ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES TO FINANCIAL …JAYANAGAR,BANGALORE – 560069 8880120120 , 8123379686,...

ACHIEVERS IAS ACADEMY

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ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES TO FINANCIAL INCLUSION GS Paper 2: Issues relating to development and management of social sector/ Services relating to

health, education, human resources.

Introduction

Financial inclusion broadens the resource base of the financial system by developing a culture of

savings among large segment of rural population and plays its own role in the process of economic

development. Further, by bringing low income groups within the perimeter of formal banking sector;

financial inclusion protects their financial wealth and other resources in exigent circumstances.

Financial inclusion also mitigates the exploitation of vulnerable sections by the usurious money

lenders by facilitating easy access to formal credit.



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Definitions

Financial inclusion may be defined as the process of ensuring access to financial services and timely

and adequate credit where needed by vulnerable groups such as weaker sections and low income

groups at an affordable cost (The Committee on Financial Inclusion, Chairman: Dr. C. Rangarajan).

Financial Inclusion, broadly defined, refers to universal access to a wide range of financial services at

a reasonable cost. These include not only banking products but also other financial services such as

insurance and equity products (The Committee on Financial Sector Reforms, Chairman: Dr.Raghuram

G. Rajan).

Key elements of financial inclusion

• Fi

rst, financial firms must understand

the market and structure products

accordingly. For example, agricultural

income is seasonal and lumpy. So if

you are lending to a farmer so he can

buy a tractor, you need to structure a

loan product where the repayment

cycle is seasonal and not monthly.

• Se

cond, financial literacy.

Unfortunately, this is one area where

India still needs to do a great deal of

work. According to a Standard and

Poor’s survey, basic financial literacy

in India is sub-par. The good news is

that, driven by the government and

regulators such as the Reserve Bank

of India, as well as voluntary efforts by companies through corporate social responsibility

(CSR) programmes, this is changing quite rapidly.

• Third, partnership between the government and providers of various financial products, so

the risks and rewards of working with marginal populations are shared. A good example is

rural housing. Powered by a government programme that provides financial support and

participation from the private sector, 70 million new houses have been built in the last five

years, up from about 400,000 previously.

Objectives

Banking for the unbanked

✓ Bank accounts: Ensuring universal access to bank accounts, which are a gateway to all

financial services.

✓ Digital payment services: Providing access to digital payment services and increasing its

penetration.



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Securing the unsecured

✓ Insurance and social security: Ensuring universal coverage of insurance for life, accidents,

etc., and of pensions and other retirement planning services.

✓ Asset diversification: Allowing diversification of asset portfolio of households through

increased participation in capital markets.

Present Status

The government has launched many flagship schemes to promote financial inclusion and provide

financial security to empower the poor and unbanked in the country. These include the Pradhan

Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana, Stand-Up India Scheme, Pradhan Mantri

Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana, and Atal Pension Yojana. In

addition, the promotion of Aadhaar and direct benefit transfer schemes facilitate financial inclusion.

Constraints

✓ Lack of financial literacy amongst low income households and small informal businesses.

✓ The high cost of operations of the traditional banking model.

✓ Excessive regulatory requirements on products, and market entry, and conservative

regulatory

approach to new

technologies.

What can be

done?

An Arthik Shiksha

Abhiyan will help

improve financial

literacy and may

be integrated in

the regular school

curriculum.

Besides, efforts to

improve financial

literacy should be

complemented by

mass media

campaigns to

provide

information on

financial products

and their use.

Given the

infeasibility of



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locating branches in every nook and corner of the country, bank correspondents are used to reach

out to prospective clients. However, an inadequate compensation structure makes correspondent

banking unattractive. The issue of inadequate training is being addressed by the RBI which has

developed a framework for certification for both basic and advanced levels. There is also a need to

create better monetary incentives for banking correspondents as well as to provide them better

training.

One of the main constraints in providing low-income households and informal businesses is the lack

of information available with formal creditors to determine their credit worthiness. This results in

high cost of credit. This constraint can be overcome by the adoption of appropriate

technology.Create a new data-sharing framework that builds on the success of Jan Dhan and

Aadhaar platforms to enable easier access to credit, with adequate safeguards for maintaining data

privacy.

Post offices are familiar sights in all villages. Payment banks, including the India Post Payment Bank,

can potentially revolutionize the payments system like telecom companies did in Africa and other

South Asian countries, with innovative products like mobile money. A flexible and proactive

approach towards regulations on payment banks, such as regulations on minimum capital

requirements, transaction amounts, and restriction on investments, should be adopted to ensure

that the payment bank model becomes commercially viable and scalable.

India has the world’s largest share of young people - half the country is below the age of 25. They

are no longer satisfied with the status quo, and have soaring ambitions. Financial inclusion will

necessarily have to be at the core of any economic strategy that the nation puts in place to meet

these aspirations.

Previous Year Questions

1. The concept of Mid Day Meal (MDM) scheme is almost a century old in India with early

beginnings in Madras Presidency in pre-independent India. The scheme has again been given

impetus in most states in the last two decades. Critically examine its twin objectives, latest

mandates and success. (2013)

2. The Central Government frequently complains on the poor performance of the State

Governments in eradicating suffering of the vulnerable sections of the society. Restructuring

of Centrally sponsored schemes across the sectors for ameliorating the cause of vulnerable

sections of population aims at providing flexibility to the States in better implementation.

Critically evaluate (2013)

3. Electronic cash transfer system for the welfare schemes is an ambitious project to minimize

corruption, eliminate wastage and facilitate reforms Comment. (2013)

4. The basis of providing urban amenities in rural areas (PURA) is rooted in establishing

connectivity Comment. (2013)

5. Identify the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that are related to health. Discuss the

success of the actions taken by the Government for achieving the same. (2013)



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6. Do government’s schemes for up-lifting vulnerable and backward communities by protecting

required social resources for them, lead to their exclusion in establishing businesses in urban

economies? (2014)

7. Two parallel run schemes of the Government, viz the Adhaar Card and NPR, one as voluntary

and the other as compulsory, have led to debates at national levels and also litigations. On

merits, discuss whether or not both schemes need run concurrently. Analyse the potential of

the schemes to achieve developmental benefits and equitable growth. (2014)

8. Hunger and poverty are the biggest challenges for good governance in India still today.

Evaluate how far successive governments have progressed in dealing with these humongous

problems. Suggest measure for improvement. (2017)

9. The emergence of the self-help groups (SHGs) in contemporary times points to the slow but

steady withdrawal of the state from development activities.” Examine the role of the SHGs

in developmental activities and the measures taken by the Government of India to promote

the SHGs. (2017)

10. Poverty alleviation programmes in India remain mere showpieces until and unless they are

backed up by political will.” Discuss with reference to the performance of the major poverty

alleviation programmes in India. (2017)



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ALARMING RISE IN ANTI-MICROBIAL RESISTANCE GS Paper 2 – Issues relating to development and management of social sector/ services relating to

health, education and human resources.

Context

A report submitted to the secretary general of the United Nations titled AMR: A global crisis that

threatens a century of progress in health and achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals,

urged prompt action as there was no time to sit back.

“Alarming levels of resistance have been reported in countries of all income levels, with the result

that common diseases are becoming untreatable, and lifesaving medical procedures riskier to

perform,” it warned. Talking about numbers, it said drug-resistant diseases already caused at least

700,000 deaths globally a year, including 230,000 deaths from multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. This

figure could increase to 10 million deaths globally per year by 2050 under the most alarming

scenario if no action was taken. Around 2.4 million people could die in high income countries

between 2015 and 2050 without a sustained effort to contain antimicrobial resistance.

“The estimates, presented as disability-adjusted life years (DALYs), are shocking. The overall DALY

rate is 170 per 100,000 population, which is similar to the combined burden of HIV, influenza, and

tuberculosis in the same year in the EU and EAA. The burden has doubled since 2007 and is highest

in infants (aged <1 year) and older people (aged ≥65 years),” the commentary added.

What is antimicrobial resistance?



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Antimicrobial resistance happens when microorganisms (such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, and

parasites) change when they are exposed to antimicrobial drugs (such as antibiotics, antifungals,

antivirals, antimalarials, and anthelmintics). Microorganisms that develop antimicrobial resistance

are sometimes referred to as “superbugs”. As a result, the medicines become ineffective and

infections persist in the body, increasing the risk of spread to others.

Key facts

✓ Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) threatens the effective prevention and treatment of an ever-

increasing range of infections caused by bacteria, parasites, viruses and fungi.

✓ AMR is an increasingly serious threat to global public health that requires action across all

government sectors and society.

✓ Without effective antibiotics, the success of major surgery and cancer chemotherapy would

be compromised.

✓ The cost of health care for patients with resistant infections is higher than care for patients

with non-resistant infections due to longer duration of illness, additional tests and use of

more expensive drugs.

Factors accelerating anti-microbial resistance

Antimicrobial resistance occurs naturally over time, usually through genetic changes. However, the

misuse and overuse of antimicrobials is accelerating this process. In many places, antibiotics are

overused and misused in people and animals, and often given without professional oversight.

Examples of misuse include when they are taken by people with viral infections like colds and flu,

and when they are given as growth promoters in animals or used to prevent diseases in healthy

animals.

Antimicrobial resistant-microbes are found in people, animals, food, and the environment (in water,

soil and air). They can spread between people and animals, including from food of animal origin, and

from person to person. Poor infection control, inadequate sanitary conditions and inappropriate



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food-handling encourage the spread of antimicrobial resistance.

Present situation with examples

▪ Extensively drug-resistant tuberculosis (XDR-TB), a form of tuberculosis that is resistant to at

least 4 of the core anti-TB drugs, has been identified in 105 countries. An estimated 9.7% of

people with MDR-TB have XDR-TB.

▪ Colistin is the last resort treatment for life-threatening infections caused by

Enterobacteriaceae which are resistant to carbapenems. Resistance to colistin has recently

been detected in several countries and regions, making infections caused by such bacteria

untreatable.

▪ In 2010, an estimated 7% of people starting antiretroviral therapy (ART) in developing

countries had drug-resistant HIV. In developed countries, the same figure was 10–20%.

Some countries have recently reported levels at or above 15% amongst those starting HIV

treatment, and up to 40% among people re-starting treatment. Since September 2015, WHO

has recommended that everyone living with HIV start on antiretroviral treatment. Greater

use of ART is expected to further increase ART resistance in all regions of the world.



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▪ Antiviral drugs are important for treatment of epidemic and pandemic influenza. So far,

virtually all influenza A viruses circulating in humans were resistant to one category of

antiviral drugs – M2 Inhibitors (amantadine and rimantadine).

WHO response

In 2017, the WHO classified antibiotics in three groups. ‘Aware’ — which has lower resistance

potential, followed by ‘Watch’ and ‘Reserve’. A WHO report on the implementation of this

programme showed ‘great diversity in the level of consumption of antibiotics in the Watch category,

which accounted for less than 20 per cent of the total antibiotic consumption in some countries, but

more than 50 per cent in others’. However, only 16 countries shared their data for this report and

the global health body said this was a major lacuna in the programme implementation.

The “Global action plan on antimicrobial resistance” has 5 strategic objectives:

✓ To improve awareness and understanding of antimicrobial resistance.

✓ To strengthen surveillance and research.

✓ To reduce the incidence of infection.

✓ To optimize the use of antimicrobial medicines.

✓ To ensure sustainable investment in countering antimicrobial resistance.

WHO has been leading multiple initiatives to address antimicrobial resistance:

✓ World Antibiotic Awareness Week

✓ The Global Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (GLASS)

✓ Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership (GARDP)

✓ Interagency Coordination Group on Antimicrobial Resistance (IACG)



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AMR a major threat in India

Antibiotic resistance is a global phenomenon. But the epicentre of this catastrophe is India. The

country is afflicted by easy access to the strongest of antibiotics without prescriptions or diagnoses;

even by qualified doctors, not just quacks, who prescribe drugs with little thought; by hospitals

where overuse has created colonies of these superbugs; by excessive usage on livestock; and by

poor sanitation. All this has created a kind of perfect storm for these super-resistant microbes to

menace our health.

In India, AMR has emerged as a major threat to public health estimated to cause 10 million deaths

annually by 2050 as India carries one of the biggest burdens of drug-resistance pathogens,

worldwide. Three reports, on antibiotic consumption in India, the UK and the US in December 2019,

established what has been widely reported as a global trend. India’s rate of antibiotic prescription is

less when compared to European countries. However, when it comes to the antibiotic drugs which

are third and fourth line, India beats a number of countries, said a study published in PLOS One.




2. Public health system has limitation in providing universal health coverage. Do you think that

private sector can help in bridging the gap? What other viable alternatives do you suggest?

(2015)

3. What do you understand by Fixed Dose drug Combinations (FDCs)? Discuss their merits and

demerits. (2013)

4. Can overuse and free availability of antibiotics without Doctor’s prescription, be contributors

to the emergence of drug-resistant diseases in India? What are the available mechanisms for

monitoring and control? Critically discuss the various issues involved. (2014)

5. Professor Amartya Sen has advocated important reforms in the realms of primary education

and primary health care. What are your suggestions to improve their status and

performance? (2016)

6. Performance of welfare schemes that are implemented for vulnerable sections is not so

effective due to absence of their awareness and active involvement at all stages of policy

process. Discuss. (2019)




BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT JAIR BOLSONARO

In news

On January 26, Jair Bolsonaro will be the third Brazilian president to attend India’s 2020 Republic

Day celebrations. This will be the third time that a Brazilian president will grace the Republic Day

Parade. Previous instances were in 1996 and 2004. Following the official announcement of his visit

to New Delhi, expectations are once again on the rise for new cooperation agreements. Whether

Bolsonaro and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will fulfil these expectations remains to be

seen.

The rise to presidency

Bolsonaro announced his pre-candidacy for president in March 2016 as a member of the Social

Christian Party. However, he left the party in 2018 and joined the Social Liberal Party, and then

launched his presidential campaign in August of that same year, with retired general Hamilton

Mourão as his running mate. He portrayed himself as an outsider and a supporter of family values.

Bolsonaro was non-fatally stabbed while campaigning in September 2018. He came in first place in

the first round of the general election on 7 October 2018, with Workers' Party candidate Fernando

Haddad coming in second place. The two candidates faced a run-off on 28 October 2018, and

Bolsonaro was elected with 55.1% of the vote.




Bolsonaro’s military and political career

He graduated from the Agulhas Negras Military Academy in 1977 and served in the Brazilian Army's

field artillery and parachutist units. He became known to the public in 1986, when he wrote an

article for Veja magazine criticizing low wages for military officers, after which he was arrested and

detained for fifteen days. One year later, he was accused by the same magazine of planning to plant

bombs in military units, which he denied. After a first degree conviction, he was acquitted by the

Brazilian Supreme Military Court in 1988.

He joined the reserve army in 1988 with the rank of captain and ran for the Rio de Janeiro City

Council that same year, being elected while a member of the Christian Democratic Party. Bolsonaro

was elected in 1990 to the lower chamber of Congress and was subsequently re-elected six times.

During his 27-year tenure as a congressman, he became known for his strong support of national

conservatism. He is a vocal opponent of same-sex marriage and homosexuality, abortion, affirmative

action, drug liberalization and secularism. In foreign policy, he has advocated closer relations to the

United States and Israel. During the 2018 presidential campaign, he started to advocate for

economic liberal and pro-market policies. A polarizing and controversial politician, his views and

comments, which have been described as far-right and populist in nature, have drawn both praise

and criticism in Brazil.

Politics - A far-right president

Jair Bolsonaro campaigned for president on the slogan, “Brazil before everything, and God above

all.” As he was sworn into office, Bolsonaro declared Brazil liberated from socialism and promised

“to unite the people, rescue the family, respect religions and our Judeo-Christian tradition, combat

gender ideology, conserving our values.”

His inauguration day remarks tapped into what appealed to Brazilians about Bolsonaro during his

presidential campaign. The far-right firebrand promised to “break the system” and depart from the

status quo after a tumultuous few years. Brazil suffered from a deep recession starting in 2016. That

economic crisis was accompanied by political turmoil, as a massive corruption scandal unspooled in

the country at the highest levels of government and business, leaving few high-profile leaders

unscathed. Against this backdrop, a rise in violent crime left some voters yearning for order and

security, which Bolsonaro — an ex-military officer — promised to deliver.

What Bolsonaro means for Brazil?

One of the main reasons so many Brazilian voters supported Bolsonaro is his promise to fix the

country’s ills — high rates of violent crime, a faltering economy, and endemic corruption. A huge and

sprawling corruption scandal has engulfed Brazilian politics in recent years, and that sense of

dysfunction has made the population dissatisfied and disillusioned with its leaders.

Michel Temer, the former president, is affiliated with a center-right party, and was abysmally

unpopular. He took over after Rousseff, of the Workers’ Party, was impeached and removed from

office in 2016 because of her connections to the corruption scandal. Rousseff was not implicated

directly, but her party was in power, and she faced other pressures, such as the deepening

recession.




Rousseff’s predecessor, Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva, served as president from 2003 to 2011 and

remains extremely popular in Brazil, as his tenure was associated with economic growth and greater

equality. Lula is so popular, in fact, that he was the frontrunner in the 2018 presidential race and was

on his way to becoming president again — except he was barred from running because he’s serving

a 12-year prison sentence after also being caught up in the corruption scandal. (Lula and his

supporters have called his conviction dubious.)

With Lula out, Fernando Haddad, a former mayor of São Paulo, stepped in. Haddad tried to tie

himself tightly to Lula’s legacy, and he made improving the economy central to his campaign. But he

failed to drum up enough popular support to beat Bolsonaro, who successfully capitalized on

Brazilians’ discontent with their government and its perceived inability to address the country’s

economic and political ills.

But now Bolsonaro, as president, will have to deliver on his promises about the economy,

corruption, and crime. The new leader plans to embrace more free market policies than his

predecessors and on his inauguration day asked Brazil’s Congress to empower the police. Bolsonaro

will reveal in the weeks and months ahead how he plans to execute his agenda. But whether he can

do so — and at what cost — will define his presidency.

CRISIS IN NBFCs GS Paper 3: Indian economy and issues related to planning; Effects of liberalisation on the

economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth.

In news

India’s shadow banks, which lend to everyone from teashop merchants to property tycoons, get a

mixed bill of health in Bloomberg’s latest check. The sector has been stung by a crisis set off by the

shock collapse of non-bank lender IL&FS group in 2018. There’ve been even more setbacks in recent




weeks: Altico Capital India Ltd., a real estate-focused lender, has seen some potential rescuers

demur. Revitalization of the industry, whose woes mounted last year when major mortgage lender

Dewan Housing Finance Corp. missed repayments, is key to helping staunch a further slowdown in

the nation’s economy.

Non-Banking Financial Companies

The Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) are quasi-banking institutions in India. They are

allowed to make loans just like banks do. However, they are not allowed to take deposits from

people in order to make these loans. Hence, these Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs)

borrow money from the bond market in order to make loans.

Traditionally retail as well as institutional borrowers in the Indian market preferred to borrow from

banks. However, of late, this has changed because of the precarious financial situation that the

banks find them in. The Indian banking sector was already struggling with bad loans which have been

made because of kickbacks and nepotism. This is the reason why Non-Banking Financial Companies

(NBFCs) performed better than banks for the first time in 2017. However, in the second quarter of

2018, the Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) seem to have come across a perfect storm.

They are now at the epicenter of a massive stock market crisis. Some analysts are calling it India’s

Lehman moment.

Bloomberg analysis

Shadow lender woes have made it harder for policy makers to prop up the economy, which grew at

its weakest pace since 2009. The slowdown hurts borrowers’ ability to repay debt, and has

prompted the central bank to predict that an improvement in banks’ bad-loan ratios will reverse.

The Bloomberg check-up of the sector’s health also showed that:

✓ Banking system liquidity remained relatively strong.

✓ But a custom index of the share prices of 20 such firms stayed stagnant.

Many investors have gotten cold feet when it comes to all but the safest shadow banks. Asset

manager DSP Investment Managers, for example, said it will shun lower-rated corporate bonds until

India’s economic growth revives, which it expects may take another three to five quarters.

Crisis: The big picture

Challenges faced by some non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) were reflective of their inherent

fragilities rather than merely a liquidity crunch and this is evident from how markets are

differentiating between non-bank lenders, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its report.

“Financial markets have been discriminating between strong NBFCs and those having perceptible

weaknesses,” the central bank noted, adding that recent developments in the sector have brought

greater market discipline, and better-performing companies continue to raise funds at reasonable

costs. On the other hand, NBFCs with asset-liability mismatches or asset quality concerns have been

facing constraints on market access and/ or higher borrowing costs.

Market conditions have resulted in a marked slowdown in growth at NBFCs. During 2018-19, credit

flow from housing finance companies (HFCs), systemically important non-deposit taking (NBFC-ND-

SI) and deposit-taking NBFCs (NBFC-D) declined. Although the NBFC sector grew in size to `30.9 lakh




crore in 2018-19 from Rs 26.2 lakh crore in 2017-18, the pace of expansion was lower than in 2017-

18 mainly due to rating downgrades and liquidity stress in a few large NBFCs in the aftermath of the

IL&FS crisis. Over 40% of the retail portfolio of NBFCs are vehicle and auto loans.

NBFCs’ credit to commercial real estate decelerated in 2018-19, reflecting their risk aversion in light

of the slowdown in real estate sector despite expansion of bank credit to the sector. “On the other

hand, credit to agriculture and allied activities saw a significant increase in 2018-19, partly

attributable to the policy measure of September 2018 enabling co-origination of loans for lending to

priority sector by banks and NBFCs,” RBI said.

What led to the crisis?

One, the NBFC business model itself is flawed, to begin with. It relied on raising short-term funds

which were then lent out as long-term loans. This leads to a situation called an asset-liability

mismatch. For example, an NBFC raises money by selling 6-month debt papers and on-lends this as a

car loan with a tenure of 5 years. This leads to a situation where the NBFC has to roll over (or

renew) the 6-month debt paper or raise fresh loans to repay the debt paper. In good times, this

happens as a matter of course. But when times are tough, this cycle is broken.

That leads us to the second factor. The cycle was broken by a default of some firms of the IL&FS

group. There were fears that this would turn out to be a contagion. Simply put, banks, mutual funds

and their investors were afraid that more such entities wouldn’t default. As this fear took hold, many

institutions refused to give money to NBFCs. The cost of funds rose by as much as 150 basis points

for NBFCs.




Why the crisis is threatening?

NBFCs are playing an increasingly important part in the economy. Their share of credit has increased

because they were lending in sectors where banks refused to go or did not want to go. The used

commercial market is a good example here.

Now that NBFCs are finding it difficult to raise money or having to pay a huge cost for doing so, this

will choke the flow of credit to the economy. It will hit the MSME sector which is already suffering

from the twin blows of demonetisation and the goods and services tax. More importantly, it will hit

consumption demand in the economy. With investment demand yet to pick up and exports flagging,

consumption was the primary engine driving the economy. A reduction in credit further adds to

economic slowdown pressures, which are already visible. Besides, a slowdown in credit could lead to

another pile of non-performing assets in sectors such as commercial real estate and infrastructure,

which could have economy-wide knockdown effects.

RBI’s Bailout

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has taken some steps to prevent the conversion of this Non-Banking

Financial Companies (NBFCs) crisis into a full-fledged financial crisis. The RBI has changed its rules in

order to make it easier for Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) to obtain capital. Banks were

earlier restricted in the number of loans they could make to NBFCs. Banks were earlier allowed to

lend a maximum of 10% of their loans to NBFCs. This limit has been temporarily raised to 15% for a

few months. The immediate effect of this step has been to release close to $10 billion worth of

liquidity to the cash-starved NBFC sector. RBI’s decision will help Non-Banking Financial Companies

(NBFCs) to raise cash in the short term and roll over their debts. The fear of defaults will be quelled

for the time being.

However, critics have questioned the suitability of this policy for the long run. RBI’s plan is to use

banks which already have a lot of problems to deal with the NBFC problem. Many analysts are

worried that this could spell doom for the banking sector as well. This liquidity infusion will end up

transferring many bad assets from Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) to the banks. Given

the fact that the Indian banking system is already facing a non-performing assets crisis, this move

could severely damage the banking sectors ability to recover.


1. Capitalism has guided the world economy to unprecedented prosperity. However, it often encourages short-sightedness and contributes to wide disparities between the rich and the poor. In this light, would it be correct to believe and adopt capitalism for bringing inclusive growth in India? Discuss. (2014)

2. The nature of economic growth in India in recent times is often described as a jobless growth. Do you agree with this view? Give arguments in favour of your answer. (2015)

3. How globalization has led to the reduction of employment in the formal sector of the Indian economy? Is increased informalization detrimental to the development of the country? (2016)

4. Examine the impact of liberalization on companies owned by Indians. Are they competing with the MNCs satisfactorily? Discuss. (2013)




5. “Success of make in India program depends on the success of Skill India programme and radical labour reforms.” Discuss with logical arguments. (2015)

6. It is argued that the strategy of inclusive growth is intended to meet the objectives of inclusiveness and sustainability together. Comment on this statement. (2019)

THE IMPACT OF NRC & CAA ON INDIA-BANGLADESH RELATIONS GS 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising

out of their design and implementation.

In news

The Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 — signed into law on 11 December last year — and the

proposed National Register of Citizens, have been seen by many as targeting illegal immigrants

specifically from India's neighbour to the East. And thus far, the Bangladesh government has been

largely balanced in its observations about both. In her interview to Gulf News, Hasina reiterated the

country's hitherto-held position that "Bangladesh has always maintained that the CAA and NRC are

internal matters of India".

While exchanges between India and Bangladesh have maintained the tone of reassurance — from

New Delhi — and respect for sovereignty — from Dhaka, it is the remarks and action from those in

the Hasina government that have reflected the local unease caused by the CAA and NRC. Shortly

after the passage of the CAB into law, emerged reports that Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen and

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan had cancelled their respective visits to India. Both would,

however, go on to clarify that their decisions to call off their respective visits were unrelated to the

CAA, but due to domestic commitments.

National Register of Citizens

The National Register of Citizens (NRC) is a register of all Indian citizens whose creation is mandated

by the 2003 amendment of the Citizenship Act, 1955. It has been implemented for the state of

Assam starting in 2013–2014. The Government of India plans to implement it for the rest of the

country in 2021. According to the Citizenship Rules, 2003, the central government can issue an

order to prepare the National Population Register (NPR) and create the NRC based on the data

gathered in it. The 2003 amendment further states that the local officials would then decide if the

person's name will be added to the NRC or not, thereby deciding his citizenship status.

It is a list of Indian citizens which is meant to decide who is a bona fide Indian citizen and those who

fail to enlist in the register will be deemed, illegal migrants. The NRC Assam, the Register containing

names of Indian Citizens in Assam, was prepared in 1951 as a non-statutory process by recording

particulars of all the persons enumerated during 1951 Census.




Merits :-

▪ India has already become a resource-scarce country. We are unable to deliver the basic

necessities to the genuine Indian citizens, and a large number of additional immigrants will

further worsen the conditions. The efficient NRC will help us in identifying the illegal

immigrants and some steps can be taken for their deportation.

▪ Curbing their voting rights can be beneficial to us. As it will avoid the illegal immigrants from

swinging elections in favour of those who promise them legitimacy.

Demerits :-

▪ The present process lacks impartiality, transparency and equality. Updating or maintaining

an NRC with such a huge population, and that too people with less income and low literacy is

a very tedious task. And all efforts should be made to minimize injustice to anyone.

▪ The NRC body and the Foreign Tribunals in Assam are functioning behind the curtains and its

functioning is clearly signalling towards ruling party’s agenda of getting rid of Minorities.

Earlier retired judges were carefully selected for Foreign Tribunals but now any lawyer who

is above 50 on 25 April 2015 and has 10 years of experience can volunteer for FT and gets a




seat. Various online sources have reported that the FT is full of people sharing ruling party’s

ideology and are asked to perform well.

▪ This ‘performance pressure’ has led to bad justice. People are tired of showing their

documents, proving their identities but the FT is never satisfied. Minor clerical mistakes have

resulted in the listing of Indian citizens as Foreigners. At times FT has gone beyond scope of

its power and ordered arrest, detention, revoked ration cards etc. thus, troubling a poor

Indian.

▪ Increased feeling of alienation in the Muslims and animosity in orthodox Hindus, leading to

communal unrest which is already on the rise since the BJP came to power.

▪ The government is ready to exempt illegal Hindu immigrants, leading to unequal treatment.

The CAA

The Citizenship (Amendment) Act-2019 will provide Indian citizenship to the six minority

communities from Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. These six communities are - Hindu,

Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, Christian and Sikhs. At present, it is mandatory for a person to stay here for at

least 11 years to get citizenship of India. The bill will reduce this period to six years. It will enable

people from these communities to get Indian citizenship in six years.

The key worry is that once voted into law, it will allow Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis, and

Christians from Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan to become Indian citizens, even if they have

entered illegally. The Bill seeks to introduce a hierarchy of citizenship, a case of some illegal

immigrants being more equal than others, on the basis of religion. This may violate Article 14 of the

Constitution which guarantees right to equality.




Concerns about India’s ‘Neighbourhood First Policy’

Triggering these concerns are instances of reverse migration of a few hundred people who have

been arrested after the crossing of the border into Bangladesh. All these people have reportedly

declared that they are ‘Bangladeshi Muslims’ and have returned home because they no longer have

any hope of getting Indian citizenship after the CAA came into force. Pakistan has gone ballistic and

passed a resolution in the National Assembly, condemning the CAA as discriminatory. PM Imran

Khan has even hyped it further by declaring that the CAA will create fear among Muslims in India and

they will leave in droves, leading to a nuclear war. A hostile Pakistan’s antics can be dismissed as the

usual anti-India posturing. Pakistan’s reaction has been rebutted effectively by the official Ministry

of External Affairs spokesperson. Both Afghanistan and Bangladesh, which share close and friendly

ties with India, are miffed.




Will CAA Become a ‘Stick’ to ‘Target’ Persecuted Hindus?

Apart from the perceived insult to Bangladesh which prides itself as upholding a secular ethos, the

CAA has aroused fears of reverse migration that can encourage the Islamists and anti-Indian lobbies

in Bangladesh to target the remaining 10 percent Hindu population. Bangladesh is 89 percent

Muslim, with 1 percent Christians and other communities. Anti-Indian and Islamist propaganda is

likely to paint India as having turned against Muslims. This may become the stick to target Hindus.

Bangladesh’s original Constitution was secular till the dictator Gen Hussain Muhammad Ershad

forced through an amendment which made Islam the state religion. PM Hasina has not ventured to

repeal this amendment, fearing backlash from quarters who will label any such attempt as un-

Islamic.

The different side of the coin

Illegal immigration from Bangladesh, comprising both Hindus and Muslims, is an important issue

from the national security perspective of India. A large number of Bangladeshi immigrants are

illegally living in India. Hindus are said to have migrated after facing religious persecution, whereas

most of the Muslim migrants are termed as economic migrants.

The issue was further complicated sometime back when the Rohingya refugees originally from

Myanmar started infiltrating into India through Bangladesh. It was suspected that the Bangladeshi

authorities were consciously pushing these refugees into India. Some observers feel that Bangladesh

probably hoped that the presence of Rohingyas in India would force India to take Bangladesh’s side

against Myanmar. Moreover, Dhaka could also get rid of the thousands of Rohingyas living on its

territory.

The Indian Government has clarified that the issue of NRC and the Citizenship (Amendment) Act or

CAA are internal to India. The CAA is intended to provide expeditious consideration of Indian

citizenship to the persecuted minorities – those who entered into India on or before December 31,

2014 – from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan. It does not affect the existing avenues which are

available to the other communities to seek citizenship. Nor does it seek to strip anybody of

citizenship.

Conclusion

As the India-Bangladesh relationship is currently strong and trust levels on both sides are high, this is

the right time to deal with the issue of illegal migration. Bangladesh has already documented its

citizens and maintains a biometric record of them. The National Identity Registration Wing (NIDW)

was created within the Bangladesh Election Commission for that purpose. The country has now also

distributed machine-readable smart national identity (NID) cards among 10 crore citizens, replacing

the earlier paper-laminated cards. India too is justified in undertaking a similar exercise. This will

help India get a grip on the problem. Once the documentation of citizens is done in India, both sides

can share their database. This will help manage the problem in a much more amicable manner. The

Bangladeshis often claim that their citizens are killed on the border by the Indian paramilitary forces.

The documentation of citizens on both sides will also help in handling this contentious issue.






















economies? (2014)











the SHGs. (2017)







GOVERNORS LOCK HORNS WITH THEIR RESPECTIVE STATES GS 2: Important

aspects of

governance,

transparency and

accountability.

In news

Arif Mohammad Khan

and Jagdeep

Dhankhar, Governors

of Kerala and West

Bengal, respectively,

have arrogated to

themselves an activist

role, which is at the

heart of the tensions.

Mr. Khan has made

repeated public

statements on controversial questions such as the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019; he has even

said that it was his duty to defend the laws made by the Centre.

There have been instances of governors and the state government taking diverse views right from

the time of Independence. This was because the governors are picked up by the central government

to safeguard their interests in the state.

The role of a governor

The Governor is the head of a state just like the President is the head of the republic. All executive

actions of the state are taken in the name of the Governor. However, in reality he merely gives his

consent to the various executive actions. He or she is devoid of taking any major decisions. The real

powers in the executive dealings of a state rest with the Chief Minister and the Council of Ministers.

The powers of the Lieutenant Governor of a union-territory are equivalent to the powers of a

Governor of a state in India. Both are appointed by the President of India for a term of 5 years.

Powers and functions

Executive powers

▪ The Governor has the power to appoint the Council of Ministers including the Chief Minister

of the state, the Advocate General and the members of the State Public Service Commission.

However, the Governor cannot remove the members of the State Public Service Commission

as they can only be removed by an order of the President.




▪ The Governor is consulted by the President in the appointment of the Judges of the state

High Court.

▪ The Governor appoints Judges of the District Courts.

▪ In case the Governor feels that the Anglo-Indian community has not been adequately

represented in the Vidhan Sabha, he or she can nominate one member of the community to

the Legislative Assembly of the state.

▪ In all the states where a bicameral legislature is present, the Governor has a right to

nominate the members, who are “persons having special knowledge or practical experience

in matters such as literature, science, art, co-operative movement and social service”, to the

Legislative Council.

Legislative Powers

▪ As the Governor is said to be a part of the State Legislature, he has the right of addressing

and sending messages, summoning, deferring and dissolving the State Legislature, just like

the President has, in respect to the Parliament. Although these are formal powers, in reality,

the Governor must be guided by the Chief Minister and his Council of Ministers before

making such decisions.

▪ The Governor inaugurates the state legislature and the first session of each year, by

addressing the Assembly, outlining the new administrative policies of the ruling government.

▪ The Governor lays before the State Legislature, the annual financial statement and also

makes demands for grants and recommendation of ‘Money Bills’.

▪ The Governor constitutes the State Finance Commission. He also holds the power to make

advances out of the Contingency Fund of the State in the case of any unforeseen

circumstances.

▪ All bills passed by the Legislative Assembly become a law, only after the Governor approves

them. In case it is not a money bill, the Governor holds the right to send it back to the

Vidhan Sabha for reconsideration. But if the Vidhan Sabha sends back the Bill to the

Governor the second time, then he has to sign it.

▪ The Governor has

the power to

promulgate an

ordinance when

the Legislative

Assembly is not in

session, and a law

has to be brought

into effect

immediately.

However, the

ordinance is

presented in the

state legislature in




the next session, and remains operative for a total of six weeks, unless it is approved by the

legislature.

Judicial Powers

▪ The Governor can grant pardons, reprieves, respites or remission of punishments. He can

also suspend, remit or commute the sentence of any person convicted of an offence against

the law.

▪ The Governor is consulted by the President in the appointment of the Chief Justice to the

High Court of that particular state.

Emergency Powers

▪ In case no political party bags a majority in the Vidhan Sabha of the state, the Governor

holds the power to use his discretion to select the Chief Minister.

▪ The Governor informs the President in an official report, of a particular emergency arisen in

the state, and imposes ‘President’s Rule’ on the behalf of the President. The Governor, in

such circumstances, overrides the advice or functions of the Council of Ministers, and directs

upon himself, the workings of the state.

Abuse of powers of governor

The root lies in the process of appointment itself. The post has been reduced to becoming a

retirement package for politicians for being politically faithful to the government of the day. One of

the more famous examples was the dismissal of the SR Bommai (Janata Dal) government in

Karnataka in 1989. The then Governor refused to allow the democratically elected chief minister to

prove his majority on the floor of the Assembly. Andhra Pradesh and Goa’s governors, who

dismissed the governments led by NT Rama Rao and Wilfred D’Souza, respectively, showed the same

partisan attitude. Uttar Pradesh Governor Romesh Bhandari’s actions were so blatantly partisan that

he had to endure the Supreme Court’s disgrace of being censored. The most recent one(2018) is

action taken by the governor while forming a government in Karnataka, Governor called a party to

form the government, though it was not having a simple majority and gave some time to prove

majority. But the Governor did not give the first preference to other two parties with a post-poll

alliance. Later this has been solved with the intervention of the court.

Supreme Court decisions on the office of governor

One must consider the Supreme Court’s verdict in B.P. Singhal v. Union of India on the interpretation

of Article 156 of the Constitution and the arbitrary removal of Governors before the expiration of

their tenure. This judgment is crucial as a fixed tenure for Governors could go quite a long way in

promoting neutrality and fairness in fulfilling their duties, unmindful of the dispensation at the

Centre.

The five-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court led by then Chief Justice J.S. Khehar in the

Nabam Rebia judgment of 2016 ruled that Article 163 does not give Governors a “general

discretionary power” as is often misunderstood. “The area for the exercise of his (Governor)

discretion is limited. Even this limited area, his choice of action should not be arbitrary or fanciful. It




must be a choice dictated by reason, actuated by good faith and tempered by caution,” the

Constitution Bench, of which the current Chief Justice Dipak Misra was a part of, held.

In Government of NCT of Delhi v. Union of India case(2018), then Chief Justice of India, Dipak Misra,

clarified that democracy and federalism are firmly imbibed in India’s constitutional ethos while

reiterating that democracy requires the constant affirmation of constitutional morality.


1. National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in India can be most effective when its tasks are

adequately supported by other mechanisms that ensure the accountability of a government.

In light of the above observation assess the role of NHRC as an effective complement to the

judiciary and the judiciary and other institutions in promoting and protecting human rights

standards. (2014)

2. In the integrity index of Transparency International, India stands very low. Discuss briefly the

legal, political, social and cultural factors that have caused the decline of public morality in

India. (2016)

3. To enhance the quality of democracy of India the Election Commission of India has proposed

electoral reforms in 2016. What are the suggested reforms and how far are they significant

to make democracy successful? (2017)

4. Do you think that Constitution of India does not accept principle of strict separation of

powers rather it is based on the principle of 'checks and balance’? Explain. (2019)

5. Implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based

Projects/Programmes usually suffers in terms of certain vital factors. Identify these factors,

and suggest measures for their effective implementation. (2019)

6. ‘In the context of neo-liberal paradigm of development planning, multi-level planning is

expected to make operations cost-effective and remove many implementation blockages.’

Discuss. (2019)

INDIA-BRAZIL BILATERAL RELATIONS GS 2: International relations

In news

On January 26, Jair Bolsonaro will be the third Brazilian president to attend India’s 2020 Republic

Day celebrations. Following the official announcement of his visit to New Delhi, expectations are

once again on the rise for new cooperation agreements. Whether Bolsonaro and Indian Prime

Minister Narendra Modi will fulfil these expectations remains to be seen.

India’s long-ago links with Brazil

India's links with Brazil go back five centuries. Portugal’s Pedro Alvares Cabral is officially recognised

as the first European to “discover” Brazil in 1500. Cabral was sent to India by the King of Portugal

after the return of Vasco da Gama from his pioneering journey to India. Cabral is reported to have

been blown off course on his way to India. Brazil became an important Portuguese colony and stop-




over in the long journey to Goa. This Portuguese connexion led to the exchange of several

agricultural crops between India and Brazil in the colonial days. Indian cattle was also imported to

Brazil. Most of the cattle in Brazil is of Indian origin.

Diplomatic relations between India and Brazil were established in 1948. The Indian Embassy opened

in Rio de Janeiro on May 3, 1948, moving to Brasília on August 1, 1971. One of the major sources of

tension between the two nations was the decolonisation process of the Portuguese enclaves in

India, principally Goa. Despite pressure from India on Portugal to retreat from the subcontinent,

Brazil supported Portugal's claim for Goa. Brazil only changed course in 1961, when it became

increasingly clear that India would succeed in taking control of Goa by force from an increasingly

feeble Portugal, which faced too many internal problems to pose a potent military threat to India.

Cultural and economic relations

A successful Festival of India was organised during the visit of President K.R. Narayanan to Brazil in

May 1998. There is also a presence of ISKCON, Satya Sai Baba, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, Bhakti

Vedanta Foundation and other Indian spiritual gurus and organisations have chapters in Brazil. A

statue of Mohandas Gandhi is located near the Parque Ibirapuera at São Paulo and another statue is

also at Rio de Janeiro. A group called the Filhos de Gandhi (Sons of Gandhi) participates regularly in

the carnival in Salvador. Private Brazilian organisations occasionally invite Indian cultural troupes.

Caminho das Índias, a popular telenovela in Brazil aired in 2009, popularised Indian culture in Brazil.

Books about India started to pop up on the best-selling list, the number of travels to India by

Brazilians tourists increased dramatically and restaurants and even nightclubs with Indian themes

starting to open.

More recently, Brazil and India have co-operated in the multilateral level on issues such as

international trade and development, environment, reform of the UN and the UNSC expansion. The

two-way trade in 2007 nearly tripled to US$3.12 billion from US$1.2 billion in 2004. In 2016, trade

between the two nations had increased to US$5.64 billion. Global software giant, Wipro




Technologies, also set up a business process outsourcing centre in Curitiba to provide shared

services to AmBev, the largest brewery in Latin America. AmBev's zonal vice president, Renato Nahas

Batista, said "We are honoured to be a part of Wipro's expansion plans in Brazil and Latin America."

AmBev's portfolio includes leading brands like Brahma, Becks, Stella and Antarctica.

Untapped potential of bilateral ties

Despite the signing of the Brazil-India strategic partnership in 2006, geographical distance and

scarcity of social interactions have been major constraints hampering closer bilateral relations. While

Brazil and India converge in their diplomatic agendas as southern emerging powers – expressed in

the formation of IBSA, BRICS and G20 groups – it is imperative to realise the potential of their

bilateral ties, which could become genuinely strategic over the next decade. Both countries have

complementary interests and technical expertise that could be further explored in the fields of

renewable energy (eg ethanol), nuclear, defence and space technologies.

What’s upworthy in the present scenario?

Currently, there are two important signs that could lead to a new era in the relationship: First, Brazil

is gradually realising the need to reorient its foreign policies towards Asia; and India is even more

eager to improve relations with Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), the last global frontier for its

strategic footprint.

Second, current trends of US-China polarisation and geopolitical uncertainty are reducing the

emerging powers’ room for manoeuvre, but the Indo-Brazilian relationship has little if any external

constraint. On the contrary, Bolsonaro and Modi have shared conservative political ideologies which

could further facilitate strategic cooperation.




India and Brazil: Shared Worldviews

In recent years, Brazil and India have demonstrated an interest in having a more decisive role in

international institutions, one that is proportional to their geographic size and share in world

population. Both have campaigned for a UN Security Council permanent seat. Like India, Brazil has

intended to preserve autonomy in its foreign policy against the whims and fancies of Washington.

For a considerable period, both also saw themselves as leaders of the third world by raising issues

that concern developing countries and demanding a reform of the international institutions such as

the United Nations (UN) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Their cooperation is also

reflected in their shared opposition to the violation of Libya’s sovereignty by the West in 2011.

Owing to their geographical significance and relative advantages, Brazil in South America and India in

South Asia are also considered as “regional” powers that wield influence in their respective

neighborhoods. Recently found economic growth alongside their foreign policy activism that offers

alternative narratives to those of the West is institutionalized in the BRICS and IBSA multilateral

groupings that provide a reference to their “soft balancing” strategy that resents the dominant views

of the West. Ultimately both are considered as emerging powers with great power aspirations. That

said, India under Modi and Brazil under Bolsonaro would have to think beyond these

complementarities to give a direction to the bilateral relationship, that as of now, remains

underdeveloped.

The Indo-Brazilian strategic convergence

Brazil and India are pioneers in South-South cooperation, converging in their high-level diplomatic

agendas – from BRICS to multilateral institutions such as the UN Security Council and the WTO.

Diplomatic synergy has fostered a positive environment for mutually enhancing Indo-Brazilian

strategic outreach. For example, Brazil was instrumental in joining the Mercosur countries to sign a

trade agreement with India, the first of its kind for the South American bloc.

Together, Brazil and India have expanded South-South cooperation in Africa, either independently or

through the South African connection in IBSA and BRICS. The countries also have common interests

in the maritime governance of the South Atlantic-Indian Ocean nexus, highlighted by the IBSAMAR

biannual naval exercises.




Despite the mutual relevance of Brazil and India to each other, most initiatives were driven by

multiple geometries, while the bilateral relationship was mostly guided by trade interests. Generally,

Indian analysts view Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) as a relatively blind spot in New Delhi’s

calculus, especially when compared to China’s initiatives in the region.

The Indian approach to the LAC region is ripe for change. Since his first term, Narendra Modi has

outreached to the regional countries, exploring the last frontier of India’s global strategic footprint.

Besides being India’s largest LAC trading partner, Brazil is also the strongest regional market, with

sizeable natural resources and strong expertise in strategic sectors such as oil extraction, nuclear and

renewable energy, aerospace and defence industries. Recently, Indian concerns on energy and food

security have driven its policies towards Brazil, especially in the case of biofuels like ethanol.

On the Brazilian side, there are increasing signs that the country needs to look East. Bolsonaro has

struggled to formulate foreign policies beyond ideological alignment to the US. Due to diplomatic

and economic concerns, Bolsonaro has reoriented his efforts towards improving relations with Asia.

In October 2019, the Brazilian president embarked on his first Asian tour – visiting Japan, China and

Gulf countries – and shortly after, hosted the 11th BRICS summit in Brasília. In order to improve

intra-BRICS cooperation, Bolsonaro also confirmed plans for introducing visa-free entries to Chinese

and Indian tourists and business persons visiting Brazil.




Way forward

Brazil and India should capitalise on this moment to extend cooperation in relevant areas with

complementarity and potential to transform the relationship, such as nuclear, defence and space

technologies. In 2016, for the first time, Brazil publicly supported India’s bid for membership in the

Nuclear Suppliers Group, opening space for nuclear cooperation.

Brazil holds the third and sixth largest reserves of thorium and uranium in the world respectively but

has mostly developed its research on Uranium, while India has more extensive research on

applications of thorium. With regard to space technology, Brazil stands to gain from Indian technical

cooperation. India is quickly becoming a global hub in manufacturing and launching satellites; Brazil

and other LAC countries, in turn, have strongly relied on Chinese expertise and satellite launching

vehicles.

In the defence sector, Brazil and India have rich and complex ecosystems with increasing

participation of major private companies, such as Embraer and Tata. Following Bolsonaro’s visit,

Brazil is expected to increase its international portfolio of sales and investments in India through the

Make in India platform. Moreover, Brazil and India hold strategic technological and defence

relationships with France, Israel and the US, opening several opportunities to jointly improve Indo-

Brazilian defence manufacturing and research and development.

Moreover, there is mutual goodwill in both countries regarding each other. India’s civilizational

practices such as yoga and Ayurveda are gaining popularity in Brazil, and the former’s growing

economic and political profile further attracts attention in the minds of Brazil’s strategic community.

In India, Brazil wields enough soft power for this relationship to mature. Until recently, there existed

little or no skepticism regarding Brazil and its positive image in India. However, Bolsonaro’s

ascendency to the leadership position has cast doubts over Brazil’s image in some circles in India.

The rise of Bolsonaro in Brazil and Modi in India, both of whom are known as the leaders of the

right-wing in their countries and have nationalistic orientations, might be useful internal shocks that

could eventually transform this stagnant relationship.


1. What do you understand by ‘The String of Pearls’? How does it impact India? Briefly outline

the steps taken by India to counter this. (2013)

2. Economic ties between India and Japan while growing in the recent years are still far below

their potential. Elucidate the policy constraints which are inhibiting this growth. (2013)

3. The protests in Shahbag Square in Dhaka in Bangladesh reveal a fundamental split in society

between the nationalists and Islamic forces. What is its significance for India? (2013)

4. Discuss the political developments in Maldives in the last two years. Should they be of any

cause of concern to India? (2013)

5. In respect of India-Sri Lanka relations, discuss how domestic factors influence foreign policy.

(2013)

6. With respect to the South China sea, maritime territorial disputes and rising tension affirm

the need for safeguarding maritime security to ensure freedom of navigation and over flight

throughout the region. In this context, discuss the bilateral issues between India and China.

(2014)




7. Increasing interest of India in Africa has its pro and cons. Critically Examine. (2015)

8. Evaluate the economic and strategic dimensions of India’s Look East Policy in the context of

the post Cold War international scenario. (2016)

9. Indian Diaspora has an important role to play in south-East Asian countries’ economy and

society. Appraise the role of Indian Diaspora in South-East Asia in this context. (2017)

10. ‘What introduces friction into the ties between India and the United States is that

Washington is still unable to find for India a position in its global strategy, which would

satisfy India's national self-esteem and ambitions.’ Explain with suitable examples. (2019)

INFANT DEATH TOLL ON RAJASTHAN GS Paper 2: Issues relating to development and management of social sector/ Services relating to


In news

About 109 children have so far died at a government hospital in Rajasthan since the beginning of

December, even as local authorities scrambled to bring in additional staff and equipment amid a

rising outcry over poor healthcare facilities in the country.

Reason for the infant deaths

A team appointed by the central health ministry is probing the deaths and will come out with a

report soon, said the source who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.

A lack of infrastructure and staff, along with unhygienic conditions may have played a role in some of

the deaths, said the source, adding the hospital - the only centre with a neonatal intensive care unit




in a 200-kilometre radius - is often a hospital that receives critically ill children from elsewhere,

contributing to higher mortality rates. Much of north India has also been hit by a severe cold wave

since late in December, and officials at the hospital have now rushed to provide blankets, bedsheets

and heaters.

JK Lon hospital

deaths

The sorry state of

Kota's JK Lon Hospital

is reflected in a

government-

appointed panel's

report which shows

that around 105

children died in a

span of over a month

due to cold shivering

in the hospital as it

lacked everything a

normal hospital

should have. The

committee formed by

the Rajasthan

government to probe the lacunae in the hospital resulting in the deaths of kids has confirmed in its

report that infants died due to hypothermia, a medical emergency that occurs when the body

temperature falls below 95 F (35 C). The normal body temperature is 98.6 F (37 C).

Even as the kids in the hospital continued to die in the biting winter cold, the hospital did not have

enough stocks of lifesaving equipment, said the report. The newborns should have body

temperature of 36.5 degree Celcius; therefore they were kept on warmers where their temperature

stays normal. However, as the hospital lacked functional warmers, their body temperature

continued to plummet. What made the matters worse was the absence of oxygen pipeline in the

hospital due to which oxygen was supplied to kids with the help of cylinders. Surprisingly, the ICU

was not fumigated for months.

The report said:

✓ 22 nebulisers out of 28 were dysfunctional.

✓ 81 infusion pumps out of 111 were not working.

✓ Same was the story with para monitors and pulse oxymeters.

Infant deaths in Rajasthan and Gujarat

Over 600 babies died at six major hospitals across Rajasthan and Gujarat in December last year,

agencies reported amid outrage over the alleged lack of life-saving equipment in government




medical institutions. The first reports of the kind emerged from the JK Lon Hospital in Rajasthan's

Kota, where 100 infants died in a span of just one month.

India’s ailing health sector

Lack of hospitals, missing doctors, ill-equipped health professionals, and paucity of funds have

dogged the Indian health sector for decades. But as the country stakes a claim at the geopolitical

high table under a nationalist government, its human development indices — including citizens’

wellness — are increasingly coming under scrutiny.

The report states that 54 percent of health professionals in India — including doctors, nurses,

paramedics, and midwives — do not have proper qualifications while 20 percent of adequately

qualified doctors are not part of the current workforce. Of the currently working health

professionals, around 25 percent do not possess the necessary qualifications as laid down by

professional councils, the study states.

Over 58 percent of doctors are males, reinforcing underrepresentation from women even though

they constitute 50 percent of the country’s population. In addition, the survey finds that over 80

percent of Indian doctors and 70 percent of nurses and midwives opt to join the private sector,

which offers a more conducive work environment.

India’s expenditure on health care

India’s low spending on healthcare has been a sore point with experts for years. Despite being the

world’s sixth largest economy, public health spending has languished at under 1.5 percent of GDP,

one of the lowest rates in the world. For comparison, the United Kingdom shelled out 9.6 percent of

its GDP in 2017 on health. The United States’ health expenditure is 18 percent of GDP. India’s paltry




figure for health spending is in stark contrast to the 10.6 percent of GDP (almost five times more)

that the government allocated to defense in the interim budget.




8. Public health system has limitation in providing universal health coverage. Do you think that


(2015)


demerits. (2013)






performance? (2016)







Context

India is facing one of its most serious water crises. According to the NITI Aayog's Composite Water

Management Index (CWMI) 2018, 21 Indian cities could face Day Zero in the coming years. Day Zero

refers to the day when a place is likely to have no drinking water of its own. Bengaluru, Chennai,

Delhi and Hyderabad are among the most susceptible.

The report also said that 75% of Indian households do not have drinking water on premise and about

84 per cent rural households do not have piped water access. Water is not properly distributed

where it is supplied through pipes. Mega cities like Delhi and Mumbai get more than the standard

municipal water norm of 150 litres per capita per day (LPCD) while others get 40-50 LPCD. The World

Health Organization prescribes 25 litres of water for one person per day to meet all basic hygiene

and food needs. Extra available water, according to WHO estimates, is used for non-potable

purposes like mopping and cleaning.




Introduction

Jal Jeevan Mission, a central government initiative under the Ministry of Jal Shakti, aims to ensure

access of piped water for every household in India. In his Independence Day speech in 2019, Prime

Minister Narendra Modi said that half of the country's households did not have access to piped

water. Earmarking Rs 3.5 trillion for Jal Jeevan Mission, he said the Centre and states would work

towards it in coming years.

The mission’s goal is to provide to all households in rural India safe and adequate water through

individual household tap connections by 2024. The Har Ghar Nal Se Jal programme was announced

by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her Budget 2019-20 speech. This programme forms a

crucial part of the Jal Jeevan Mission. The programme aims to implement source sustainability

measures as mandatory elements, such as recharge and reuse through grey water management,

water conservation, and rain water harvesting.

The Jal Jeevan Mission will be based on a community approach to water. According to the

government, the mission will include information, education and communication as key

components. The mission is meant to create a people's movement for water, making it everyone’s

priority.

About the mission

The Mission was announced in August 2019. The chief objective of the Mission is to provide piped

water supply (Har Ghar Jal) to all rural and urban households by 2024. It also aims to create local

infrastructure for rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharge and management of household waste

water for reuse in agriculture. The Jal Jeevan Mission is set to be based on various water

conservation efforts like point recharge, desilting of minor irrigation tanks, use of greywater for

agriculture and source sustainability. The Jal Jeevan Mission will converge with other Central and

State Government Schemes to achieve its objectives of sustainable water supply management across

the country.




The relevance of the scheme

In 1951, per-capita water availability in India was just over 5,000 cu m per year. In 2011, it was 1,545

cu m. The figure has almost certainly come down since. Should it drop below 1,000 cu m per year,

India will formally become a water-scarce country for the first time in its 5,000-year history. If water

availability is a problem, inequality in access is even more so.

Statistics show that out of 17.87 crore rural households in the country, about 14.6 crore or 81.67

percent are yet to have household water tap connections. The need for conservation of water by the

authorities comes after the water crisis affecting several parts of the country. NITI Aayog had, in a

report last June, flagged off that about 600 million people faced high to extreme water stress, and

about 200,000 people die every year because of inadequate access to safe water, a crisis that would

only get worse.

Benefits of Jal Jeevan Mission

✓ Clean and drinkable water

✓ Employment for women

✓ Recharge of groundwater level

✓ Increase in the productivity of crops

✓ Better local infrastructure

✓ Less water-borne diseases




✓ Less water wastage

Operational guidelines

▪ As per the information available, out of 17.87 Crore rural households in the country, about

14.6 Crore which accounts for 81.67% are yet to have household water tap connections. The

total project cost is estimated to be about Rs 3.60 lakh Crore. Central share will be Rs.2.08

lakh Crore. The fund sharing pattern to be 90:10 for Himalayan and North-Eastern States;

50:50 for other States and 100% for UTs.

▪ As decided by the Government, five regional workshops were organized one each in north,

east, west, south and north-eastern regions of the country, wherein all stakeholders in water

supply like, State Governments, voluntary organizations, development partners,

professionals in water sector, etc. participated.

▪ For the implementation of JJM, following institutional arrangement has been proposed:

National Jal Jeevan Mission at the Central level; State Water and Sanitation Mission (SWSM)

at State level; District Water and Sanitation Mission (DWSM) at district level; and Gram

Panchayat and/ or its sub-committees i.e. Village Water Sanitation Committee (VWSC)/

Paani Samiti at village Level.

▪ Good performance of the States/ UTs will be incentivized out of the fund not utilized by

other States at the fag end of the financial year.




The fund released by Central Government to the State Governments is to be deposited in

one Single Nodal Account (SNA) that will be maintained by SWSM along with State matching

share to be transferred within 15 days of Central release. Public Finance Management

System (PFMS) should be used for tracking the funds.

▪ The physical and financial progress of the mission is proposed to be monitored through IMIS

and fund utilization through PFMS.

▪ Every village is to prepare a village action plan (VAP) which will be essentially having three

components namely; i.) water source & its maintenance ii.) water supply and iii.) grey water

management. Village action plan will be aggregated at district level to formulate the District

action plan which will be aggregated at State level to formulate the State action plan. State

action plan will give a holistic view especially covering projects like regional grids, bulk water

supply and distribution projects to address the needs of water stressed areas and will also

have a plan for ensuring drinking water security in the State.

▪ Similarly, Water Quality Monitoring and Surveillance is proposed to be an important

component under JJM wherein setting up and maintenance of water quality testing labs by




the PHE Department and surveillance activities by community will be taken up so as to

ensure that the water supplied is of prescribed quality and thereby definition of functionality

under JJM is adhered to.



















economies? (2014)











the SHGs. (2017)







NURTURING INDIA’S SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT GS 3: Biodiversity: Conservation, Environmental pollution and degradation, Environmental impact

assessment, Disaster and disaster management.

Context and definition

In essence, to sustain is to continue our capacity to live life on this planet — to endure — but

because that definition doesn't quite encompass the full meaning behind environmental

sustainability, it's important to look at different definitions.

Definition 1

Sustainability is the ability to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of

future generations to meet their own needs. This is the definition of sustainability as created by the

United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development.

Definition 2

Sustainability is the capacity to improve the quality of human life while living within the carrying

capacity of the Earth’s supporting eco-systems. This definition has been provided by the

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the work of which is driven by the fact that

global production and consumption patterns are destroying nature at persistent and dangerously

high rates.

Definition 3

Sustainability is about stabilizing the currently disruptive relationship between earth’s two most

complex systems—human culture and the living world. This definition of sustainability was provided

by environmentalist Paul Hawken, who has written about the realization (and the science behind it)




that we are using and destroying the earth's resources faster then they can be regenerated and

replenished.

Environmental sustainability is concerned with issues such as:

▪ Long-term health of ecosystems. Protecting the long-term productivity and health of

resources to meet future economic and social needs, e.g. protecting food supplies, farmland

and fishing stocks.

▪ Intergenerational decision making. When making economic decisions, we should focus on

implications for future generations, and not just the present moment. For example, burning

coal gives a short-term benefit of cheaper energy, but the extra pollution imposes costs on

future generations.

▪ Renewable resources: Diversifying into energy sources that do not rely on non-renewable

resources. For example, solar and wind power.

▪ Prevent the consequences of man-made global warming. Policies to ensure the environment

of the planet does not deteriorate to a point where future generations face water shortages,

extreme weather events, excess temperature. – All factors that could make living in parts of

the world very difficult if not possible.

▪ Protection of species diversity and ecological structure. Sometimes medicines require

elements within specific plant species. If some species go extinct, it limits future

technological innovation.

▪ T

reating environmental

resources as if they have

intrinsic rights and value. In

other words, we shouldn’t just

rely on a monetary value, i.e.

we should protect rainforests

because they deserve to be

protected rather than using a

cost-benefit analysis of whether

we gain financially from

protecting rainforests.

Current situation in India

The Central Pollution Control

Board (CPCB) has identified 302

polluted river stretches on 275

rivers. The government is aware

of this challenge and has

launched National Mission for

Clean Ganga to address this

concern. The total polluted




riverine length is 12,363 km. Moreover, Indian cities face a high risk of air pollution. The rise in air

pollution can be attributed to rapid industrialization, high urbanization, increased use of vehicles,

uncontrolled burning of crop residue and emissions from coal power plants and brick kilns, etc.

At present, forest and tree cover occupies about onefourth of the total geographical area in our

country. The new forest policy aims to increase this share to 33.3 per cent. Moreover, out of the

total land area under forest cover, about 40 per cent has only 10 to 40 per cent canopy density.

Solid waste generation and its treatment is a pressing concern as well. In 2016, the government had

estimated an annual waste generation of 62 million tonnes in the country, including 5.6 million

tonnes of plastic waste, 0.17 million tonnes of bio-medical waste, 7.90 million tonnes of hazardous

waste and 1.5 million tonnes of e-waste. Of this, between 22 and 28 per cent was processed and

treated.

What can be done?

✓ To eliminate the practice of burning biomass (crop residue), the Ministry of

Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers’ Welfare should introduce suitable modifications

in their guidelines of schemes for farm mechanization to provide support to farmers to

purchase equipment to collect, transport and sell biomass to processing sites for

economic benefits.

✓ Create a “Clean Air Impact Fund” to provide viability gap funding (VGF) for projects

with long gestation periods and low returns on investment such as bio-power or bio-

ethanol projects

✓ It is necessary to ensure the remediation of contaminated sites, safe disposal of

hazardous substances, protection and restoration of ecosystems through stringent

enforcement of relevant Acts, implementation of specific schemes, generation of

awareness, stakeholders’ participation and application of best practices.




✓ Emission and effluent standards for industries need to be revised and effectively

implemented.

✓ Sewage treatment plants of adequate capacity should be installed at suitable locations

to make rivers pollution free.

✓ Revised waste management rules including Plastic Waste (Management and Handling)

Rules, Bio-Medical Waste (Management and Handling) Rules, E-Waste (Management)

Rules, Hazardous and other Wastes (Management and Trans-boundary Movement)

Rules and Construction & Demolition Waste Management Rules should be effectively

implemented.

✓ Afforestation should be promoted aggressively through joint forest management

(peoples’ participation) and the involvement of the private sector. Highly denuded

forests and wastelands in the country could be leased out to the private sector for

specified periods for afforestation. Participation of people, particularly those

dependent on forests for their livelihood, may also be encouraged along with the

private sector.

✓ Undertake measures to convert vacant spaces in urban areas into urban green areas.

This will help increase the overall tree cover in the country, which is presently 2.85 per

cent of the geographical area, as per the India State of Forest Report 2017.

✓ Review all eight national missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change in

the light of new scientific information and technological advances

✓ Projects under state action plans on climate change that have been endorsed by the

National Steering Committee on Climate Change need to be implemented.




✓ Use the National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change and other global funds for

strengthening resilience against climate change in sectors like agriculture, forestry,

infrastructure and others.

Since ecological conditions and economic and social systems differ so much from country to country,

there is no single blueprint for how sustainability practices are to be carried out. Each country has to

work on its own concrete policy to ensure that sustainable development is carried out as a global

objective.


1. What do you understand by Run-off river hydroelectricity project? How is it different

from any other hydroelectricity project? (2013)

2. Enumerate the National Water Policy of India. Taking river Ganges as an example,

discuss the strategies which may be adopted for river water pollution control and

management. What are the legal provisions of management and handling of hazardous

wastes in India?(2013)

3. Drought has been recognized as a disaster in view of its spatial expanse, temporal

duration, slow onset and lasting effects on vulnerable sections. With a focus on the

September 2010 guidelines from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA),

discuss the mechanisms for preparedness to deal with likely El Nino and La Nina fallouts

in India. (2014)

4. Environmental Impact Assessment studies are increasingly undertaken before a project

is cleared by the Government. Discuss the environmental impacts of coal-fired thermal

plants located at coal pitheads. (2014)

5. Discuss the Namami Gange and National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) programmes

and causes of mixed results from the previous schemes. What quantum leaps can help

preserve the river Ganga better than incremental inputs? (2015)

6. The frequency of earthquakes appears to have increased in the Indian subcontinent.

However, India’s preparedness for mitigating their impact has significant gaps. Discuss

various aspects. (2015)

7. Rehabilitation of human settlements is one of the important environmental impacts

which always attracts controversy while planning major projects. Discuss the measures

suggested for mitigation of this impact while proposing major developmental projects.

(2016)

8. With reference to National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) guidelines, discuss

the measures to be adopted to mitigate the impact of the recent incidents of

cloudbursts in many places of Uttarakhand. (2016)

9. On December 2004, tsunami brought havoc on fourteen countries including India.

Discuss the factor responsible for occurrence of tsunami and its effects on life and

economy. In the light of guidelines of NDMA (2010) describe the mechanisms for

preparedness to reduce the risk during such events. (2017)

10. The nature of economic growth in India in recent times is often described as a jobless

growth. Do you agree with this view? Give arguments in favour of your answer. (2015)




11. How globalization has led to the reduction of employment in the formal sector of the

Indian economy? Is increased informalization detrimental to the development of the

country? (2016)

12. “Success of make in India program depends on the success of Skill India programme and

radical labour reforms.” Discuss with logical arguments. (2015)

13. It is argued that the strategy of inclusive growth is intended to meet the objectives of

inclusiveness and sustainability together. Comment on this statement. (2019)

ONE NATION ONE LANGUAGE AND THREE LANGUAGE FORMULA GS 2: Indian polity and Governance

Context

Having gained independence from the British in 1947, the leaders of the new Indian nation

recognized the opportunity to unite the many regions of India with a common, universal language.

Mahatma Gandhi felt that this was essential to the emergence of India as a bona fide nation.

After Independence, India became a nation state, and it was intended that English would gradually

be phased out as the language of administration. At first Hindi, the most widely spoken language,




seemed the obvious choice, but following violent protests in 1963 in the state of Tamil Nadu against

the imposition of Hindi as a national language, opinion remained divided.

Hindi as the main language of more than 40 percent of the population. No single language other

than Hindi could claim speakers among even 10 percent of the total population. Hindi was therefore

made India’s official language in 1965. English, which was associated with British rule, was retained

as an option for official use because non-Hindi states, particularly in Tamil Nadu, opposed the official

use of Hindi.

According to the constitution

The Indian constitution, in 1950, under Article 343 of the Constitution and the Official Languages Act

declared Hindi in Devanagari script to be the official language of the union. Unless Parliament

decided otherwise, the use of English for official purposes was to cease 15 years after the

constitution came into effect, i.e., on 26 January 1965. The prospect of the changeover, however, led

to much alarm in the non Hindi-speaking areas of India, especially states in South India. As a result,

Parliament enacted the Official Languages Act, 1963, which provided for the continued use of

English for official purposes along with Hindi, even after 1965.

The colonial legacy

For a country that often ascribes all its ills to colonialism, it is strange that India needs to subscribe to

a very European notion — one country, one language. The idea that a language represents a nation

is one of colonialism’s gifts to us. The complex process of modern nation building in colonial

countries involved questions of cultural unity. How could a country claim historical and cultural

continuity, stretching back to centuries, other than through language, especially its written form?

Language and literature held the key to this project of cultural continuity from a unique and great

past. Almost all European nations had such projects, which they bequeathed to the nations they




colonised. Despite having several languages and dialectal differences, European nations adopted

their national languages through an elitist and exclusionary project. Today, this idea of linguistic

unity is being contested from several quarters, including by immigrants from India.

Pros of one nation one language

▪ Common Identity for India: As India is the country of different languages, one common

languages would reflect the identity of India in the world.

▪ Unity among the people of India: Hindi is the most widely spoken language in India, the

common Hindi language will unite people from different parts of the country.

▪ Glory in the multilingual nation: The people of this nation of different states are sometimes

not able to communicate with each other, just because of the diversity in languages.

Adopting a common national language helps them communicate with other linguistic

groups.

▪ National Language: Indians can’t accept a foreign language as a national language. As Hindi

has already been accepted as the Official language, imposition can provide its national

status.

Three language formula

It is commonly understood that the three languages referred to are Hindi, English and the regional

language of the respective States. Though the teaching of Hindi across the country was part of a

long-standing system, it was crystallised into a policy in an official document only in the National

Policy on Education, 1968. This document said regional languages were already in use as the media

of education in the primary and secondary stages.

In addition, it said, “At the secondary stage, State governments should adopt and vigorously

implement the three-language formula, which includes the study of a modern Indian language,

preferably one of the southern languages, apart from Hindi and English in the Hindi-speaking

States.” In the ‘non-Hindi speaking States’, Hindi should be studied along with the regional language

and English. It added: “Suitable courses in Hindi and/or English should also be available in

universities and colleges with a view to improving the proficiency of students in these languages up

to the prescribed

university standards.”

Brief history of three

language formula

The first

recommendation for a

three-language policy

was made by the

University Education

Commission in 1948–

49, which did not find

the requirement to




study three languages to be an extravagance, citing the precedents of other multilingual nations

such as Belgium and Switzerland. While accepting that Modern Standard Hindi was itself a minority

language, and had no superiority over others such as Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Marathi, Bengali,

Punjabi, Malayalam, and Gujarati all of which had a longer history and greater body of literature, the

commission still foresaw Hindi as eventually replacing English as the means by which every Indian

state may participate in the Federal functions. The Education Commission of 1964–66 recommended

a modified or graduated three-language formula. Following some debate, the original three-

language formula was adopted by the India Parliament in 1968. The 1986 National Policy on

Education reiterated the 1968 formula

Tamil Nadu’s opposition to the three language formula

Leaders in Tamil Nadu are often at pains to emphasise that they do not oppose the voluntary

learning of Hindi and cite the unhindered work of the Dakshina Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha,

established in Chennai by Mahatma Gandhi in 1918. The institution imparts Hindi teaching at various

levels to anyone who enrols for its programme. Also, there is no bar on private schools, most of

them affiliated to the Central Board of Secondary Education, offering Hindi.

The State has been following the two-language formula for many decades, under which only English

and one regional language are compulsory in schools. In 2006, facing criticism that many manage to

avoid learning Tamil by opting for Hindi or Sanskrit in private schools, the State government enacted

The Tamil Nadu Tamil Learning Act under which Tamil has to be compulsorily learnt in schools

operating in the State. The State is also opposed to the establishment of Navodaya schools by the

Centre in any part of Tamil Nadu.

Way forward

There are 22 languages constitutionally approved in India and besides this, hundreds of dialects are

spoken across the country. The imposition of a common language can give a blow to the federal

spirit of the constitution and also can create burning contentions among the different linguistic

groups. Looking at this scenario, the government must act diplomatically and also take measures for

the quality implementation of the ideas and make it easily accessible to the people. Otherwise, the

imposition of Hindi may lead to the deep-seated language crisis in India.


1. In the integrity index of Transparency International, India stands very low. Discuss briefly the


India. (2016)

2. To enhance the quality of democracy of India the Election Commission of India has proposed

electoral reforms in 2016. What are the suggested reforms and how far are they significant to

make democracy successful? (2017)

3. Do you think that Constitution of India does not accept principle of strict separation of





4. Implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based



5. ‘In the context of neo-liberal paradigm of development planning, multi-level planning is


Discuss. (2019)

OPEN ACREAGE LICENSING POLICY (OALP) GS 2: Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability.

Context

India is 3rd largest energy consumer in the world and likely to have one of the fastest growing energy

demand of the world in the coming years. As a step to meet this growing demand and in line with

Prime Minister’s vision of achieving Energy Security and Sufficiency, the Ministry of Petroleum and

Natural Gas (MoPNG) has steered a plethora of reforms in the recent past years. The Hydrocarbon

Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) replacing the erstwhile New Exploration Licensing Policy

(NELP) was approved in March 2016 and the Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP) along with

the National Data Repository (NDR) were launched in June 2017 as the key drivers to accelerate the

Exploration and Production (E&P) activities in India. The programme envisages six monthly periodic

bidding rounds starting from July 1, 2017.




OALP

It is well acknowledged that there is a need for a faster vehicle of awarding blocks in order to bring

more area under exploration. Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) is one such vehicle which is

under consideration of the Government wherein blocks may be offered round the year to the

interested companies. The selection of

the block would be left to the

interested player as opposed to NELP

where blocks are carved out by the

Government. However, launch of OALP

would directly depend upon the

availability of the data for both the

awarded and un-awarded acreages.

As India has vast unexplored

sedimentary basins, a strategy which

facilitates a time bound full coverage

has become a necessity. Moreover,

even the OALP pre-supposes offering of

data to the interested companies for

them to submit their bids/ interest.

Hence, availability of data is no longer

an option, but a pre-condition. The

Planning Commission therefore

observed that the existing multiclient speculative survey policy will not serve the desired objective.

Hence, the policy prescription must provide for a definite strategy -one for proven basins wherein

the data companies could acquire multiclient data at their own expense and risk, and offer the data

to interested companies who may be able to obtain the chosen acreages through an OALP process.

As regards the un-proven basins, other models based on PPP may be considered by the Government.

The 5th round bidding

The government has announced the launch of fifth round of bidding for hydrocarbon exploration

under the open acreage licensing policy (OALP), offering 11 blocks in eight sedimentary basins

covering an area of 19,800 square kilometres. This round is expected to generate immediate

exploration work commitment of about $400-450 million. The 11 blocks under OALP Round-V

include eight onland blocks, two shallow water blocks and one ultra deep water block.

The Petroleum Ministry has accelerated exploration through OALP and added 1.40 lakh sq kms

acreage, increasing the total acreage for E&P to 2.40 lakh sq kms. The government has also set up a

dispute resolution mechanism to resolve issues in time-bound manner without going for arbitration.

The government has implemented several reforms to make the India’s E&P sector more attractive

and business-friendly such as single window clearance to expedite grant of approvals, shifting focus

from revenue sharing to production maximisation and providing marketing and pricing freedom for

gas. The bid submission for the fifth round will start on January 14, 2020 and end on March 18, 2020.

ONGC was awarded all the seven block under the fourth round of OALP bids on January 2, 2020.




Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP)

Four main facets of this policy are:

✓ uniform license for exploration and production of all forms of hydrocarbon,

✓ an open acreage policy,

✓ easy to administer revenue sharing model and

✓ marketing and pricing freedom for the crude oil and natural gas produced.

The decision will enhance domestic oil & gas production, bring substantial investment in the sector

and generate sizable employment. The policy is also aimed at enhancing transparency and reducing

administrative discretion. The uniform licence will enable the contractor to explore conventional as

well as unconventional oil and gas resources including CBM, shale gas/oil, tight gas and gas hydrates

under a single license. The concept of Open Acreage Policy will enable E&P companies choose the

blocks from the designated area.

Key challenges

▪ E&P business appearing lacklustre to investors: Multiple Open Acreage Licence Policy (OALP)

rounds conducted recently have seen limited interest from private and international oil &

gas companies.




▪ CGD sector needs improved ecosystem: City Gas Distribution Geographical Area (GA)

licences have been allotted although gas availability, third-party access, swap

operationalisation, contractual sustenance, and financing constraints seem to bottleneck

take-off.

▪ New retail regulations need other regulation support: To take advantage of long-awaited

liberalisation of bulk and retail fuel marketing, investors are finding out how to succeed with

restricted access to products and infrastructure.

▪ Inadequate biofuel production capacity: Majority of biofuel projects in India are being

carried out by PSUs. However, private sector participation is essential for the cost to service

to come down to meet blending targets.

▪ Gas transmission and distribution infrastructure constraints: India is missing the opportunity

to benefit from low LNG prices due to delayed commissioning of LNG terminals and limited

pipeline network.


1) Do you think that Constitution of India does not accept principle of strict separation of


2) Implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based



3) ‘In the context of neo-liberal paradigm of development planning, multi-level planning is


Discuss. (2019)

RESURGENCE OF MEASLES AROUND THE WORLD GS Paper 2 – Issues relating to development and management of social sector/ services relating to





Context

The risk of a resurgent measles will challenge the global medical community to look for answers in

2020 and beyond. The year gone by caught the global health community almost unawares against an

enemy they thought they had defeated: Measles.

Were many countries measles-free?

As many as 187 countries reported an incidence of measles, or its widespread outbreak. Some had

even received ‘elimination’ certificates from the World Health Organization (WHO). As the third

decade of the 21st century begins, this contagious disease will present a formidable challenge for

agencies around the world to grapple with.

Measles

Measles is a highly contagious viral disease. It remains an important cause of death among young

children globally, despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine. Measles is transmitted via

droplets from the nose, mouth or throat of infected persons. Initial symptoms, which usually appear

10–12 days after infection,

include high fever, a runny

nose, bloodshot eyes, and

tiny white spots on the

inside of the mouth. Several

days later, a rash develops,

starting on the face and

upper neck and gradually

spreading downwards.

Severe measles is more

likely among poorly

nourished young children,

especially those with

insufficient vitamin A, or

whose immune systems

have been weakened by

HIV/AIDS or other diseases.

The most serious complications include blindness, encephalitis (an infection that causes brain

swelling), severe diarrhoea and related dehydration, and severe respiratory infections such as

pneumonia.

Routine measles vaccination for children, combined with mass immunization campaigns in countries

with low routine coverage, are key public health strategies to reduce global measles deaths. The

measles vaccine has been in use since the 1960s. It is safe, effective and inexpensive.




The global measles outbreak

“Preliminary global data shows that reported cases rose by 300 per cent in the first three months of

2019, compared to the same period in 2018. This follows consecutive increases over the past two

years,” the WHO said. The World Bank, in a year-ender review, posted the number as 413,308

reported cases globally, plus an additional 250,000 reported cases in the Democratic Republic of

Congo, versus 333,445 for all of 2018, quoting WHO figures.

Add to this, another disclaimer of WHO, and the reality become much graver. “The actual number of

cases captured in global estimates will also be considerably higher than those reported. WHO

estimates that less than 1 in 10 cases are reported globally, with variations by region,” it said. The

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on May 30, 2019, announced that the number of

cases reported in the first five months of the year in the United States (US) surpassed the worst

number in the last 25 years.

Four European countries — Albania, Czech Republic, Greece and the United Kingdom (UK) — lost

measles elimination status ‘following protracted outbreaks of the disease’. This happens if measles

re-enters a country after it has been declared eliminated, and if transmission is sustained

continuously in the country for more than a year.

Why the resurgence of measles?

Experts globally have pegged the insufficient coverage of measles immunisation has been as one of

the primary reasons for this. Increased coverage of vaccines that contain — dosages 1 and 2 —

decreased incidence and mortality by 63 per cent and 73 cent from 2000-2018, according to CDC.

“Despite this progress, the 2015 global milestones were not met: MCV1 coverage has stagnated for

nearly a decade and

MCV2 coverage is only

69 per cent. Reported

measles incidence has

increased in five

regions since 2016 and

estimated global

measles mortality has

increased since 2017,”

according to a joint

report of WHO and

CDC.

The causes were not

limited to poor

measles vaccination

coverage. The joint

report said they were

multi-factorial and varied from country to country. Supplementary immunisation activity has led to

poor immunity among older children and adults in many countries. Another reason pointed out was




the ‘importation’ of measles. “For example, in 2018, Israel experienced nearly 100 measles

importations from multiple countries including the Philippines, Ukraine, and the UK; and

importations from Israel and Ukraine led to outbreaks in the US,” the report said. In fact, after

having experienced more than 100 importations in 2018, an endemic measles virus transmission had

been re-established in the UK.

WHO on measles

Under the Global Vaccine Action Plan, measles and rubella are targeted for elimination in five WHO

Regions by 2020. WHO is the lead technical agency responsible for coordination of immunization

and surveillance activities supporting all countries to achieve this goal.

WHO recommends immunization for all susceptible children and adults for whom measles

vaccination is not contraindicated. Reaching all children with 2 doses of measles vaccine, either

alone, or in a measles-rubella (MR), measles-mumps-rubella (MMR), or measles-mumps-rubella-

varicella (MMRV) combination, should be the standard for all national immunization programmes.



demerits. (2013)






performance? (2016)




STATE FUNDING OF ELECTIONS GS 2: Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability.




Context

While the success of democracy in a complex and large country with widespread poverty and

illiteracy has earned India global respect and applause, the country’s democratic process is besotted

with corruption, and lack of transparency and accountability. The most worrisome trend is the

growing role of money in India’s electoral democracy. Arguably, the 16th Lok Sabha Election was the

second most-expensive election after the 2012 US presidential elections.

As elections become more expensive, the burden of generating more finances increases for both

parties and candidates. Given that the ways and means to raise small contributions are more difficult

and their transactional costs still very high in India, the role of “interested money” from corporates

has taken prominence. Indeed, in India, most of the big political parties are liberally funded by

corporate houses. For instance, among the known sources of donation, private business or

corporate contribution accounts for a staggering 89 percent of total donations.

While cronyism and corruption have had an adverse impact on the quality of democracy and nature

of governance in the country, the growing role of money has negatively affected competition at the

level of candidature within parties. Due to the increasing need for money, most candidates chosen

by parties are individuals who can finance themselves and do not need to rely on party funds for

campaigning. This has led to the rise of wealthy candidates — and in certain cases, even criminals —

contesting elections.

A brief history of State funding of elections

Public financing of elections and parties (and in some cases, candidates) is a recent development in

most democracies, although the concept is over a century old. Incidentally, the Latin American

countries were the first to introduce state subsidies for political parties. It was Uruguay that

introduced state subsidies in 1920s, which was later borrowed by Costa Rica and Argentina. Now,

more than seven Latin American democracies have state funding. Germany introduced state funding

in the 1950s, a model that has now been copied by many democracies including the UK and France.




Understanding state funding of elections

This means that government gives funds to political parties or candidates for contesting elections. Its

main purpose is to make it unnecessary for contestants to take money from powerful moneyed

interests so that they can remain clean. In some countries, state funding is extended to meeting

some specific forms of spending by political parties, not confined to electioneering alone. Countries

keep changing laws relating to state funding depending on experience and financial condition

Direct and indirect public funding

Direct public funding is given to political parties and/or candidates in the form of money – usually as

bank transfers but at times in cash or cheque. Indirect public funding is when resources with a

monetary value is provided by the Government to political parties and/or candidates.

Committees on state funding of elections

A few government reports have looked at state funding of elections in the past, including:

• Indrajit Gupta Committee on State Funding of Elections (1998)

• Law Commission Report on Reform of the Electoral Laws (1999)

• National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (2001)

• Second Administrative Reforms Commission (2008)

The Indrajit Gupta Committee (1998) endorsed state funding of elections, seeing “full justification

constitutional, legal as well as on ground of public interest” in order to establish a fair playing field

for parties with less money. The Committee recommended two limitations to state funding. Firstly,

that state funds should be given only to national and state parties allotted a symbol and not to




independent candidates. Secondly, that in the short-term state funding should only be given in kind,

in the form of certain facilities to the recognised political parties and their candidates.

The 1999 Law Commission of India report concluded that total state funding of elections is

“desirable” so long as political parties are prohibited from taking funds from other sources. “Ethics in

Governance”, a report of the Second Administrative Reforms Commission (2008) also recommended

partial state funding of elections for the purpose of reducing “illegitimate and unnecessary funding”

of elections expenses. The National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution, 2001,

did not endorse state funding of elections but concurred with the 1999 Law Commission report that

the appropriate framework for regulation of political parties would need to be implemented before

state funding is considered.

Cons of state funding of elections

▪ When introduced, public funding is often unpopular among the public. Public resources are

scarce and needed for everything from schools and hospitals to roads and salaries for staff.

To many people, using public funds to give to political parties and candidates would be far

down their list of priorities.

▪ The decision to allocate public funds to parties and candidates is most often taken in the

national legislature (or in some cases in the Government). This means that the political

parties and candidates who will collect the money, also take the decision.

▪ If all or a substantial amount of the party income comes directly from the State rather than

from voluntary sources, political parties risk losing their independence and become organs

of the State, thereby losing their ties to the civil society.

▪ When political parties and candidates do not depend on their supporters or members

neither for monetary contributions (membership, donations) nor for voluntary labour, they

might be less likely to involve them in party decisions or consult their opinions on policy

issues.

Way forward

The government should consider state funding of political parties contesting elections. But such

funding should be limited to parties recognised as ‘national’ or ‘State’ by the Election Commission of

India, and to candidates directly fielded by such recognised parties.

Budgetary constraints could come in the way. Therefore, a good start could be made with partial

funding — that is, with the state taking care of certain expenditures of the recognised parties. The

aim should be to discourage political parties from seeking external funding (except through a

nominal membership fee) to run their affairs, carry out their programmes and contest elections.

A separate Election Fund with an annual contribution of some Rs 600 crore by the Centre and a

matching amount by all States put together should be created. Only those parties which have

submitted their income tax returns up to the previous financial year could avail of state funding.





1) National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in India can be most effective when its tasks are

adequately supported by other mechanisms that ensure the accountability of a government.

In light of the above observation assess the role of NHRC as an effective complement to the

judiciary and the judiciary and other institutions in promoting and protecting human rights

standards. (2014)

2) In the integrity index of Transparency International, India stands very low. Discuss briefly the


India. (2016)

3) To enhance the quality of democracy of India the Election Commission of India has proposed

electoral reforms in 2016. What are the suggested reforms and how far are they significant

to make democracy successful? (2017)

4) Do you think that Constitution of India does not accept principle of strict separation of


5) Implementation of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) based



6) ‘In the context of neo-liberal paradigm of development planning, multi-level planning is


Discuss. (2019)

STRENGTHENING AND EMANCIPATING THE NORTH EASTERN REGION GS 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising

out of their design and

implementation.

Introduction

The NER consists of eight

states, namely Arunachal

Pradesh, Assam, Manipur,

Meghalaya, Mizoram,

Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura.

The region accounts for 3.78

per cent of India’s population

and covers 7.98 per cent of its

total geographical area. Its

contribution to national GDP is

2.5 per cent.

Performance of the states




While five out of the eight states have a per capita income below the national average, Sikkim enjoys

a per capita income level that is 2.5 times the national average. A comparison of the per capita

incomes in these states in 2015-16 and 2004-05 indicates that the ranking within the NER has also

changed over the years.

Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim have shown the most significant improvement in per capita incomes.

Per capita income in Arunachal Pradesh, which was below the national average in 2004-05, rose to

1.3 times the national average in 2015-16. Sikkim’s per capita income, which was on par with the

national average, increased to 2.5 times the national average in 2015-16. States like Nagaland and

Tripura, which were on par with the national average in 2004-05, have fallen behind. The

heterogeneity among the NE states is noteworthy and calls for a state specific development

approach.

The North-East states have performed well in different aspects of human development. For e.g.

according to the Sikkim Human Development Report 2014, Sikkim increased its social sector

spending from 23 per cent of total expenditure in 2001 to 37 per cent in 2012-13. The female labour

force participation rate in Sikkim is 40 per cent compared to the national average of 26 per cent.

Furthermore, according to the National Family Health Survey - 4, all states in the NER except Assam

have a lower mortality rate for under-fives than the national average. Lastly, Sikkim was recently

declared India’s first fully organic state.

Key strengths of the region




▪ NER shares about 5,437 km of international boundaries with Bangladesh, Bhutan, China,

Myanmar and Nepal.

▪ Total coal reserves in the NER is estimated at 1,597 million tonnes. These were exported in

the past.

▪ Limestone deposits are found extensively throughout the NER.

▪ Petroleum, natural gas and uranium are other natural resources to be found in the NER.

▪ According to the India State of Forest Report 2017,7 some of the North-Eastern states have

the highest forest covers in the country. The total forest cover in the region is 1,71,306 sq

km, which is 65.3 per cent of its geographical area, which is thrice the national average of

21.5 per cent.

▪ Hydropower potential for the NER has been estimated at 58,971 MW,8 which is 40 per cent

of India’s total hydropower potential. However, only 2.1 per cent of this vast potential of

clean energy has been utilized.

Constraints in developing North East Region

While the NER has all the ingredients needed to become prosperous, it could not achieve the

expected level of economic growth mainly due to inadequate road, rail and air connectivity. A lot of

its resources remain untapped. For e.g.

• Despite abundant rainfall, the irrigation coverage in this region is less than the national average of

46.35 per cent. • The NER’s natural scenic beauty and distinct ethnic heritage offers great attractions




for mountaineering, trekking and other tourist activities. However, the tourism industry remains

underdeveloped.

The major constraints hampering economic growth in the NER are:

✓ Inadequate infrastructure in terms of limited air, rail and road connectivity.

✓ Under-utilization of available natural resources.

✓ Safety and security related issues.

✓ Difficulties in transfer of land on lease to entrepreneurs.

Way forward

A targeted strategy needs to be devised, in consultation with representatives from all eight NE

states, to disseminate information on the various central government schemes that are already in

place for the development of the NER. All central ministries and departments should consider

sharing their targets and vision for the NER and spell out modalities for spending the stipulated 10

per cent of their budget for the NER. The Ministry of Finance should formally acknowledge the

availability of funds under the NLCPR.

It is necessary to monitor closely on-going transport projects with focus on projects that boost inter-

regional connectivity and help transform the region into a major trade hub with South East Asia. It is

recommended that a high-level committee be set up in 2018 (possibly as a sub-committee under the

“NITI Forum for North-East”) to focus on expediting such projects, including the Kaladan Multi-

Modal Transit Transport Project, the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, the 5-km road

stretch between the border city of Zokhawthar in Mizoram and Rih in Myanmar and the rail link

from Imphal to Moreh and further from Moreh to Kalay (in Myanmar).

Water management is a major issue in the NER. Early completion of ongoing irrigation projects,

particularly Borolia, Dhansiri and Champavati in Assam, and Thoubal and Dolaithabi Barrage in

Manipur under the Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme, should be accorded high priority. It is

expected that the establishment of the North East Water Management Authority will help address

the issue. One of the most pressing issues hampering the progress of hydropower projects in the

region is rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R). Attractive R&R packages should be devised for

hydropower projects in the region.


1) The concept of Mid Day Meal (MDM) scheme is almost a century old in India with early




2) The Central Government frequently complains on the poor performance of the State





3) Electronic cash transfer system for the welfare schemes is an ambitious project to minimize





4) The basis of providing urban amenities in rural areas (PURA) is rooted in establishing


5) Identify the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that are related to health. Discuss the


6) Do government’s schemes for up-lifting vulnerable and backward communities by protecting


economies? (2014)

7) Two parallel run schemes of the Government, viz the Adhaar Card and NPR, one as voluntary




8) Hunger and poverty are the biggest challenges for good governance in India still today.



9) The emergence of the self-help groups (SHGs) in contemporary times points to the slow but



the SHGs. (2017)

10) Poverty alleviation programmes in India remain mere showpieces until and unless they are



THE ASSASSINATION OF QASEM SOLEIMANI GS Paper 2: International relations

Recent developments in Iran

Qasem Soleimani, who was killed by a US airstrike ordered by President Donald Trump at Baghdad

International Airport was hailed as a hero in Iran - brave, charismatic and beloved by the troops.




Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, once called him a "living martyr of the revolution."

But the United States viewed Iran's top general as a ruthless killer. One of Iran's most powerful men,

Soleimani cut a highly controversial figure. He was head of the Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force, an

elite unit that handles Iran's overseas operations -- and one deemed to be a foreign terrorist

organization by the US.

Who was Soleimani?

He was an Iranian major general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and, from 1998

until his death, commander of its Quds Force, a division primarily responsible for extraterritorial

military and clandestine operations. Soleimani began his military career at the start of the Iran–Iraq

War during the 1980s, eventually commanding the 41st Division. He was later involved in

extraterritorial operations, providing military assistance to Hezbollah in Lebanon. In 2012, Soleimani

helped bolster the Bashar al-Assad government, a key Iranian ally, during its operations in the Syrian

Civil War and helped to plan Russian military intervention in Syria. Soleimani also was a commander

of the combined Iraqi government and Shia militia forces that advanced against ISIL in 2014–2015.

Soleimani was one of the first to support Kurdish forces, providing them with arms.

Soleimani was personally listed as a terrorist by the European Union and the United States. The

entity he led, the Quds, is considered a terrorist organization by Canada, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and

the United States. Soleimani was killed by a targeted U.S. drone strike on 3 January 2020 in Baghdad,

which was approved by President Trump on the grounds that Soleimani posed an "imminent threat"

to American lives.

War against ISIS in Iraq




Soleimani played a key role in Iran's fight against ISIS in Iraq. He is described as the "linchpin"

bringing together Kurdish and Shia forces to fight ISIS, overseeing joint operations conducted by the

two groups. Qasem Soleimani also seems to have been instrumental in planning the operation to

relieve Amirli in Saladin Governorate, where ISIL had laid siege to an important city. In fact the Quds

force operatives under Soleimani's command seem to have been deeply involved with not only the

Iraqi army and Shi'ite militias but also the Kurdish in the Battle of Amirli, not only providing liaisons

for intelligence-sharing but also the supply of arms and munitions in addition to "providing

expertise".

Soleimani played an integral role in the organisation and planning of the crucial operation to retake

the city of Tikrit in Iraq from ISIS. The city of Tikrit rests on the left bank of the Tigris river and is the

largest and most important city between Baghdad and Mosul, giving it a high strategic value. The city

fell to ISIS during 2014 when ISIS made immense gains in northern and central Iraq. After its capture,

ISIL's massacre at Camp Speicher led to 1,600 to 1,700 deaths of Iraqi Army cadets and soldiers.

Sanctions and Assassination

In 2012, the European Union listed Soleimani as having "been involved in terrorist acts" and

subjected him to sanctions. In 2007, the U.S. included him in a "Designation of Iranian Entities and

Individuals for Proliferation Activities and Support for Terrorism", which forbade U.S. citizens from

doing business with him. The list, published in the EU's Official Journal on 24 June 2011, also

included a Syrian property firm, an investment fund and two other enterprises accused of funding

the Syrian government. The list also included Mohammad Ali Jafari and Hossein Taeb. On 13

November 2018, the U.S. sanctioned an Iraqi military leader named Shibl Muhsin 'Ubayd Al-Zaydi

and others who allegedly were acting on Qasem Soleimani's behalf in financing military actions in

Syria or otherwise providing support for terrorism in the region.

Soleimani was killed on 3 January 2020 by missiles shot from American drones which targeted his

convoy near Baghdad International Airport. He had just left his plane, which arrived in Iraq from

Lebanon or Syria. His body was identified using a ring he wore on his finger, with DNA confirmation

still pending. Also killed were four members of the Popular Mobilization Forces, including Abu Mahdi

al-Muhandis, the Iraqi-Iranian military commander who headed the Popular Mobilization Forces

(PMF)

Iranian sentiments on the killing

State television showed huge crowds in Tehran for the funeral of Soleimani. It put the number who

turned out as "millions" although this is yet to be verified. Mourners passed Soleimani's coffin over

their heads and "death to America" chants were heard. Soleimani's remains were then taken to

Qom, one of the centres of Shia Islam, where massive crowds also gathered for a ceremony. The

general will be buried in his hometown of Kerman.














(2013)




(2014)









THE CONTINUING RELEVANCE OF PULSE POLIO PROGRAMME

GS Paper 2 – Issues relating to development and management of social sector/ services relating to


Introduction

Pulse Polio is an immunisation

campaign which was established by

the government of India to

eliminate poliomyelitis in India. The

Pulse Polio was started with the

global initiative of eradication of

polio in 1988 following World

Health Assembly resolution in 1988,

Pulse Polio Immunization

programme was launched in India

in 1995. Hence every year

vaccination was provided to all

children under the age of five years

to fight polio. Approximately 17.4

crore children of less than five years

are given polio drops as part of the




drive of Government of India to sustain polio eradication from the country.

About polio

Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a disabling and life-threatening disease caused by the poliovirus. The virus

spreads from person to person and can infect a person’s spinal cord, causing paralysis (can’t move

parts of the body).

A smaller proportion of people with poliovirus infection will develop other, more serious symptoms

that affect the brain and spinal cord:

✓ Paresthesia (feeling of pins and needles in the legs).

✓ Meningitis (infection of the covering of the spinal cord and/or brain) occurs in about 1 out of

25 people with poliovirus infection.

✓ Paralysis (can’t move parts of the body) or weakness in the arms, legs, or both, occurs in

about 1 out of 200 people with poliovirus infection.

Poliovirus is very contagious and spreads through person-to-person contact. It lives in an infected

person’s throat and intestines. Poliovirus only infects people. It enters the body through the mouth

and spreads through: Contact with the feces (poop) of an infected person and Droplets from a

sneeze or cough of an infected person (less common).

Prevention & Treatment

There are two types of vaccine that can prevent polio:

✓ Inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) given as an injection in the leg or arm, depending on the

patient’s age. Only IPV has been used in the United States since 2000.

✓ Oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) is still used throughout much of the world.

Polio vaccine protects children by preparing their bodies to fight the poliovirus. Almost all children

(99 children out of 100) who get all the recommended doses of the inactivated polio vaccine will be

protected from polio

Polio free?

South-East Asia Region of WHO has been certified polio free. The Regional Certification Commission

(RCC) on 27th March 2014 issued certificate which states that “The Commission concludes,

from the evidence provided by the National Certificate Committees of the 11 Member States,

that the transmission of indigenous wild poliovirus has been interrupted in all countries of the

Region.”

India has achieved the goal of polio eradication as no polio case has been reported for more than

3 years after last case reported on 13th January, 2011. WHO on 24th February 2012 removed

India from the list of countries with active endemic wild polio virus transmission.

But on January 19th on Pulse polio Day 2020, The National Health Portal tweeted, “India is free from

polio but the disease still persists in some countries & it may come back. Make sure every child

under 5 years of age gets polio drops.”




WHO on Polio

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines polio or poliomyelitis as “a highly infectious viral

disease, which mainly affects young children. The virus is transmitted by person-to-person, spread

mainly through the faecal-oral route or, less frequently, by a common vehicle (e.g. contaminated

water or food) and multiplies in the intestine, from where it can invade the nervous system and can

cause paralysis. Initial symptoms of polio include fever, fatigue, headache, vomiting, stiffness in the

neck, and pain in the limbs. In a small proportion of cases, the disease causes paralysis, which is

often permanent. There is no cure for polio, it can only be prevented by immunization.”

Pulse polio programme

The Pulse Polio Initiative was started with an objective of achieving hundred per cent coverage

under Oral Polio Vaccine. It aimed to immunize children through improved social mobilization, plan

mop-up operations in areas where poliovirus has almost disappeared and maintain high level of

morale among the public.




Steps taken by the government

• Maintaining community immunity through high quality National and Sub National polio

rounds each year.

• An extremely high level of vigilance through surveillance across the country for any

importation or circulation of poliovirus and VDPV is being maintained. Environmental

surveillance (sewage sampling) have been established to detect poliovirus transmission and

as a surrogate indicator of the progress as well for any programmatic interventions

strategically in Mumbai, Delhi, Patna, Kolkata Punjab and Gujarat.

• All States and Union Territories in the country have developed a Rapid Response Team (RRT)

to respond to any polio outbreak in the country. An Emergency Preparedness and Response

Plan (EPRP) has also been developed by all States indicating steps to be undertaken in

case of detection of a polio case.

• To reduce risk of importation from neighbouring countries, international border vaccination

is being provided through continuous vaccination teams (CVT) to all eligible children round

the clock. These are provided through special booths set up at the international borders that

India shares with Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan Nepal and Myanmar.







2) Public health system has limitation in providing universal health coverage. Do you think that


(2015)

3) What do you understand by Fixed Dose drug Combinations (FDCs)? Discuss their merits and

demerits. (2013)

4) Can overuse and free availability of antibiotics without Doctor’s prescription, be contributors



5) Professor Amartya Sen has advocated important reforms in the realms of primary education


performance? (2016)

6) Performance of welfare schemes that are implemented for vulnerable sections is not so



THE GOAL OF ‘HOUSING FOR ALL’ GS 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising

out of their design and

implementation.

Context

The President’s clarion

call to ensure the

provision of houses to

every family remains the

key objective of the

‘Housing for All’ scheme.

Following this

announcement, the

government has made it

clear that one of its key

priorities is to ensure

safe and affordable

housing for all. This

mandate also includes

upgradation of slums.

Recent estimates of the

Ministry of Rural

Development and Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs indicate a housing shortage of nearly 3

crore units in rural areas and 1.2 crore units in urban areas. Achieving the goal of ‘Housing for All’

will be a big step in the realization of New India Vision 2022 that will trigger economic growth and

create millions of jobs for skilled as well as unskilled workers.




The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)

The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) has been introduced by Prime Minister, Narendra Modi on

1 June 2015. PMAY Scheme is an initiative provided by the Government of India which aims at

providing affordable housing to the urban poor. The mission is to provide housing for all by the year

2022, by that time Nation completes 75 years of its Independence. Under this scheme, affordable

houses will be built in selected cities and towns using eco-friendly construction methods for the

benefit of the urban poor population in India. Also, under the Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme,

beneficiaries under PM Awas Yojana are eligible for interest subsidy if they avail a loan to purchase

or construct a house.

Objectives of PMAY Scheme

Based on recent estimates, as of September 2016, the population of the urban dwellers in India

increased at an alarming rate and is expected to see a greater rate of growth in the following years.

It is said that by 2050, urban dwelling population will rise to 814 million people. The calculation

predicted is almost twice the number that already reside in urban areas. The major challenges also

include providing people with housing options that are affordable and other major related concerns




such as sanitation along with sustainable development. The Ministry also has to ensure a sustainable

and safe environment for the urban population.

The main objective of the PM Awas Yojana Scheme is housing that is affordable for all by the year

2022. It also intends to make it accessible to demographics that are specific such as economically

challenged groups, women along people belonging to minorities such as Scheduled Castes and

Scheduled Tribes. The Government's other goal is directly in association with some of the most

ignored demographics which include widows, lower income group members, transgender and

henceforth provide them with sustainable and affordable housing scheme.

Beneficiaries under PMAY

▪ The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) scheme caters mainly to the housing requirements

of the urban poor. The scheme also caters to the housing requirement of slum dwellers

residing in confined areas of slums with inadequate infrastructure, poor sanitation and

drinking facilities.

▪ Beneficiaries of PMAY(U) mainly include Middle Income Groups (MIGs), Low-income Groups

(LIGs) and Economically Weaker Section (EWS). While the annual income for EWS category

beneficiaries is capped at Rs.3 lakh, the annual income of LIG and MIG beneficiaries can

range between Rs.3-6 lakh and Rs.6-18 lakh respectively.

▪ While the beneficiaries from the EWS category is eligible for complete assistance under the

scheme, beneficiaries from LIG and LIG categories are only eligible for the Credit Linked

Subsidy Scheme (CLSS) under PMAY.

▪ In order to be recognised as a LIG or EWS beneficiary under the Scheme, the applicant is

required to submit an affidavit as income proof to the authority.




Constraints to ‘housing for all’

✓ Limited private sector participation in affordable housing schemes in urban areas.

✓ Predominance of conventional construction practices that result in delayed

progress in urban areas and the limited use of prefabricated and pre-engineered

materials.

✓ Limited access to suitable land banks for affordable housing projects.

✓ Continued rise in the number of slum dwellers.

✓ Insufficient number of trained masons despite the operation of the Construction

Sector Skills Development Council since 2013.

✓ Capacity constraints in urban local bodies (ULBs) to formulate and design mass

housing projects.

Way forward

The government should continue to raise funds commensurate with the ‘Housing for All’ targets. The

Union Budget 2018-19 announced the setting up of an Affordable Housing Fund in the National

Housing Bank (NHB). It would achieve greater synergies among agencies that are implementing

government housing schemes. It would also enable the NHB to mobilize larger funds for housing

projects. The Budget for 2018-19 has already announced increased allocations for PMAY (Gramin) to

INR 33,000 crore and to INR 25,000 crore for PMAY (Urban) through internal and extra budgetary

resources.

Government projects should focus on the life cycle cost (LCC) approach to the construction of

houses rather than the cost per square foot approach to ensure quality of construction and reduce

expenditure incurred on the maintenance of houses. Regulatory complexities should be rationalized

and a single window approval system adopted to reduce the time taken to construct houses in urban

areas. The timeline for granting approvals should be specified and if approvals are not accorded

within the stipulated time period, it should be treated as deemed approval.

The land lying idle with various sick/loss making public sector undertakings(PSUs) of the central/

state governments may be used to resolve the issue of land availability for affordable housing

projects under ‘Housing for All’. The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) should expedite release

of land parcels available with central PSUs that have been identified for affordable housing projects.






















economies? (2014)











the SHGs. (2017)




THE WUHAN CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK IN CHINA GS 3 –Science and Technology

Introduction

A new coronavirus, designated 2019-nCoV (also known as the Wuhan coronavirus), was identified in

Wuhan, Hubei province of China, after people developed pneumonia without a clear cause and for

which existing vaccines or treatments were not effective. The virus has shown evidence of human-

to-human transmission and its transmission rate (rate of infection) appeared to escalate in mid-




January 2020, with several countries other than China reporting cases. The incubation period (time

from exposure to developing symptoms) of the virus, which can be fatal, is 1-14 days, and it is

infectious during this time. Symptoms include fever, coughing and breathing difficulties.

What is coronavirus?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), coronaviruses are a family of viruses that cause

illness ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory

Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS).

These viruses were originally transmitted between animals and people. SARS, for instance, was

believed to have been transmitted from civet cats to humans while MERS travelled from a type of

camel to humans. Several known coronaviruses are circulating in animals that have not yet infected

humans. The name coronavirus comes from the Latin word corona, meaning crown or halo. Under

an electron microscope, the image of the virus is reminiscent of a solar corona.




A novel coronavirus, identified by Chinese authorities on January 7 and currently named 2019-nCoV,

is a new strain that had not been previously identified in humans. Little is known about it, although

human-to-human transmission has been confirmed.

According to the WHO, signs of infection include fever, cough, shortness of breath and breathing

difficulties. In more severe cases, it can lead to pneumonia, severe acute respiratory syndrome,

kidney failure and even death. The incubation period of the coronavirus remains unknown. Some

sources say it could be between 10 to 14 days.

How deadly can coronavirus be?

Some experts say it may not be as deadly as other types of coronavirus such as SARS, which killed

nearly 800 people worldwide during a 2002-2003 outbreak that also originated from China. MERS,

which did not spread as widely, was more deadly, killing a third of those it infected.

Most cases have been reported in

China. At least 56 people have been

killed and there have been at least

1,372 confirmed cases reported in

mainland China as of January 25. The

virus has spread to many Asian

countries, as well as to Europe and

North America.

The global panic

▪ The coronavirus’s ability to

spread appears to be getting

stronger, the country’s

health commission minister

has said. He added that the

incubation period is one to

14 days and that unlike Sars,

it is infectious during that

period.

▪ The death toll from the

outbreak has risen to 56,

while authorities said just

over 2,000 have been infected. Health experts believe the real number of cases to be higher,

as hospitals across Wuhan, the centre of the outbreak, have experienced shortages of

testing kits.

▪ Another 1,000 cases are expected in Wuhan, the city’s mayor said. Zhou Xianwang said it

was stepping up construction of specialist hospitals. He added that 5million people had left

the city for new year celebrations.

▪ The US, France and Japan said they were arranging evacuation flights for people trapped in

Wuhan, which has been placed under quarantine. The US and Japan each reported a new




case, taking the number of people infected to three and four respectively. Malaysia,

Singapore and South Korea each confirmed a new case, while Thailand said it had identified

three new cases.

▪ In the UK, 52 people have tested negative for the coronavirus, the Department of Health and

Social Care said. No one in the UK has tested positive.

▪ The UK home secretary, Priti Patel, refused to confirm or deny reports that Britain is

planning to evacuate more than 200 of its citizens in Wuhan. The foreign office has advised

against travel to Hubei province.

▪ A nationwide ban on trading wildlife has been imposed in China after experts warned that

the sale of sometimes endangered species for human consumption is the cause both of the

new coronavirus outbreak and other past epidemics.




▪ Residents of Hubei province are to be banned from Hong Kong. The city state will also ban

entry from Monday to people who have visited Hubei province in the past 14 days, the city’s

government said. The rule does not apply to Hong Kong residents.

▪ Long-distance buses have been suspended in the eastern province of Shandong, which has a

population of 100 million people. Long-distance buses have also been banned from

departing from or arriving at Beijing and Shanghai.

▪ The financial hub of Shanghai, which has extensive international air connections, on Sunday

reported its first death: that of an 88-year-old man who already had health problems.

▪ Beijing said that the reopening of schools and universities after the new year holiday had

been indefinitely suspended.

▪ Upcoming tennis (Fed Cup) and football (Women’s Olympic qualifying) events have been

moved from China. Boxing and basketball events had already been relocated because of the

coronavirus.

Vaccines and antivirals

Several organizations around the world are working on a vaccine. U.S. National Institutes of Health

(NIH) is hoping for human trials of a vaccine by April 2020. The Chinese Center for Disease Control

and Prevention (CCDC) has started developing vaccines against the novel coronavirus and is testing

existing drug effectiveness for pneumonia. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations CEPI

is funding three vaccine projects and hopes to have a vaccine in trials by June 2020 and approved

and ready in a year. The University of Queensland in Australia has received $10.6 million in funding

from CEPI to develop a "molecular clamp" vaccine platform.

Moderna is developing a mRNA vaccine with funding from CEPI. Inovio Pharmaceuticals received a

grant from CEPI and designed a vaccine in two hours after receiving the gene sequence. The vaccine

is being manufactured so that it can be first tested on animals. San Francisco-based Vir

Biotechnology is evaluating whether previously identified monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are

effective against the virus. Gilead Sciences is in active discussions with researchers and clinicians in

the United States and China regarding the ongoing Wuhan coronavirus outbreak and the potential

use of remdesivir as an investigational treatment.


1. What is a digital signature? What does its authentication mean? Give various salient built-in

features of a digital signature. (2013)

2. How does the 3D printing technology work? List out the advantages and disadvantages of

the technology. (2013)

3. What is an FRP composite material? How are they manufactured? Discuss their application

in aviation and automobile industries. (2013)

4. In a globalized world, Intellectual Property Rights assume significance and are a source of

litigation. Broadly distinguish between the terms—Copyrights, Patents and Trade Secrets.

(2014)




5. What are the areas of prohibitive labour that can be sustainably managed by robots? Discuss

the initiatives that can propel the research in premier research institutes for substantive and

gainful innovation. (2015)

6. Discuss India’s achievements in the field of Space Science and Technology. How the

application of this technology has helped India in its socio-economic development? (2016)

7. Why is nanotechnology one of the key technologies of the 21st century? Describe the salient

features of Indian Government’s Mission on Nano science and Technology and the scope of

its application in the development process of the country. (2016)

8. What is the CyberDome Project? Explain how it can be useful in controlling internet crimes

in India. (2019)

9. Rise of Artificial Intelligence: the threat of jobless future or better job opportunities through

reskilling and upskilling. (Essay paper 2019)

10. What is India’s plan to have its own space station and how will it benefit our space

programme? (2019)

TRANSFORMING ASPIRATIONAL DISTRICTS GS Paper 2: Issues relating to development and management of social sector/ Services relating to


Introduction




Launched by the Hon’ble PM in January, the ‘Transformation of Aspirational Districts’ programme

aims to quickly and effectively transform these districts. The broad contours of the programme are

Convergence (of Central & State Schemes), Collaboration (of Central, State level ‘Prabhari’ Officers &

District Collectors), and Competition among districts driven by a mass Movement. With States as the

main drivers, this program will focus on the strength of each district, identify low-hanging fruits for

immediate improvement, measure progress, and rank districts.

Context

The Government is committed to raising the living standards of its citizens and ensuring inclusive

growth for all – “Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas”. To enable optimum utilization of their potential, this

program focusses closely on improving people’s ability to participate fully in the burgeoning

economy. Health & Nutrition, Education, Agriculture & Water Resources, Financial Inclusion & Skill

Development, and Basic Infrastructure are this programme’s core areas of focus. After several

rounds of consultations with various stakeholders, 49 key performance indicators have been chosen

to measure progress of the districts. Districts are prodded and encouraged to first catch-up with the

best district within their state, and subsequently aspire to become one of the best in the country, by

competing with, and learning from others in the spirit of competitive & cooperative federalism.




Present status

A list of 49 target indicators has been developed by NITI Aayog. These will be regularly monitored for

promoting improvements in health and nutrition, education, agriculture and water resources,

financial inclusion and skill development, and basic infrastructure.

In April 2018, NITI Aayog issued a ranking of these districts according to baseline data collated from

secondary sources on these selected indicators. According to this, the top five districts are

Vizianagaram (Andhra Pradesh), Rajnandgaon (Chhattisgarh), Osmanabad (Maharashtra), Cuddapah

(Andhra Pradesh), and Ramanathapuram (Tamil Nadu) with a score ranging from 46.78 per cent to

48.13 per cent.

The bottom five districts are Shrawasti (Uttar Pradesh), Kiphire (Nagaland), Singrauli (Madhya

Pradesh), Asifabad (Telangana) and Mewat (Haryana) with a score ranging from 26.02 per cent to

28.13 per cent.

Despite economic progress in the country, if these places have remained underdeveloped, it is

because they suffer from a host of contributing factors. Relatively poorer endowment of physical

resources, lack of infrastructure, poor social capital, low standards of health, nutrition, education

and skill, poor governance and above all, inhabitants demotivated due to years of poverty and

deprivation can be cited as major contributory factors.

Challenges

▪ Governance inadequacy hampers the effective implementation of government schemes.

▪ The institutional framework has been fragmented because of the multiplicity of

implementing agencies and schemes.

▪ There is no accountability on the part of either the government or district administrations.




▪ Non-availability of periodical data makes it difficult to track progress and implement

evidence-based policymaking.

▪ There is lack of social awareness and community participation in development programmes.

▪ There is lack of competitiveness among districts to improve developmental performance.

What can be done?

➢ Referring to these districts as ‘aspirational’ rather than ‘backward’ highlights the

programme’s recognition that people are the most valuable resource to improve a district’s

performance. Changes in people’s mind-sets and attitudes are critical to achieve progress.

➢ Setting off a virtuous cycle of growth in aspirational districts requires that people from all

walks of life – especially those who have a track record of effecting change despite existing

challenges – come together. The scheme’s design encourages states and district

administrations to give a lead role to such champions of change to turn this initiative into a

mass movement.

➢ different indicators across sectors. The ADP assigns different weights to the indicators,

informed by a policy focus on social sectors. Health and nutrition, and education have been

given the highest weightage and cumulatively, they account for 21 of the 49 indicators.

➢ Harnessing and creating synergies among the efforts of different stakeholders is the

backbone of the ADP. While states are the main drivers and district magistrates/collectors

are the fulcrum of the programme, a major innovation here is the emphasis on team

formation. Senior Government of India officials of the rank of Joint Secretary/Additional

Secretary have been appointed as ‘guardians’ (‘ prabharis ’) for a district. Their role is to act

as a bridge between the central and state governments.

➢ Set up Empowered Committees of Secretaries of Government of India to supervise and

troubleshoot. At the centre, committees have been constituted including the Secretaries of

key ministries/departments that are implementing schemes in the social sector. Their

mandate is to fine-tune existing programmes and improve their impact.






















economies? (2014)











the SHGs. (2017)




TRUMP’S PEACE PLAN FOR ISRAEL AND PALESTINE GS 2: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting

India's interests; Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India's

interests, Indian diaspora.

In news:

He proposed an independent Palestinian state and the recognition of Israeli sovereignty over West

Bank settlements. Standing alongside Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House, Mr Trump

said his proposals "could be the last opportunity" for Palestinians. Palestinian President Mahmoud

Abbas dismissed the plans as a "conspiracy".




The joint announcement came as both Mr Trump and Mr Netanyahu faced political challenges at

home. Mr Trump is the subject of an impeachment trial in the US Senate while the Israeli PM

dropped his bid for immunity on corruption charges. Both men deny any wrongdoing. David

Friedman, the US ambassador to Israel, said that the timing of the announcement was not tied to

any political development, adding it had been "fully baked" for some time.

Trump’s key proposals

▪ The US will recognise Israeli sovereignty over territory that Mr Trump's plan envisages being

part of Israel. The plan includes a conceptual map that Mr Trump says illustrates the

territorial compromises that Israel is willing to make

▪ The map will "more than double the Palestinian territory and provide a Palestinian capital in

eastern Jerusalem", where Mr Trump says the US would open an embassy. The Palestine

Liberation Organisation (PLO) said Mr Trump's plan would give Palestinians control over 15%

of what it called "historic Palestine".

▪ Jerusalem "will remain Israel's undivided capital". Both Israel and the Palestinians hold

competing claims to the holy city. The Palestinians insist that East Jerusalem, which Israel

occupied in the 1967 Middle East war, be the capital of their future state.

▪ An opportunity for Palestinians to "achieve an independent state of their very own" -

however, he gave few details.

▪ "No Palestinians or Israelis will be uprooted from their homes" - suggesting that existing

Jewish settlements in the Israeli-occupied West Bank will remain.

▪ Israel will work with the king of Jordan to ensure that the status quo governing the key holy

site in Jerusalem known to Jews as the Temple Mount and al-Haram al-Sharif to Muslims is

preserved. Jordan runs the religious trust that administers the site.

▪ Territory allocated to Palestinians in Mr Trump's map "will remain open and undeveloped

for a period of four years". During that time, Palestinians can study the deal, negotiate with

Israel, and "achieve the criteria for statehood".

Jerusalem as bone of contention

Jerusalem is the heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict and the toughest to resolve. It also symbolises the

differing timeframes of the contestants. There are multiple Jerusalems, with different historical

claims, timeframes, logics, and layers. Until Donald Trump's surprising decision of moving the US

embassy to Jerusalem, the international community—including the US—did not recognise even

West Jerusalem, which has been under Israeli control since July 1948, as the capital.

The UN partition plan declared Jerusalem to be a corpus separatum, an international city not to be a

part of either the Arab or Jewish state in the mandate Palestine. This was never realised as the

armies of Jordan and Israel captured East and West Jerusalem, respectively, a division that was

formalised through the Armistice Agreement of 3 April 1949. Later that year, Israel formally declared

Jerusalem to be its capital and began shifting or establishing all its sovereign institutions such as the

presidency, Knesset, Supreme Court, and government offices.

The contestation over Jerusalem is not only political but is also historical, territorial, theological,

archaeological and emotional. These transform Jerusalem into a truly global problem whereby the




believers of the Abrahamic faiths—Jews, Christians, and Muslims—can stake a claim in its resolution.

In other words, when dealing with Jerusalem, the interlocutors are not just Israelis and Palestinians

but also the Jewish diaspora, non-Palestinian Arabs, and Arab and non-Arab Muslims. The Persian

Iranians have as much say over the Jerusalem question as the Indonesian Muslims as well as French

and American Jews.

Defining the borders

Israel is the only modern state that has avoided defining its territorial limits. During the Yishuv

period, it was a strategic choice for Zionism to keep the boundaries of a future national home vague

and undefined. This left Israel with a legacy of multiple boundaries. The revisionist Zionists

questioned the formation of Transjordan in 1921 by the British and its exclusion from the purview of

the Balfour Declaration. The boundaries suggested by the majority United Nations Special

Committee on Palestine (UNSCOP) plan and the one approved by the UN in November 1947 were

not the same, as the latter was revised in favour of the Jews.

The conclusion of the Armistice Agreements in 1949 paved the way for the de facto borders of Israel

and the international community has widely accepted this. This line, commonly known as the Green

Line, survived until the June War. The Israeli capture of the Sinai Peninsula, Golan Heights, Gaza Strip

and the West Bank including Jerusalem altered the strategic landscape.

Compelling Israel to define its borders will unravel the future of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its

resolution. Israeli citizens living outside the BORDERS in the West Bank will have a simple,

straightforward choice: to live as citizens of the Palestinian state or return to Israel proper. A defined




border will result in the evacuation and dismantling of the settlements as happened in Sinai (1982)

and Gaza Strip (2005). While the removal of settlements will not determine Israel's borders, the

determination of the borders will decide the fate of the settlements.

What are the issues at stake?

Of all the conflicts in the Middle East, that between Israel and the Palestinians has been the most

intractable. Although the two sides signed a breakthrough peace accord in 1993, more than a

quarter of a century on the two sides are arguably as far apart as ever.

➢ Jerusalem: Both Israel and the Palestinians hold competing claims to the city. Israel, which

occupied the formerly Jordanian-held eastern part in 1967, regards the whole of Jerusalem

as its capital. The Palestinians insist on East Jerusalem - home to about 350,000 of their

community - as the capital of a hoped-for independent state.

➢ Palestinian statehood: The Palestinians want an independent state of their own, comprising

the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem. Israeli prime ministers have publicly accepted the

notion of a Palestinian state alongside Israel but not what form it should take. Benjamin

Netanyahu has said any Palestinian state should be demilitarised with the powers to govern

itself but not to threaten Israel.

➢ Recognition: Israel insists that any peace deal must include Palestinian recognition of it as

the "nation-state of the Jewish people", arguing that without this Palestinians will continue

to press their own national claims to the land, causing the conflict to endure. The




Palestinians says what Israel calls itself is its own business, but to recognise it as the Jewish

state will discriminate against Israel's Arab population of Palestinian origin, who are

Muslims, Christians and Druze.

➢ Borders: Both sides have fundamentally different ideas as to where the boundaries of a

potential Palestinian state should be. The Palestinians insist on borders based on ceasefire

lines which separated Israel and East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza between 1949 and

1967. Israel says those lines are militarily indefensible and were never intended to be

permanent. It has not said where borders should be, other than making clear its own eastern

border should be along the Jordan River.

➢ Settlements: Since 1967, Israel has built about 140 settlements in the occupied West Bank

and East Jerusalem, as well as 121 outposts - settlements built without the government's

authorisation. They have become home to some 600,000 Israeli Jews. Settlements are

considered illegal by most of the international community, though Israel disputes this.

Palestinians say all settlements must be removed for a Palestinian state to be viable. Mr

Netanyahu has vowed not only to never to uproot any settlements but to bring them under

Israeli sovereignty.

➢ Refugees: The UN says its agencies support about 5.5 million Palestinian refugees in the

Middle East (the Palestinian Authority says there are up to 6 million), including the

descendants of people who fled or were expelled by Jewish forces from what became Israel

in the 1948-49 war. Palestinians insist on their right to return to their former homes, but

Israel says they are not entitled to, noting that such a move would overwhelm it

demographically and lead to its end as a Jewish state.


1) What do you understand by ‘The String of Pearls’? How does it impact India? Briefly outline


2) Economic ties between India and Japan while growing in the recent years are still far below


3) The protests in Shahbag Square in Dhaka in Bangladesh reveal a fundamental split in society


4) Discuss the political developments in Maldives in the last two years. Should they be of any


5) In respect of India-Sri Lanka relations, discuss how domestic factors influence foreign policy.

(2013)

6) With respect to the South China sea, maritime territorial disputes and rising tension affirm



(2014)

7) Increasing interest of India in Africa has its pro and cons. Critically Examine. (2015)

8) Evaluate the economic and strategic dimensions of India’s Look East Policy in the context of





9) Indian Diaspora has an important role to play in south-East Asian countries’ economy and


10) ‘What introduces friction into the ties between India and the United States is that



11) . Discuss the impediments India is facing in its pursuit of a permanent seat in UNSC. (2015)

12) What are the aims and objectives of the McBride Commission of the UNESCO? What is

India’s position on these? (2016)

13) What are the main function of the United Nations Economic and social Council (ECOSOC)?

Explain different function commission attached to it. (2017)

US - GUATEMALA ASYLUM AGREEMENT GS 2: International relations

Context




President Trump has made limiting immigration a central element of his presidency. And one of his

policy victories came in last July - a deal was struck with Guatemala. It established that nation as a

so-called safe third country. And it meant a new reality for migrants arriving at the U.S. border. They

could be sent back to Guatemala if they had passed through that country without seeking asylum

there first.

How would the

agreement function?

The American

government’s latest tactic

is the agreement with

Guatemala. Known as a

“safe third country

agreement,” the deal

would make asylum

seekers ineligible for

protection in the United

States if they had traveled

through Guatemala and

did not first apply for

asylum there. Under the

agreement, the American

authorities would be

allowed to return those

migrants to Guatemala,

relieving pressure on the

American immigration

system.

The arrangement would

largely prevent people

from Honduras and El

Salvador, two of the main

sources of migrants at the

moment, from seeking

American asylum. It

would also block large

numbers of asylum

seekers from elsewhere

in Latin America and

around the world who

travel by land to the




United States via Guatemala. Guatemalan and Mexican asylum seekers, however, would not be

affected.

Guatemala

The Republic of Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and

west, Belize and the Caribbean to the northeast, Honduras to the east, El Salvador to the southeast

and the Pacific Ocean to the south. With an estimated population of around 17.2 million, it is the

most populated country in Central America. Guatemala is a representative democracy; its capital

and largest city is Nueva Guatemala de la Asunción, also known as Guatemala City.

The territory of modern Guatemala once formed the core of the Maya civilization, which extended

across Mesoamerica. Most of the country was conquered by the Spanish in the 16th century,

becoming part of the viceroyalty of New Spain. Guatemala attained independence in 1821 as part of

the Federal Republic of Central America, which dissolved by 1841.




History of Safe third country agreements

Safe third country agreements are rare. The United States signed such a deal with Canada in 2002.

The European Union has one with Turkey that allows asylum seekers who arrive at the Greek border

to be returned to Turkey.

But it appears that no such agreement has been signed with a nation that is as ill-equipped as

Guatemala to deal with asylum seekers and keep them safe, experts say. Though homicide rates

there have fallen sharply in the last decade, the country remains among the deadliest in the world.

Crime, impunity and corruption are rife, and critics argue that it is unable to meet the safety

requirements demanded by the deal.

Agreement’s first court challenge

The Trump administration’s “safe third country” agreement with Guatemala is facing its first court

challenge in a lawsuit led by a gay man who says he was turned away by the Central American

country after being sent there by the U.S. to seek asylum. According to the lawsuit, U.T., who is from

El Salvador, faced persecution in the devoutly Roman Catholic country because of his sexual

orientation.

Criticism

A “safe third country” is supposed to mean a nation which is capable of offering protection to

refugees. The Northern Triangle countries, which have signed these agreements, are known for high

levels of crime, violence, and economic deprivation. The deal with Guatemala has been criticised,

given the risk that migrants might face when they are sent back here.

Over the past year, the U.S. has returned more than 55,000 migrants to Mexico, where they are

required to wait in violent Mexican border cities for the duration of their asylum claims. Statistics

show that about half the people placed in the program, formally known as the Migrant Protection

Protocols, haven’t made it back to the border for their U.S. court hearings.











(2013)




(2014)












YADA YADA VIRUS AND MOSQUITO-BORNE ILLNESSES GS Paper 2 – Issues relating to development and management of social sector/ services relating to


Introduction

A novel virus detected in Australian mosquitoes has been provisionally named the Yada Yada virus

(YYV), after the catchphrase made famous by the American sitcom Seinfeld. The Cambridge

dictionary defines the phrase as an informal exclamation used to describe boring speech. The

scientists’ findings have been published in a short paper in the American Society for Microbiology

journal, ‘Microbiology Resource Announcements’.




Significance of the discovery

When the team of researchers extracted RNA from a large number of mosquitoes in Australia’s

Victoria state, they found a new alphavirus, which belonged to a group that includes other

alphaviruses such as chikungunya virus and the astern equine encephalitis. The novel virus poses no

threat to human beings, because it is a part of a group of viruses that only infect mosquitoes. Other

viruses in the same group include the Tai forest alphavirus and the Agua Salud alphavirus.

While the discovery of the virus does not have any direct implications for human beings, in the

papers, the authors have mentioned that YYV’s discovery expands the “diversity and geographic

range” of mosquito-specific alphavirus complexes, which may help in revealing the origin of the virus

and “host switching”. Mosquito-specific viruses can help us understand how viruses evolved and can

be really useful for vaccine production and diagnostics.

The discovery

Alphaviruses (genus

Alphavirus, family

Togaviridae) are small

(10- to 12-kb) single-

stranded positive-sense

RNA viruses and include

species important to

human and animal

health, such as

Chikungunya virus and

Eastern equine

encephalitis virus. While

these viruses are

transmitted primarily by

mosquitoes and

pathogenic in their

vertebrate hosts, there is

a small complex of

recently discovered

alphaviruses that

replicate only in mosquito cells. Here, scientists report the detection of an alphavirus belonging to

this host-restricted complex in the Asia-Pacific region and provide the genome sequence for the

novel virus, named Yada Yada virus (YYV).

Mosquito-borne illnesses

They are diseases caused by bacteria, viruses or parasites transmitted by mosquitoes. Nearly 700

million people get a mosquito-borne illness each year resulting in over one million deaths. Diseases

transmitted by mosquitoes include malaria, dengue, West Nile virus, chikungunya, yellow fever,

filariasis, tularemia, dirofilariasis, Japanese encephalitis, Saint Louis encephalitis, Western equine




encephalitis, Eastern equine encephalitis, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, Ross River fever, Barmah

Forest fever, La Crosse encephalitis, and Zika fever, as well as newly detected Keystone virus and Rift

Valley fever.

Virus

The viral diseases yellow fever, dengue fever, Zika fever and chikungunya are transmitted mostly by

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. Other viral diseases like epidemic polyarthritis, Rift Valley fever, Ross

River fever, St. Louis encephalitis, West Nile fever, Japanese encephalitis, La Crosse encephalitis and

several other encephalitic diseases are carried by several different mosquitoes. Eastern equine

encephalitis (EEE) and Western equine encephalitis (WEE) occur in the United States where they

cause disease in humans, horses, and some bird species. Because of the high mortality rate, EEE and

WEE are regarded as two of the most serious mosquito-borne diseases in the United States.

Symptoms range from mild flu-like illness to encephalitis, coma and death.

Viruses carried by arthropods such as mosquitoes or ticks are known collectively as arboviruses.

West Nile virus was accidentally introduced into the United States in 1999 and by 2003 had spread

to almost every state with over 3,000 cases in 2006. Other species of Aedes as well as Culex and

Culiseta are also involved in the transmission of disease. Myxomatosis is spread by biting insects,

including mosquitoes.




Transmission

A mosquito's period of feeding is often undetected; the bite only becomes apparent because of the

immune reaction it provokes. When a mosquito bites a human, it injects saliva and anti-coagulants.

For any given individual, with the initial bite there is no reaction but with subsequent bites the

body's immune system develops antibodies and a bite becomes inflamed and itchy within 24 hours.

This is the usual reaction in young children. With more bites, the sensitivity of the human immune

system increases, and an itchy red hive appears in minutes where the immune response has broken

capillary blood vessels and fluid has collected under the skin. This type of reaction is common in

older children and adults. Some adults can become desensitized to mosquitoes and have little or no

reaction to their bites, while others can become hyper-sensitive with bites causing blistering,

bruising, and large inflammatory reactions, a response known as skeeter syndrome.









performance? (2016)




ECONOMIC SURVEY 2020 – KEY HIGHLIGHTS GS 3 – Indian Economy

About Economic Survey

The Economic Survey is nothing but an annual document prepared by advisers to the finance

minister and tabled in the Parliament a day before the Union budget. The Economic Survey has been

prepared by Chief Economic Advisor Krishnamurthy Subramanian. Economic Survey will be the first




document to be the tabled in the Parliament after the beginning of the Budget session tomorrow. It

is expected to be released around 12:30 pm and will be made available on the finance ministry's

budget portal here.

A flagship document of the finance ministry, the Economic Survey is a review of the developments in

the Indian economy over the previous 12 months. The survey is essentially a summary of the

performance on major development programmes, and highlights the policy initiatives of the

government and the prospects of the economy in the short to medium term.

Key highlights

WEALTH CREATION

▪ Invisible hand of the market reflected in openness in economic transactions.

▪ Post-liberalisation, Indian economy supports both pillars of the economic model advocated

in our traditional thinking.

▪ Exponential rise in India's GDP and GDP per capita post-liberalisation coincides with wealth

generation.

▪ Need for the hand of trust to complement the invisible hand, illustrated by financial sector

performance during 2011-13.

▪ Survey posits that India's aspiration to become a $5 trillion economy depends critically on

strengthening the invisible hand of the market, providing equal opportunities for new

entrants, and introducing the idea of trust as a public good, which gets enhanced with

greater use.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

▪ Entrepreneurship as a strategy to fuel productivity growth and wealth creation.




▪ India ranks third in a number of new firms created, as per the World Bank.

▪ 12.2 per cent cumulative annual growth rate of new firms in the formal sector during 2014-

18 as compared to 3.8 per cent during 2006-2014.

▪ About 1.24 lakh new firms created in 2018, an increase of about 80 per cent from about

70,000 in 2014.

▪ A 10 per cent increase in registration of new firms in a district yields a 1.8 pc increase in

Gross Domestic District Product (GDDP).

▪ New firm formation is the lowest in eastern India with lowest literacy rate (59.6 pc as per

2011 Census).

PRO-BUSINESS VERSUS PRO-MARKETS

▪ Promoting 'pro-business' policy that unleashes the power of competitive markets to

generate wealth.

▪ Weaning away from 'pro-crony' policy that may favour specific private interests, especially

powerful incumbents.

▪ An equity index of connected firms significantly outperformed the market by 7 per cent a

year from 2007 to 2010, reflecting abnormal profits extracted at common citizens' expense.

DEBT WAIVERS

▪ The Survey suggests the government must systematically examine areas of needless

intervention and undermining of markets; but it does not argue that there should be no

Government intervention.




▪ Instead it suggests that the interventions that were apt in a different economic setting may

have lost their relevance in a transformed economy.

▪ Eliminating such instances will enable competitive markets spurring investments and

economic growth.

JOBS AND GROWTH

▪ Survey says India has unprecedented opportunity to chart a China-like, labour-intensive,

export trajectory.

▪ By integrating 'Assemble in India for the world' into Make in India, India can raise its export

market share to about 3.5 pc by 2025 and 6 pc by 2030.

▪ Exports of network products can provide one-quarter of the increase in value-added

required for making India a $5 trillion economy.

EASE OF DOING BUSINESS

▪ A jump of 79 positions to 63 in 2019 from 142 in 2014 in World Bank's Doing Business

rankings.

▪ For merchandise exports, the logistics process flow for imports is more efficient than that for

exports, suggests Survey.

▪ Need for close coordination between the Logistics division of the Ministry of Commerce and

Industry, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, Ministry of Shipping and the

different port authorities.

▪ Individual sectors such as tourism or manufacturing require a more targeted approach that

maps out the regulatory and process bottlenecks for each segment.

BANKING SECTOR

▪ A large economy needs an efficient banking sector to support its growth.

▪ The onus of supporting the economy falls on the PSBs accounting for 70 per cent of the

market share in Indian banking.

▪ PSBs are inefficient compared to their peer groups on every performance parameter.

▪ In 2019, investment for every rupee in PSBs, on average, led to the loss of 23 paise, while in

NPBs it led to the gain of 9.6 paise.

▪ The Survey suggests the representation on boards proportionate to the blocks held by

employees to incentivise employees and align their interests with that of all shareholders of

banks.

▪ Creation of a GSTN type entity that will aggregate data from all PSBs and use technologies

like big data, artificial intelligence and machine learning in credit decisions for ensuring




better screening and monitoring of borrowers, especially the large ones.

PRIVATISATION AND WEALTH CREATION

▪ The strategic disinvestment of government's shareholding of 53.29 per cent in HPCL led to

an increase of around Rs 33,000 crore in national wealth.

▪ Financial indicators such as net worth, net profit, return on assets (ROA), return on equity

(ROE) etc of the privatized CPSEs, on an average, have improved significantly.

▪ Privatized CPSEs have been able to generate more wealth from the same resources.

▪ The Survey suggests aggressive disinvestment of CPSEs to bring in higher profitability, to

promote efficiency, increase competitiveness, and promote professionalism.

INDIA'S GDP GROWTH

▪ GDP growth is a critical variable for decision-making by investors and policymakers.

Therefore, the recent debate about the accuracy of India's GDP estimation following the

revised estimation methodology in 2011 is extremely significant.

▪ Models that incorrectly over-estimate GDP growth by 2.7 per cent for India post-2011 also

misestimate GDP growth over the same period for 51 out of 95 countries in the sample.

THALINOMICS

▪ An attempt to quantify what a common person pays for a 'Thali' across India.

▪ A shift in the dynamics of 'Thali' prices since 2015-16.

▪ Average household gained close to Rs 11, 000 on average per year from the moderation in

prices in the case of vegetarian 'Thali'

▪ Average household that consumes two non-vegetarian 'Thalis' gained close to Rs 12, 000 on

average per year during the same period.

▪ Affordability of vegetarian 'Thalis' improved 29 pc.

▪ Affordability of non-vegetarian 'Thalis' improved by 18 per cent.




Quick review

✓ GDP growth pegged at 6-6.5 per cent in fiscal year starting April 1, up from 5 per cent in

current fiscal

✓ Fiscal deficit target for current fiscal may need to be relaxed to revive growth

✓ Uptick in growth projected in second half of current fiscal based on 10 factors including

higher FDI flows, build up of demand pressure, positive GST revenue growth

✓ Survey asks government to deliver expeditiously on reforms to revive growth

✓ Ethical wealth creation key to India becoming USD 5 trillion economy by 2025

✓ Share of formal employment increased from 17.9 per cent in 2011 -12 to 22.8 per cent in

2017-18 reflecting formalisation in the economy

✓ Theme of Survey is wealth creation, promotion of pro-business policies, strengthening of

trust in the economy

✓ To achieve GDP of USD 5 trillion by 2024-25, India needs to spend about USD 1.4 trillion over

these years on infrastructure

✓ 2.62 crore new jobs created in rural, urban areas between 2011-12 and 2017-18 among

regular wage/salaried employees

✓ 8 per cent increase in regular employment of women in 2017-18 over 2011-12

✓ Excessive government intervention in markets, especially when the market can do the job of

enhancing citizens welfare perfectly well, stifles economic freedom

✓ Debt waivers disrupt the credit culture, reduces formal credit to same farmers

✓ Suggests government to systematically examine areas where it needlessly intervenes and

undermines markets

✓ Calls for improving governance in public sector banks, more disclosures to build trust

✓ Calls for measures to make it easier to start new business, register property, pay taxes,

enforce contracts

✓ Easing of crude prices lowers current account deficit; imports contract more sharply than

exports in first half of current fiscal

✓ Declining inflation from 3.2 per cent in April 2019 to 2.6 per cent in December 2019,

reflecting weakening demand pressure in the economy

✓ GST collections grew by 4.1 per cent for the centre during April-November 2019.


1) Capitalism has guided the world economy to unprecedented prosperity. However, it often encourages short-sightedness and contributes to wide disparities between the rich and the poor. In this light, would it be correct to believe and adopt capitalism for bringing inclusive growth in India? Discuss. (2014)

2) The nature of economic growth in India in recent times is often described as a jobless growth. Do you agree with this view? Give arguments in favour of your answer. (2015)

3) How globalization has led to the reduction of employment in the formal sector of the Indian economy? Is increased informalization detrimental to the development of the country? (2016)




4) Examine the impact of liberalization on companies owned by Indians. Are they competing with the MNCs satisfactorily? Discuss. (2013)

5) “Success of make in India program depends on the success of Skill India programme and radical labour reforms.” Discuss with logical arguments. (2015)

6) It is argued that the strategy of inclusive growth is intended to meet the objectives of inclusiveness and sustainability together. Comment on this statement. (2019)

ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES TO FINANCIAL …JAYANAGAR,BANGALORE – 560069 8880120120 , 8123379686,...

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