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  • Who was Lachit Borphukan?

    The Prime Minister (in an election campaign) has called 17th-century Ahom General Lachit Borphukan a symbol of India’s “atmanirbhar” military might.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.What was the immediate cause for Ahmad Shah Abdali to invade and fight the Third Battle of Panipat:

    (a) He wanted to avenge the expulsion by Marathas of his viceroy Timur Shah from Lahore

    (b) The frustrated governor of Jullundhar Adina Beg khan invited him to invade Punjab

    (c) He wanted to punish Mughal administration for non-payment of the revenues of the Chahar Mahal (Gujrat Aurangabad, Sialkot and Pasrur)

    (d) He wanted to annex all the fertile plains of Punjab upto borders of Delhi to his kingdom

    Who was Lachit Borphukan?

    • The year was 1671 and the decisive Battle of Saraighat was fought on the raging waters of the Brahmaputra.
    • On one side was Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb’s army headed by Ram Singh of Amer (Jaipur) and on the other was the Ahom General Lachit Borphukan.
    • He was a commander in the Ahom kingdom, located in present-day Assam.
    • Ram Singh failed to make any advance against the Assamese army during the first phase of the war.
    • Lachit Borphukan emerged victorious in the war and the Mughals were forced to retreat from Guwahati.

    Lachit Diwas

    • On 24 November each year, Lachit Divas is celebrated statewide in Assam to commemorate the heroism of Lachit Borphukan.
    • On this day, Borphukan has defeated the Mughal army on the banks of the Brahmaputra in the Battle of Saraighat in 1671.
    • The best passing out cadet of National Defence Academy has conferred the Lachit gold medal every year since 1999 commemorating his valour.

  • Tomar king Anangpal II and his connection with Delhi

    The Union government has recently formed a committee to popularize the legacy of 11th-century Tomar king, Anangpal II.

    Revision: Delhi Sultanate and their contemporaries

    Who was Anangpal II?

    • Anangpal II, popularly known as Anangpal Tomar, belonged to the Tomar dynasty that ruled parts of present-day Delhi and Haryana between the 8th and 12th centuries.
    • The capital of Tomars changed many times from being initially at Anangpur (near Faridabad) during the reign of Anangpal I (who founded the Tomar dynasty in the 8th century), to Dhillikapuri (Delhi) during the reign of Anangpal II.
    • The Tomar rule over the region is attested by multiple inscriptions and coins, and their ancestry can be traced to the Pandavas (of the Mahabharata).
    • Anangpal Tomar II was succeeded by his grandson Prithviraj Chauhan, who was defeated by the Ghurid forces in the Battle of Tarain (present-day Haryana) after which the Delhi Sultanate was established in 1192.

    His connection with Delhi

    • Anangpal II is credited to have established and populated Delhi during his reign in the 11th century.
    • He was instrumental in populating Indraprastha and giving it its present name, Delhi.
    • The region was in ruins when he ascended the throne in the 11th century, it was he who built Lal Kot fort and Anangtal Baoli.
    • He was the founder of Dhillikapuri, which eventually became Delhi.

  • Jaapi, Xorai and Gamosa in Assam

    As the polling date draws closer, decorative jaapis (field hats), hand-woven gamosas and bell-metal xorais are making frequent appearances in Assam.

    Primarily used to felicitate important people and guests, these important symbols of Assamese identity and culture are abundantly seen in political campaigns across the state.

    Jaapi

    • The jaapi is a conical hat made of bamboo and covered with dried tokou (a palm tree found in rainforests of Upper Assam) leaves.
    • It is most often used in official functions to felicitate guests.
    • The landscape of rural Assam features a more utilitarian version, which farmers wear to protect themselves from the harsh weather, both sun and rain, while working in the fields.
    • The first possible recorded use of jaapi dates back to the Ahom-era buranjis, or chronicles. Kings and ministers would wear them then.

    Gamosa

    • The Gamosa, which literally translates to a cloth to wipe one’s body, is omnipresent in Assam, with wide-ranging uses.
    • It can be used at home as a towel (uka gamosa) or in public functions (phulam/floral gamosa) to felicitate dignitaries or celebrities.
    • The popularity of the gamosa has now traveled beyond Assam and is often used by a number of public figures.
    • It was during the anti-foreigner Assam Agitation of the early 1980s, when Assamese nationalism reached its crescendo, that the gamosa assumed a new role.

    Xorai

    • Made of bell-metal, the xorai — essentially a tray with a stand at the bottom, with or without a cover — can be found in every Assamese household.
    • While it is primarily used as an offering tray during prayers, or to serve tamale-paan (betel-nut) to guests, a xorai is also presented along with the jaapi and gamosa while felicitating someone.
    • The bulk of xorais in Assam are made in the state’s bell metal hub Sarthebari in Bajali district.

  • 21th March 2021 | Prelims Daily with Previous Year Questions

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    [WpProQuiz_toplist 576]

    Are you preparing in the right direction? Let us discuss the issues that you’re facing in your preparation.

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  • (IAS 2021-22) Facing issues in your preparation? Talk to us | Fill Samanvaya: 1-to-1 mentorship (get free Tikdams e-book)

    (IAS 2021-22) Facing issues in your preparation? Talk to us | Fill Samanvaya: 1-to-1 mentorship (get free Tikdams e-book)

    Let us discuss the issues with your IAS preparation. Fill Samanvaya form for IAS 2021 and IAS 2022. A senior mentor from Civilsdaily will call you within 24 hours for a detailed in-depth discussion.

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    How to prepare for upsc 2021? Strategy for upsc 2021? Answer writing for 2020 Abhishek Saraf rank 8 Civilsdaily
    Abhishek has benefited from Civilsdaily’s approach, so did 70+ candidates who cleared UPSC IAS 2019

    IAS exam, by design, is such that it should take just one attempt to clear it. Any further attempt, if you’re taking, should only be to improve your rank.

    More than 10.5 lakh applied, but only 796 are going to clear UPSC IAS 2020. It is going to be much more challenging in 2021 and 2022.

    Civilsdaily’s Hall of Fame.

    But why most of the aspirants can’t clear the exam, even after taking multiple attempts, covering the full syllabus, or taking tests?

    Last month we had a discussion with around 2500 students who were not able to clear prelims even after more than 2 attempts. Many were stuck on mains.

    Lack of direction, no guidance, inability to make required necessary changes in their preparation, and an absence of a well-defined strategy were issues common to all. (What issues are you facing? tell us)

    CLICK HERE FOR A FREE 1-ON-1 MENTORSHIP SESSION: Samanvaya

    UPSC IAS preparation is not just about memorizing and information gathering.

    Did you have a look at Prelims 2020 paper? In many ways, it has highlighted the changing nature of UPSC, and to be successful you need to adapt to the expectations of UPSC and adopt a new approach.

    For 2021 aspirants, your preparation should be highly outcome-oriented (enabling you to fetch more marks). Every action of yours must be very objectively defined, every step as a part of your strategy. Whatever you are learning must be utilizable in the exam (both pre and mains). Your preparation should have an element of measurability.

    Moreover, you need to balance both Prelims and Mains on one hand and current-static-optional on the other. Fill Samanvaya form to know how it should be done.

    It’s about how ‘you’ should be doing it instead of how someone else did it. That is the ‘elephant in the room’.

    All this stands true for 2022 aspirants as well. This is the right time to start preparation.

    Fill Samanvaya form given at the bottom of this post.

    Broadly, six factors determine your success in cracking this prestigious IAS exam and the most important being understanding the expectations of UPSC and according to that planning and strategizing; other being, Learning – Knowledge and information; Analyzing – making linkages, connections, etc.; Executing and utilizing information; and Constant course correction – because mistakes are inevitable, need to rectify them asap.

    These are the areas where most of the aspirants fail to create a balance. Where are you facing an issue?

    Integrate them in your preparation. We’ll tell you how to do it

    To address the problems in your preparation, guidance and mentorship are the first steps. And here comes our three tiered mentorship.

    CLICK HERE FOR A FREE 1-ON-1 MENTORSHIP SESSION: Samanvaya

    Our 3 tier mentoring:

    1. First step starts with this Samanvaya call: Once you fill in the form, our senior mentors will have a 1-to-1 detailed discussion (on-call) with you to understand your prep level, working/ study constraints, current strategies, and create a step by step plan for next week, next month and so on.

    2. You are given access to our invite-only chat platform, Habitat where you can connect with mentors, ask your daily doubts, discuss your test-prep questions and have real-time live sessions on news and op-eds, and find your optional groups.

    How to prepare for upsc 2021? Strategy for upsc 2021? Answer writing for 2020
    Daily target monitoring.

    3. The third and the most personalized tier is the dedicated 1 on 1 mentor allotment who stays with you through the course of your UPSC preparation – always-on chat and on scheduled calls to help you assess, evaluate, and chart the next milestone of your IAS 2021/2022 journey.

    Daily target monitoring on Habitat
    Samanvaya: CLICK HERE FOR A FREE 1-ON-1 MENTORSHIP SESSION

    Who are you?

    1. Working Junta? If you are preparing for IAS 2021/2022 and working simultaneously, we can help you strategize and decipher the IAS exam and design a timetable that fits right in your hectic schedule.
    2. First-time prep? If you are in the last year of college or thinking of dropping a year and preparing for IAS 2021/2022 full time, we’ll help you pick the right books and craft a practical & personal strategy.
    3. Have appeared before? and weren’t successful. We’ll help you identify your mistakes, rectify them for the necessary course correction. Let this be your final and successful attempt.

    You just have to take 5 minutes out and fill this form: Samanvaya For IAS 2021/2022

    Talk to senior mentors from Civilsdaily: Fill Samanvaya form for IAS 2021 and IAS 2022. Once done, we will call you within 24 hours or so.

    Fill up the following details in Samanvaya form given below to schedule a free one-on-one mentorship session with senior mentors from Civilsdaily. We’ll call you within 24 hours.
    Samanvaya: click here for a free 1-on-1 mentorship session

  • (LAUNCHED) Revealed by Zeeshan Hashmi – Score 30+ marks above the IAS prelims cut-offs | New Habitat Club- Link inside (limited seats)

    (LAUNCHED) Revealed by Zeeshan Hashmi – Score 30+ marks above the IAS prelims cut-offs | New Habitat Club- Link inside (limited seats)

    Enroll here in Revealed by Zeeshan Hashmi

    UPSC IAS Prelims paper is becoming trickier day by day. Merely covering the syllabus is not enough. You must know how to attempt the paper.

    Many times you face confusing options or feel the topic asked in question is relatable but the question, unsolvable. So, how to solve such prelims question with limited or almost zero knowledge about the topics.

    What is Revealed by Zeeshan sir?

    It is an intensive 10 days workshop on Habitat. Zeeshan sir will be teaching logical prelims paper solving skills and intelligent elimination techniques to help you solve MCQs in IAS Prelims exam.

    A practical approach will be followed and you will be daily practicing these techniques with the master of this art.

    Why you should join the club?

    There are several reasons but broadly these will help you to:

    1. Focus on the application part of the knowledge for IAS prelims.
    2. Tackle MCQ questions with limited or almost no knowledge of the topic asked in the question.
    3. Eliminate effectively and intelligently with a high accuracy of almost 95%
    4. Will make you confident to tackle any question in the exam hall for IAS prelims.

    You won’t be bothering about the cut-offs ever again.

    Enroll here in Revealed by Zeeshan Hashmi

    How sessions are going to take place?

    Habitat is a chat-based learning platform and here Zeeshan sir will be handholding and guiding you all through the course.

    Daily two sessions are planned in the manner as explained below.

    Session 1

    Here Zeeshan sir will be teaching you the logical techniques and intelligent elimination methods to tackle and solve an MCQ.

    A practical hands-on approach will be followed in this session. Around 25 MCQs will be shared with you and different techniques will be used to solve them.

    Session 2

    In this session, you will be having an enriching discussion and practice session among the peers. The whole process will be administered by Zeeshan sir.

    How to attend Revealed sessions and join the Revealed club?

    After you have enrolled for the course, you will receive a confirmation email along with the link of the Revealed Habitat club.

    You can also access the link in the Curriculum section above.

    Click on the link. Join the club and tag Zeeshan sir using @ before zeeshan.h and introduce yourself.

    Zeeshan sir will take over from there.

    Enroll here in Revealed by Zeeshan Hashmi

    Schedule and timetable

    A daily schedule/plan will be shared in the Revealed Habitat club with you.

    Program inclusion:

    • Membership to the Revealed club by Zeeshan sir
    • 10 days intensive workshop on Habitat
    • Twice a day sessions with Zeeshan sir

    Note: Check your registered email inbox for the Habitat link. You can also access the link from the Curriculum section above.

    Enroll here in Revealed by Zeeshan Hashmi

  • Vehicle scrapping policy will help Indian steel reduce GHG emissions

    The article explains the advantages of the vehicle scrapping policy announced in the Budget FY22.

    Greenhouse gas contribution  steel industry

    • Steel industry uses carbon as the main reducing agent as also as a fuel for steel production.
    • GHG emissions of the Indian steel industry is 2.0-2.8 tonnes of CO2 per tonne of crude steel, against global average of 1.8 tonne of CO2.

    Scrapping policy

    • Two seminal announcements have been made in Budget FY22, viz. introduction of vehicle scrapping policy and doubling ship-breaking capacity to 9 million tonnes per year.
    • This will minimise dependence on import of scrap and cause a reduction of the GHG footprint of iron & steel.

    Producing steel using scrap

    • Most steel-producing countries are trying to bring down emissions by shifting from iron-ore-based production to scrap-based production.
    • This route can bring CO2 emissions down to below 0.5 tonne of CO2 per tonne of steel.
    • Although most steel-producing countries are using Electric Arc Furnaces (EAF) for scrap-based production, in India, both EAF and Induction Furnaces (IF) are used.
    • The main CO2 load in EAF-based steel production doesn’t come from the off-gas but from producing the electricity used in melting of the scrap.
    • Thus, this can be further reduced if renewable power is used as a source of electricity.

    Saving in forex spending

    • Availability of ferrous scrap in India is very limited—around 25 million tonnes annually from domestic sources.
    • In 2018-19 and 2019-20, the country imported nearly 6.5 million tonnes of scrap each year and thus large forex spending was incurrred.
    • With the announcement of vehicle scrapping policy, steel industry can expect enhanced indigenous availability of ferrous scrap.

    Strengthening the resource efficiency and circular economy

    • The quality of the steel produced is dependent upon the quality of input material and hence any improvement made in ensuring quality of scrap will have marked influence on the steel produced.
    • This shall strengthen the process of resource efficiency & circular economy as considerable natural resources shall be conserved with significant reduction in emission and it will help in moving towards a sustainable steel industry.

    Consider the question “Discuss the advantages of vehicle scrapping policy announced by the government in Budget FY 22.”

    Conclusion

    The announcement of the vehicle scrapping policy couldn’t have come at a better time for steel industry in India, as well since the country lacks desired quality of coking coal and natural gas is also imported.

  • Mounting counter challenge to China through Quad

    The article discusses the outcomes of the recently concluded first Quad Summit in the context of India.

    Message to China after Quad summit

    • The first Learders’ Summit of the Quadrilateral Framework was held on March 12.
    • This Summit conveyed a three-pronged message to China:
    • 1) Under the new U.S. President, “America is back” in terms of its desire to play a leading role in other regions.
    • 2) It views China as its primary challenger for that leadership.
    • 3) The Quad partnership is ready to mount a counter-challenge, albeit in “soft-power” terms at present, in order to do so.
    • For both Japan and Australia the outcomes of the summit, both in terms of the “3C’s”working groups established on COVID-19 vaccines, Climate Change and Critical Technology and in terms of this messaging to the “4th C” (China) are very welcome.

    4 Outcomes of Quad Summit for India

    • For India the outcomes of the Quad Summit need more nuanced analysis.

    1) COVID-19 Vaccine

    • India is not only the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines (by number of doses produced, it has already exported 58 million doses to nearly 71 countries.
    • It is also manufacturing a billion doses for South East Asia (under the Quad), over and above its current international commitments.
    • India has also planned to vaccinate 300 million people as originally planned by September.
    • All this comes down to total 1.8 billion doses which will require a major ramp up in capacity and funding, and will bear testimony to the power of Quad cooperation, if realised.
    • However, the effort could have been made much easier had India’s Quad partners also announced dropping their opposition to India’s plea at the World Trade Organization.
    • India had filed the plea along with South Africa in October 2020, seeking waiver from certain provisions of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights for the prevention, containment and treatment of COVID-19.

    2) Climate change

    • On climate change, India has welcomed the return of the U.S. to the Paris accord.
    • Mr. Biden has promised to restart the U.S.’s funding of the global Green Climate Fund, which Mr. Trump ended.
    • India still awaits a large part of the $1.4 billion commitment by the U.S. to finance solar technology in 2016.
    • Mr. Biden might also consider joining the International Solar Alliance, which the other Quad members are a part of, but the U.S.

    3) Critical technology

    • India will welcome any assistance in reducing its dependence on Chinese telecommunication equipment and in finding new sources of rare-earth minerals.
    • India would oppose Quad partners weighing in on international rule-making on the digital economy, or data localisation.
    • Such a move had led New Delhi to walk out of the Japan-led “Osaka track declaration” at the G-20 in 2019.

    4) Dealing with China

    • On this issue, it is still unclear how India can go on the Quad’s intended outcomes.
    • While India shares the deep concerns and the tough messaging set out by the Quad on China, especially after the year-long stand-off at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and the killings at Galwan that India has faced, it has demurred from any non-bilateral statement on it.
    • India is the only Quad member not a part of the military alliance that binds the other members.
    • India is also the only Quad country with a land boundary with China.
    • And it is the only Quad country which lives in a neighbourhood where China has made deep inroads.
    • Indian officials are still engaged in LAC disengagement talks and have a long way to go to de-escalation or status quo ante.

    3 long term impacts on strategic planning

    • The violence at the LAC has also left three long-term impacts on Indian strategic planning:
    • First, the government must now expend more resources, troops, infrastructure funds to the LAC and ensure no recurrence of the People’s Liberation Army April 2020 incursions.
    • Second, India’s most potent territorial threat will not be from either China or Pakistan, but from both i.e. “two-front situation”.
    • Third, that India’s continental threat perception will need to be prioritised against any maritime commitments the Quad may claim, especially further afield in the Pacific Ocean.

    Consider the question “The Quad’s ideology of a “diamond of democracies” can only succeed if it does not insist on exclusivity in India’s strategic calculations given that India shares a special place among the Quad members when it comes to its relationship with China. Comment”

    Conclusion

    Despite last week’s Quad Summit, India’s choices for its Quad strategy will continue to be guided as much by its location on land as it is by its close friendships with fellow democracies.

  • Agri Ministry questions Global Hunger reports’ methodology

    Union Minister of State for Agriculture has questioned the methodology and data accuracy of the Global Hunger Index (GHI) report, which has placed India at 94th (out of 107 countries) rank in 2020.

    About GHI

    • GHI is a peer-reviewed annual report, jointly published by Concern Worldwide, an Ireland-based humanitarian group, and Welthungerhilfe, a Germany-based NGO.
    • It is designed to comprehensively measure and track hunger at the global, regional, and country levels.
    • It says the aim of publishing the report is to trigger action to reduce hunger around the world.
    • According to the GHI website, the data for the indicators come from the United Nations and other multilateral agencies, including the World Health Organisation and the World Bank.

    Various indicators used

    1. UNDERNOURISHMENT: the share of the population that is undernourished (that is, whose caloric intake is insufficient);
    2. CHILD WASTING: the share of children under the age of five who are wasted (that is, who have low weight for their height, reflecting acute undernutrition);
    3. CHILD STUNTING: the share of children under the age of five who are stunted (that is, who have low height for their age, reflecting chronic undernutrition); and
    4. CHILD MORTALITY: the mortality rate of children under the age of five (in part, a reflection of the fatal mix of inadequate nutrition and unhealthy environments).

    What is the concern?

    • India was ranked below countries such as Nepal, Bangladesh and Myanmar when it was among the top 10 food-producing countries in the world.

    Actual scenario

    • The Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey (CNNS) compiled in 2017-18 showed an improvement of 4%, 3.7% and 2.3% in wasted, stunted and malnourished children respectively.
    • The first-ever CNNS was commissioned by the government in 2016 and was conducted from 2016-18, led by the Union Health Ministry, in collaboration with the UNICEF.
    • The findings were published in 2019. CNNS includes only nutrition data, whereas NFHS encompasses overall health indicators.

  • New Vehicle Scrappage Policy

    Auto majors have welcomed the new vehicle scrappage policy rolled out by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, saying it would encourage people to replace old vehicles while boosting the sector.

    Under the policy, those choosing to voluntarily scrap their old vehicles will get financial incentives from the government and the automaker.

    Vehicle Scrappage Policy: Key Highlights

    • Personal vehicles older than 20 years and commercial vehicles older than 15 years will have to undergo a fitness test at the government registered ‘Automated Fitness Centres’.
    • Vehicles that fail to pass the test will be declared as ‘end-of-life vehicles’, which would mean that the vehicle would have to be recycled.
    • This will pave the way for older vehicles to be scrapped.
    • In case, the vehicles pass the test, owners will have to pay a hefty fee for re-registration.
    • According to the new policy, the re-registration fee would be hiked around eight times for personal vehicles, and around 20 times for commercial vehicles.

    What Are Automated Fitness Centres?

    • Every vehicle will have to go under a mandatory fitness test at the automated fitness centres.
    • The government aims to have at least 718 centres across the country.
    • These centres will test the vehicle’s emission, and braking and other safety components as prescribed by Central Motor Vehicle Rules, 1989.
    • Appointments to these centres will have to be booked online and the fitness report will be electronically generated.

    Change in Fee Structure

    • The government has increased the fee for renewal and grant of fitness certificate of older vehicles up to 20 times.
    • Here is the new fee structure for personal vehicles older than 15 years:
    1. Two-wheelers – Rs 1,000
    2. Three-wheeler/quadricycles – Rs 3,500
    3. Cars – Rs 7,500

    (Do not worry about the data. It is the state PSCs which may ask such information)

    For commercial vehicles:

    1. Passenger motor vehicles – Rs 10,000
    2. Heavy goods/large motor vehicles – Rs 12,500

    Benefits for buyers

    • In case you decide to scrap your old vehicle at the registered scrapping centres, you will get approximately 4-6 per cent of the value of the vehicle’s ex-showroom price.
    • The ex-showroom price is the cost of the vehicle, excluding the charges paid for registering the vehicle at RTO and insurance.
    • Moreover, if you buy a new vehicle you will be given a flat 5 per cent discount on presenting a scrapping certificate.
    • Registration fees will also be waived on the purchase of a new vehicle.

    Obtaining a Scrapping Certificate

    • Old vehicle owners will be able to formally scrap their registered vehicles at the automated scrapping centres.
    • These centres will be linked with the Vahan database of the transport ministry.
    • After you scrap your vehicle with the government registered agency, you will be provided with the scrapping certificate.
    • You will then be eligible for the benefits proposed under the scheme.

    Implementation

    Tentative timeline for the new rules:

    • Rules for fitness tests and government scrapping centres to come into effect – 1 October 2021
    • The scrapping of government and PSU vehicles above 15 years of age to start – 1 April 2022
    • Fitness testing for heavy commercial vehicles – 1 April 2023

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