NOTE: Please remember that following ‘answers’ are NOT ‘model answers’. They are NOT synopsis too if we go by definition of the term. What we are providing is content that both meets demand of the question and at the same time gives you extra points in the form of background information.
General Studies – 1
Topic: The Freedom Struggle — its various stages and important contributors/contributions from different parts of the country.
Reference: Modern Indian History by Bipin Chandra
Why the question:
The question is based on the topic of Home Rule League movement from GS paper I.
Key Demand of the question:
One has to narrate in detail emergence, significance and decline of the Home Rule League movement during freedom struggle of India.
Directive:
Discuss – This is an all-encompassing directive – you have to debate on paper by going through the details of the issues concerned by examining each one of them. You have to give reasons for both for and against arguments.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
In short, discuss the background of the movement.
Body:
Between the years 1916 and 1918, the Indian independence movement witnessed the growth and spread of the home rule movement spearheaded by leaders like Bal Gangadhar Tilak and Annie Besant. The aim of the home rule movement was the attainment of home rule or a dominion status for India under the British Empire along the lines of countries like Canada and Australia. This movement was carried out through the two home rule leagues.
Explain all the three phases – emergence, significance and decline in detail with necessary events that showcase them.
Conclusion:
Conclude your answer by bringing out the contributions that the movement made to freedom struggle of the country.
Introduction:
The home rule movement was the Indian response to the First World War in a less charged but in a more effective way. With people already feeling the burden of war time miseries caused by high taxation and a rise in prices, Tilak and Annie Besant ready to assume the leadership the movement started with great vigour. Two Indian Home Rule Leagues were organised on the lines of the Irish Home Rule Leagues and they represented the emergence of a new trend of aggressive politics. The League campaign aimed to convey to the common man the message of home rule as self-government.
Body:
Objectives of Home Rule Movement:
- To achieve self-government in India.
- To promote political education and discussion to set up agitation for self-government.
- To build confidence among Indians to speak against the government’s suppression.
- To demand a larger political representation for Indians from the British government.
- To revive political activity in India while maintaining the principles of the Congress Party.
Major contributions of Home Rule Movement to the freedom struggle of India:
- The leagues organised demonstrations and agitations.
- There were public meetings in which the leaders gave fiery speeches.
- They were able to create a stir within the country and alarm the British to such an extent that Annie Besant was arrested in June 1917.
- This move by the British created a nation-wide protest and now even moderate leaders joined the league. Besant was released in September 1917.
- The Home Rule League functioned throughout the year as opposed to the Congress Party whose activities were confined to once a year.
- The movement was able to garner huge support from a lot of educated Indians. In 1917, the two leagues combined had around 40,000 members.
- Many members of the Congress and the Muslim League joined the league. Many prominent leaders like Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Joseph Baptista, G S Kharpade and Sir S Subramanya Iyer were among its members.
- The moderates, extremists and the Muslim League were briefly united through this movement.
- The movement was able to spread political consciousness to more regions in the country.
- This movement led to the Montague Declaration of 1917 in which it was declared that there would be more Indians in the government leading to the development of self-governing institutions ultimately realising responsible governments in India.
- This Declaration, also known as August Declaration, implied that the demand for home rule would no longer be considered seditious. This was the biggest significance of the movement.
Reasons for movement to fade out:
- The movement was not a mass movement. It was restricted to educated people and college students.
- The leagues did not find a lot of support among Muslims, Anglo-Indians and non-Brahmins from Southern India as they thought home rule would mean a rule of the upper caste Hindu majority.
- Many of the moderates were satisfied with the government’s assurance of reforms (as preluded in the Montague Declaration). They did not take the movement further.
- Annie Besant kept oscillating between being satisfied with the government talk of reforms and pushing the home rule movement forward. She was not able to provide firm leadership to her followers. Although ultimately she did call the reforms ‘unworthy of Indian acceptance’.
- In September 1918, Tilak went to England to pursue a libel case against Sir Ignatius Valentine Chirol, British journalist and author of the book ‘Indian Unrest’. The book contained deprecatory comments and had called Tilak the ‘Father of Indian Unrest.’
- The Government made use of Defence of India Act, 1915 to curb the activities of the agitators.
- Students were prohibited from attending Home Rule meetings.
- Tilak was prosecuted and his entry in Punjab and Delhi was banned.
- Indian Press Act of 1910 was imposed on the press and restrictions were enforced.
- Tilak’s absence and Besant’s inability to lead the people led to the movement’s fizzing out.
- The movement was left leaderless with Tilak going abroad and Besant unable to give a positive lead.
- After the war, Mahatma Gandhi gained prominence as a leader of the masses and the Home Rule Leagues merged with the Congress Party in 1920.
Conclusion:
The home rule movement lent a new dimension and a sense of urgency to the national movement. Although its role in the Indian independence movement had been modest, it did succeed in helping to sustain the movement’s impetus during the war years—as manifested in the signing of the Lucknow Pact in December 1916.
General Studies – 2
Topic: India and its neighborhood- relations.
Reference: The Wire
Why the question:
The article brings to us insights on the current situation in and around Pakistan, India and China and explains how the security concerns and development aspirations of India, Pakistan and China are genuine and must be addressed cooperatively.
Key Demand of the question:
Discuss the possible catalyst role that Gilgit Baltistan can play for the development of India, Pakistan and the neighborhood.
Directive:
Discuss – This is an all-encompassing directive – you have to debate on paper by going through the details of the issues concerned by examining each one of them. You have to give reasons for both for and against arguments.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Discuss briefly the context of the question.
Body:
One has to argue that Gilgit Baltistan, instead of remaining a flashpoint, can become a hub for India, Pakistan and China coming together in a new bond of win-win-win cooperation. Of course, for this to happen, the genuine security concerns of the three countries and development aspirations of the local people will have to be properly harmonized.
Explain the associated nuances and present your stand.
Conclusion:
Conclude with a fair and balanced opinion.
Introduction:
Located in the northern region of Pakistan, Gilgit Baltistan borders China in the North, Afghanistan in the west, Tajikistan in the north west and Kashmir in the south east. It shares a geographical boundary with Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, and India considers it as part of the undivided Jammu and Kashmir, while Pakistan sees it as a separate from PoK. It has a regional Assembly and an elected Chief Minister.
Body:
Issues regarding Gilgit Baltistan:
- Political activists have accused Pakistan of changing the demography of Gilgit Baltistan and Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) in disregard to its own commitments.
- Islamabad has gradually diluted its constitution in order to facilitate outsiders to grab the land and resources of illegally occupied areas.
- Islamabad abolished the State Subject Rule in Gilgit Baltistan in 1984, which resulted in demographic changes in the territory. People from different parts of Pakistan are free to purchase land there.
- Pakistan has never kept its end of bargain when comes to Jammu and Kashmir. It has encroached on the land of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK). It has awarded the land of PoJK to China. It is changing the local demography that further violates the State Subject Rule.
- On August 29, 2009, the Gilgit-Baltistan Empowerment and Self-Governance Order 2009, was passed which granted limited autonomy, by creating, among other things, an elected Gilgit-Baltistan Legislative Assembly and Gilgit-Baltistan Council.
- This was overridden by Gilgit Baltistan Order 2018 which entrusted Pakistan with indisputable authority over the region. The order is seen as Islamabad’s efforts towards incorporating the disputed region as its fifth province.
- Currently, Gilgit-Baltistan is neither a province nor a state. It has a semi-provincial status.
- Islamabad has designs to exploit the resources and cash-in the geo-strategic advantages of the region.
- It robs the locals off their resources. It denies them jobs and services. It has never paid royalty on local water resources. It never pays tolls on local transit routes. All these activities are illegal and not acceptable.
- The erstwhile princely state of Jammu and Kashmir was divided because of expansionists’ designs of Pakistan. And since then people are suffering an endless irony under the undemocratic rule of Pakistan.
- Education, health, infrastructure and society have been destroyed. Natural resources have been plundered since a long time. There is no employment for the educated youth.
- It is believed that the Pakistani military has been systematically carrying out operations to keep the people of Gilgit Baltistan and PoK underdeveloped and underprivileged.
- Most of the educated people have also been recruited by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) to propagate in favour of the Pakistani establishment and that is a very dangerous phenomenon.
The China Factor in Gilgit Baltistan:
- Pakistan has the pressure to declare Gilgit Baltistan as province of it so that China can take over its work.
- It is a major presence in the region, by virtue of being a neighbour. In 1963, Pakistan ceded 5,180 sq kms of the Shaksgam Valley to Beijing. In the late 1960s, China began constructing the Karakoram Highway to link Kasghar in Xinjiang province of China with Abbotabad in Pakistan, through the Khunjerab pass.
- Earlier in 2009, India had also formally objected to China undertaking projects in the region, noting that:“Pakistan has been in illegal occupation of parts of the Indian State of Jammu & Kashmir since 1947”and that the Chinese side was fully aware of “India’s position and our concerns about Chinese activities in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.”
- Indian move to recover the region for India will be resisted not only by Pakistan, but China as well, which is digging into the region so as to create a cushion between the jihadi bad-lands of its ally Pakistan.
- So, the Chinese have been active in a range of hydro and road-building projects such as those relating to the Neelum Valley, Diamer Bhasha dam, the extension of the Karakoram Highway, the Sost dry port, the Bunji dam etc.
- China announced massive investments in what is now called the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, India protested again because the corridor passed through Gilgit-Baltistan. The corridor will comprise of oil pipelines, roads and a railway linking Gwadar in Balochistan with Kasghar.
Recent developments:
- Pakistan, in 2017, declared the strategic Gilgit-Baltistan region as its fifth Province.
- Gilgit- Baltistan is part of J&K and any such move would seriously damage Pakistan’s Kashmir case. Two UN resolutions of August 13, 1948 and January 5, 1949 clearly established a link between GB and the Kashmir issue.
- Making the region its fifth province would thus violate the Karachi Agreement — perhaps the only instrument that provides doubtful legal authority to Pakistan’s administration of GB — as well as the UN resolutions that would damage its position on the Kashmir issue.
- Any such move would also be violative of the 1963 Pak-China Boundary Agreement that calls for the sovereign authority to reopen negotiations with China “after the settlement of the Kashmir dispute between Pakistan and India” and of the 1972 Simla Agreement that mentions that “neither side shall unilaterally alter the situation”.
India’s stand:
- Entire state of Jammu and Kashmir, which also includes the so-called ‘Gilgit-Baltistan’ has been, is and shall remain an integral part of India.
- Pakistan government or judiciary have no locus standi on territories illegally and forcibly occupied by it. Any action to alter the status of these occupied territories by Pakistan has no legal basis whatsoever.
Gilgit-Baltistan as a catalyst for development – A way forward:
- India, Pakistan and China should begin a trilateral dialogue for dispute-resolution, cooperation and common development. The problems in Jammu and Kashmir have become trilateral in nature, especially after the India-China standoff at the LAC in eastern Ladakh. Therefore, the solutions to these problems, acceptable to all concerned, can only come out of a trilateral dialogue.
- The most important component of any trilateral dialogue must be a firm and solemn commitment by the three countries that none of them shall pose a security threat to the other.
- In deference to the legitimate aspirations of the people of Kashmir on both sides, and also to end the horrific conflict in Kashmir and prolonged suffering of Kashmiri people, India and Pakistan should agree on the following:
- Converting the LoC into a “soft border” (thus making it “irrelevant”);
- De-militarising both sides of Kashmir, ending gross violations of human rights, and ensuring the honourable return and rehabilitation of displaced people, regardless of their religion, such as the Kashmiri Pandits;
- Enabling free trade and free movement of people;
- Guaranteeing maximum self-governance, and even joint governance on relevant subjects;
- An India-Pakistan joint mechanism to make this fair and innovative solution work.
- The bane of governance in this entire region is excessive concentration of powers in central government. Given the extraordinary religious, linguistic and ethnic diversity of the people living in this region, it is extremely important to ensure genuine democratic autonomy, people’s effective participation in the affairs that impact their lives, protection of the rights of minorities, and strict action against majoritarian chauvinism.
Conclusion:
The Himalayas are the heavenly abode of Gilgit Baltistan. Since time immemorial, the Himalaya Sphere and the mighty river civilisations it engendered — the Indus and Ganga on the India-Pakistan side and the Yangtse and Huanghe on the Chinese side — have proclaimed the unity of humanity. Indeed, unity of everything in the universe has been the profounder wisdom of all the sages who meditated in the Himalayas. There is undeniable resonance between the Indian spiritual goal of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ (the whole world is one single family) and the Chinese spiritual goal of ‘Tianxia Datong’ (grand harmony of all-under-Heaven).
Therefore, it is time for India, Pakistan and China to rediscover this civilizational wisdom and strive for “expansionism” of a different kind — expansion of the minds and hearts in South Asia. After all, Gilgit Baltistan is the region, full of some of the world’s tallest mountains and stunningly beautiful valleys, which served as the pathway for prosperity-promoting traders and peace-preaching saints, monks and dervishes along the ancient “Silk Road”.
Topic : GS-2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.
GS-3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.
Reference: Hindustan Times
Why the question:
The article presents to us a case of importance of travel-tourism- hospitality sector and the possible role that it can play in generating employment post-pandemic.
Key Demand of the question:
Explain in what possible ways can of travel-tourism- hospitality sector play a key role in generating employment and revenue to the States of the country.
Directive:
Analyze – When asked to analyse, you have to examine methodically the structure or nature of the topic by separating it into component parts and present them as a whole in a summary.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
One can start by explaining the urge of travelling in the current COVID times.
Body:
Explain in what way travel- tourism- hospitality is one sector which may be a biggest savior in a post-COVID-19 world in terms of generating opportunities for employment and bringing revenue to the state.
List down the significance of Tourism in general to India and explain the impact it had taken due to the pandemic.
Explain ways and means through which the tourism sector can be revived and rejuvenated and discuss its possible contributions to our economy.
Conclusion:
Conclude with way forward.
Introduction:
The cascading effect of the global coronavirus pandemic is crippling the tourism and hospitality industry at an “astonishing pace”. Media reports suggest Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTA) in India have come down by about 67 per cent annually in the January-March quarter, while for domestic tourists, the figure is lower by nearly 40 per cent. The travel and tourism sector alone accounted for 9.2 per cent of India’s GDP in 2018, and generated 26.7 million jobs in that year.
Body:
Present Sector of Tourism sector:
- India is the most digitally advanced traveller nation in terms of digital tools being used for planning, booking and experiencing a journey, India’s rising middle class and increasing disposable incomes has continued to support the growth of domestic and outbound tourism.
- During 2018, foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) in India stood at 10.56 million, achieving a growth rate of 5.20 per cent year-on-year During January-November 2019, Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) were 96,69,633 with the growth of 3.2 per cent.
- During January-November 2019, a total of 25,51,211 tourist arrived on e-Tourist Visa registering a growth of 23.8 per cent.
- The travel & tourism sector in India accounted for 8 per cent of the total employment opportunities generated in the country in 2017, providing employment to around 41.6 million people during the same year. The number is expected to rise by 2 per cent annum to 52.3 million jobs by 2028.
- International hotel chains are increasing their presence in the country, as it will account for around 47 per cent share in the Tourism & Hospitality sector of India by 2020 & 50 per cent by 2022.
- Travel and tourism industry contributed a tenth of India’s GDP in 2018 and accounts for 42 million jobs in the country, report says. In India, over Rs 16 trillion were created by this sector alone. The same is expected to double by 2029, reaching Rs 35 trillion mark. Also, the industry has given a major boost to the global economy as well with it contributing over 10% to the global GDP.
- Currently India is the seventh largest tourism industry. 29 states, 4000 cities, rich history, incredible diversity India all set to become third largest in next 10 years.
- Tourism contribution to economy to double. Expected to add 5.23 crore jobs in 2028.
- India doing well in medical tourism, business tourism, ecological tourism, pilgrimage tourism, historical tourism, adventure tourism.
Coronavirus impact:
- Tourism creates a large number of semi-skilled jobs for the local population in not only local hotels and catering trades but also in other fields like transport, retailing, heritage interpretation etc. It is believed that around 70 per cent out of a total 5.5 crore workforce could get unemployed, which is around 3.8 crore people. This effect of job losses and layoffs has already begun throughout the country.
- The Indian hospitality sector is staring at a loss of $4.2 billion to $4.7 billion in revenues due to coronavirus outbreak.
- The loss to the organised market, which is about 5 per cent of the total lodging sector in the country, is estimated to range between $1.3 billion and $1.55 billon. This amounts to an erosion of 27-32 per cent of the overall revenues as compared to the previous financial year.
- The hospitality sector is entirely dependent on travel, trade, and tourism for its sustenance. The massive spate of cancellations in recent weeks has largely eroded the ability of hotels across India to operate without piling up worrisome losses.
- The devastating impact of coronavirus could result in 18-20 per cent erosion of nationwide occupancy across the sector, and 12-14 per cent drop in average daily rates (ADRs) for the entire 2020.
- At present, about 15-25 per cent of the employees in the branded hotel chains are either contracted or casual staff. Under the current circumstances, these people would be first to be laid off by the hotel companies.
- Early signs of reduced travel became evident in the middle of February but the biggest shock was felt in March when large-scale cancellations across the corporate, MICE and leisure segments happened.
- The situation is likely to remain grim over the next two-three months with companies adopting “work from home” and “no travel” policies.
- Impact of the virus to begin waning by June-July, and business to pick up in the second half of the year. “It is also our assumption that as the last few months of 2020 come by, it is likely that inbound travel may still be a fraction of what India gets in typical years.
- With the current crisis in the tourism sector, which contributes roughly 10 per cent to India’s GDP (about $275 billion), the impact on the macro-economy is expected to be huge
Tourism has the potential to be one of the main pillars of India’s economy in post Covid-19 recovery:
- Employment:
- Tourism creates a large number of semi-skilled jobs for the local population in not only local hotels and catering trades but also in other fields like transport, retailing, heritage interpretation etc.
- Moreover, it ensures revival of traditional arts, crafts, building art etc. and brings marketing opportunity for rural producers to sell their products directly to the tourists.
- It allows alternative sources of earning opportunities from non-agricultural sectors that improve living standards of the rural dwellers to some extent.
- Job Retention:
- Cash flows generating from rural tourism can assist job retention in services such as retailing, transport, hospitality, medical care etc. It provides additional income for farmers, local fishermen and local suppliers.
- Alternative Business Opportunities:
- Tourism generates new business opportunities through developing close relationships with tourist facilities.
- For example, a number of tourists love to taste local cuisines of different tourist spots. Therefore, any restaurant serving ethnic foods can also attract tourists though many of these restaurants are not directly related to tourism business.
- Poverty Alleviation:
- Rural Tourism is being admired all over the world because such form of tourism can shape up rural society both by economic and social terms.
- It brings both monetary and social benefits to the rural people.
- It alleviates poverty by creating alternative sources of earning
- Downfall of income level from agriculture and related works
- Lack of alternative way outs for earning sufficient money
- Scope for new business opportunities:
- Changing attitude in Indian and global tourists behaviour in terms of nature awareness and increasing demand for niche tourism and green products. So it is evident that the future of Rural Tourism in India is going to be very promising one.
- Maintaining the sustainable livelihood:
- It has a great impact in case of maintaining the sustainable livelihood of the rural population, promoting local culture and heritages, empowering local women, alleviating poverty, conserving and preserving natural resources, improving basic rural infrastructure, adopting new work culture and overall developing a better impression of locality and its people in tourists’ mind.
- Reduces migration:
- Tourism facilitates the declining areas to be developed with basic infrastructure facilities and provides the host community alternative ways of employment and side by side it reduces out-migration.
- It fosters a closer relationship between city dwellers and rural communities.
- Alternative Way of Earning:
- Tourism can be a potential tool to reduce over-dependency on cultivation especially in rural areas and it contributes to the overall economic development of an area that would otherwise be deprived.
- Empowerment of Localities
- Tourism cannot be flourished without the involvement of local people in it.
- Accommodation facilities are being provided by local hotel owners whereas local suppliers supply food and beverages to the local hotels.
- Local producers produce locally made products as per tourists’ demand and earn money by selling them in the local market.
- To entertain tourists, local organizers conduct different cultural programmes where local performers exhibit their art and culture through live performance.
- Not only that, people also become engaged in different decision-making processes. All such engagement actually empowers the localities.
- Arts and Crafts Sale:
- Arts and crafts are the evidence of local culture and heritages of a community belonging from any region or any nation. The urban tourists, wherever they go, generally prefer to have a collection of local arts and crafts to make their trip-experience a remembering one.
- Such tendency motivates them to purchase local arts and crafts from the local producers and artists.
- Side by side it encourages the local community to sell their products in local market. Such practice opens an alternative way of earning to the rural people.
- Environmental Improvement:
- Environmental improvements such as village paving and traffic regulation schemes, sewage and litter disposal can be assisted by tourism revenues and political pressures from tourism authorities.
- These help develop pride of place, important in retaining existing population and businesses, and in attracting new enterprises and families.
- Heritage Preservation:
- Tourism brings a strong sense of emotion in everyone’s (both community and tourists) mind to preserve and reserve the local culture and heritages to make any place attractive for the tourists to visit it and also for the host community to live in.
- Such sense is maintained through rural museums that play a significant role in local heritage preservation.
- Source of Foreign Exchange Earnings:
- Tourism is an important source of foreign exchange earnings in India. This has favourable impact on the balance of payment of the country.
- The tourism industry in India generated about US$100 billion in 2008 and that is expected to increase to US$275.5 billion by 2018 at a 9.4% annual growth rate.
Conclusion:
India’s travel and tourism industry has huge growth potential. The tourism industry is also looking forward to the expansion of E-visa scheme which is expected to double the tourist inflow to India. India’s travel and tourism industry has the potential to expand by 2.5 per cent on the back of higher budgetary allocation and low-cost healthcare facility. The next step is where all the action is. Once the outbreak of the virus is contained and the world is set to travel again, any plan of re-opening must be done keeping long-term benefits and safety compliances in mind.
General Studies – 3
Topic: Major crops-cropping patterns in various parts of the country, – different types of irrigation and irrigation systems storage, transport and marketing of agricultural produce and issues and related constraints; e-technology in the aid of farmers.
Reference: The Print
Why the question:
The question talks about the significance of Millets to Agriculture diversification in the country.
Key Demand of the question:
One has to explain in what way cultivation of millets is indispensable for agriculture diversification in India.
Directive:
Discuss – This is an all-encompassing directive – you have to debate on paper by going through the details of the issues concerned by examining each one of them. You have to give reasons for both for and against arguments.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
With nearly 60 percent of India’s cultivated area is rain-fed; the damage caused by climate change is huge in agriculture sector. In order to save the farmers from such calamities, climate smart agricultural practices are increasingly promoted by government and other stakeholders.
Body:
Start by explaining the fact that Millets cultivation is one such practice which seems to be the answer to fighting climate change, poverty and malnutrition.
Present few key statistics explaining and justifying the question context.
In the last few decades, India has evinced a sharp decline in the area under millets due to several factors. The decrease in cultivated area is about 80% for small millets, 46% for finger millet, 59% for sorghum, and 23% for pearl millet.
Explain the factor of agriculture diversification; discuss how Millets can prove to be a corner stone.
Conclusion:
Conclude with importance of it.
Introduction:
With nearly 60 percent of India’s cultivated area is rain-fed, the damage caused by climate change is huge in agriculture sector. In order to save the farmers from such calamities, climate smart agricultural practices are increasingly promoted by government and other stakeholders. Millets cultivation is one such practice which seems to be the answer to fighting climate change, poverty and malnutrition.
Body:
Millets cultivation in India:
- Rainfed farming which covers approximately 60 percent of the total farming area in the country contributes 44% of the total food grain production of the country, produces 75% of pulses and more than 90% of sorghum, millet and groundnut from arid and semi-arid regions.
- Millets are traditionally being grown in rainfed conditions especially by the marginal farmers and tribals. Millets are among the oldest cultivated crops in India and rest of the world.
- Millets comprise two main groups of species, major millets includes Sorghum and pearl millets and the minor millets are represented by six cultivated species viz. Little millets, Indian barnyard millets, Kodo millet, Foxtail millets, Finger millets, Proso millet.
- Nearly 60 million acres of land in India are under millet cultivation. India is the largest producer of sorghum and millets, accounting for over 80% of Asia’s production.
- In the last few decades, India has evinced a sharp decline in the area under millets due to several factors. The decrease in cultivated area is about 80% for small millets, 46% for finger millet, 59% for sorghum, and 23% for pearl millet.
- The production of small millets has also decreased significantly from 56.24 in 1960 to 30.52 in 2010. State policies related to crop loan, subsidies, favourable conditions for commercial agriculture, supply of food items like rice, wheat, maida and rava at reasonable cost through the public distribution system (PDS), have shaped the minds of people to neglect minor millets.
- The food policies pursued over the years have pushed many people away from millets despite it being more nutritious than rice and wheat.vThe approach of selective utilisation of crops and varieties have reportedly threatened agro biodiversity leading to rapid erosion of natural resources and consequently affecting the nutritional security of people.
- It is the impacts of climate change for which the so far unrecognised millets have received a fair recognition. Global bodies are pushing millets farming with the idea that it reduces agriculture’s carbon footprint while ensuring food and nutritional security.
- In India and other parts of the world, a growing number of farmers are switching to millets cultivation. The Consultative Group on International Agriculture Research (CGIAR) has suggested that millets are the way forward for countries like India where food security and nutrient security are a major challenge and as water-guzzling wheat and paddy will face tough challenges with temperatures increase due to global warming.
- CGIAR has estimated that the global production of wheat, rice and maize could decrease by 13 to 20 percent in the coming decades because of climate change. Global agricultural production will have to battle against this loss, even as production needs to rise by an estimated 70 percent to feed the 9 billion people by 2050.
- As India’s agriculture suffers hugely from the vagaries of monsoon, millets which are also known as “famine reserves” for their prolonged and easy storability under ordinary are of great relevance. They are most suitable for mixed and intercropping, thus offer sustainable resources use, food and livelihood security to farmers.
- Additionally, given the fact that millets are very good source of nutrients, developing countries like India which reports dramatic rates of malnutrition (around one fifth of the population) particularly among children and women, promotion of millets farming can help in fighting malnutrition.
- The 2014 National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) report has revealed the exponential drop in the consumption of hardy millets from 32.9 kg in 1960 to 4.2 kg in 2010 since urbanisation made Indians switch to wheat and rice. Cultivated as dual-purpose crops (food & fodder), millets contribute to the economic efficiency of farming and provide food/livelihood security to millions of households, particularly the small/marginal farmers and the inhabitants of rain fed/remote tribal regions.
- Research says that a 1% productivity increase could reduce poverty by 0.65% (National Centre for Agricultural Economics and Policy Research Report, 2011). Increasing productivity is more important in rain fed areas as these are 30% less productive than irrigated areas. It seems that millets could be the answer to fighting climate change, poverty and malnutrition.
Importance of millets cultivation:
From a farm diversification perspective:
- Millets probably provides the best option to the farmers for achieving the triple objectives of farming i.e profitability, adaptability and sustainability. The millets based farming systems have the following advantages;
- Millets are highly tolerant to increased temperatures, droughts and floods. Millets can be cultivated well in dry zones/rain-fed areas under marginal conditions of soil fertility and moisture. These are grown in the sand dunes of Rajasthan.
- Water requirement is very less as compared to other crops due to an efficient root system. For example, pearl and finger millet can make do with 28% of paddy’s rainfall needs. Figure 1 illustrates a comparative picture on water requirement by various cereal;
- The short rotation (65 days) characteristic of the millets is of vital importance to meet the food demand, especially in the highly populated regions.
- Storage life is comparatively high (two years or beyond).
- Millets farming requires a small investment.
- Inputs added are mostly organic.
- Millets produce more tillers or branches than other crops.
- They provide both food and fodder.
From human nutrition perspective:
- Millets are rich source of nutrients. A regular consumption can help to overcome malnutrition among majority of our Indian population. Research has established the following nutritional contributions of millets;
- Millets are richer in calcium, iron, beta-carotene etc. than rice and wheat.
- Millets are rich in dietary fibre, which is negligible in rice. Jowar has 8 times more fibre, ragi has 40 times more calcium and bajra has 8 times more iron and 5 times more both riboflavin and folic acid than rice.9
- Millets help check diabetes, improves digestive system, reduces cancer risk and strengthen the immune system.
- With no gluten and low glycaemic index, millet diet is ideal for those with celiac diseases and diabetes.
- Millets contain high amounts of lecithin are useful for strengthening the nervous system.
- Millets are comparatively richer in minerals and fibres.
From environmental perspective:
- The added advantage of millets cultivation is that it takes into account the concerns of soil and water pollution and climate change.
- The millets don’t need synthetic fertilizers or pesticide and mostly grown with organic inputs. The fact that millets are less affected by diseases and pests thus keeps pesticides at bay.
- Millets help in reducing the atmospheric CO2 and thus contribute in mitigating the climate change. They have a good ability to sequester carbon and so help climate adaptation, particularly the global projection of increased methane emission from rice fields.
Way forward and Conclusion:
- As millets farming has been traditionally fitted within the multi cropping farming approach, it needs to be ensured that millets do not follow the monoculture route under the government extension programmes.
- Government should make provisions for incentives to encourage millets cultivation.
- Greater thrust must be given to value additionof the millets to increase demand among the urban consumers.
- Government and CSOs should work together to generate awareness about the benefits conferred by millets and their role in nutrition and carbon sequestration needs.
- Farm mechanisation should be equally prioritized to remove the drudgery associated with its traditional processing of millets.
- The small and marginal farmers in India are facing multiple problems in operating their farms, many of which are systemic and reinforced by other factors in the environment: The farming systems that we need today need to be more resilient and diversified to meet the food and nutrition demands of the nation while ensuring sustainable use of natural resources. GoI and the state governments have taken several progressive measures during the last decade to promote millets farming on a mission mode and increase awareness among the populace particularly the urban Indians for increased consumption of millets. As a result of which, millets are gaining attention and have been prioritized to a greater extent.
Reference: epw.in
Why the question:
Question talks about the impacts of rising protectionism and trade nationalism in global trade.
Key Demand of the question:
Explain with suitable examples impacts of rising protectionism and trade nationalism in global trade.
Directive:
Discuss – This is an all-encompassing directive – you have to debate on paper by going through the details of the issues concerned by examining each one of them. You have to give reasons for both for and against arguments.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Start by defining what protectionism and trade nationalism mean in global trade.
Body:
Explain how rising protectionism could harm trade and activity. Reversing trade integration may put at risk the net economic gains that it generated. By unraveling the long-term benefits of closer trade and investment links, retreating into protectionism also has the potential to unsettle global financial markets.
Globalization has resulted in greater interconnectedness among markets around the world and increased communication and awareness of business opportunities in the far corners of the globe.
Explain the impact in detail with some examples.
Conclusion:
Conclude with way forward and solutions to overcome such issues.
Introduction:
Trade protectionism and nationalism is defined as a nation, or sometimes a group of nations working in conjunction as a trade bloc, creating trade barriers with the specific goal of protecting its economy from the possible perils of international trading. This is the opposite of free trade in which a government allows its citizenry to purchase goods and services from other countries or to sell their goods and services to other markets without any governmental restrictions, interference, or hindrances. The objective of trade protectionism is to protect a nation’s vital economic interests such as its key industries, commodities, and employment of workers.
Body:
There are various methods of trade protectionism whose goal is to protect a nation’s economic well-being. These include:
- Tariffs: which are a tax on imports from other countries and foreign markets. Here, the government imposing the tariff is looking to restrict imports of foreign goods and services, protect its own industries and companies manufacturing such items and raise tax revenues. Tariffs could be specific in which there is a fixed tax rate or fee for each unit of a product or commodity brought into a nation. There are also ad valorem tariffs which are set as a proportion of the value of the imported product.
- Quotas: are a direct restriction on the number of certain goods, products, and commodities that may be permitted to be imported into a nation. This import quota is generally enforced by the issuance of import licenses to a certain group of persons or companies. There is also voluntary export restraint (VER) that acts as a trade quota imposed by an exporting nation. VERs can also come in the form of political pressure on a nation by another country in order to stop the export of goods or commodities.
- Subsidies: are government payments to domestic producers. This can come in the form of cash payments, low-to-no interest loans, tax breaks, and government ownership of common stock in domestic companies. Subsidies help domestic producers by having extra cash available for production of goods thereby lowering manufacturing costs and allowing these same companies to gain foreign markets.
- Local content requirements: may be imposed by a nation seeking to decrease imports by setting a manufacturing requirement in which a stated part or parts of a product must be made domestically. This occurs by having a percent of a product manufactured domestically or that in value terms, such as 85 percent of its value, must be made locally.
- Administrative trade policies: consist of bureaucratic rules, laws, and regulations designed to create serious difficulties for an importer of goods or commodities into a particular nation. Formal trade barriers can come in the form of onerous rules, regulations, administrative requirements, and paperwork to be completed. Informal trade barriers include the inspection of every product, good, and commodity entering a nation in order to check for disease or suspicious content. This can take time, effort, and may often severely damage the item being inspected. Administrative policies can also involve setting high-level health and safety standards and difficult-to-obtain import licenses for foreign producers.
- Antidumping policies: are enacted by a nation in order to prevent the selling of goods in a foreign market at a price far below their production costs in order to gain a substantial share of that nation’s market. Anti-dumping rules can also include regulations prohibiting the sale of goods, products, or commodities below its fair market value.
- Exchange rate controls: can be used to make a nation’s product cheaper abroad by lowering the value of its currency in the foreign exchange markets. The premise is that a nation can sell its currency in foreign exchange markets to the point where its loses value against other currencies. This will cause the price of imports to rise while lowering the cost of its exports. This will help a nation, whether developed or developing, increase the opportunity to sell its products and goods in foreign markets.
Effects of Trade Protectionism on global trade:
Despite the intent of certain economists and policymakers, trade protectionism has certain long and short-term effects on a nation’s macro-economy and often the global economy. These effects include:
- Consumers’ limited choice and pay more for goods and services:
- A key effect of trade protectionism is that consumers will have a limited choice of products and goods since there may be quotas on how much may be imported. Due to these quotas, consumers will have a very limited choice as to the quantity, quality, and type of product that would otherwise be available to them without trade protectionism.
- Protectionist policies that intended to safeguard industries, companies, and jobs actually mean that consumers are limited in the availability of products and goods and may have to settle for poor quality instead.
- Another problem that consumers will face is that they will have to pay more for the limited quantity of goods and products, thus causing inflation to possibly greatly increase. If consumers have a limited choice, must settle for lower quality, and pay more for a particular product, then they may either pay that amount, purchase less of that product, or not make a purchase at all.
- Domestic firms may also be hurt financially since they may have to purchase parts to make their products and then pass the increased cost on to the consumer. Overall, global competition is a key factor in keeping the price of numerous goods and products down and give consumers the ability to spend.
- Infant industries may never grow up due to government trade protection policies”
- A nation can use the policy of protecting its infant industry, but for how long is a key concern. The protection of an infant industry may actually end up costing a government significant amount of money and financial resources in order to protect its infant industry.
- This may actually promote inefficiencies by the infant industry and have no incentive to make efficient, intelligent, long-term investments by borrowing funds or issuing common stock from the domestic international capital markets.
- This type of protectionism may hinder the growing pains and maturation process that are vital for an infant industry to experience in the short and long-term if it is to be successful and competitive in global markets and eventually have a comparative advantage.
- Exchange rate controls that causes long-term inflation:
- Since the domestic nation has kept the value of its currency low. By having its currency decrease in value so that it can sell its products and goods at cheaper prices in foreign markets, any foreign products sold in its market will actually see prices increase.
- Consumers will be forced to pay higher prices for goods, products, and commodities they need to survive. The problem is that a nation may have a good intention of helping its industries be competitive abroad while its citizens pay higher prices at home.
- A trade war among nations:
- A serious problem with trade protectionism is that nations will take reciprocal action if there are trade protection policies put into effect. The problem here is that nations will retaliate if they cannot sell their goods and products in markets where they normally could.
- No matter if those nations are political and military allies, nations will impose countervailing tariffs, quotas, subsidies, and exchange rate controls, to name a few, in order to deal with another nation’s actions. For example, the United States and Japan, long-time allies, both politically and militarily since the end of World War II, have invoked tariffs and administrative trade policies against each other. This has ended up costing the consumers of the respective countries billions of dollars in increased costs and limited consumer choices.
- A trade war will ultimately mean increased import costs as manufacturers and producers must pay more for equipment, commodities, and intermediate products from foreign markets.
- This will also affect a nation’s real GDP growth. According to a study by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), a permanent 10 percent increase in American tariffs on imports from all parts of the globe will result in a permanent 1 percent decrease in real GDP.
- Protecting jobs and industries:
- Is a political argument for trade protectionism from the viewpoint that protecting worker’s livelihood and the industries and the firms that employ them are vital to a nation’s economic growth and well-being.
- The premise is that without trade protectionism a nation could lose long-established industries and companies that first made a product in a particular nation. This will eventually result in the loss of jobs, rising unemployment, and eventual decrease of a nation’s gross domestic product (GDP).
Way forward:
- Multilateral co-operation is needed to maintain an open global economy.
- Some international issues simply cannot be fixed bilaterally. These include environmental issues such as climate change, critical economic issues like trade and the functioning of the international financial system.
- One pernicious consequence of abandoning multilateralism is the mounting complexity and discriminatory nature of global trading arrangements.
- Even though it is a lengthy and time consuming process, the settlement of disputes through international conventions and rules is the need of the hour.
- One real benefit of the multilateral systems like WTO is that the same rules, more or less, apply to everyone.
- Major trading powers, such as Japan and the EU, should continue to insist on the importance of maintaining a rules-based trading system, with the WTO at its core.
- WTO dispute settlement resolution mechanism should be approached instead of unilateral decisions.
- The benefit of the WTO process is that it prevents the damaging consequences of trade protectionism.
- Nations can resolve their disputes through WTO instead of raising tariffs.
- Trade disputes should be resolved within the WTO framework. As economists have pointed out, when assessing economic relationships, what matters is not a country’s bilateral trade balance with a specific trading partner but its overall trade balance with the rest of the world.
Conclusion:
Trade liberalisation within the framework of multilateral cooperation has been a key factor driving global economic prosperity. Trade integration helped to drive economic growth in advanced and developing economies in the second part of the 20th century, while also helping to pull hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. At the same time, although free trade is often seen as one of the factors behind rising inequality both within and across countries, winding back globalisation is the wrong way to address these negative effects.
A retreat from openness will only fuel more inequality, depriving people of the undisputed economic advantages that trade and integration bring. Instead, countries should seek to resolve any trade disputes in multilateral fora. By encouraging regulatory convergence, multilateral cooperation helps to protect people from the unwelcome consequences of openness, and therefore remains crucial as a response to concerns about the fairness and equity of trade.
General Studies – 4
Topic: Ethics and Human Interface: Essence, determinants and consequences of Ethics in-human actions; dimensions of ethics; ethics – in private and public relationships. Human Values – lessons from the lives and teachings of great leaders, reformers and administrators; role of Family society and educational institutions in inculcating values.
6. Differentiate between Moral Relativism vs. Ethical Absolutism. (250 words)
Reference: Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude by Lexicon Publications
Why the question:
The question is straightforward and is based on the concepts of Moral Relativism and Ethical Absolutism.
Key Demand of the question:
One must differentiate between of Moral Relativism and Ethical Absolutism.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
First, define the two terms – of Moral Relativism and Ethical Absolutism.
Body:
According to moral relativism, two people from different situations could disagree on whether an action is right or wrong, and they would both be right. Ethical absolutism is the concept that ethical rules are the same everywhere.
Discuss the two concepts in detail with examples and highlight the differences and their importance.
Conclusion:
Conclude with their significance.
Introduction:
Absolutism is the idea that there is one right answer, independent of context or perspective. There is only one right way to represent something. Referring to something that is unchanging and always that way. We can say something is true, unconditionally, no matter what. For example, the statement all rectangles have four sides. That is considered an absolute statement. It holds true no matter what. We cannot have a three sided rectangle, can we? Some of the main absolutist philosophers include: Plato, Aristotle, and Immanuel Kant.
Relativism is the idea of using the context of different perspectives. We can say something is true relative to a point of view. For example, relative to an object, person, time, location, etc… The statement all rectangles have four sides can be relative. There are quadrangles (objects with four sides) and non-quadrangles (objects that don’t have four sides). The non-quadrangles help define the identity of quadrangles. And perhaps, the term rectangle can take on a different meaning based on time or location. For instance, definitions to terminology can change over time and the word rectangle might have a different meaning to individuals in another region. Some of the main relativist philosophers include: Protagoras, Thomas Kuhn, and Paul Feyerabend.
Body:
In a way, you could say the difference is between outside and inside. Moral absolute is something that exists beyond us. We may work hard to adapt it to ourselves and we may fully embrace it internally, but the standard itself exists whether we maintain it or not. It’s the moral equivalent of two plus two equals four. You can translate that into different bases or numbering systems, but the basic concepts concerning value and the properties of addition will always be absolute. It’s solid ground; however, the downside of that is, moral absolutism can produce rigid judgementalism and terrible injustices in the face of failure and enforcement. Example, caste system, women rights etc.
Relative values react to the outer environment, but are driven by the internal one. What’s right and wrong not only changes because of circumstances, it changes because of which individual is doing the deciding. It is highly adaptive and flexible, but moral relativism can produce a moral quagmire of rationalization. Harmful, immoral behavior—behavior that hurts others but indulges the self—because it’s “right for me” is moral relativism at its worst.
We have them both in our world and in our societies and in our lives and we always have. Being a person requires some moral standards of some kind, and living in the world requires some adaptation and flexibility. We have to respond to our environment—and we have to have something to respond with.
There are no societies that approve of harming others as a general practice. That’s a moral absolute, but there are and always have been societies that apply that relatively. No society is without its examples of harming the weak and defenseless, often based on social status, race, gender, age, sexual behavior, or beliefs.
There are no societies that believe injustice is a good thing. We all want justice for ourselves and our families; that’s an absolute. But there are no societies that practice justice consistently for rich and poor, foreigner and native, male and female alike at all times. We adapt to the demands of environment. We get pragmatic. We protect ourselves at other’s expense.
Conclusion:
We believe in what’s right. We believe in upholding the absolute of truth and right—not just who is right. But we pick loyalty—our loved one, our family, our team—our race—over loyalty to truth more often than not. We practice relativism and bend the truth to protect. We make excuses for our own. We apply the absolutes to others. We believe in absolutes; we practice relativism.
Moral absolutism and moral relativism are two sides of the same coin.
Topic: corporate governance
Reference: Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude by Lexicon Publications
Why the question:
The question is based on the concept of corporate governance.
Key Demand of the question:
Explain in detail the concept of corporate governance and its potential to address the problems of conflict of interest in business sector.
Directive:
Discuss – This is an all-encompassing directive – you have to debate on paper by going through the details of the issues concerned by examining each one of them. You have to give reasons for both for and against arguments.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Define what corporate governance is.
Body:
Corporate governance is the term used to describe the balance among participants in the corporate structure who have an interest in the way in which the corporation is run, such as executive staff, shareholders and members of the community.
Discuss the common key issues in corporate governance.
Explain the reasons causing conflict of interest in business sector. Discuss the role that corporate governance can play in resolving the same.
Conclusion:
Conclude with its importance.
Introduction:
Corporate governance is the system of rules, practices, and processes by which a firm is directed and controlled. Corporate governance essentially involves balancing the interests of a company’s many stakeholders, such as shareholders, senior management executives, customers, suppliers, financiers, the government, and the community. Since corporate governance also provides the framework for attaining a company’s objectives, it encompasses practically every sphere of management, from action plans and internal controls to performance measurement and corporate disclosure.
Ethics is at the core of corporate governance, and management must reflect accountability for their actions on the global community scale.
Body:
Corporate governance establishes the relationship, among various primary participants of the firms those are shareholders, directors, and managers, in formulating the directions and performance of their firms. In a broader sense, it delineates the rights and responsibilities of each primary stakeholder and the design of institutions and mechanisms that induce or control board directors and management to best serve the economic interests of shareholders along with safeguarding the interest of other stakeholders of a firm.
A company’s corporate governance is important to investors since it shows a company’s direction and business integrity. Good corporate governance helps companies build trust with investors and the community. As a result, corporate governance helps promote financial viability by creating a long-term investment opportunity for market participants.
Communicating a firm’s corporate governance is a key component of community and investor relations. Example, On Apple Inc.’s investor relations site, for example, the firm outlines its corporate leadership—its executive team, its board of directors—and its corporate governance, including its committee charters and governance documents, such as bylaws, stock ownership guidelines and articles of incorporation.
Most companies strive to have a high level of corporate governance. For many shareholders, it is not enough for a company to merely be profitable; it also needs to demonstrate good corporate citizenship through environmental awareness, ethical behavior, and sound corporate governance practices. Good corporate governance creates a transparent set of rules and controls in which shareholders, directors, and officers have aligned incentives.
Corporate governance and conflict of interest:
In recent years, the ownership structure of companies has changed a lot. Public financial institutions, mutual funds, etc. are the single largest shareholder in most of the large companies. So, they have effective control on the management of the companies. They force the management to use corporate governance. That is, they put pressure on the management to become more efficient, transparent, accountable, etc. They also ask the management to make consumer-friendly policies, to protect all social groups and to protect the environment. So, the changing ownership structure has resulted in corporate governance.
Conflicts of interest abound at the board level. They constitute a significant issue in that they affect ethics by distorting decision making and generating consequences that can undermine the credibility of boards, organizations or even entire economic systems.
- A director should not take advantage of his or her position. As the key decision makers within the organization, board members should act in the interest of the key stakeholders, whether owners or society at large, and not in their own.
- Major conflicts of interest could include, but are not restricted to, salaries and perks, misappropriation of company assets, self-dealing, appropriating corporate opportunities, insider trading, and neglecting board work. All board members are expected to act ethically at all times, notify promptly of any material facts or potential conflicts of interest and take appropriate corrective action.
- This will help us prevent scam like Harshad Mehta scam.
- Another conflict of interest is when a board member’s duty of loyalty to stakeholders or the company is compromised. This would happen when certain board members exercise influence over the others through compensation, favors, a relationship, or psychological manipulation.
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- Even though some directors describe themselves as “independent of management, company, or major shareholders,” they may find themselves faced with a conflict of interest if they are forced into agreeing with a dominant board member. Under particular circumstances, some independent directors form a distinct stakeholder group and only demonstrate loyalty to the members of that group. They tend to represent their own interest rather than the interests of the companies.
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- When the interests of stakeholder groups are not appropriately balanced or harmonized is another potential conflict. Shareholders appoint board members, usually outstanding individuals, based on their knowledge and skills and their ability to make good decisions.
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- Once a board has been formed, its members have to face conflicts of interest between stakeholders and the company, between different stakeholder groups, and within the same stakeholder group.
- When a board’s core duty is to care for a particular set of stakeholders, such as shareholders, all rational and high-level decisions are geared to favor that particular group, although the concerns of other stakeholders may still be recognized.
- Board members have to address any conflicts responsibly and balance the interests of all individuals involved in a contemplative, proactive manner.
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- At a larger scale, conflicts are those between a company and society and arise when a company acts in its own interests at the expense of society.
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- The doctrine of maximizing profitability may be used as justification for deceiving customers, polluting the environment, evading taxes, squeezing suppliers, and treating employees as commodities.
- Companies that operate in this way are not contributors to society. Instead, they are viewed as value extractors.
- Conscientious directors are able to distinguish good from bad and are more likely to act as stewards for safeguarding long-term, responsible value creation for the common good of humanity.
- When a company’s purpose is in conflict with the interests of society, board members need to take an ethical stand, exercise care, and make sensible decisions.
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Conclusion:
Corporate governance is a system that aims to instill policies and rules that helps maintain the cohesiveness of an organization. It exists to help hold a company accountable, while helping them steer clear of financial, legal, and ethical pitfalls while addressing conflict of interests at various levels. The importance of corporate governance is made abundantly clear by the direct benefits seen when a good corporate governance framework is in place.
