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GS Paper 1: World History

Q.1) Industrial Revolution paved the way for new imperialism. Comment.

NCERT

Hints:

Answer structure:

1.  The Industrial Revolution began in Great Britain in the early 18th century, a time when European imperialism in the New World and around the coasts of Africa and Asia was already well underway. However, the Industrial Revolution fundamentally changed the nature of colonialism. It had previously focused primarily on trade in Africa and Asia and gold and agriculture in the New World.
2. The Industrial Revolution vastly increased productivity in industrialized areas, leading to a need for more raw materials to keep up with technological capacity. As a result, Great Britain needed a source for raw materials, such as cotton to keep its textile mills running. The need for cotton was part of the reason for British takeovers in India, Egypt and other areas.. Additionally, colonies gave the Western powers a ready-made market for their goods, as the colonized people were left with little to no legal recourse to produce their own finished products.
3. Technological advances in Western arms and transportation commonly made indigenous resistance to imperial incursions futile and short-lived, as Westerners had far superior weapons, ammunition, strategy and tactics.
4. Additionally, technological advances made former threats to European settlement and survival in equatorial zones less daunting. For example, the development of the steamship eradicated the danger posed by the mouths of many African rivers. The steamship could simply be dissembled, brought inland and then reassembled for river travel, while wooden sailing ships previously could not. Similarly, industrial age advances in medicine brought quinine, a supplement that exponentially increased the survival rate of Western imperialists in malarial areas, acting as a preventative, though not a cure. Thus, Westerners could now worry much less about disease, whereas before quinine, severe fever and even death often came within weeks after arrival.

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GS Paper 2: Polity & Governance

Q.2) Do you think article 35A should be abolished? Critically comment.

Source:

http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2017/08/07/why-its-dangerous-for-the-centre-to-tamper-with-article-35a-in_a_23068270/

http://www.firstpost.com/india/article-35a-apart-a-larger-debate-over-article-370-is-needed-for-permanent-solution-to-kashmir-problem-3907729.html

https://swarajyamag.com/politics/why-article-35-a-has-to-go-and-go-now-

Introduction:

• Article 35 A of Indian Constitution provides special powers to the state of Jammu and Kashmir legislature in respect of granting citizenship rights to any Indian or a group of Indians. It empowers the state legislature to define the classes of persons who are, or shall be permanent resident(s); gives special rights and privileges or imposes restrictions in matters or availing state facilities.
• The provision of this article has been in controversy recently because of its discriminatory and biased nature and hence many experts demand it to be amended or abrogated.

The following argument supports its abrogation:

• Article 35 A was added to the Constitution by a Presidential order and hence has not been followed the procedure under Art 368. It ultra virus the basic structure and violates the Constitutional procedures established by law as Article 370 (special privileges to J&K) does not anywhere confer on the President legislative or executive powers so vast that he can amend the Constitution or alone perform the function of Parliament.
• It facilitates the violation of the right of women to ‘marry a man of their choice’ by not giving the heirs any right to property, if the woman marries a man not holding Permanent Resident Certificate (PRC).
• The industrial sector & whole private sector suffers due to the property ownership restrictions. Good doctors don’t come to the state for the same reason.
• It gives a free hand to the state government and politicians to discriminate between citizens of India, on an unfair basis and give preferential treatment to some by trampling over others, since the non-residents of the state are debarred from buying properties, getting a government job or voting in the local elections.
• It ruins the status of West Pakistani refugees. Being citizens of India they are not stateless persons, but being non-permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir, they cannot enjoy the basic rights and privileges as being enjoyed by permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir.
• The Valmikis who were brought to the state during 1957 were given Permanent Resident Certificates on the condition that they and their future generations could stay in the state only if they continued to be safai-karmacharis (scavengers). And even after six decades of service in the state, their children are safai-karmacharis and they have been denied the right to quit scavenging and choose any other profession.
• In nut and shell we can say that the provisions of Article 35A violates Right to equality under Article 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18; right to reside anywhere in India Article 19; right to live with dignity Article 21; Right to vote Article 326 and many of the rights conferred under Directive Principles of State Policies particularly related to women and children.

However, many expert calls this move raised with ‘communal minded majoritarian’ intentions and support the existing of Article 35A on the following grounds:

• It protects demographic status of the state in its prescribed constitutional form by not allowing any outsiders to own any property.
• The Article does not only recognizes the special protection granted to the state of J&K in terms of constitutional, legislative, executive orders but also clarifies and validates their existing provisions and hence this Article, on its own, does not give anything new to the State.
• The rebate given to the state of J&K in instrument of accession and subsequently added to the constitution of India in the form of Article 370. This Article 35 A is a clarificatory provision draws its rights from Article 370 and strengthens the provision of Article 370 without bringing anything new in demand.

Conclusion:

• However, the recent debate fuels the already ongoing unrest in the valley. Any temptation will further lead to violent unrest and bloodshed in the region. The separatist will get opportunity to divide the opinion of the masses causing uncontrolled situation if anything done on this sensitive issue.
• The government however needs to deal with promptness and utmost vigour to balance the situation by dialogues, campaigns and debates by involving leaders, stakeholders & state citizens and convincing them about the post benefits of bringing changes.  The debate over the larger interest is the need of the hour which also includes the provisions of Article 370.
• If Jammu and Kashmir is the integral part of India, it should not posses discriminatory provisions with other residents of the country and should adhere the constitutional provisions as a Union of India and not for the small state. The time demands the dynamism in law to do away with the flaws and the citizens of J&K should be the active part of it without having any vested interests.

 

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GS Paper 3: Indian Economy

Q.3) “A more appropriate exchange rate would stimulate exports and dampen imports, just as it would help domestic manufacturing firms to be more competitive.” Upto what extent, this statement is correct from Indian Economy perspective.

 

Source: http://www.livemint.com/Opinion/Iwsgmu6mIxf1eo0AYABdmL/A-strong-rupee-hurts-the-economy.html

 

Exchange rate is the value of the currency of one country in terms of another currency. An exchange rate thus has two components, the domestic currency and a foreign currency. Based on exchange rate, a currency can be overvalued or undervalued. Currently, India follows the floating exchange rates unlike the fixed exchange rates in the past most. Currency fluctuations are a natural outcome of the floating exchange rate system that is the norm for most major economies.

With the recent strengthening of the rupee to Rs 63.50 per US dollar and foreign exchange reserves at a record level of $393 billion, the picture looks bright one might claim. It is further believed that rupee will fall to Rs 60 per dollar by end of 2017.This might be a source of joy and pride for a few. But if our object is to stimulate investment, create employment and foster growth, it is a cause for serious concern.

Overvaluation Vs Undervaluation of Rupee:

Overvaluation of the rupee means that its price in terms of foreign currencies is too high compared to what it would be with a more appropriate exchange rate. This makes our exports expensive in foreign markets and our imports cheap in the home market.

Undervaluation of the rupee means the opposite. Its price in terms of foreign currencies is too low, so that it discriminates against imports and in favour of exports.

The exchange rate is a crucial price that determines the amount of rupees earned per dollar of exports and rupees paid per dollar of imports. Thus, it is a determinant of the price competitiveness of exports in world markets and the price competitiveness of imports in the domestic market.

The persistently overvalued exchange rate in India means that the rupee is overpriced. The economy needs a strong exchange rate for confidence, together with high interest rates for profitability, to sustain such portfolio investment. These capital inflows drive prices up in stock markets and add to foreign exchange reserves.

The consequent switch in domestic expenditure from home-produced goods to imports did lead to a contraction in aggregate demand which would have had a dampening impact on economic growth.

Some part of the explanation lies in domestic economic factors such as infrastructure or quality but these have been problems for a long time. The exchange rate of the rupee has been the main culprit in recent years.

First, portfolio investment flows have a significant impact on the exchange rate. If we plot the exchange rate of the rupee on one axis and portfolio investment inflows on the other axis in a graph, for every month in recent years, it is apparent that large inflows lead to an appreciation of the rupee and large outflows lead to a depreciation of the rupee.

The appreciating overvalued rupee erodes the price competitiveness of exports and enhances the price competitiveness of imports, which hurts the profitability of domestic firms and is bound to enlarge the trade deficit. At a macro level, this also leads to a contraction in aggregate domestic demand so that economic growth is slower than it would have been in the absence of an appreciating rupee.

In addition, further tightening of monetary policy at a time when the domestic currency is already unduly strong may exacerbate the problem by attracting more hot money from foreign investors, who are seeking higher yielding investments (which would further push up the domestic currency).

The way forward:

A strong domestic currency exerts a drag on the economy, achieving the same end result as tighter monetary policy (i.e. higher interest rates). It should be imperative to now drop interest rates, which would also help the exchange rate depreciate. Together, these would stimulate investment and revive exports, which in turn will drive economic growth and employment creation from the demand side. The time is also most opportune as the consumer price annual inflation rate has also dropped to 1.5% in June 2017. A holistic approach and a balance in the exchange rates is necessary to avoid multiplier adverse effects in the various sectors of the economy.

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GS Paper 4: Ethics & Integrity

Q.4) In India under-utilisation and misutilisation of public funds and their implications is a serious concern. Discuss the role of effective utilization of public funds in meeting development goals. Suggest with examples how public funds can be effectively utilised.

In India, the funds are either underused or misused. The various reasons for this are

–Budgetary allocations-March rush- not properly utilized
-Lack of awareness/reluctance on the part of the bureaucrats, though provisions existing
-Divesting of funds from certain departments to other.
-Following result based approach, neglecting spill-over effects of funding eg: education, health.

-Funds like MPLADS are not properly spent rather used in the next elections for vote-buying
-Not following transparent mechanisms like auctioning in awarding tenders
-Government giving bail out to certain loss-making PSUs

This has serious consequences such as unearthing of lot of scams affects people’s faith in democracy and their tax compliance- because they feel cheated. Due to increase of black money, India is lagging in many human development indicators.

It is very important to ensure that the funds are utilised effectively. This can be done by
1) Promoting transparency in the use of funds.
2) Bringing awareness among people to use RTI mechanism effectively
3) Strengthening ombudsman systems like Lokpal, Lokayukta.
4) Curbing political interference.
5) Audit by independent authorities and CAG to audit those corporate bodies which take substantial amount for projects from Govt.,
6) Curbing lobbying activities.
7) Addressing the issues of red-tapism, nepotism.
8) Better usage of technology and e-governance
9) Target driven approach to bureaucrats in spending and obtaining results.

GS Paper 4: Ethics & Integrity

Q.4) In India under-utilisation and misutilisation of public funds and their implications is a serious concern. Discuss the role of effective utilization of public funds in meeting development goals. Suggest with examples how public funds can be effectively utilised.

GS Paper 3: Indian Economy

Q.3) “A more appropriate exchange rate would stimulate exports and dampen imports, just as it would help domestic manufacturing firms to be more competitive.” Upto what extent, this statement is correct from Indian Economy perspective.

 

Source: http://www.livemint.com/Opinion/Iwsgmu6mIxf1eo0AYABdmL/A-strong-rupee-hurts-the-economy.html

GS Paper 2: Polity & Governance

Q.2) Do you think Article 35A should be abolished? Critically comment.

Source:

http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2017/08/07/why-its-dangerous-for-the-centre-to-tamper-with-article-35a-in_a_23068270/

http://www.firstpost.com/india/article-35a-apart-a-larger-debate-over-article-370-is-needed-for-permanent-solution-to-kashmir-problem-3907729.html

https://swarajyamag.com/politics/why-article-35-a-has-to-go-and-go-now-

GS Paper 1: World History

Q.1) Industrial Revolution paved the way for new imperialism. Comment.

NCERT

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World Geography: GS Paper 1

Q.1) Why Commercial fishing industry of the world concentrated around North America, Europe, Norway & Japan only? What are the geographical factors affecting it?

 

(a) Plankton availability

• Fishes eat plankton.
• Phytoplankton require sunlight = they can develop well in continental shelves and shallow seas because of Sunlight penetration and minerals from coastal water.
• Planktons reproduce more in cooler waters

(b) Ocean Currents
When cold and hot current meet, there will be lot of planktons, hence lot of fishes.

 

(c) Fish Market

In the mountainous regions of Asia and Europe, agricultural production is quite low =Fish important source of protein. Example Japan and Norway.

Asia= fish + rice= main diet of many were Asian countries. (because Fish is cheaper than meat)

When Europeans started migrating to North America, most of the early urban settlements were on or near the Eastern coast = ready market for selling fish products.

 

(d) Coastline

Highly indented coastline provides many sites for harbors and ports

 

(e) Climate

The cool temperate climate favors large scale commercial fishing, preservation and storage of fish. While tropical areas= hot, moist = fish cannot be stored for long.

 

(f) Labour

Less cultivable areas. Cold long winters= not good for agriculture= more people switch to fishing hilly terrain =. Eg. Iceland, Japan, Norway.

 

(f) Fishing Equipment

Since these countries are rich they have mechanized fishing boats and equipment’s.

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Polity and Governance: GS Paper 2

Q.2) Critically analyse the status of Surrogacy in India and the key features of the surrogacy Regulation Bill 2016 introduced in the Parliament recently.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.in/2016/08/24/9-things-you-should-know-about-the-proposed-surrogacy-bill-in-in_a_21457931/

http://indianexpress.com/article/research/karan-johar-surrogate-children-yash-roohi-what-are-the-surrogacy-in-laws-in-india-here-is-everything-you-need-to-know-4555077/

http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/Why-the-Surrogacy-Bill-is-necessary/article14593359.ece

• India is considered to be the commercial market for surrogacy which is being flourished due to cheap availability of labour, absence of proper regulation, world class medical facilities, expertise of Doctors coupled with high international demand.
• India legalised this practice since 2002 with Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) laying down some pro-surrogacy guidelines which inter alia include prohibition of sex-selective surrogacy, requiring birth certificate of the baby to have the names of only the commissioning parents, at least one of the commissioning parents to be a donor, a life insurance cover for surrogate mother and the right to privacy to surrogate mother and the donor.
• However, legislative backing to surrogacy and the legal aspects over it seemed to be rather unclear, unsettled and vague which is being taken as advantage by the doctors and other concerned stakeholders.
• A draft ART (Assisted Reproductive Technology) Bill was formulated in 2010 but never passed as a law. Thus, the result was booming surrogacy industry with lax laws and no enforcements. There were no rules as to how much compensation a surrogate mother should get and can get. They are over-exploited and have turned into baby making machines.
• In this light, Surrogacy (Regulation) Bill 2016 was introduced in Lok Sabha. It has not been passed yet.

Criticism to the Bill:

• By imposing a ban on commercial surrogacy, the bill might do more harm to women than was previously done. The demand for surrogacy is not going to vanish suddenly and the proposed Bill will only result in the creation of an illegal market that might make surrogate mothers more vulnerable to exploitation and without any avenues for legal recourse when contracts are broken.
• The five year time period for a married couple to get surrogate baby, the bar against homosexual or single parents, couple in live-in relationships, foreigners (NRIs), couples with children etc. from getting surrogate baby, and the requirement that the surrogates be altruistic (close female relative) are of arbitrary in nature about this Bill.
• Further, as per Article 14 of the Indian Constitution all citizens are equal before the law. By placing restrictions on the right to have a surrogate child such that it is accorded to heterosexual couples alone, the government has negated the equality that the Constitution guarantees to single parents and homosexuals.
• As the Supreme Court recently recognized live-in relationships, by limiting the option of surrogacy to legally married couples, the government is countering the acceptability of live-in relationships and setting a wrong precedent.
• By proposing to regulate who can apply for surrogacy and who can be a surrogate mother, the government is plunging into an area that will be beset with problems of data verification that will make the Act (if passed) un-implementable.

Conclusion:

• If the intent of the Bill is to protect surrogate mothers and the children born out of surrogacy, then the legislation must provide a legal framework that restricts the exploitation of the surrogates and the children, and penalise those who do not honour contracts.
• The government should ensure that the surrogates are properly counseled about the medical and economic implications of surrogacy. It should also ensure that all surrogacy contracts must mandatorily cover the medical care, hygiene, and nourishment of the surrogates not just during the pregnancy but also in the post-partum period.
• Further, it should act to remove any information asymmetry that encourages the role of middlemen and puts the surrogates at the risk of being cheated.

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Indian Economy: GS Paper 3

Q.3) As a premier think-tank of the Government of India, NITI provides critical knowledge, innovation and entrepreneurial support to the country. Critically evaluate the working of NITI Aayog since its inception.

Source: http://www.livemint.com/Opinion/EpV8XyCfKKTdndWWiqrMZL/NITI-Aayog-An-institution-to-fix-implementation-issues.html

https://www.examrace.com/Current-Affairs/NEWS-NITI-Aayog-A-Critical-Appraisal.htm

Hints:
National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog was set up in January 2015 as an autonomous think tank which replaced the erstwhile Planning Commission. The centerpiece of this organization so far has been providing critical knowledge, innovative ideas and entrepreneurial support to the Centre as well as the states in a decentralized bottom up approach. Since its inception, the performance of NITI Aayog in the field of knowledge, innovation and entrepreneurial support has been enumerated below:

Knowledge Economy:

· NITI Aayog has come out with indices to measure incremental annual outcomes in critical social sectors like health, education and water thus fostering competitive and cooperative federalism. E.g. National Composite Water Index, Model land leasing law.

· NITI Aayog has developed the first ever ‘Agriculture Marketing and Farmer Friendly Reforms Index’ to sensitize states about reforms in the three key areas of Agriculture Market Reforms, Land Lease Reforms and Forestry on Private

· Outcome-based Monitoring through ranking and identification of ‘Champion States’ thus promoting competitive Federalism

· NITI Aayog has successfully developed socio-economic upliftment schemes such as Sustainable Action for Transforming Health and Education(SATH)

· A Committee of Chief Ministers on Digital Payments to promote transparency, financial inclusion and a healthy financial ecosystem nationwide.

· Moreover, digital facilitation programs like Lucky Grahak Yojana and the Digi Dhan Vyapar Yojana along with Digi Dhan Melas have contributed to the digital revolution.

Innovation and Entrpreneurship:
· It has contributed to innovation growth by introducing ‘India Innovation Index’

· The Government has set up Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) in NITI Aayog with a view to spur the country’s innovation and entrepreneurship in schools, colleges, and entrepreneurs in general.

· Atal Tinkering Labs (ATLs) to foster creativity and scientific temper in students of schools across India

· Atal Incubation Centres (AICs) for innovation-entrepreneurship in core sectors such as manufacturing, transport, energy, education, agriculture, water and sanitation etc.

· It has developed short and long term strategic and vision document plans such as ‘3 Years Action Agenda’ and ‘15 Years Vision and Strategy’.

Despite good track records, NITI’s performance is not satisfactory due to following reasons:

· NITI Aayog is biased in favor of Manufacturing and lacks focus towards Agriculture or Services.

· NITI Aayog has not transformed its policies and visions into implementation

· The meeting of Team India under NITI Aayog does not take place often and has no visible results

· NITI Aayog, unlike its predecessor, does not monitor social welfare schemes in states

· Different states suggest that owing to self-ranking by states sans independent review, reforms remain mostly on paper with key concerns remaining unaddressed.

· NITI Aayog does not mention separate plans for women, SC and STs and fund allocation to welfare schemes may get affected. For example, there is a 20 % reduction in gender budgeting.
Way forward:
Giving NITI Aayog a statutory backing will be a good start. The implementation challenges must be dealt with priority. Data being key, Independent agencies could be engaged to collect granular data and design different scenarios. Regulatory Impact Assessments should be undertaken along with independent reviews and audits to identify superior regulatory alternatives. In addition, capacity constraints, inadequate resources, continuous financial backing, performance based incentives and policy cum regulatory clarity is need of the hour.

It would be premature to write off NITI Aayog and given time and persistence, it can metamorphose into an organization that can truly REFORM, PERFORM and TRANSFORM India.

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Ethics & Integrity: GS paper 4

Q.4) While visiting a red light area in the heart of a metropolitan city, which is often known for several illegal activities besides flesh trade, a District Magistrate is appalled by the plight of the sex workers. He wants to do something for the uplift of the sex workers, but finds that there are many powerful vested interests which would make the task impossible. Some of his colleagues advise him that he should desist from putting his hand into the matter otherwise his peace and calm would be disturbed. He cannot do anything to change an age old practice and he should accept his helplessness.

The District Magistrate is clueless what to do. What course of action on his part do you suggest for him and why?

Hints:

Such red light areas in developed and developing countries are thriving from ages and it reflects on the socioeconomic conditions and moralities of male dominated societies predominantly found in the world. The plight of the workers at such places questions the basic aspects of humanity.

The civil servant should intervene to improve the lives of sex workers at two levels- first implementing the rules stringently on the prohibition of sex trade and secondly, even after that, if practice continues, providing protection to their lives and dignity on the one hand and clinical and medical support for their well being on the other with the help of government agencies as well as non-government agencies is possible.

He should understand that flesh trade is a business for the underworld and since there is money and muscle power with those who manage this trade and they have police and political backing as well.

So, taking a moral and ethical stand would create many problems for the civil servant but taking steps according to the rule of the law is the right course.

There is one more issue that if the girls pushed into red light areas, have livelihood issues, it will be a good effort from a District Magistrate to give them vocational education and create skills among them and by and by suitably facilitate them in getting employment through government welfare programmes, rather than directly clashing with the vested interests.

It will not be described as fear on the part of the District Magistrate, but a practical and smart move- addressing the problem at the root is always a better option and it silently changes the scenario.

Ethics & Integrity: GS paper 4

Q.4) While visiting a red light area in the heart of a metropolitan city, which is often known for several illegal activities besides flesh trade, a District Magistrate is appalled by the plight of the sex workers. He wants to do something for the uplift of the sex workers, but finds that there are many powerful vested interests which would make the task impossible. Some of his colleagues advise him that he should desist from putting his hand into the matter otherwise his peace and calm would be disturbed. He cannot do anything to change an age old practice and he should accept his helplessness.

The District Magistrate is clueless what to do. What course of action on his part do you suggest for him and why?