The latest National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) released September 13, 2022 by the Union health ministry added 34 new medicines and dropped 26 old ones from the previous list.
What is NLEM?
As per the World Health Organisation (WHO), Essential Medicines are those that satisfy the priority health care needs of the population.
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare hence prepared and released the first National List of Essential Medicines of India in 1996 consisting of 279 medicines.
The list is made with consideration to disease prevalence, efficacy, safety and comparative cost-effectiveness of the medicines.
Such medicines are intended to be available in adequate amounts, in appropriate dosage forms and strengths with assured quality.
They should be available in such a way that an individual or community can afford.
NLEM in India
Drugs listed under NLEM — also known as scheduled drugs — will be cheaper because the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) caps medicine prices and changes only based on wholesale price index-based inflation.
The list includes anti-infectives medicines to treat diabetes such as insulin — HIV, tuberculosis, cancer, contraceptives, hormonal medicines and anaesthetics.
They account for 17-18 per cent of the estimated Rs 1.6-trillion domestic pharmaceutical market.
Companies selling non-scheduled drugs can hike prices by up to 10 per cent every year.
Typically, once NLEM is released, the department of pharmaceuticals under the ministry of chemicals and fertilisers adds them in the Drug Price Control Order, after which NPPA fixes the price.
Significance of EML
Drawing an essential medicines list (EML) is expected to result in better quality of medical care, better management of medicines and cost-effective use of health care resources.
This is especially important for a resource limited country like India.
The list of essential medicines is intended to have a positive impact on the availability and rational use of medicines.
The Union Finance Minister has heaped praises on Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council.
Why in news?
FM was reacting to a case made by Fifteenth Finance Commission chief N.K. Singh to set up a Fiscal Council with the Centre and States.
This is another such recommended body to act as a bridge between the GST Council and the Finance Commission.
What is the GST Council?
The GST regime came into force after the 101st Constitutional Amendment was passed by both Houses of Parliament in 2016.
The GST Council – a joint forum of the Centre and the states — was set up by the President as per Article 279A (1) of the amended Constitution.
The members of the Council include the Union Finance Minister (chairperson), the Union Minister of State (Finance) from the Centre.
Each state can nominate a minister in-charge of finance or taxation or any other minister as a member.
Why was the Council set up?
The Council, according to Article 279, is meant to “make recommendations to the Union and the states on important issues related to GST, like the goods and services that may be subjected or exempted from GST, model GST Laws”.
It also decides on various rate slabs of GST.
For instance, an interim report by a panel of ministers has suggested imposing 28 per cent GST on casinos, online gaming and horse racing.
A decision on this will be taken at the Council meeting.
Recent reforms
The ongoing meeting is the first since a decision of the Supreme Court in May this year, which stated recommendations of the GST Council are not binding.
The court said Article 246A of the Constitution gives both Parliament and state legislatures “simultaneous” power to legislate on GST .
Recommendations of the Council are the product of a collaborative dialogue involving the Union and States.
This was hailed by some states, such as Kerala and Tamil Nadu, who believe states can be more flexible in accepting the recommendations as suited to them.
CivilsDaily’s personalized and student-centric approach, due to its proven effectiveness and extraordinary result in the previous UPSC CSE exams, is attracting a lot of eyeballs. Every day we are flooded with hundreds of mentorship requests.
Still, many aspirants lack clarity on what UPSC Mentorship actually stands for. They have a lot of doubts and queries about it. The Indian Express invited us to bring clarity on Mentorship for UPSC and Zeeshan Hashmi, senior UPSC Mentor at CivilsDaily gave an interview to the newspaper. Below are given excerpts from the interview. You can read the full interview here.
What is Personal Mentorship for UPSC CSE?
Interviewer: “Zeeshan, a new trend is being noticed that UPSC aspirants are opting for ‘personal mentors’ to crack their Civil services exams. What is ‘Personal Mentorship’?“
Mentorship is a gradual process that takes the preparation level of each student into consideration. The core philosophy in a mentorship program is that ‘every student is a distinct batch’. Each aspirant has his or her own strengths and weakness and stands at different levels of preparation.
Taking all those into consideration, a mentorship program devises a proper strategy and plan tailor-made for a particular candidate.
In simple terms, the mentorship process is like a Google map, that suggests one of the best possible routes reach the destination depending on the position of the user.
Similarly, a mentor guides an aspirant to the best possible route to attain success depending on his level of preparedness, strengths, and weaknesses. etc.
Interviewer: If a UPSC mentor is providing guidance to an aspirant, how he or she is different from a teacher/instructor?
Students sometimes are confused between a teacher and a mentor. A teacher teaches topics, concepts, and ideas from the syllabus, textbooks or from some established scholarly works.
A mentor is someone who guides an aspirant based on his own experience, learning, and insights. He has walked that path either as a senior aspirant or a selected candidate.
Mourya had a personalized timetable, targets, and UPSC study plan as per his constraints like time availability and job
Students should know that a mentor’s job is not to teach and complete the syllabus of static subjects. That is a job of a teacher. However, a mentor guides an aspirant by suggesting the best strategies that will suit the aspirant and cater to his or her problem. That strategy is not one size suit all approach.
Parameters to choose a mentor?
Interviewer: There are many coaching institutes providing mentorship programs. What parameters should an aspirant look into while choosing a mentor?
Zeeshan sir answered that the two general parameters an aspirant should look at while deciding a mentor are:
Statistics: How many students got selected through a mentor’s specific personalized mentorship program?
Human element: This involves building up trust. One way to find out the trust factor is through webinars/videos which are available for free. During these webinars, a mentor answers many doubts and queries. If any aspirant as a viewer finds that a similar doubt, resonating with his or her is addressed, trust is developed.
It is after these two factors, aspirants should approach a mentor, interact and select the program as per his or her requirements.
Is it true that mentorship also involves counselling?
It is true to some extent. many times a mentor receives calls from aspirants who have emotional outbursts and they are apprehensive of their preparedness. We must understand that UPSC aspirants come from diverse backgrounds and the preparation can take more than a few years. It can be frustrating. A mentor should be prepared to empathize with the anxieties of an aspirant and provide him or her with practical insights.
Let me take the example of my former student Soham Mandhare who was suffering from stress and anxiety attacks and was advised by the doctors to quit the exam. But he decided to approach a personalized mentorship program and benefited from it. Sohum Mandhare, finally secured AIR 267 in UPSC-CSE 2021.
However, a mentor should be careful and advise an aspirant to consult a qualified doctor when the situation of a candidate is serious and needs medical help.
Which combination is more favorable for aspirants- coaching guidance + Mentorship or self-study + Mentorship?
Depends upon where the student stands in his preparation.
Coaching guidance + Mentorship: freshers find it important. It gives aspirants an apt environment, peer group preparation, etc.
Self-study + Mentorship: Beneficial for aspirants who have financial constraints, housewives and professionals, selected candidates who want to improve ranks, and those who can not leave their homes due to personal circumstances.
What are some of the tools used by a mentor which make the mentorship more personalized or most tailor-made for individual aspirants?
Customized Timetable: Depending on how much time an aspirant can devote to the preparation due to the personal or professional conditions of an individual, a mentor helps to prepare a personalized timetable.
Regular micro tests: Addressing personal apprehensions regarding the preparedness for exams, micro-tests a regular basis are designed, evaluated, and discussed. It involves going deep and understanding the thought process behind the candidates’ answers.
Calls on demand: Listening patiently to aspirants’ queries and doubts, one on one, is an important element of the mentorship program.
“Never take any results as a barometer for your success. Take results sportingly. only then one will be able to improvise and perform better in the next opportunity or attempt”.
It is not that UPSC-CSE preparation can not be done by self-study. Yet, a mentor is required at various tiers of this exam, whether an aspirant is going to regular coaching or not.
For the last 4 years, the most challenging exam of our country has been witnessing an inspirational transition in preparation strategy. ‘Personal Mentorship Program (PMP) is becoming increasingly popular among UPSC-CSE aspirants.
Why do IAS aspirants prefer a mentor? The simple answer is that only an IAS mentor can understand the anxieties of a candidate. And he remains prepared to empathize and provides practical insights.
Senior IAS CD mentor/faculty Zeeshan Hashmi sir’s core philosophy ‘every student is a distinct batch’ has gained currency in Indian Express.
The Hindu has acknowledged the 80% success rate of Civilsdaily’s mentorship Program
All the aspirants now are all aware of the benefits that come with mentorship. In fact, some of the wretchedly failure-sufferers have changed their lives by clearing UPSC. To demonstrate such impact India’s top branded news giants repeatedly echoed ‘Civilsdaily’s One Branded Mentorship Program’
Civilsdaily’s Mentorship is clearly one brand which sets us apart
Civilsdaily mentorship toolkit helps you in 6 key components of your UPSC-CSE preparation
Direction– Civilsdaily’s mentors are highly qualified, with at least one year of mentorship experience and two UPSC CSE Interviews under their belts. They are well-versed in the many stages of preparation. These mentors will assist you in developing both a comprehensive and micro schedule. They’ll put together a weekly programme for you, complete with mentorship calls. This schedule will be created based on a thorough examination of the importance of subjects as well as the interconnection of topics to make it easier for students to grasp the material.
Discipline– The student will be held accountable to the mentor since he or she will be required to complete a weekly target set by the mentor.
Consistency– Students can retain consistency in their preparation by having their mentor monitor them constantly and giving them regular tests. Furthermore, rational scheduling aids pupils in adopting an integrated approach to preparation..
Value addition– Mentors also assist students with their questions and resources. Students become perplexed as to which resources to follow due to the abundance of content available on the market. Mentors can assist you in locating and referring to the most appropriate materials. This aids students in consolidating their resources and avoiding content overload. Mentors will also offer video assistance. Remember- the mantra to clear UPSC is MINIMUM RESOURCES, MAXIMUM REVISIONS.
Evaluation– The UAP/foundation curriculum also contains a prelims and mains test series, as well as weekly 10 mains questions from Samachar Manthan (SM). Your mentor will go through each test with you and help you figure out your strengths and shortcomings. So, if you devote yourself to this programme, you will receive one-on-one assistance for more than 40 mains tests (including SM) and more than 30 prelims tests. Furthermore, each test will be examined twice by professional evaluators, with a mentor evaluating the results later.
Motivation– When you’re feeling down or don’t feel like studying, you can reach out to your mentor, have a conversation, get motivated, and restart your studies. Mentor-recommended relaxation techniques can assist you in learning more effectively.
How does Samanvaya Mentorship work? Introducing 3 layers of mentorship: Get IAS or UPSC ranker as your mentor
1. 1st step starts with this Samanvayacall: Once you fill in the form, we get on a 30-40 minute call with you to understand your prep level, working/ study constraints, and current strategies and create a step-by-step plan for the next week, next month and so on.
2. You are directed and given access to relevant resources and invite-only platform, Habitat where you can 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.
Daily target monitoring.
3. The third and the most personalized tier is the 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 2023-23 journey.
We will also connect you to a UPSC ranker or IAS, who will mentor you in this journey.
Layer 1: You will be assigned a dedicated in-house mentor who will keep track of our progress from start till your final interview.
Layer 2: Sajal Singh sir and the team will be constantly with you through various programs like Samachar Manthan, Prelims, Essay, etc.
Layer 3: A UPSC IAS ranker (one who has cleared this exam) will be supervising your progress as your super mentor.
Liquid Nano Urea, a fertilizer patented and sold by the Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd. (IFFCO), has been approved by the government for commercial use because of its potential to substantially reduce the import bill, but several experts have questioned the science underlying its efficacy.
What is Liquid Nano Urea (LNU)?
Urea is chemical nitrogen fertiliser, white in colour, which artificially provides nitrogen, a major nutrient required by plants.
LNU is essentially urea in the form of a nanoparticle.
It is sprayed directly on the leaves and gets absorbed by the plant.
Fertilisers in nano form provide a targeted supply of nutrients to crops, as they are absorbed by the stomata, pores found on the epidermis of leaves.
According to IFFCO, liquid nano urea contains 4 per cent total nitrogen (w/v) evenly dispersed in water.
The size of a nano nitrogen particle varies from 20-50 nm. (A nanometre is equal to a billionth of a metre.)
The liquid nano urea produced by IFFCO Limited comes in a half-litre bottle priced at Rs 240, and carries no burden of subsidy currently.
By contrast, a farmer pays around Rs 300 for a 50-kg bag of heavily subsidised urea.
According to IFFCO, a bottle of the nano urea can effectively replace at least one bag of urea.
How efficient is LNU?
While conventional urea has an efficiency of about 25 per cent, the efficiency of liquid nano urea can be as high as 85-90 per cent.
Conventional urea fails to have the desired impact on crops as it is often applied incorrectly, and the nitrogen in it is vaporized or lost as a gas.
A lot of nitrogen is also washed away during irrigation.
Liquid nano urea has a shelf life of a year, and farmers need not be worried about “caking” when it comes in contact with moisture.
Significance of LNU
This patented product is expected to not only substitute imported urea, but to also produce better results in farms.
Apart from reducing the country’s subsidy bill, it is aimed at reducing the unbalanced and indiscriminate use of conventional urea.
It will help increase crop productivity, and reduce soil, water, and air pollution.
Why in news now?
Plants need nitrogen to make protein and they source almost all of it from soil bacteria which live in a plant’s roots and have the ability to break down atmospheric nitrogen, or that from chemicals such as urea into a form usable by plants.
Chemically packaged urea is 46% nitrogen, which means a 45-kg sack contains about 20 kg of nitrogen.
Contrastingly, nano urea sold in 500-ml bottles has only 4% nitrogen (or around 20 g).
How this can compensate for the kilograms of nitrogen normally required puzzles scientists.
Four years after landmark LGBTQ verdict: The march to full citizenship.
Why in news?
On September 6, 2018, exactly four years ago, in Navtej Singh Johar and Ors v Union of India, a five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court, in a beautifully elaborate decision, liberated LGBTQI Indians from the darkness of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
LGBTQ is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
What is Section 377 of the IPC?
It reads – Unnatural offences: Whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten years, and shall also be liable to fine.
The terms “carnal intercourse” and “against the order of nature” are not defined precisely anywhere in the code.
Role played by the judiciary hitherto
The Delhi High Court’s verdict in Naz Foundation vs Government of NCT of Delhi (2009) was a landmark in the law of sexuality and equality jurisprudence in India.
The court held that Section 377 offended the guarantee of equality enshrined in Article 14 of the Constitution, because it creates an unreasonable classification and targets homosexuals as a class.
In a retrograde step, the Supreme Court, in Suresh Kumar Koushal vs Naz Foundation (2013), reinstated Section 377 to the IPC.
However, the Supreme Court in Navtej Singh Johar & Ors. vs Union of India (2018) declared that the application of Section 377 IPC to consensual homosexual behaviour was “unconstitutional”.
This Supreme Court judgment has been a great victory to the Indian individual in his quest for identity and dignity.
It also underscored the doctrine of progressive realisation of rights.
What’s next?
Overarching legislation is needed to guarantee equality to all persons on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, sex, caste, religion, age, disability, marital status, pregnancy, nationality, and other grounds.
The law should impose obligations of equality and non-discrimination on all persons, public and private, and in the areas of education, employment, healthcare, land and housing and access to public places.
It should provide for civil remedies to stop discriminatory behaviour, costs and damages, and positive action to make reparations.
We need an equality law to define what equality would encompass.
Supreme Court comes held in its privacy judgment in K.S. Puttuswamy v. Union of India (2017) that equality and liberty cannot be separated, and equality encompasses the inclusion of dignity and basic freedoms.
Way forward
Schools and colleges must effect changes in curricula for a better understanding of the community.
People of a different sexual orientation or gender identity often narrate harrowing tales of bullying, discrimination, stigma and ostracization.
Gender-neutral restrooms should be compulsory in educational institutes and other places.
Parents too need to be sensitised, because the first point of misunderstanding and abuse often begins at home, with teenagers being forced to opt for “conversion” therapies.
Conclusion
Justice Chandrachud, speaking on the fourth anniversary of Johar and the journey ahead, while quoting the Beatles classic “All you need is love”, notes that “simply love is not enough”. Rights are necessary. Which will enhance dignity of the community.
Mains question
Q. “Silent segregation” on the grounds of gender, sexual orientation preferences are followed in several houses. Elucidate in context of LGBTQ issues. What Legal remedies are needed for its victims?
Doctor shortages are creating hurdles in health emergency response
What is the crux of the article in simple words?
Medical qualification and expertise is necessary to deliver quality health services by medical professionals unlike by general health care workers who lack competency.
What is public health?
Public health has been defined as “the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals”.
Why there is need of qualification?
Lack of training: Health workers have no training in public health; they are grassroots-level service providers. Asking them to be part of public health cadre trivialises the profession of public health.
Separate profession: It is important to understand that public health is a separate profession with a specific set of competencies.
What are 4 pillars of public health?
Academics: Academics refers to a good understanding of evidence generation and synthesis by having a good grounding in epidemiology and biostatistics. These competencies are also critical for monitoring and evaluating programmes, conducting surveillance, and interpreting data and routine reporting.
Activism: Public health is inherently linked to ‘social change’ and an element of activism is core to public health. Public health requires social mobilisation at the grassroots level by understanding community needs, community organisation, etc. This requires grounding in social and behavioural sciences.
Administration: Administration refers to administering health systems at different levels from a primary health centre to the district, State, and national level. This includes implementing and managing health programmes, addressing human resource issues, supply and logistical issues, etc. It includes microplanning of programme delivery, team building, leadership as well as financial management to some extent.
Advocacy: In public health, there is little that one can do at an individual level; there must be communication with key stakeholders to change the status quo at different levels of government. This requires clear enunciation of the need, analysis of alternative set of actions and the cost of implementation or non-implementation. Good communication and negotiation skills are critical to perform this function. The related subjects are health policy, health economics, health advocacy and global health.
What are the hurdles in absorbing others as public health professionals?
Lack of skill: Many doctors and other health professionals work at the grassroots level and develop a good sense of public health due to their inclination. But they do not become public health professionals as they may not have the necessary skills. Nevertheless, they are valuable.
Lack of critical expertise: Clinicians with training in epidemiology and biostatistics would not qualify to be public health professionals as they lack not only other essential and critical expertise but also an appropriate perspective.
Deficiency: The doctor-patient ratio of 1:1655 in India as against WHO norm of 1:1000 clearly shows the deficit of MBBS. While the government is working towards a solution and targeting to reach the required ratio, there is a need to relook at the overall medical education.
Post pandemic scenario: The lag in formal medical education has come up evidently post-pandemic when the nation saw the medical fraternity struggling to fill the doctor deficit.
Limited government seats: The number of seats available for medical education in India is far less than the number of aspirants who leave school with the dream of becoming doctors.
Lack of skills: Though the institutes are managing to hire professors and lecturers, there is a lack of technical skills. Finding faculties in clinical and non-clinical disciplines is difficult and there are very few faculty development programs for upskilling the existing lot.
Lack of infrastructure: The gap in digital learning infrastructure is currently the biggest challenge the sector is facing. There is an urgent need to adopt technology and have resources available to facilitate e-learning.
Lack of research and innovation: The medical research and innovation needs an added push as there haven’t been many ground-breaking research here. The education system needs to focus more on increasing the quality of research. Additionally since industry academia partnership is not available, hence innovation also takes a back-seat.
Conclusion
By establishing new medical colleges, the government can increase student intake as well as enhance equitable access to public health as separate profession. This will attract the best and the brightest people into this discipline, which is very important for the nation’s health. This is one lesson that we should learn from the pandemic.
Mains question
Q. What do you understand by public health? Do you think it is a separate profession requiring a specific set of competencies? Examine.
GS-1 The Freedom Struggle — its various stages and important contributors/contributions from different parts of the country.
GS-2 Appointment to various Constitutional posts, powers, functions and responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies; Federalism
GS-3 Effects of liberalization on the economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth.
GS-4 Ethics and Human Interface: Essence, determinants and consequences of Ethics in-human actions; dimensions of ethics; ethics – in private and public relationships.
HOW TO ATTEMPT ANSWERS IN DAILY ANSWER WRITING ENHANCEMENT(AWE)?
Daily 4 questions from General studies 1, 2, 3, and 4 will be provided to you.
A Mentor’s Comment will be available for all answers. This can be used as a guidance tool but we encourage you to write original answers.
You can write your answer on an A4 sheet and scan/click pictures of the same.
Upload the scanned answer in the comment section of the same question.
Along with the scanned answer, please share your Razor payment ID, so that paid members are given priority.
If you upload the answer on the same day like the answer of 11th February is uploaded on 11th February then your answer will be checked within 72 hours. Also, reviews will be in the order of submission- First come first serve basis
If you are writing answers late, for example, 11th February is uploaded on 13th February , then these answers will be evaluated as per the mentor’s schedule.
We encourage you to write answers on the same day. However, if you are uploading an answer late then tag the mentor like @Staff so that the mentor is notified about your answer.
*In case your answer is not reviewed, reply to your answer saying *NOT CHECKED*.
The Varanasi District and Sessions Court has rejected the plea of the organization which manages the Gyanvapi mosque complex, challenging the maintainability of the civil suits filed by some women seeking the right to worship Goddesses on the outer wall of the complex.
About Gyanvapi Mosque
The Gyanvapi Mosque was built in 1669 during the reign of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, who ordered the demolition of the existing Vishweshwar temple at the site, and its replacement by a mosque.
The plinth of the temple was left untouched, and served as the courtyard of the mosque.
One of the walls too was spared, and it became the qibla wall, the most important wall in a mosque that faces Mecca.
Material from the destroyed temple was used to build the mosque, evidence of which can be seen today.
The name of the mosque is said to have derived from an adjoining well, the Gyanvapi, or Well of Knowledge.
An old sculpture of the Nandi bull inside the compound of the present Kashi Vishwanath Temple faces the wall of the mosque instead of the sanctum sanctorum of the temple.
It is believed that Nandi is in fact, facing the sanctum sanctorum of the original Vishweshwar temple.
The temple to Lord Shiva
For more than 100 years after the mosque was built, there was no temple at the site.
The present Kashi Vishwanath Temple was built in the 18th century by Rani Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore, immediately to the south of the mosque.
Over the decades it emerged as one of the most prominent and revered centres of the Hindu religion.
Many Hindus have long believed that the original deity of the erstwhile Vishweshwar temple was hidden by the priests inside the Gyanvapi well during Aurangzeb’s raid.
This has fired the desire to conduct puja and rituals at the sacred place where the mosque now stands.
Longstanding claims
From time to time, petitioners have laid claim to the mosque, saying it remains the original sacred place of Hindu worship.
The Ayodhya movement also aimed to “liberate” the Kashi-Vishwanath Temple-Gyanvapi mosque site and the Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi in Mathura as well.
What laws restrict such acts?
The Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991 — which mandates that the nature of all places of worship, except the one in Ayodhya that was then under litigation, shall be maintained as it was on August 15, 1947.
It maintains that no encroachment of any such place prior to the date can be challenged in courts — applies to the disputed complex in Varanasi.
What was the case before the Court?
The temple worshipers side had argued that the mosque was built on the site of an older temple, while the another side pleaded that the mosque was built on Wakf premises.
The case was initially heard by the Civil Judge (Senior Division), Varanasi, but it was transferred by the Supreme Court to the District Judge on grounds of the “complexity of the issues involved in the civil suit”.
The Supreme Court said it would wait for the district court’s decision on the mosque committee’s application before intervening in the matter.
Issue in Limelight
In April 2021, Fast Track Court Civil Judge ordered the Archaeological Survey of India to get a comprehensive archaeological physical survey” done of the Kashi Vishwanath Temple-Gyanvapi Mosque complex.
It was tasked to find out as to whether the religious structure standing at present at the disputed site is a superimposition, alteration or addition or there is a structural overlapping of any kind, with or over, any religious structure.
The mosque is not an ASI-protected site, and the ASI has no role in its maintenance or upkeep.
What are the people seeking now?
Worshippers find the cut-off date of August 15, 1947, is “arbitrary, irrational and retrospective” and prohibits Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs from approaching courts to “reclaim” their places of worship.
Such places, they argue, were “invaded” and “encroached” upon by “fundamentalist barbaric invaders”.
Certain groups have opposed the law even when it was introduced, arguing that the Centre has no power to legislate on “pilgrimages” or “burial grounds” which are under the state list.
Guys, as wealth without work, is a greater sin, knowledge without practice is an unacceptable folly. To attain success, polishing your thought is a must and to catch up with the hands of the clock, practice and practice are the only things that matter the most to an IAS aspirant.
After receiving feedback from almost 500+ of our successful UPSC candidates, Civilsdaily can claim that 85% of the questions in UPSC Mains were already asked in our previous MEP tests. And this was the only strong reason that the success rate of our MEP program has been featured in famous newspapers.
“UPSC level questions, detailed evaluation, and in-depth discussion of tests (question by question) improved my score.”
AIR 28, Mourya Bharadwaj UPSC 2021
“Impressed by the efforts put in to improve my answer writing, structured phone calls. Grateful for personal guidance.”
Mains essential Program (MEP) 2023 is your solution to practicing Mains Answer writing. Don’t procrastinate answer writing, developing a skill does not happen magically after you clear prelims.
Mains Essential Program 2023 is a Mentor guided comprehensive and intensive program for GS Mains papers. The focus is on making students understand the requirement of Mains Question, its elements, using information, and imparting answer writing skills for that.
How MEP is needed for your IAS dream:
Your knowledge is tested through your answers: If you have not learned the art to articulate your thoughts on paper, then that’s a disaster waiting to happen. Studying and writing answers is a symbiotic relationship and one reinforces the other.
Helps you retain concepts, facts, and figures.
Learning the trick to formulate the structure of the answer.
Helps to revise things and learn new things not covered by conventional books.
Improves your writing speed, and handwriting.
Know-How Our Mains Test Program Stands Apart?
1. Personalised Mentorship to correct you at each step
We believe in personalized individual attention. A one-to-one discussion with your Mentor will not only highlight your weaknesses but will also help in tracking your improvements over the subsequent tests. It will also ensure consistency, continuity, and progressive improvement.
Students usually get swayed by only seeing the theme of the question. The question is not about electoral bonds only. Many aspirants write everything they know about electoral bonds. You need to first mention how it will cleanse India’s electoral system. After that, link it with democracy. How it violates key features of democracy like transparency, accountability, and a level playing field. Writing only Pros and Cons will not fetch you marks.
Just schedule a call with our mentor to clear all your doubts and queries.
2. Quality standards of questions in our test series
Our Test series questions have consistently proven to be similar to UPSC standards.
12 Sectional tests: The whole syllabus will be divided into portions like history, economics, and geography. The test will be spread over 8 months. This will ensure that your basic static preparation happens continuously alongside your mains answer writing program. Killing two birds with one stone!
12 Full-length tests: After the prelims, it is time to go full gear.
Personalized discussion: You doubt why you are scoring less or how you can improve your score for the next paper. No worries! Just schedule a call with our mentor to clear all your doubts and queries.
Civilsdaily’s handholding: You will be provided membership to Mains 2023 club on Habitat. There you can put up your doubts and queries. Also can be used to interact with peers on strategies to improve your mains writing. You can also contact mentors like Sajal sir, Sukanya ma’am, Sudhanshu sir and Poornima Ma’am. They all have interview-level experience, so utilize their experience to your benefit.
Civilsdaily magazine: Your current affairs will be covered with access to our 1-year subscription. (June 2022 to May 2023)
Our Philosophybehind MEP 2023
1. Question Formulation
It happens under a team of experienced Civilsdaily faculty. Questions framed are from the most important UPSC relevant themes and papers are based on the latest pattern of UPSC.
Our questions specifically state:
Whether they are straightforward or thought-provoking/analytical.
Whether they have subparts.
Why this question – similar to previous year’s questions, the importance of the theme, etc.
CD Innovation – Red-green highlight – to let you know about the necessary and innovative points.
2. One-to-One Discussion
We believe in personalized individual attention. This is the biggest reason why you should join our TS. Students can schedule a call within 2 days of receiving their checked copies.
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The government plans to start a GPS-based toll system in place of FASTag to ensure seamless payment and vehicle movement on national highways.
Why in news?
The move would end the role of toll plazas across the country.
How will a GPS-based tolling system work?
Vehicles will be fitted with an electronic device that can track their movement.
Highways will be geo-fenced, creating virtual boundaries. The system will use GPS or radio frequency identification technologies.
The software will recognize when a mobile device enters or leaves a particular area, and toll will be charged based on the distance travelled at the highway’s exit point.
As the system is based on sensors, there will be no need to stop at toll plazas.
Vehicles and users must be registered with the GPS toll system, linked to bank accounts that will be used to transfer toll payments.
What are FASTags?
FASTags are stickers that are affixed to the windscreen of vehicles and use Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology to enable digital, contactless payment of tolls without having to stop at toll gates.
RFID uses electromagnetic fields to automatically identify and track tags attached to objects.
The tags are linked to bank accounts and other payment methods.
As a car crosses a toll plaza, the amount is automatically deducted, and a notification is sent to the registered mobile phone number.
Issues with FASTags
Since the card is affixed to the windscreen, it can be easily misplaced, damaged or stolen.
The existing FASTag system, though faster than cash payments, still requires vehicles to stop at toll booths to enable reading of tags.
Also, the vehicle must wait till the gate is opened.
It has been observed that sometimes the toll fee is deducted twice from user account. Mostly, this happens due to a technical glitch.
Some card readers take longer time to read and register. Hence the purpose of saving time is itself defied.
Still, the wait time at toll booths is much more than the 30 seconds that was promised earlier.
Also, it has not helped reduce the number of toll booths.
Hence the benefits of using FASTag far outweigh the challenges.
Is FASTags a total failure?
Usage has increased since FASTag was made mandatory in 2021 after its launch in 2015.
Penetration has grown from nearly 16% in FY18 to 96.3% in FY22.
Total toll collection in FY18 was ₹21,948 crore, including ₹3,532 crore collected through FASTags.
In FY22, toll collection through FASTags increased sharply to ₹33,274 crore out of total toll collection of ₹34,535 crore.
How will GPS benefit highway users?
GPS tolling uses satellite-based navigation and requires no halting.
Also, vehicles can be charged only for their actual travel on a highway stretch.
Currently, toll is paid at toll booths which is fixed between two points of tolling and a user does not get any concession even if he/she exits before completing the full run between two toll plazas.
The new system should reduce the toll amount charged for travel on highways.
What is the progress so far on GPS tolling?
The Union road ministry has amended the National Highways Fee (Determination of Rates and Collection) Rules, 2008, allowing for the collection of toll based on distance travelled on national highways.
This will facilitate the introduction of GPS tolling.
First trials may be done on the under-construction Mumbai-Delhi expressway which will be geo-fenced.
Also the cost of GPS devices needs to be considered at very beginning.
Way forward
The system needs a proper legislative framework, and a full launch is still years away. The government intends to introduce it in phases.
The road ministry is expected to amend the Motor Vehicles Act and create rules to facilitate GPS tolling as well as to penalize offenders.
Moreover, GPS will come with its own set of complications on calculating differential tolls.
Regulations and framework for these need to be developed first.
Context 
Role played by the judiciary hitherto
What’s next?
Context 
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What are the hurdles in absorbing others as public health professionals?
