
Telemetry sharing for missile tests.
Administering Authority: U.S. Department of State and Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs under a joint commission.
Scope: Applies only to strategic (long-range) nuclear forces, not tactical nuclear weapons.
Historical Context:
Successor to START I (1991) and START II (1993).
Last remaining arms control treaty after the collapse of the INF Treaty (2019) and U.S. withdrawal from the ABM Treaty (2001).
Significance: Serves as the final legal constraint on the two largest nuclear arsenals, reducing risk of an unconstrained arms race.
Implications of Extending the New START
Maintains Strategic Stability: Retains verifiable limits on the world’s two largest nuclear stockpiles, reducing risk of escalation or miscalculation.
Prevents Arms Race: Avoids a strategic vacuum that could lead to rapid weapon modernization and expansion by both nations.
Diplomatic Leverage: Provides a diplomatic window for future multilateral disarmament talks, possibly involving China and other nuclear powers.
Global Signalling: Reinforces commitment to nuclear restraint and non-proliferation under the spirit of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Risks of Non-Extension:
Collapse of all bilateral arms control between the U.S. and Russia.
Accelerated nuclear modernization programs.
Weakened global disarmament norms and potential CTBT irrelevance.
The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) has achieved a historic milestone by constructing the world’s highest motorable road at Mig La Pass, situated 19,400 feet above sea level in Ladakh.
Strategic Value: Enables rapid troop movement and logistics support in high-altitude sectors; promotes eco-tourism and local trade.
What is Project Himank?
Overview: A flagship Border Roads Organisation (BRO) initiative launched in December 1985 to build and maintain roads in Ladakh’s high-altitude regions.
Key Achievements: Built Umling La Road, Chisumle–Demchok, Darbuk–Shyok–DBO, Kargil–Zanskar, and now the Mig La Road (19,400 ft) under severe climatic stress.
About Mig La Pass:
Importance: Crucial for India’s border logistics network, enabling swift troop deployment, supply transport, and surveillance near LAC and LoC.
Location: Situated on the Changthang Plateau, eastern Ladakh, near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China.
Elevation: Stands at 19,400 ft (5,913 m), now the highest motorable road in the world (2025), overtaking Umling La (19,024 ft).
Alignment: Lies along the Likaru–Mig La–Fukche route, forming a third strategic link from Hanle to Fukche near the Indo-China border.
Connectivity Role: Provides access to remote frontier villages—Hanle, Rongo, Kuyul, and Demchok—improving healthcare, communication, and supply access.
Geography: Part of the Changthang cold desert, with thin air, permafrost, and extreme cold, posing major engineering challenges.
Historical Link: Follows ancient Indo-Tibetan trade routes, reflecting Ladakh’s role in trans-Himalayan Silk Route exchanges.
[UPSC 2007] Which one of the following Himalayan passes was reopened around in the middle of the year 2006 to facilitate trade between India and China?
Options: (a) Chang La (b) Jara La (c) Nathu La* (d) Shipki La
SC Judgements | Polity | Mains Paper 2: Indian Constitution - historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisions and basic structure
Why in the News?
The Supreme Court of India has affirmed that women of the Gond community, a Scheduled Tribe under Article 342, are entitled to inherit ancestral property, even where no explicit tribal custom confers this right.
Supreme Court Verdict on Gond Women’s Inheritance Rights:
Background: Case concerned women of the Gond Scheduled Tribe seeking equal inheritance rights over their maternal grandfather’s ancestral property.
Lower Court Rulings: The trial court and Madhya Pradesh High Court dismissed the plea, holding that no tribal custom granted such rights and placing the burden of proof on the women.
Supreme Court Review: On 17 July 2025, a Bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and Joymalya Bagchi examined whether constitutional equality overrides unwritten tribal customs excluding women from succession.
Legal Context: Under Section 2(2) of the Hindu Succession Act (1956), Scheduled Tribes are excluded unless specifically notified—none apply to Gonds—so the dispute was governed by customary tribal law.
Supreme Court’s Ruling:
Presumption of Equality: The Court reversed lower findings, holding that equality must be presumed unless a proven, valid custom denies it.
Burden of Proof: Stated that custom cannot be presumed; it must be ancient, certain, and reasonable, proven through credible evidence.
Gender Justice: Rejected patriarchal inferences drawn from Hindu traditions, asserting such predispositions have “no place” in the case.
Guiding Principle: In absence of valid custom, courts must decide per “justice, equity, and good conscience.”
Article 15(1):Prohibits sex-based discrimination; used to strike down exclusion of women.
Article 38: Mandates elimination of inequality across social and gender lines.
Article 46: Requires protection of Scheduled Tribes from exploitation and injustice.
Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005 cited for illustrating gender-equal intent, not direct applicability.
Constitutional–Customary Balance:
Conflict: Between tribal autonomy under Fifth/Sixth Schedules and constitutional equality under Part III.
Precedent Shift: Unlike Madhu Kishwar v. State of Bihar (1996), which upheld male-only inheritance, the 2025 ruling held that when custom is unproven or discriminatory, Article 14 prevails.
Significance: Moves jurisprudence from deference to custom toward enforcement of constitutional morality, ensuring tribal women’s equal property rights.
[UPSC 2023] Explain the constitutional perspectives of Gender Justice with the help of relevant Constitutional Provisions and case laws.
[UPSC 2015] Discuss the possible factors that inhibit India from enacting for its citizens a uniform civil code as provided for in the Directive Principles of State Policy.
