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  • Unable to Score Geography Questions Correctly in your Prelims Mock Test Series? || Then, Attend This Free Live Webinar By CD Mentor Purnima Ma’am|| How to Change Your Preparation Approach for Geography in the Last 60 Days?|| Limited Slots Available, Register Now

    Unable to Score Geography Questions Correctly in your Prelims Mock Test Series? || Then, Attend This Free Live Webinar By CD Mentor Purnima Ma’am|| How to Change Your Preparation Approach for Geography in the Last 60 Days?|| Limited Slots Available, Register Now

    register for prelims free live webinar by purnima ma’am

    Aspirants who generally have no problem with subjects like History, Polity, Art and Culture and Current Affairs, falter when it comes to Geography. This is because, Geography is a technical subject and one gets confused on what to read and what to give a miss.

    It’s quite amusing but the reality is that there are more facts you might have to remember for geography than, maybe history or polity. This could range from water-bodies, ports, straits, important physical features, natural resources etc.

    Barring a year or two, the number of geography questions that appeared in prelims have averaged in the range of 12-25. Scoring well in this area is important for those who are in the 80-90s range in their test series.

    Geography Questions in UPSC Prelims [2013-2021] | Download Solution PDFs

    Free Open to All, Webinar by CD Geography Mentor Purnima Ma’am

    REGISTER FOR PRELIMS FREE LIVE WEBINAR BY PURNIMA MA’AM

    We understood the UPSC aspirants need of preparing for Geography in a less time consuming manner while understanding the relevant information for the exam.

    That’s why on Thursday we are coming up with a free live webinar by Purnima Ma’am who will give all aspirants the right guidance on how to study for this subject for Prelims 2022. The webinar will be truly focused on Geography for Prelims 2022. By the end of the webinar, students will gain confidence and interest to open their atlas and textbooks and study the subject all over again.

    Purnima Ma’am has completed BA in Geography from Miranda House and MA in Geography from Jawaharlal Nehru University. She is currently pursuing PhD in Geography on Net-JRF scholarship.

    What Will You Learn From This Free Live Webinar?

    1. Which NCERT books to cover? Purnima Ma’am will explain the chapters to read for Geography prelims in NCERT 6-12th books.

    2. Topic wise importance for UPSC Prelims 2022. From Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Fundamentals of Human Geography, India, People and Economy.

    3. What are the online sources to refer for topics not covered in NCERT? Purnima Ma’am will highlight the specific and limited literature which is available online for free.

    4. Live demonstration of Previous Year Question Papers. The direct questions that from NCERT textbooks from Prelims 2016-2021.

    5. How to do weekly revision for maps? Everything from straits, ports, geographic location that will be covered.

    6. Current affair topics of 5 years for Indian and World Geography. How to do a final revision on these topics?

    7. How to allocate time for Geography Revision on a daily basis if that’s the reason you are scoring less?

    8. Certain Mnemonics to remember important facts in Geography. Popular memory techniques used by toppers to ace Geography.

    upsc aspirant preparation moments | Geography lessons, Social studies worksheets, General knowledge book

    Webinar Details

    Start from where you are, use what you have and still score well in Geography prelims for UPSC-CSE 2022! Clear your doubts with Purnima Ma’am in the upcoming session.

    Date: 24th March, 2022

    Time: 7 PM

    REGISTER FOR PRELIMS FREE LIVE WEBINAR BY PURNIMA MA’AM
  • Unable to Score Geography Questions Correctly in your Prelims Mock Test Series? || Then, Attend This Free Live Webinar By CD Mentor Purnima Ma’am|| How to Change Your Preparation Approach for Geography in the Last 60 Days?|| Limited Slots Available, Register Now

    Unable to Score Geography Questions Correctly in your Prelims Mock Test Series? || Then, Attend This Free Live Webinar By CD Mentor Purnima Ma’am|| How to Change Your Preparation Approach for Geography in the Last 60 Days?|| Limited Slots Available, Register Now

    register for prelims free live webinar by purnima ma’am

    Aspirants who generally have no problem with subjects like History, Polity, Art and Culture and Current Affairs, falter when it comes to Geography. This is because, Geography is a technical subject and one gets confused on what to read and what to give a miss.

    It’s quite amusing but the reality is that there are more facts you might have to remember for geography than, maybe history or polity. This could range from water-bodies, ports, straits, important physical features, natural resources etc.

    Barring a year or two, the number of geography questions that appeared in prelims have averaged in the range of 12-25. Scoring well in this area is important for those who are in the 80-90s range in their test series.

    Geography Questions in UPSC Prelims [2013-2021] | Download Solution PDFs

    Free Open to All, Webinar by CD Geography Mentor Purnima Ma’am

    REGISTER FOR PRELIMS FREE LIVE WEBINAR BY PURNIMA MA’AM

    We understood the UPSC aspirants need of preparing for Geography in a less time consuming manner while understanding the relevant information for the exam.

    That’s why on Thursday we are coming up with a free live webinar by Purnima Ma’am who will give all aspirants the right guidance on how to study for this subject for Prelims 2022. The webinar will be truly focused on Geography for Prelims 2022. By the end of the webinar, students will gain confidence and interest to open their atlas and textbooks and study the subject all over again.

    Purnima Ma’am has completed BA in Geography from Miranda House and MA in Geography from Jawaharlal Nehru University. She is currently pursuing PhD in Geography on Net-JRF scholarship.

    What Will You Learn From This Free Live Webinar?

    1. Which NCERT books to cover? Purnima Ma’am will explain the chapters to read for Geography prelims in NCERT 6-12th books.

    2. Topic wise importance for UPSC Prelims 2022. From Fundamentals of Physical Geography, Fundamentals of Human Geography, India, People and Economy.

    3. What are the online sources to refer for topics not covered in NCERT? Purnima Ma’am will highlight the specific and limited literature which is available online for free.

    4. Live demonstration of Previous Year Question Papers. The direct questions that from NCERT textbooks from Prelims 2016-2021.

    5. How to do weekly revision for maps? Everything from straits, ports, geographic location that will be covered.

    6. Current affair topics of 5 years for Indian and World Geography. How to do a final revision on these topics?

    7. How to allocate time for Geography Revision on a daily basis if that’s the reason you are scoring less?

    8. Certain Mnemonics to remember important facts in Geography. Popular memory techniques used by toppers to ace Geography.

    upsc aspirant preparation moments | Geography lessons, Social studies worksheets, General knowledge book

    Webinar Details

    Start from where you are, use what you have and still score well in Geography prelims for UPSC-CSE 2022! Clear your doubts with Purnima Ma’am in the upcoming session.

    Date: 24th March, 2022

    Time: 7 PM

    REGISTER FOR PRELIMS FREE LIVE WEBINAR BY PURNIMA MA’AM

  • SC backs Centre’s OROP scheme

    The Supreme Court has upheld the Centre’s one rank, one pension (OROP) scheme for the armed forces.

    What is the news?

    • The Supreme Court has ruled that there was “no constitutional infirmity” in the way the government had introduced ‘one rank, one pension’ (OROP) among ex-service personnel.
    • The scheme, notified by the Defence Ministry on November 7, 2015, was challenged by Indian Ex-Service Movement, an association of retired defence personnel.

    What is OROP Scheme?

    • OROP means that any two military personnel retiring at the same rank, with the same years of service, must get an equal pension.
    • While this might appear almost obvious, there are several reasons why two military personnel who may have retired at the same rank with the same years of service, may get different pensions.

    Need for the scheme

    Military personnel across the three services fall under two categories, the officers and the other ranks.

    • Early age of retirement: The other ranks, which are soldiers, usually retire at age 35.
    • No benefits from pay commissions: Unlike government employees who retire close to 60, soldiers can thus miss out on the benefits from subsequent pay commissions.
    • Salary based pension: And since pensions are based on the last drawn salary, pensions too are impacted adversely.
    • Ranks based discrimination: The age when officers in the military retire depends upon their ranks. The lower the rank, the earlier they superannuate.
    • Liability against the sacrifice: It was argued that early retirement should not become an adverse element for what a soldier earns as pension, compared with those who retire later.

    Earlier pension mechanism

    • From 1950 to 1973, there was a concept known as the Standard Rate of Pension, which was similar to OROP.
    • In 1974, when the 3rd Pay Commission came into force, certain changes were effected in terms of weightage, additional years of notion service, etc., with regard to pensions.
    • In 1986, the 4th Pay Commission’s report brought further changes.
    • What ultimately happened was that the benefits of the successive pay commissions were not passed to servicemen who had retired earlier.
    • Pensions differed for those who had retired at the same rank, with the same years of service, but years apart.

    Demand for OROP

    • Ex-servicemen demanded OROP to correct the discrepancy.
    • Over the decades, several committees looked into it.
    • The Brig K P Singh Deo committee in 1983 recommended a system similar to Standard Rate of Pension, as did Parliament’s standing committees on defence.
    • The Narendra Modi government notified the current OROP scheme in November 2015, and it was made applicable from July 1, 2014.

    Issues with OROP

    • During the OROP protests of 2013-15, it was argued repeatedly that meeting the demand would be financially unsustainable.
    • Because soldiers retire early and remain eligible for pension for much longer than other employees, the Defence Ministry’s pension budget is very large, impacting capital expenditure.
    • The total defence pensioners are 32.9 lakh, but that includes 6.14 lakh defence civilian pensioners.
    • The actual expenditure of the Defence Ministry on pensions was Rs 1.18 lakh crore in 2019-2020.
    • The Defence Ministry’s pension-to-budget ratio is the highest among all ministries, and pensions are more than one-fifth of the total defence budget.
    • When the late Manohar Parrikar was Defence Minister, it was estimated that a one-time payout of Rs 83,000 crore would be needed to clear all past issues.

    Challenge to OROP

    • The petitioners contended that the principle of OROP had been replaced by ‘one rank multiple pensions’ for persons with the same length of service.
    • They submitted that the government had altered the initial definition of OROP and, instead of an automatic revision of the rates of pension.
    • Under this, any future raising of pension rates would be passed on to past pensioners — the revision would now take place at periodic intervals.
    • According to the petitioners, this was arbitrary and unconstitutional under Articles 14 and 21.

    What has the SC ruled now?

    • The court did not agree with the argument that the government’s 2015 policy communication contradicted the original decision to implement OROP.
    • It said that “while a decision to implement OROP was taken in principle, the modalities for implementation were yet to be chalked out.
    • The court also said that while the Koshyari Committee report furnishes the historical background of the demand, and its own view on it, it cannot be construed as embodying a statement of governmental policy.
    • It held that the OROP policy “may only be challenged on the ground that it is manifestly arbitrary or capricious”.

     

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  • Sri Lanka’s aggravating Economic Crisis

    Sri Lanka’s economic crisis is aggravating rapidly, putting citizens through enormous hardship.

    Reasons for the Crisis

    The first wave of the pandemic in 2020 offered early and sure signs of distress.

    • In-migration: Thousands of Sri Lankan labourers in West Asian countries were left stranded and returned jobless.
    • Shut-down: Garment factories and tea estates could not function, as infections raged in clusters. Tourism sector to saw a big dip.
    • Domestic job losses: Thousands of youth lost their jobs in cities as establishments abruptly sacked them or shut down.
    • Forex decline: It meant that all key foreign exchange earning sectors, such as exports and remittances, along with tourism, were brutally hit.

    Policy failures of Lankan govt

    • No strategy: The lack of a comprehensive strategy to respond to the crisis then was coupled with certain policy decisions last year.
    • Ill-advised policies: It included the government’s abrupt switch to organic farming —widely deemed “ill-advised”, further aggravated the problem.
    • Food hoarding: The government declared emergency regulations for the distribution of essential food items. It put wide import restrictions to save dollars which in turn led to consequent market irregularities and reported hoarding.
    • Continuous borrowing: Fears of a sovereign default rose by the end of 2021, with the country’s foreign reserves plummeting to $1.6 billion, and deadlines for repaying external loans looming.

    What is happening on the ground?

    • At the macro-economic level, all indicators are worrisome.
    • The Sri Lankan rupee, which authorities floated this month, has fallen to nearly 265 against the U.S. dollar. Consumer Price inflation is at 16.8% and foreign reserves stood at $2.31 billion at the end of February.
    • Sri Lanka must repay foreign debt totalling nearly $7 billion this year and continue importing essentials from its dwindling dollar account.
    • Sri Lanka will incur an import bill of $22 billion this year, resulting in a trade deficit of $10 billion.

    Implications on Public

    • For citizens, this means long waits in queues for fuel, a shortage of cooking gas, contending with prolonged power cuts in many localities and struggles to find medicines for patients.
    • In families of working people, the crisis is translating to cutting down on milk for children, eating fewer meals, or going to bed hungry.

    How is India helping?

    • Acting in the Neighbourhood’s first policy, India stands with Sri Lanka.
    • $1 billion credit line signed for supply of essential commodities. Key element of the package of support extended by India.
    • Beginning January 2022, India has extended assistance totalling $ 2.4 billion — including an $400 million RBI currency swap and a $500 million loan deferment.

    Chinese lure of aid

    • China is considering Sri Lanka’s recent request for further $2.5 billion assistance, in addition to the $2.8 billion Beijing has extended since the outbreak of the pandemic.

    How is India’s assistance being viewed in Sri Lanka?

    • Sacking key infra projects: The leadership has thanked India for the timely assistance, but there is growing scepticism in Sri Lankan media and some sections, over Indian assistance “being tied” to New Delhi inking key infrastructure projects.
    • Deep incursion: They mainly include the strategic Trincomalee Oil Tank Farm project; the National Thermal Power Corporation’s recent agreement with Ceylon Electricity Board to set up a solar power plant in Sampur, with investment from India’s Adani Group.
    • Diplomatic blackmail: SL media accuses New Delhi was resorting to “diplomatic blackmail”. The political opposition has accused the Adani Group of entering Sri Lanka through the “back door”, avoiding competitive bids and due process.

    Options available for SL

    • Sri Lanka is hoping for a Rapid Finance Instrument (RFI) facility as well as a larger Extended Fund Facility (EFF) from the IMF to deal with its foreign currency shortages.
    • IMF had assured to help the country with an amount of $300 million to $600 million.

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  • India ranks 136th in the World Happiness Report 2022

    India ranks 136th in the World Happiness Report 2022, while Finland becomes the happiest country for the fifth consecutive year.

    One can definitely question the credibility of such reports whenever India is being grouped with some African countries that too below Pakistan.

    World Happiness Report

    • The WHR is an annual publication of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
    • It measures three main well-being indicators: life evaluations, positive emotions, and negative emotions (described in the report as positive and negative affect).
    • Since 2011, the World Happiness Report (WHR) is released every year around the time of International Day of Happiness on March 20.
    • It was adopted by the UN General Assembly based on a resolution tabled by Bhutan.

    How is the WHI derived?

    • The ranking is done on a three-year average based on surveys of ‘Life Evaluation’ conducted by Gallup World Poll which surveys around 1000 people from each country to evaluate their current life on a scale of 0-10.
    • On this scale, 10 marks the best possible and 0 as the worst possible life.
    • Further, six key variables GDP per capita, social support, healthy life expectancy, freedom, generosity, and corruption contribute to explaining life evaluations.

    Top performers this year

    • The top five countries in the list are from Europe.
    • While the United States held the 16th spot in the happiest countries list.
    • Following Finland, Denmark bagged the second rank, while Iceland and Switzerland stood at third and fourth rank.
    • The Netherlands was at the fifth rank in the list.
    • Meanwhile, Luxembourg, Norway, Israel, and New Zealand were the remaining countries in the top 10.

    Dismal performers

    • Afghanistan held the last position of 146th in the list, with Lebanon (145th), Zimbabwe (144th), Rwanda (143rd), and Botswana (142nd) following.
    • Bangladesh has improved its ranking by seven notches on the WHI from 101 last year to 94 in 2022 out of 146 countries included in the report.

     

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  • [pib] Exercise LAMITIYE 2022

    The 9th Joint Military Exercise LAMITIYE-2022 between the Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) is being conducted at Seychelles Defence Academy (SDA), Seychelles.

    Exercise LAMITIYE

    • Lamitiye, which in Creole means friendship, is a biennial training event being conducted in Seychelles since 2001.
    • This year, it will feature a range of complex military drills, demonstrations and discussions, officials said.
    • The objective of the joint training exercise is to build and promote bilateral military relations in addition to exchanging skills, experiences and good practices between both the armies.
    • Both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of well-developed tactical drills for neutralization of likely threats that may be encountered in a semi-urban environment.
    • The exercise will also witness showcasing of new-generation equipment and technology for conducting joint operations.

    Significance of the exercise

    • LAMITIYE is crucial and significant in terms of security challenges faced by both nations in the backdrop of the current global situation and growing security concerns in the Indian Ocean region.

    Tap to read more about:

    Various Defence Exercises in News

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  • Prelims Spotlight: Constitutional Developments under British/ British Administrative Measures

    Dear Aspirants,

    This Spotlight is a part of our Mission Nikaalo Prelims-2022.

    You can check the broad timetable of Nikaalo Prelims here

    Session Details

    Morning 12 PM  – Prelims Spotlight Session

    Evening 06:30  PM  – TIKDAM/MCQs Session

    Evening 08 PM  – Tests on Alternate Days

    Join our Official telegram channel for Study material and Daily Sessions Here

    22nd Mar 2022

    In India, the British Government passed various laws and acts before the formulation of the constitution. The Regulating Act of 1773 was enacted as a first step to regulate the working of East India Company. However, the Indian Independence Act, 1947 finally ended the British rule in India and declared India as an independent and sovereign nation with effect from August 15, 1947.

    The Regulating Act of 1773

    • The Regulating Act of 1773 was enacted as a first step to regulate the working of East India Company
    • The Gov of Bengal was made Gov General of Bengal. He was assisted by 4 people. This 4+1 becomes became Supreme Council of Bengal also known as the GG’s Exec Council.
    • A Supreme Court was established in Bengal comprising of a chief justice and three other judges

    Pitts’s India Act, 1784

    • We see a shrinking of the Council from 4 members to 3 members. Hence 3+1 is the renewed GG’s Executive Council.
    • Board of control was established to control the civil, military and revenue affairs of the company
    • The Court of Proprietors was no more empowered to revoke or suspend the resolution of the directors approved by the Board of Control.

    Charter Act of 1833

    • The Governor-General of Bengal was made the Governor-General of India. The first Governor-General of India was William Bentinck.
    • He was given legislative powers over entire India including the Governors of Bombay and Madras.
    • The company lost the status of a commercial body and was made purely an administrative body.
    • This Act. was the first law to distinguish between the executive and legislative powers of the Gov General.
    • A 4th member was introduced who could only discuss and vote only on the legislative matter.
    • Council of India = [(3+1) +  1(4th member also called the Law Member)]
    • The first such Law Member was Macaulay. This Council of India was, to a certain extent, the Legislature. Strength of the Executive remained 3+1 .

    Charter Act of 1853

    • From here on, we see a gradual increase in the membership of the Council and further separation of powers.
    • Access to compete in civil services for Indians.
    • It brought out the separation in the legislative and executive functions of the Governor-General’s council.
    • The 4th member (Law Member)was included as a full-time Member in the GG’s Executive Council. His position was taken by 6 Members referred to as Legislative Councillors.
    • Council of India = [(4+1) + 6(Legislative Councillors) + 1 Commander-in-Chief]
    • 6 Councillors were,
      1. 1 Chief Judge of SC of Calcutta.
      2. 1 Judge of SC of Calcutta
      3. 4 members of the ICS
    •  

    Government of India Act, 1858

    • India was to be governed by and in the name of the crown through Viceroy, who would be the representative of the crown in India.
    • The designation of Governor-General of India was changed to Viceroy. Thus, Governor-General Lord Canning became the first Viceroy of India
    • Board of Control and Board of directors were abolished transferring all their powers to British Crown
    • A new office ‘secretary of state was created with a 15 member council of India to assist him. Indian Councils Act, 1861
    • The major focus of the act was on administration in India. It was the first step to associate Indians to legislation.
    • The act provided that the viceroy should nominate some Indians as non-official members in the legislative council.
    • The legislative powers of Madras and Bombay presidencies were restored.
      It provided for the establishment of legislative councils for Bengal, North-Western Frontier Province (NWFP) and Punjab.
    • Viceroy was empowered to issue ordinances during an emergency without the concurrence of the legislative council.

    Indian Councils Act of 1861

    • After 1861, the Council was called Imperial Legislative Council(ILC) or Indian Legislative Council(ILC). The Executive was further enhanced by 1 member.
    • The Viceroy now had the power to Nominate 6 – 12 Non-Official members in the Legislature who would be holding the office for 2 years.
    • ILC = [(5+1) + (Additional Members -> Minimum 6, Maximum 12)]
    • The composition of Additional Members was as follows:
      1. 50% Nominated Official Members
      2. 50% Nominated Non-Official Members
    • The Act thus sowed the seed for the future Legislative as an independent entity separate from the Executive Council.

    Indian Councils Act of 1892 

    • Due to the excessive demand of the Congress, the Additional Members were increased. Additional Members -> Minimum 10, Maximum 12.
    • ILC = [(5+1) + (Additional Members -> Minimum 10, Maximum 16)]

    The composition of Additional Members was as follows:

    • Nominated official members (those nominated by the Governor-General and were government officials)
    • 5 Nominated Non-Officials (nominated by the Governor-General but were not government officials)
    • 4 Nominated by the Provincial Legislative Councils of Bengal Presidency, Bombay Presidency, Madras Presidency and North-Western Provinces.
    • 1 Nominated by the Chamber of Commerce in Calcutta.

    Indian Councils Act of 1909: The Morley-Minto reforms

    • It introduced for the first time the method of election.
    • The additional members of the Governor-General Council were increased from 16 to a maximum of 60.
    • The composition of Additional Members was as follows:
      1. Nominated official members (those nominated by the Governor-General and were government officials)
      2. Nominated non-official members (nominated by the Governor-General but were not government officials)
      3. Elected Members (elected by different categories of Indian people)
    • It provided for the association of Indians in the executive council of the Viceroy and Governors. Satyendra Prasad Sinha joined the Viceroy’s executive council as a law member.
    • It introduced Separate Electorate for Muslims.

    Indian Councils Act of 1919: The Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms

    • Central Legislature thereafter called the Indian Legislature was reconstituted on the enlarged and more representative character.
    • The act set up bicameral legislatures at the centre consisting of two houses- the Council of the States (Upper House) and the Central Legislative Assembly (Lower House).
    • It consisted of the Council of State consisted of 60 members of whom 34 members were elected and the Legislative Assembly consisted of about 145 members, of whom about 104 were elected and the rest nominated.
    • Of the nominated members, about 26 were officials.  The powers of both the Chambers of the Indian Legislature were identical except that the power to vote supply was granted only to the Legislative Assembly.
    • The central and provincial subjects were demarcated and separated.
    • The Provincial subjects were further divided into Transferred Subjects and Reserved Subjects, the legislative council had no say in the latter. This was known as the system of Diarchy.
    • The principle of separate electorate was further extended to Sikhs, Indian Christians, Anglo-Indians and Europeans.
    • It provided for the appointment of a statutory commission to report the working of the act after ten years

    The Government of India Act 1935

    • It marked the next great stride in the evolution of the Legislatures.
    • The Federal Legislature was to consist of two Houses, the House of Assembly called the Federal  Assembly and the Council of States.
    • The Federal Assembly was to consist of 375 members, 250 to represent Provinces and 125 to represent the Indian States, nominated by the Rulers.
    • The representatives of the Provinces were to be elected not directly but indirectly by the Provincial Assemblies.
    • The term of the Assembly was fixed as five years.
    • The Council of State was to be a permanent body not subject to dissolution, but one-third of the members should retire every three years.
    • It was to consist of 260 members.  104 representatives of Indian States, six to be nominated by the Governor-General, 128 to be directly elected by territorial communal constituencies and 22 to be set apart for smaller minorities, women and depressed classes.
    • The two Houses had in general equal powers but demands for supply votes and financial Bills were to originate in the Assembly.
    • The principle of Separate Electorate was extended to depressed classes, women and workers.
    • Provided for the formation of Reserve bank of India

    Indian Independence Act, 1947

    • The act formalized the Lord Mountbatten Plan regarding the independence of India on June 3, 1947.
    • The Act ended the British rule in India and declared India as an independent and sovereign nation with effect from August 15, 1947.
    • Provided for the partition of India into two dominions of India and Pakistan
    • The office of Viceroy was abolished and a Governor-General was to be appointed in each of the dominions
    • The Constituent Assemblies of the two dominions were to have powers to legislate for their respective territories.
    • Princely states were free to join any of the two dominions or to remain independent.

  • [Burning Issue] Kashmiri Pandit Exodus

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    Context

    Union Home Minister Amit Shah reviewed the progress of the rehabilitation of Kashmiri migrants, including Kashmiri Pandits, during a meeting with Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant-Governor Manoj Sinha in Jammu.  According to the Home Ministry, only 17% of the proposed accommodation for Kashmiri Pandits has been completed in the past seven years under the Prime Minister’s Development Package announced in 2015. The Government stated that the construction of all transit accommodation units will be completed by 2023.

    About Kashmiri Pandits

    • The Kashmiri Pandits (also known as Kashmiri Brahmins) are Kashmiri Hindus and a part of the larger Saraswat Brahmin community.
    • They belong to the Pancha (five) Gauda Brahmana groups from the Kashmir Valley. They are the only remaining Kashmiri Hindu community native to Kashmir.
    • The Kashmiri Pandits originally lived in the Kashmir Valley before the growth of Islamic militancy in the valley and had been a favoured section of the population of the valley during Dogra rule (1846–1947). 
    • 20 percent of them left the valley as a consequence of the 1950 land reforms,and by 1981 the Pandit population amounted to 5 percent of the total population.
    • Many of the refugee Kashmiri Pandits have been living in abject conditions in refugee camps of Jammu. The government has reported on the terrorist threats to Pandits still living in the Kashmir region.

    Row over the movie

    • Hype of oppression: The thrust of the movie is how the intensity of the oppression or killing of the Pandits in the Kashmir Valley was totally underplayed in the media and how insensitive the political and intellectual elites of the country were.
    • Accusation of being far ‘Right’: The narrative has been challenged by professional film reviewers and India’s so-called liberal/secular elites, who dominate leading educational institutions and national media.
    • Fiction being sensationalized: For them, the movie is doctored, staged and faked.

    Why liberals objecting to the film?

    • Ignorance of minorities: They say that films has shown a limited side; it has ignored how many more Muslims have died too and how the insurrection – movement or insurgency has been due to mis-governance and wrong decisions.
    • ‘Human Rights’ of the terrorists: These liberals have always projected the Indian military as aggressor and Kashmiris as underdogs fighting for their human rights.
    • Decline in empathy: In fact, under the influence of these liberals, some important national dailies have now even stopped using the term “terrorists” altogether; instead, they now prefer to use the word “militants”.

    Plight of the Pandits

    • Political correctness of the genocide: The movie puts paramount importance in being politically correct at the cost of obfuscating truth, conveying indifference, and showing a lack of empathy. 
    • Long deserved sensationalization of the issue: It brings plight that Kashmir Hindus also didn’t share their experiences as much, sometimes in a bid to move on, and other times expecting ridicule or indifference by the liberals.
    • Movie revitalized the wounds of past: The movie is perceived as a watershed moment whereby having provided a powerful visual glimpse of the actual genocide in most truthful form.
    • Spark for mainstream discussion: The subject that was taboo is now in the mainstream and people are comfortable with hearing and reconciling with the truth when the world considered India as a villain in Kashmir.

    The run-up: 1980s to 1990

    • Political instability: Sheikh Abdullah had died in 1982, and the leadership of the National Conference passed on to his son Farooq Abdullah, who won the 1983 election.
      • But within two years, the Centre broke up the NC, and installed dissident Ghulam Mohammed Shah as Chief Minister. This led to huge disaffection and political instability.
    • Militancy: The Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) stepped up its activities, and the hanging of the militant leader Maqbool Bhat in 1984 added to the sense of foreboding.
    • Religious interventions: In 1986, after the Rajiv Gandhi government opened the Babri Masjid locks to enable Hindus to offer prayers there, ripples were felt in Kashmir too.
      • In Anantnag, there was a series of attacks on Hindu temples, and shops and properties of Kashmiri Pandits, blamed on separatist and secessionists.
    • The rigged election of 1987 after which Abdullah formed the government was a turning point at which militants took the upper hand.
      • The 1989 submission to the JKLF set the stage for the next decade.
      • Pandits had begun to be targeted. Eminent persons of the community were being shot dead.

    What happened on January 19, 1990?

    • Governor’s rule imposed: Matters came to a head on January 19. By then, the Farooq Abdullah government had been dismissed and Governor’s Rule imposed.
    • No option but to leave the valley: According to accounts published by many Kashmiri Pandits, there were threatening slogans over loudspeakers from mosques, and on the streets.
    • Speeches were made extolling Pakistan and the supremacy of Islam, and against Hinduism. The Kashmiri Pandit community decided to leave.

    The Gawkadal Massacre

    • The flight – In January 20, the first stream began leaving the Valley with hastily packed belongings in whatever transport they could find.
    • The massacre – In January 21, the CRPF gunned down 160 Kashmiri Muslim protesters at the Gawkadal Bridge, the worst massacre in the long history of the conflict in Kashmir.
    • Effect – The two events (the flight of the Pandits and the Gawkadal massacre) took place within 48 hours, but for years, neither community could accept the pain of the other, and in some ways, still cannot.

    How many Pandits left?

    • According to some estimates, notably by the Kashmiri Pandit Sangharsh Samiti (KPSS), of 75,343 Kashmiri Pandit families in January 1990, more than 70,000 fled between 1990 and 1992 and continued until 2000.
    • The KPSS has placed the number of Kashmiri Pandits killed by militants from 1990 to 2011 at 399, the majority during 1989-90.
    • Some 800 families have remained in the Valley through these three decades.

    Role of the administration

    • Role of Governor: The other contentious question about the exodus is the role played by the administration, and more specifically that of the J&K Governor, Jagmohan.
    • The Kashmiri Muslim view of the exodus is that he encouraged the Pandits to leave the Valley and thus gave a communal colour to what was until then a non-religious Kashmiri cause.
    • The Kashmiri Hindu view is that the Kashmiri Muslims, with whom they had lived amicably for centuries,  drove them out with a vengeance in a frenzy of Islamism that they could not have imagined even months earlier.
    • The truth, many commentators have concluded, may have been somewhere in the middle.

    Present Status of Kashmiri Pandits

    • Home Ministry data: Several Kashmiri migrants reside at existing transit accommodation at Vessu (Kulgam), Mattan (Anantnag), Hawl (Pulwama), Natnusa (Kupwara), Sheikhpora (Budgam) and Veerwan (Baramulla) in the Kashmir Valley other than the camps in Jammu.
    • Various organizations came forward: Following the migration of the Kashmiri Pandit community, various socio-political organizations have sprung up to represent the cause of the displaced community.
      • These organizations are involved in rehabilitation of the community in the valley through peace negotiations, mobilization of human rights groups and job creation for the Pandits.
    • More than 60,000 families are registered as Kashmiri migrants including some Sikh and Muslim families.Most families were resettled in Jammu, NCR and other neighbouring states.
    • 2020 parliamentary panel report: There are 64,827 registered migrant families in J&K — 60,489 Hindu families, 2,609 Muslim families and 1,729 Sikh families.
      • Out of the 64,827 families, 43,494 are registered in Jammu, 19,338 in Delhi and 1,995 families are settled in other States and Union Territories.
    • Many of those who did return under a government job scheme, they live in migrant colonies and do not have basic amenities like a ration card or even a voter ID card.

    The question of return

    • Those who had means rebuilt their lives elsewhere in the country — Delhi, Pune, Mumbai and Ahmedabad have Pandit populations, also Jaipur and Lucknow — or went abroad.
    • The fleeing Pandits did not think they would never return to the Valley. But as the situation in Kashmir spiraled into a full-blown militancy, return began to look remote if not impossible.
    • Successive governments have promised that they will help this process, but the situation on the ground in Kashmir has meant this remains only an intention.
    • There is an acute realization in the community that the Valley is no longer the same that they left behind in 1990.
    • In many cases, their properties were either immediately vandalised or sold quickly by the owners to Kashmiri Muslims. Many fell into disrepair.
    • Now, Kashmiri Muslims see the return of Pandits as essential, but reject the idea of their settlement in secured camps as a replication of Israel-like Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

    Steps taken by Government

    • ‘The Jammu And Kashmir Migrant Immovable Property (Preservation, Protection And Restraint on Distress Sales) Act, 1997’
      • It provides that any person who is an unauthorized occupant or recipient of any usufruct of any immovable property of the migrant shall pay to the migrant the compensation in such a manner as may be determined by the District Magistrate.
    • Announcement of various relief packages by respective governments
      • As of 2016, a total of 1,800 Kashmiri Pandit youths have returned to the valley since the announcement of Rs. 1,168-crore package in 2008 by the UPA government.
    • Prime Minister’s Development Package announced in 2015, had approved the creation of 3,000 government jobs for Kashmiri migrants.
    • So far, 1,739 migrants have been appointed and 1,098 others selected for the jobs.
    • A similar package for migrants was announced by the UPA government in 2008 under which 2,905 jobs had been filled out of the 3,000 jobs approved.
    • 6,000 transit accommodation units were announced in 2015 for the members who were to be provided jobs by the J&K administration at a cost of Rs 920 crore.

    Way forward

    • Punitive actions on terror: The first thing that would deliver justice to exiled Hindus would be to try and punish terrorists’ organizations for the crimes they committed against humanity.
    • Rehabilitation and re-settlement: The second and longer-term should be the effort of reconciliation, rehabilitation and inclusion.
    • Vajpayee doctrine:  The doctrine, ‘Insaniyat, (humanity), Jamhuriyat (Democracy) and Kashmiriyat (identity of the Kashmir people). This largely came to be known as the Vajpayee doctrine.
    • Cosmopolitan inclusive smart city: The way forward for achieving that is to set up a cosmopolitan inclusive smart city where Indians of all origins including the evicted Kashmiri Hindus can build their lives and homes.
    • Learning from the past: This will put the chapter of annihilation and extermination behind us. It is a humongous undertaking but we can take inspiration from the past, when the Mauryans established the city of Srinagar two thousand years ago.

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    register here for free live q&A webinar on upsc interview preparation

    Detailed Application Form (DAF) is one of the most important documents that you might have filled for UPSC interviews. A major part of the interview will revolve around the information and details provided in the DAF. It is more than your CV.

    Your ability to defend your DAF before the panel is going to decide your success. Anticipating and preparing for the questions based on your DAF is an essential part of the interview preparation.

    Free, Open to All Q & A session on UPSC Interview Round by Virendra Pratap Sir

    REGISTER HERE FOR FREE LIVE Q&A WEBINAR ON UPSC INTERVIEW PREPARATION

    Candidates must ensure they research the relevant questions well enough. They must be able to interlink the questions in DAF to burning issues to national and international importance.

    That’s why we have organised this free live webinar where UPSC Mains qualified aspirants can get their doubts cleared and prepare a solid DAF for the interview panel.

    We make sure that no area of the DAF has been left untouched. This DAF-based questionnaire is an important tool which if used properly in your preparation may allow you to steer your interview in a particular direction.

    Below are some of the pictures and sample of the questions that you are going to get.

    Questions based on Graduation subject

    Questions based on Date of birth

    Questions based on optional subject

    Questions based on Hobbies

    What Will You Learn About UPSC Interview in this Free Live Q&A Webinar with Virendra Pratap Sir?

    1. Sir will answer doubts on how to fill out personal information/details in the DAF.

    2. Doubts regarding service and cadre preferences will be addressed.

    3. Clarification of doubts about hobbies and extracurricular activities.

    4. Sir will talk about the areas of your DAF-II from where the board will ask many questions?

    5. Sir will answer doubts regarding the DAF keywords.

    6. Sir will talk about the trend analysis based on last 6 years’ transcripts.

    7. Sir will talk about certain interview mistakes by other aspirants in the interview which costed them a rank in the final list.

    Free Live UPSC Interview Webinar Details

    Your marks in the personality round will definitely be a dominant deciding factor on whether you will get the service or cadre of your choice. So start practising for it and attend this free Q&A session with Virendra sir to clear your doubts!

    Date: 21st March, 2022 (Monday)

    Time: 7PM

    REGISTER HERE FOR FREE LIVE Q&A WEBINAR ON UPSC INTERVIEW PREPARATION

    About Virendra Pratap Sir

    Virendra Pratap Singh is an IRPS officer of 2009 batch. He has completed B.Tech from IIT Kharagpur. Before joining Civil Services, he worked in different private sector organisations such as Tata Steel, Tata Motors and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd.

    He is associated with CivilsDaily in student mentoring program for UPSC interview since it’s inception.

  • Free Live Webinar Today @ 7PM, Registrations Closing in 1 HR|| Ask Me Anything Session on UPSC Interview Round & DAF Analysis with Serving IRPS Officer, IIT Alumni & Civilsdaily Mentor Virendra Pratap Singh|| LINK INSIDE to Register For The Free Live Webinar

    Free Live Webinar Today @ 7PM, Registrations Closing in 1 HR|| Ask Me Anything Session on UPSC Interview Round & DAF Analysis with Serving IRPS Officer, IIT Alumni & Civilsdaily Mentor Virendra Pratap Singh|| LINK INSIDE to Register For The Free Live Webinar

    register here for free live q&A webinar on upsc interview preparation

    Detailed Application Form (DAF) is one of the most important documents that you might have filled for UPSC interviews. A major part of the interview will revolve around the information and details provided in the DAF. It is more than your CV.

    Your ability to defend your DAF before the panel is going to decide your success. Anticipating and preparing for the questions based on your DAF is an essential part of the interview preparation.

    Free, Open to All Q & A session on UPSC Interview Round by Virendra Pratap Sir

    REGISTER HERE FOR FREE LIVE Q&A WEBINAR ON UPSC INTERVIEW PREPARATION

    Candidates must ensure they research the relevant questions well enough. They must be able to interlink the questions in DAF to burning issues to national and international importance.

    That’s why we have organised this free live webinar where UPSC Mains qualified aspirants can get their doubts cleared and prepare a solid DAF for the interview panel.

    We make sure that no area of the DAF has been left untouched. This DAF-based questionnaire is an important tool which if used properly in your preparation may allow you to steer your interview in a particular direction.

    Below are some of the pictures and sample of the questions that you are going to get.

    Questions based on Graduation subject

    Questions based on Date of birth

    Questions based on optional subject

    Questions based on Hobbies

    What Will You Learn About UPSC Interview in this Free Live Q&A Webinar with Virendra Pratap Sir?

    1. Sir will answer doubts on how to fill out personal information/details in the DAF.

    2. Doubts regarding service and cadre preferences will be addressed.

    3. Clarification of doubts about hobbies and extracurricular activities.

    4. Sir will talk about the areas of your DAF-II from where the board will ask many questions?

    5. Sir will answer doubts regarding the DAF keywords.

    6. Sir will talk about the trend analysis based on last 6 years’ transcripts.

    7. Sir will talk about certain interview mistakes by other aspirants in the interview which costed them a rank in the final list.

    Free Live UPSC Interview Webinar Details

    Your marks in the personality round will definitely be a dominant deciding factor on whether you will get the service or cadre of your choice. So start practising for it and attend this free Q&A session with Virendra sir to clear your doubts!

    Date: 21st March, 2022 (Monday)

    Time: 7PM

    REGISTER HERE FOR FREE LIVE Q&A WEBINAR ON UPSC INTERVIEW PREPARATION

    About Virendra Pratap Sir

    Virendra Pratap Singh is an IRPS officer of 2009 batch. He has completed B.Tech from IIT Kharagpur. Before joining Civil Services, he worked in different private sector organisations such as Tata Steel, Tata Motors and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd.

    He is associated with CivilsDaily in student mentoring program for UPSC interview since it’s inception.

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