Search results for: “”

GS4 (Ethics)

Unfurling the tri-colour at the Andhra University grounds, Vishakhapatnam on the occasion of the 70th Independence Day, Vice-Chancellor, Mr. G. Nageswara Rao said youth should take up the ideas of Make in India and Start-ups. He said young minds should not only gain knowledge as the world is moving towards a knowledge society, but also give importance to human values.

In the same way, the new HRD minister Prakash Javadekar in a talk said that, “Truth, non-violence, ‘bhaichara’, empathy towards others or those with different abilities are human values. These are universal values. Our aim is to make students good human beings and good citizens”.

What do you understand by human values? Indicate three human values which you consider universal in nature and highlight their importance in Civil Services.

---

GS4 question powered by mitrasias.com

Click here for the answer.

GS3 (Indian Economy)

This year India improved its rank in the WB Ease of Doing Business survey only marginally. The survey is said to have many shortcomings in terms of the parameters it uses to determine the rankings. Discuss these shortcomings and whether the rankings accurately reflect India’s attempts at reform.

GS2 (International Relations)

What is the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC)? What is it’s importance for Pakistan and China? What are India’s views on it?

GS1 (Culture)

The general perception of heritage in India is biased towards historical monuments, artifacts and scriptures. Analyze the reasons for such a perception and suggest a broad framework of scope of what heritage should constitute with reasons.

---

For understanding how to answer this questions, see these pointers by K Siddhartha.

Here is a video discussing the question.

The only meaning of success is living your life the way you want to.

Instructions: Write the following essay in 1000-1200 words.

Read this post to understand the main points for this topic.
The video below contains some discussion about the essay.

1. India’s first international commercial arbitration centre has been launched at

(a) Panaji

(b) Bengaluru

(c) New Delhi

(d) Mumbai

2. Consider the following pairs:

Mission : Agency
1. Gaia Space Probe : NASA
2. Rosetta Orbiter : European Space Agency
3. OSIRIS-REx : JAXA

Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?

(a) 2 only

(b) 1, 2 and 3

(c) 1 and 3 only

(d) 1 only

3. What is Sampriti ?

(a) An annual cultural extravaganza between India and Sri Lanka

(b) An annual trade facilitation event between India and Maldives

(c) An annual military exercise between India and Bangladesh

(d) A student exchange programme between India and Bhutan

4 Outside the oceans, largest percentage of water on earth’s surface is available in/as

(a) Soil moisture

(b) Streams and rivers

(c) Ice caps and glaciers

(d) Groundwater

5. ‘Equal pay for equal work’ is a provision under the

(a) Preamble

(b) Seventh Schedule

(c) Directive Principles of State Policy

(d) Fundamental Rights

6. Burning of agricultural waste in the northern States significantly contributes to the poor air quality in large parts of Indo-Gangetic basin. Which of the following is/are among the pollutants added into the atmosphere by burning agricultural residues?

1. Carbon Monoxide
2. Nitrous Oxide
3. Ammonia
4. Sulphur Dioxide

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

(a) 1, 2 and 4

(b) 1 and 4

(c) 2, 3 and 4

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

7. A recent book titled Shadow Fighter is a biography of

(a) Mary Kom

(b) Abhinav Bindra

(c) Sarita Devi

(d) Saina Nehwal

8. Which of the following is/are among the tributaries of River Indus?

1. Shyok
2. Zaskar
3. Shetrunji
4. Gilgit

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

(a) 2, 3 and 4

(b) 1, 2 and 4

(c) 1 and 2

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

9. Which of the following terms are generally related to the affairs of the World Trade Organisation (WTO)?

1. Domestic Content Requirements
2. Agreement on Agriculture
3. De-Minimis Provision

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

(a) 1, 2 and 3

(b) 1 and 3 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1 and 2 only

10. Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is the proposed mega-regional free trade agreement among several nations including

1. Japan
2. South Korea
3. Australia
4. New Zealand
5. Philippines

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

(a) 1, 2 and 5

(b) 1, 2, 3 and 4

(c) 3, 4 and 5

(d) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5

11. Which of the following is set to bring out an ‘ease of living’ index that will rank cities globally and, among others, could include categories on social inclusion, cost of living, public transport, housing, education and health?

(a) The Cities Alliance

(b) The World Bank Group

(c) The United Nations Human Settlements Programme

(d) The International Coalition of Inclusive and Sustainable Cities

12. India’s first coastal economic corridor is proposed to come up between

(a) Haldia and Chennai

(b) Kolkata and Tuticorin

(c) Mumbai and Ernakulam

(d) Ganjam and Tirunelveli

13. The recently concluded ‘New Delhi Declaration on Education’ is related to the affairs of

(a) G-20

(b) IBSA

(c) BRICS

(d) the India-Africa Forum

14. Which of the following sites has been named by the UNESCO as the India’s first ‘mixed’ World Heritage Site exhibiting the qualities of both cultural and natural significance?

(a) Valley of Flowers National Park

(b) Nanda Devi National Park

(c) Khangchendzonga National Park

(d) Namdapha National Park

15. Which of the following terms is used to denote the process of using microorganisms to degrade environmental pollutants?

(a) Bioleaching

(b) Biofortification

(c) Bioaccumulation

(d) Bioremediation

16. In which of the following contexts is the phrase ‘Red Corridor’ frequently used?

(a) The regions in the country which are Maoist-affected

(b) The regions in the country with high incidence of neonatal deaths

(c) The regions in the country with very high levels of groundwater pollution

(d) The regions in the country affected with soil degradation due to iron-ore mining

17. Which of the following companies successfully completed the first full-scale test flight of Aquila, a solar powered unmanned craft, as part of an ambitious project to take internet connectivity to remote parts of the world?

(a) Microsoft

(b) Apple Inc.

(c) Facebook

(d) IBM

18. Which of the following states has recently introduced a ‘fat tax’ on the consumption of junk food items with an aim to make people more conscious about their food choices and promote healthy eating?

(a) Punjab

(b) Tamil Nadu

(c) Gujarat

(d) Kerala

19. The government has given its accord to set up a new major port in which of the following states?

(a) Odisha

(b) Tamil Nadu

(c) Maharashtra

(d) Karnataka

20. Consider the following statements about revamped Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY):

1. It is a flagship scheme of the Ministry of Youth Affairs.
2. It aims to impart skill training to one crore people over the next five years.

Which of the above statements is/are not correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

21. Which of the following is/are among the members of Inter-State Council?

1. The Prime Minister
2. All the Union Cabinet Ministers
3. Chief Ministers of the all the States
4. Chief Ministers/Administrators of the all the Union Territories

Select the correct alternative using the codes given below.

(a) 1, 3 and 4

(b) 1, 2 and 3

(c) 1 and 2

(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

22. Consider the following statements:

1. The concept of “Climate-Smart Agriculture” was originally developed by Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

2. Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture is a joint initiative of FAO and IMF.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

23. Which of the following pairs of the tiger reserve and the river basin in which they fall is/are correctly matched?

1. Panna Tiger Reserve : Narmada Basin
2. Simplipal Tiger Reserve : Mahanadi Basin
3. Bhitarkanika Tiger Reserve : Godavari Basin
4. Dudwa Tiger Reserve : Ganga Basin

Select the correct answer using the codes given below.

(a) 1, 2 and 3

(b) 2 and 3

(c) 4 only

(d) 1, 2 and 4

24. Which of the following crops can be used as green manure?

1. Soybean
2. Surghum
3. Sudangrass

Select the correct alternative using the codes given below.

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 1 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

25. Which of the following places are well known for textile industry, sari making in particular?

1. Chettinad
2. Kota
3. Jalandhar

Select the correct alternative using the codes given below.

(a) 1 only

(b) 1 and 2 only

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Air pollution has been a constant news theme over the last two weeks. The other few being – Debate on banning of 500, 1000 rupee notes & Ease of business to some extent.

We will start this write up by quickly introducing the basics of AQI (Air Quality Index) and what it measures:

---

Here are two graphical timelines of places in Delhi and Bangalore. Note that the constant theme is prominence of PM2.5

source

source

AQI, developed by IIT Kanpur & sponsored by Central Pollution Control Board. Keep these 5 points in mind before we go into Particulate matter pollution in detail:

– The USP of AQI is  “One Number- One Colour-One Description.”

– Previous index only monitored 3 parameters. New AQI will monitor 8 type of pollutants. 8 pollutants * 6 categories.

– But the AQI doesn’t monitor Benzene – a carcinogen chemical from Petrol and diesel. Also, there are no conditional safety protocols.

– Industrial units use non-standardised machines to measure PM2.5 & other levels & come under the self-certification regime. So GoI has no way of checking on these products.

What is Particulate Matter? What is PM2.5?

PM is a term used to describe the mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets in the air. It can be either human-made or naturally occurring. Examples: Dust, ash and sea-spray

PM (including soot) is emitted during the combustion of solid and liquid fuels, such as for power generation, domestic heating and in vehicle engines. It varies in size (i.e. the diameter or width of the particle)

PM2.5 means the mass per cubic metre of air of particles with a size (diameter) generally less than 2.5 micrometres (µm)

Why is PM2.5 bad?

Being tiny, these particles easily reach the lungs. From there, they can travel through the bloodstream and reach the heart. Long exposure to PM2.5 can worsen asthma and heart conditions (it is also carcinogenic). They also cause runny nose, sneezing and coughing.

Unfortunately, planting more trees does nothing to solve the problem. Since PM2.5 are particles and not gases, they can’t be processed by the leaves.

What are the anthropogenic and natural causes of air pollution in Delhi?

#1. Natural Causes: 

a) Low temperature in winter leads to low wind velocity, which reduces the dust dispersal process

b) Landlocked cities , no moderate sea effect

#2. Anthropogenic factors:

a) Road dust – Dust emanating from unpaved roads and peak construction activities causes silicosis.

b) Vehicular emissions – Increased number of diesel vehicles, huge commuters, absence of integrated transport public infrastructure adds the problem

c) Industrial vehicles – Dirty power plants, coal usage in hotels, diesel generators contributes SO2 and NOX which can cause major respiratory ailments

d) Waste burning – Crop residue burning in neighbouring states – Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh transfers pollutants to Delhi

e) Improper waste management – Burning of waste at landfills and lack of waste segregation at source adds particulate matter into the atmosphere

How big is this menace of crop residue burning/ straw burning?

An analysis of Delhi’s air pollution and future trends by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI), a CSIR body found out that 60% of Delhi’s particulate matter pollution comes from neighbouring Haryana and Uttar Pradesh (straw burning + vehicular fumes)

Moreover, even if Delhi were to adopt the cleanest-grade fuel available, ensure that power plants in the vicinity adopt stringent emissions and ensure tidy pavements, pollution would persist well above globally-recommended safe levels, unless neighbouring states too adopted similarly stringent policies.

Why do farmers burn their crop residues?

Rice residue has to be burned, removed or incorporated into the soil in order to prepare elds for the next wheat crop. Farmers also burn rice residue also because many believe that it has a beneficial effect on yields.

– Burning increases the availability of some nutrients such as phosphorus and potassium in the short run

– However, it can also result in the loss of plant nutrients such as nitrogen, potash, sulphur and negatively a ect the local microbial population and organic carbon

But, a growing major concern regarding residue burning emerges from its e ects on air pollution and climate change. Incomplete combustion of biomass such as agriculture residues generates black carbon which is the second largest contributor to global warming after carbon dioxide.

What has the government done to alleviate this problem?

#1. In a December 2015 order, the National Green Tribunal had called for a curb on straw burning, and had recommended that satellite-based monitoring mechanisms be adopted and local government officers engaged to take action against stubble burning.

#2. It had also suggested engaging the concerned patwaris, block development officers and police stations for immediate action via SMS.

#3. The NGT had also recommended putting agricultural residue to alternative uses like energy generation, and for producing ethanol, paper and packaging material, to benefit the farmers and also to protect the environment.

The problem with that is: So far, seven power plants that generate electricity from straw have been built in Punjab, and six more are on the drawing board. But together, all 13 would consume only 1.5 million of the 20 million tons of straw produced in Punjab every year, or less than 10 % of total straw.

#4. On behalf of the Centre, the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation in the agriculture ministry made a policy decision to extend financial assistance to the farmers for procuring ‘Happy Seeder’, which is used for sowing wheat without burning any rice residue.

While Punjab needs about 1,000 such machines, at present it has only about half as many. A plan worth Rs 6,600 crore was drawn up to purchase machines like choppers and shredders, ‘Happy Seeders’ and ‘zero tillage’ but the Centre delayed releasing the payment.

Read this curated op-ed to understand the efficient use of rice straw

 

GS4 (Ethics)

Should our decisions be judged only according to the circumstances? Are our intentions also important? Discuss with the help of examples.