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: Social empowerment
Difficulty level: Moderate.
Reference: New Indian Express
Why the question:
The government recognised the toll the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has been taking on the mental health of a large section of the population and addressed it by announcing the rollout of a national tele-mental health programme for people of all ages, during FInance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s Budget speech.
Key Demand of the question:
To write about the national tele-mental health programme and need to destigmatise mental health for its success.
Directive word:
Discuss – This is an all-encompassing directive – you must debate on paper by going through the details of the issues concerned by examining each one of them. You must give reasons for both for and against arguments.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Begin by giving an overview of mental health set up in India and trends in mental health disroders.
Body:
First, write about the national tele-mental health programme, its features and the potential benefits from it.
Next, write about the need to reach masses and destigmatise mental disorders in the society – mention the steps that must be taken in this regard – creating awareness, accessible treatment, promoting well-being, harnessing AYUSH etc.
Conclusion:
Conclude by writing a way forward of measures needed to further strengthen mental health in India.
Introduction
According to the World Health Organization, over 90 million Indians, or 7.5% of the population, suffer from mental health issues. A study published in Lancet in December 2019, titled “The burden of mental disorders across the states of India: the Global Burden of Disease Study 1990–2017”, also highlights the scale of the challenge. The COVID-19 pandemic led to an increase in mental health-related problems among people of all age. Global research has highlighted the increased rates of depression, anxiety, sleep disturbances, etc., in individuals affected by the virus.
Body
State of Mental healthcare in India
- WHO has labelled India as the world’s ‘most depressing country’
- The National Mental Health Survey (NMHS) 2015–2016 conducted by NIMHANS revealed that one in five individuals suffer from some sort of mental health disorder and only 15% of those affected receive the treatment required.
- This amounts to a massive untreated ‘mental health burden’ in our country.
- There is just one qualified psychiatrist for 10 lakh people in India, the number of psychologists and psychiatric social workers being even fewer.
Importance of national tele-mental health programme
- During her Budget 2022-23 Speech in the Parliament, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a National Tele Mental Health Programme.
- The programme, which has been hailed by all sectors of people for having the potential of changing mental health care in the country, is proposed to consist of 23 tele mental health centres with NIMHANS (National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences Bangalore) acting as the nodal centre.
- Meanwhile, for this, International Institute of Information Technology-Bangalore (IIIT-B) would be providing the technological expertise.
- Lack of awareness and sensitivityabout mental health is one of the biggest issue. There is a big stigma around people suffering from any kind of mental health issues.
- They are often tagged as ‘lunatics’ by the society. This leads to a vicious cycle of shame, suffering and isolation of the patients.
- Tele-mental healthcare can bridge the gap by connecting people from remote areas to health professionals in times of need but also help train general physicians and community health workers in mental healthcare.
- They form the backbone of our health infrastructure, and the ability to provide mental health services at a primary level under the tele guidance of psychiatrists is a fruitful and cost-effective exercise.
- The national tele-mental health programme is expected to help people get easier access to quality counselling and care services related to mental health.
Challenges to National tele-mental healthcare
- Mental health issues in India are hugely complex. Data on mental illness is remarkably patchy. Most data is based on self-reporting of conditions and extrapolation.
- Like any other legal document, implementation is the key and a challenge at the same time. The Mental Healthcare Act (2017) came in with a lot of promises by revamping the old act of 1987.
- Digital illiteracy, limited data connectivity, network glitches, ethical and legal lacunae related to tele-psychiatry guidelines, limitations in medical assessment through a virtual medium and data safety are the main concerns that riddle tele-mental healthcare.
- As the Covid threat reduces with time, the inherent tendency of the masses to prefer in-person consultation will be on the rise rendering virtual consultations redundant.
- Affordability issues related to telemedicine should also be borne in mind to prevent health inequalities.
Way forward
- Human wellness is about body and mind. Lasting change is possible only through a collaborative effort of policy-makers.
- Invest in institutional support mechanisms like hospitals, treatment centres, qualified health care support and community support mechanisms.
- Implementation of tele-mental healthcare cannot be decoupled from efforts to improve digital literacy, data security and enhanced accessibility to services.
- Advocacy by mental health professionals, media and policymakers are likely to make a lasting impact in this area.
- We need large scale social security support or insurance to cover costs.
- Mental illnesses should be covered in health insurance policies.
- The government must ensure that treatment is widely available and costs are regulated.
- India must draw lessons from other countries as well as draw upon its own ancient wisdom to holistically treat mental health.
Conclusion
This rare but apt mention of mental health in the national Budget holds true promise of delivering tele-mental health services in the post-Covid future. The proposed Tele-Mental Health Programme is a timely and much-needed move but whether it delivers in the long run depends on its implementation, advocacy and dealing with the associated digital challenges.
General Studies – 2
Topic: Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance applications, models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other measures.
Difficulty level: Moderate.
Reference: Indian Express
Why the question:
In her budget speech, the Finance Minister talked of land resource management. Any reform or initiative that strengthens land governance, impacts the economy positively and has a ripple effect across sectors.
Key Demand of the question:
To write about the benefits of digitisation of land records.
Directive word:
Discuss – This is an all-encompassing directive – you must debate on paper by going through the details of the issues concerned by examining each one of them. You must give reasons for both for and against arguments.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Start by giving context regarding land resource management.
Body:
Frist, write about the various steps taken towards digitisation of land records – Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN), National Generic Document Registry System (NGDRS) and transliterating the land records in any language under Schedule VIII of the Constitution etc.
Next, write about how these steps will provide substantial advantages in land use and economic benefits. Also, write about limitations of the above.
Conclusion:
Conclude by writing a way forward.
Introduction
Digitization of land records was introduced to computerize all land records including mutations, improve transparency in the land records maintenance system, digitize maps and survey, update all settlement records and minimize the scope of land disputes. This would provide clear titles of land ownership that could be monitored easily by government officials, facilitate quicker transactions, and reduce disputes. Most importantly it would reduce construction timelines and overall cost for the developer, the benefits of which can be transferred to consumer making property prices more attractive.
In her budget speech, the Finance Minister talked of land resource management. Any reform or initiative that strengthens land governance, impacts the economy positively and has a ripple effect across sectors.
Body
Proposed reforms in Budget 2022-23 Speech
- Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN)
- It is an Aadhaar-like identification for a land parcel or plot. Each land parcel or plot is assigned a unique identification number.
- Like Aadhaar, the agencies and services can use the land database from anywhere in the country to authenticate a farmer or the beneficiary’s identity for the purpose of delivery of services.
- National Generic Document Registry System (NGDRS) — One Nation One Registration Software System
- It is undoubtedly a major initiative for urban property registration.
- It is a software application platform that facilitates online registration of immovable properties and documents as compared to the manual registration process used earlier.
- Transliterating the land records in any language under Schedule VIII of the Constitution.
- The objective is to break the linguistic barriers in land records.
- Presently, land records are largely in regional languages.
- These linguistic barriers need to be overcome in order to open up the national economy.
Need for digitization of land records:
- High litigation:
- A World Bank study from 2007 states that some estimates suggest that land-related disputes account for two-thirds of all pending court cases in the country. These land disputes include those related to the validity of land titles and records, and rightful ownership.
- A NITI Aayog paper suggests that land disputes on average take about 20 years to be resolved. Land disputes add to the burden of the courts, tie up land in litigation, and further impact sectors and projects that are dependent on these disputed land titles.
- Agricultural credit:
- Land is often used as collateral for obtaining loans by farmers. It has been observed that disputed or unclear land titles inhibit supply of capital and credit for agriculture.
- Small and marginal farmers, who account for more than half of the total land holdings, and may not hold formal land titles, are unable to access institutionalised credit.
- Development of new infrastructure:
- Land that was earlier used for farming, is now being used to set up industries, power plants, manufacturing units, build roads, housing, and shopping malls.
- However, several of the new infrastructure projects are witnessing delays, with land related issues often being a key factor.
- These delays occur because of non-availability of encumbrance free land (evidence that the property in question is free from any monetary and legal liability), non-updation of land records, resistance to joint measurement survey of land records, demands for higher compensation by land owners, and filing of large number of arbitration cases by land owners.
- For example, obtaining a land ownership certificate can take around 60 days in Gujarat and up to 12 months in Chennai and Odisha.
- Urbanisation and the housing shortage:
- More recently, land use is also changing due to urbanisation and further expansion of such urban areas.
- While census towns are places with urban characteristics (population above 5,000, at least 75% of the population engaged in non-agricultural work, and a population density of at least 400 people per sq. km.), statutory towns are urban areas with a local authority.
- Under new schemes for urban development (Smart Cities Mission, AMRUT), cities are trying to raise their own revenue through property taxes and land based financing. This further necessitates the importance of providing a system of clear land titles in urban areas.
- Benami transactions:
- A Benami transaction is one where a property is held by or transferred to a person, but has been provided for or paid by another person.
- The White Paper on Black Money (2012) had noted that black money generated in the country gets invested in Benami properties.
- Unclear titles and non-updated land records enable carrying out property transactions in a non-transparent way.
- The Standing Committee on Finance (2015) examining the Benami Transactions Prohibition (Amendment) Bill, 2015 noted that generation of black money through Benami transactions could be pre-empted and eliminated by digitisation of land records and their regular updation.
- Unused land:
- A large proportion of government land lies unused. A large part of the unused land is high-value property in prime areas in major cities
- Land hoarding by government agencies has created artificial scarcityand is one of the main drivers of skyrocketing urban real estate prices.
Challenges in digitization of land records:
- In India, we have a system of registered sale deeds and not land titles.
- The Transfer of Property Act, 1882, provides that the right to an immovable property (or land) can be transferred or sold only by a registered document.
- These documents are registered under the Registration Act, 1908. Therefore, the transaction gets registered, and not the land title.
- This implies that even bona fide property transactionsmay not always guarantee ownership, as earlier transactions could be challenged.
- Land ownership is established through multiple documents maintained by different departments, making it cumbersome to access them
- For example, sale deeds are stored in the registration department, maps are stored in the survey department, and property tax receipts are with the revenue department
- These departments work in silos and do not update the data in a timely manner, which results in discrepancies. One has to go back to several years of documentation to find any ownership claims on a piece of property, which causes delays.
- The cost of registering property is high and, hence, people avoid registering transactions
- While registering a sale deed, the buyer has to pay a stamp duty along with the registration fee.
- In India, stamp duty rates across states vary between 4% and 10%,compared to 1% and 4% in other countries. The registration fee is an additional 0.5% to 2%, on an average.
- Under the Registration Act, 1908, registration of property is not mandatory for transactions such as the acquisition of land by the government, property leased for less than one year, and heirship partitions
Conclusion
A good land records system is a necessity for any harmonious and progressive society. The book would ultimately lead to an improved land governance system, reduction in land disputes, prevention of Benami transactions and a comprehensive Integrated Land Information Management System in the country, by sharing best practices.
Value addition
Government efforts towards digitization of land records so far:
- The land digitisation efforts in India received a new boost at both the Centre and state levels after the launch of a survey of villages and mapping with improved technology in village areas under the SVAMITVA scheme last year.
- The scheme seeks to confer land titles in so far unmapped and inhabited parts of rural India and to distribute property cards in villages.
- The Digital India Land Records Modernization programme (DILRMP) was launched by Government of India in August 2008. The objective of the programme was to streamline and reduce the scope of land and property disputes, thereby improving transparency in the maintenance of land records. The main aim of the programme was to computerize all land records, digitize maps, upgrade the survey and settlement records and sustain the same.
- Karnataka was the first state in India to computerize land records under the “Bhoomi Project” followed by Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu in the year 2001.
- Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Odisha are the best performing Indian states in land record digitisation, according to an annual land records index prepared by Delhi-based think-tank National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER).
- The NCAER’s Land Records and Services Index (NLRSI) 2020-21 released recently said nearly all states and union territories — 29 out of 32 — showed a gradual improvement in their efforts to digitise land records compared to the previous year.
Topic: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.
Difficulty level: Tough
Reference: Indian Express , Live Mint
Why the question:
The Chinese yuan rose after Dow Jones reported that Saudi Arabia was in talks with Beijing to price some of its oil sales in that currency, instead of the greenback. At a time when the world appears to be splitting into rival democratic and authoritarian blocs, it’s inevitable that chatter about a yuan challenge to the dollar’s status as the world’s reserve currency should return.
Key Demand of the question:
To write about phenomenon of ‘de-dollarisation’, its possible impact on India and steps need to in this regard.
Directive word:
Analyse – When asked to analyse, you must examine methodically the structure or nature of the topic by separating it into component parts and present them in a summary.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Begin by defining ‘de-dollarisation’.
Body:
First, write about the various attempts at ‘de-dollarisation’ in the recent years – a new Russia-China payment system, bypassing SWIFT and combining the Russian SPFS (System for Transfer of Financial Messages) with the Chinese CIPS (Cross-Border Interbank Payment System), Saudi Arabia decision to sell oil for Yuan etc.
Next, write about how this could impact India and steps that India must take in this regard.
Conclusion:
Conclude by writing a way forward.
Introduction
For many years, the US dollar has been the standard currency used in world trade. For example, oil, gold and most commodities are quoted in dollars. Many countries hold their reserves in dollars, in the form of US Treasury Securities. De-dollarisation describes a move away from this world order to one where nations sell their US Treasuries to hold reserves in other currencies, or gold, and seek to use their own currencies for transactions between their most important trade partners.
Body
Various attempts at ‘de-dollarisation’ in the recent years
- Russia reduced its share of dollar-denominated asset and prioritised national currencies, instead of US Dollar in bilateral trade.
- Russia also developed a national electronic payments system called “Mir” in 2015.
- China aims to use trading platforms and its digital currency to promote de-dollarisation. It has established RMB trading centres in Hong Kong, Singapore and Europe.
- In 2021, the People’s Bank of China submitted a “Global Sovereign Digital Currency Governance” proposal at the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) to influence global financial rules via its digital currency, the e-Yuan.
- The IMF added Yuan to its Special Drawing Rights (SDR) basket in 2016.
- In 2017, the European Central Bank exchanged EUR 500 million worth of its forex reserves into Yuan-denominated securities.
- India has also had to work out alternative arrangements, including a barter arrangement, with certain sanctioned countriesin the past.
Why India must move towards De-dollarisation
- Indian economy’s dynamic with dollar is different than other major economies in the world today.
- Unlike China or Russia or EU and Japan, which hold dollars in significant amounts, India’s reserve is not resulted by an export surplus.
- While others accumulate dollars from their earnings of trade surplus, India maintains a large forex reserve even though India imports less than it exports.
- In India’s case, the dollar reserves come through infusion of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI), which reflects the confidence of foreign investors in India’s growth prospects.
- By accumulation of dollar reserves through this route, India remains vulnerable to policy changes by other nations’ monetary policies which are beyond India’s own control.
- For instance, it has been often highlighted that a tightening of the US monetary policy leads to capital outflows (capital flight) from India, thus impacting India adversely.
Challenges of de-dollarisation on India
- Just like Chinese renminbi, Indian rupee is also not yet fully convertible at the exchange markets.
- While this means that India can control its burden of foreign debt, and inflow of capital for investment purposes in its economy, it also means an uneasy access to capital, less liquidity in financial market, and less business opportunities.
- Considering India’s present dollar dependence, whether US sees India’s move towards de-dollarisation as a direct challenge to US-India relations, or accepts it as a shift in the global realities, has to be seen.
- New Delhi has resisted a de-dollarization push for long.
- For instance, Back in 2009, when Russia and China had started the push via BRIC mechanism , it was argued that New Delhi would not like to upset Washington, especially after the historic US-India civil nuclear agreement was signed just a year before in 2008 -for full civil nuclear cooperation between the two nations.
Steps that India must take in this regard.
- India can look towards having an increased share of euros and gold in its foreign exchange reserves.
- Currency swap agreements between India and other nations can help in bilateral trades without depending on USD.
- Starting from Russia-India transactions, trade with Iran, EAEU, BRICS andSCO members in national or digital currencies can also become a reality in near future.
- A central bank digital currency (CBDC) that bypasses the dollar can be another alternative.
- For instance, China submitted a “Global Sovereign Digital Currency Governance” proposal at the Bank for International Settlements to influence global financial rules via its digital currency, the e-Yuan.
- India can push for a global currency or an arrangement like the IMF’s SDR.
- India can also look towards having an increased share of euros and gold in its foreign exchange reserves.
- India has several options for initiating its de-dollarization process.
Conclusion
An increasing number of voices are today pointing towards the arrival of the Asian century. With China now being the leading economic power in the world, US economy on a slowdown, and emergence of an increasing polycentric structure in world economy, the dominance of dollar is bound to witness a shake-up. Diversification away from USD is a good way forward for India to insulate economy from geopolitical risks.
General Studies – 3
Topic: Effects of liberalization on the economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrial growth.
Difficulty level: Moderate
Reference: Insights on India
Why the question:
The question is part of the static syllabus of General studies paper – 3 and mentioned as part of Mission-2022 Secure timetable.
Key Demand of the question:
To debate on including petroleum products under the ambit of GST.
Directive word:
Critically examine – When asked to ‘Examine’, we have to look into the topic (content words) in detail, inspect it, investigate it and establish the key facts and issues related to the topic in question. While doing so we should explain why these facts and issues are important and their implications. When ‘critically’ is suffixed or prefixed to a directive, one needs to look at the good and bad of the topic and give a fair judgment.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Begin by mentioning about GST and the rationale behind its introduction.
Body:
In the first part, write about the various issues with respect to the performance of GST – Technical GST Issues, Credit Reversal, Issues for Small Traders, Revenue loss compensation etc.
mention many economists supporting the proposal as the effective rate under GST regime would be lesser than the current prices, benefit of input credit to certain industries, and equitable revenue distribution between Centre and states etc.
In the next part, Mention about the debate surrounding the topic on lines of states’ apprehension, loss or revenue and autonomy, disgruntlement with the current GST sharing of revenue, GST compensation.
Conclusion:
Pass a comment on whether or not the move is welcome in the current scenario and suggest a way forward.
Introduction
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) is an indirect tax system which was rolled out in 2017 with the aim of ‘One Nation, one tax’. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has pointed out lacunae in the GST regime, saying that system-validated input tax credit through invoice matching is not in place and a non-intrusive e-tax system still remains elusive after two years of its rollout.
Body
Various issues with respect to goods and services tax (GST) regime
- Input Tax Credit (ITC) is an area which has certain limitations that need to be addressed. The GST regime sought to have a seamless flow of ITC, however, conditions for availing ITC being stringent, many taxpayers lost out on ITC. Also, taxpayers lose their ITC due to non-reporting or mistakes by their suppliers.
- Compliance issues: taxpayers are also complaining about the imposing an arbitrary monetary limit on availing input tax credit through Rule 36(4) and mandating that a certain percentage of GST has to be paid in cash. These laws are making life difficult for even the most honest taxpayers.
- Difficulty in tax administration: Goes against the canons of taxation. A modern tax system should be fair, uncomplicated, transparent and easy to administer. It must yield revenues sufficient to cover the cost of government services and public goods.
- Lack of clarity on many rules is also leading to various litigation and different interpretations (of the same laws) by Advanced Ruling Authorities in different states.
- Complicated taxation structure: A World Bank study published in May 2018 said that the Indian GST rate was the second highest among the 115 countries with a national value-added tax. It was also the most complicated, with five main tax rates, several exemptions, a cess and a special rate for gold. The multilateral lender said that only five countries had four or more non-zero tax rates—India, Italy, Pakistan, Luxembourg and Ghana.
- Falling revenue amid disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic has continuously delayed the reform, leaving a large number of items in high tax slabs.
- GST revenue potential overestimated: The Union Budget for 2018-19 (the first full year under GST) estimated receipts to the tune of ₹7.43 lakh crore. Actual collections were just 78% of this amount. While the shortfall between Budget Estimates (BE) and actual collections reduced significantly in 2019-20 (the latter was 90% of the former) the BE number itself saw a significant downward revision to ₹6.63 lakh crore.
- High compliance costs: are also arising because the prevalence of multiple tax rates implies a need to classify inputs and outputs based on the applicable tax rate. Along with the need to apply the correct rate, firms are required to match invoices between their outputs and inputs to be eligible for full input tax credit, which increases compliance costs further.
- Tax-Sharing issues: alleged deviation in the way GST revenue is shared with states. To determine how integrated GST is to be split up, the report notes, the government has followed a formula prescribed by the Finance Commission, though it should have gone by the Constitution and Integrated GST Act.
- The nationwide lockdown, however, intensified the problem of revenue shortfall for states with the Centre not paying up the dues on time. Also with coffers drying up and with social and health spending going up, states are growing disenchanted with the system
- Last year, the GST Council had borrowed `1.1 lakh crore to pay the states in order to make up for the shortfall. Still, `63,000 crore is pending which the Centre intends to pay this year.
- GST Council meetings: the meetings of the GST Council are not as frequent as they were earlier, if the recent incidents are anything to go by, and it often end up with disagreement, fight and strong letters and statements. States have also accused the Centre of cornering a substantial portion of tax in forms of cess.
- There has been lack of coordination between the Department of Revenue, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs and the GST Network
Advantages of bringing petroleum products under GST
- Bringing petroleum products under GST would mean a single rate (18% or 28%) in place of excise duty and state VAT, which will lower fuel prices at pumps.
- Reduced fuel prices will lead to lower transport costs for industries who benefit from increased production and competitiveness.
- Idea of a ‘single nation, single tax’, will be implanted firmly which is aimed at improving production and employment while taxing consumption.
- Disadvantages caused to firms due to exclusion of fuel prices under GST will be resolved and the firms can claim input tax credit.
Challenges in bringing petroleum products under GST
- By being able to levy VAT on these products, the state governments have control over their revenues. Bringing petroleum under GST takes away that control as the Centre is the one in charge of fixing the rate of GST.
- Another issue is the rate of VAT on petrol and diesel varies wildly amongst states. While Maharashtra charges up to 40% on petrol, while Andaman and Nicobar charge just 6%.
- Levying a standard rate of GST on petrol would mean that the prices increase dramatically in Andaman and Nicobar, but on the flip side, they would fall in Maharashtra if the cumulative rate is lower than the current rate.
- The current high petrol and diesel prices come at a time when overall revenue collections from GST have been erratic along with slump post pandemic and lockdown.
- Taking an excise duty cut now will add further pressure on government revenues. A Rs2 a litre excise cut in petrol and diesel in October meant revenue loss of about Rs26,000 crore in a full year to the government.
Way Forward
- The first target should be to move to at least a three-rate structure, a lower rate for essential goods, a relatively high rate for luxury goods, and a standard rate for the majority of goods and services.
- The next step would be simplifying the tax returns process.
- The scope for lowering the GST rate is umbilically linked to direct tax reform.
- A better way to make a tax system more just is by lowering regressive indirect tax rates while widening the base for progressive direct taxes on income and corporate profits.
- The government needs to establish GST Tribunals to reduce litigation timelines and the pressure on courts.
- The state authorities for Advance Ruling should ideally also have an independent jurist member, apart from a representative from the tax department.
- Many goods are still outside the GST net, which comes in the way of seamless flow of input tax credit. Key items outside its ambit are electricity, alcohol, petroleum goods and real estate. This aspect need to be looked into.
- Emulating the best practices. The GST in New Zealand, widely regarded as the most efficient in the world, has a single standard rate of 12.5 percent across all industry groups.
- The Fifteenth finance commission, in its latest report, has addressed many issues including large shortfall in collections as compared to original forecast, high volatility in collections, accumulation of large integrated GST credit, glitches in invoice and input tax matching, and delay in refunds.
- The Commission also observed that the continuing dependence of states on compensation from the central government for making up for the shortfall in revenue is a concern.
- While at the same time it suggested that the structural implications of GST for low consumption states need to be considered.
Conclusion
While the GST’s journey has given its stakeholders some causes to celebrate, it has also given moments of worry. But then, no transformation of the scale and complexity can be achieved without its share of hiccups and challenges. The process of evolution will take a few years more for the mammoth structural change to stabilize. The four-year journey of GST has been a roller-coaster ride for all stakeholders with equitable share of hits, misses and expectations. A work-in-progress in its transformational journey, GST suffers from several shortcomings which need to be resolved quickly, but its journey to ‘Good & Simple Tax’ is still quite long.
Topic: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.
Difficulty level: Easy
Key Demand of the question:
To write about the jobless growth, concerns surrounding it and steps that policy makers must take to avoid jobless growth.
Directive word:
Examine – When asked to ‘Examine’, we must investigate the topic (content words) in detail, inspect it, investigate it and establish the key facts and issues related to the topic in question. While doing so we should explain why these facts and issues are important and their implications.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Begin by explaining jobless growth.
Body:
First, mention that the model of economic growth prioritises capital over labour and is unlikely to resolve the unemployment crisis. Mention about labour replacement technologies such as 3D printers, AI etc that is replacing human labour.
Next, write about various concerns with respect to jobless growth in the economy.
Next, stress on the fact that the unorganised sector contributes highly to employment creation. Further mention the need for high end skill training of our existing labour force and planned training coupled with placements along with social security needs, more focus on services sector etc is the need of the hour.
Introduction
Jobless growth is a multi-cause, systemic problem. In a jobless growth economy, unemployment remains stubbornly high even as the economy grows. This tends to happen when a relatively large number of people have lost their jobs, and the ensuing recovery is insufficient to absorb the unemployed, under-employed, and those first entering the workforce. Jobless growth of the Indian economy is a “5C” problem: a Complicated Condition Created by Combinations of Causes.
Body
Various concerns associated with jobless growth in India
- Services sector growth: India’s economic growth since the 1990s has largely been on account of an expansion of the services sector, in which exports are seen as having played an important role.
- The share of the services sector in total employment was relatively low, and despite the expansion of services, the growth of employment in this sector has been limited.
- Tertiary sector employment in 2009-10 amounted to only 25 per cent of the work force, despite the fact that around 55 per cent of GDP came from this sector.
- This is mostly due to the formal type of employment in which inclusion of informal workforce is low.
- Low employment growth in Manufacturing: Agriculture work needs to be replaced by work opportunities in some other sector usually in (manufacturing, electricity and construction) that grow much faster than agriculture during transition of an economy.
- However, in the post reform period the growth of manufacturing industries has been constrained by competition from imports
- Reducing share of Agriculture sector: There is the involvement of a greater population in the agriculture sector even though the sector contributes very less to the overall GDP of the country.
- Unorganised sector recovery is slow: The big reason for worry is that the bulk of India’s employment is in the informal or unorganised sectors.
- So, a weak recovery for the informal/unorganised sectors implies a drag on the economy’s ability to create new jobs or revive old ones.
- Reducing demographic window: Jobless growth is a dominant issue in the Indian economy as window between demographic dividend and demographic burden is rapidly decreasing
- Pre-pandemic employment: To begin with, according to the data available with the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the total number of employed people in the Indian economy as of May-August 2021 was 394 million — 11 million below the level set in May-August 2019.
- In May-August 2016 the number of employed people was 408 million.
- In other words, India was already facing a deep employment crisis before the Covid crisis, and it became much worse after it.
- K-shaped recovery: India is witnessing a K-shaped recovery. That means different sectors are recovering at significantly different rates.
- And this holds not just for the divergence between the organised sector and unorganised sector, but also within the organised sector.
Addressing India’s jobless growth in post-pandemic phase
India’s demographic dividend, touted as competitive advantage, is critically dependent on meeting growing aspirations of those entering or wishing to enter labour force.
- Analysing and Improving Labour Market Data: Availability of detailed, reliable, and comprehensive information on the labour market is critical to meet the employment challenge through well-targeted policies and programmes.
- Create Labour Market Information System (LMIS) for identifying skill shortages, training needs and available employment opportunities.
- This would facilitate greater synchronization with portals like National Career Service to address skill shortages and meet the demand for labour in different sectors.
- Education and Skill Development: Government must ensure that the education, training and skill development system is aligned with the changing requirements of the labour market.
- It includes measures to integrate vocational education with formal education (NEP 2020), ensure greater participation of the private sector in skill development and wider use of the apprenticeship programmes by all enterprises.
- Improving Women’s Participation in the Economy: The employment policy, in line with SDG 5 on Gender Equality, should focus on developing women’s human capital and capabilities; providing support for their care responsibilities (e.g. Maternity Benefits Act 2016); establishing gender-sensitive labour market regulations; and enhancing their voice and capacity for collective action.
- Address the issues facing agricultural sector: It will have a direct impact on the welfare of nearly half the country’s workforce, increase in domestic demand, reduce the rural-urban earnings gap, migration, informality and unemployment, and therefore lead to better working conditions in the cities and a fall in commodity prices and reduced inflationary pressures.
- Targeted Programmes for Employment Generation: Programmes like Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme must be reformed to ensure that rural unemployed find adequate employment on a more sustainable basis and there are increased opportunities for women and other socially disadvantaged groups.
Way forward
- Focus on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) & entrepreneurship with special packages for labour intensive industries.
- Revamping industrial policy to provide for tax incentives (e.g. wage subsidy), FDI, coastal & special economic zones, industrial craft clusters and change in labour regulation regimes.
- Adopt a universal basic services approach particularly in health, education, transportation etc can have significant multiplier impact on job creation.
- Income support schemes like Mukhya Mantri Yuva Nestam Scheme in Andhra Pradesh.
- Lastly, the government must curb corruption and regulate other drivers of inequality and joblessness such as crony capitalism
Value-addition
Steps taken by government in recent times
- Dedicated Shram Suvidha Portal: That would allot Labor Identification Number (LIN) to units and allow them to file online compliance for 16 out of 44 labor laws.
- Random Inspection Scheme: To eliminate human discretion in selection of units for Inspection, and uploading of Inspection Reports within 72 hours of inspection mandatory.
- Universal Account Number: Enables 4.17 crore employees to have their Provident Fund account portable, hassle-free and universally accessible.
- Apprentice Protsahan Yojana: Government will support manufacturing units mainly and other establishments by reimbursing 50% of the stipend paid to apprentices during first two years of their training.
- Revamped Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana: Introducing a Smart Card for the workers in the unorganized sector seeded with details of two more social security schemes.
- The National Career Service is being implemented as a mission mode project to provide various job-related services information on skills development courses, internships etc
General Studies – 4
Topic: Aptitude and foundational values for Civil Service, integrity, impartiality and non partisanship, objectivity, dedication to public service, empathy, tolerance and compassion towards the weaker- sections.
6. Elaborate on the importance of impartiality as a core value of civil service. (150 Words)
Difficulty level: Moderate
Reference: Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude by Lexicon Publications.
Directive:
Elaborate – Give a detailed account as to how and why it occurred, or what is the context. You must be defining key terms wherever appropriate and substantiate with relevant associated facts.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Begin by defining impartiality.
Body:
Write about the importance of impartiality as a core value of civil service – upholding equality, achieving equity, avoiding conflict of interest, eliminating bias and welfare for all etc,
Conclusion:
Complete the answer by suggesting ways practising impartiality in public administration.
Introduction
“Impartiality is the life of justice, as justice is the life of all good governments”
Impartiality is a principle of justice holding that decisions should be based on objective criteria, rather than on the basis of bias, prejudice, or preferring the benefit to one person over another for improper reasons. For a public servant, it means that decisions should be based on objective criteria, rather than on the basis of bias, prejudice or personal interest.
Body:
Types of Impartiality:
- Public Impartiality: A public servant as an instrument of government serving the public without discriminating on the basis of caste, religion and gender.
- Political Impartiality: Principle of working without reservation and with devotion to the success of every government and its policies. It basically means you are not partial to any particular party or government.
Importance of Impartiality as an attribute for a civil servant:
- Upholding constitutional values: impartiality helps a civil servant to uphold constitutionalism and prevent authoritarian government. It helps in upholding rule of law and makes the civil servant accountable to law and law alone. Also, it is in accordance with the constitutional provisions including Article 14, 15 and so on.
- g. Providing for citizens’ welfare measures without any favour and being equitable.
- Fulfilling all interests equally: As it is observed “Impartiality doesn’t mean neutrality. It also means partiality towards the poor”. Impartiality brings in objectivity and often when funds are to be allocated, an impartial civil servant would not favour his/her own village or city but allocate funds based on the needs.
- It keeps up the morale of the civil servant and with the sense of righteousness, the works get done efficiently. A positive environment is created in the office and a conducive work culture is created.
- g.: a civil servant cannot be partial towards one set of employees. Whether in performance assessment or granting leaves, the criteria should be objective without partiality.
- Majoritarianism prevention: especially in a diverse country like India, minority voices can be suppressed if the civil servant becomes partial towards majority for vested interests.
- g. Though in a state majority spoken language is promoted, civil servants have to make provisions for linguistic minorities to safeguard their language.
- Handling emergency situations: like communal riots, ethnic conflicts etc., an impartial civil servant would have a better credibility and persuasive capability in negotiations.
- g. N Ravi, an interlocutor is effective in north east insurgency negotiations because of his impeccable record of impartiality.
- Controlling corruption: It will keep oneself free from nepotism, political-corporate nexus and corruption.
- The examples are Sagayam IAS of Tamilnadu cadre or Ashok Khemka of Haryana etc.,
- Build public confidence and trust for the government: impartial behaviour insurance no undue discrimination towards any section of the community. This results in improve confidence towards policymaker and implementer. It make sure that justice will always be served no matter who is the perpetrator. Example- in IMX media case even former finance minister is being tried under Court of law.
- Deepening of democracy: with improve confidence in government machinery the public feels more enthusiastic to take part indecision making.
Conclusion
Present-day civil servants need to perform multiple functions of giving suggestions to political representatives, addressing public grievances, institutionalization of the socio-economic changes, delivering goods and services. Hence a value committed and impartial bureaucracy is need of the hour.
Topic: Case Study
(a) Identify the various actions that you could take
(b) Evaluate the pros and cons of each of your actions (250 Words) (UPSC Mains 2015)
Difficulty level: Moderate
Why the question:
The question is part of the static syllabus of General studies paper – 4 and part of ‘Case Study Fridays’ in Mission-2022 Secure.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
Start with giving the facts of the case and the dilemma between profit making and altruism.
Body:
First, enumerate the various course of actions that could be taken by you as the CEO in the above case.
Next, one by one evaluate the different options in front of that are provided. Using logic and various ethical theories to analyse their pros and cons of each option.
Next, write the course of action which you will take in the above situations. Analyse the pros and cons of that action. If there are any cons, write about how you will overcome/deal with those. Cite reasons for taking such path.
Conclusion:
Conclude by summarising about the need to balance both commercial interests as well public welfare.
Introduction
The above case presents a scenario where the private drug company has developed a potential cure to an incurable liver disease, prevalent among tribals. The case presents a dilemma of a CEO who has to ensure the profitability of the drug company meanwhile being compassionate and trustee of the society in which the company is located too.
Body
The various actions which can be taken by me as CEO are:
- to adhere to my obligations and professional ethics, which is to serve my company and to garner its maximum profit.
- Taking support of Government by the Viability gap funding.
- Raising money through finance market.
- Collaborating with foreign company
- appealing to public through media and NGO’s for collaboration and funds through sale of products
Evaluation of the options:
- Option 1: to adhere to my obligations and professional ethics, which is to serve my company and to garner its maximum profit
- Merits:
- Professional Loyalty to the company.
- this would not be contradictory to my personal ethics which derives from my societal obligations and my conscience.
- Demerits:
- Company will lose the public goodwill and do a bigger harm.
- Against the trusteeship factor of the company.
- Merits:
- Option 2: Taking support of government by the Viability gap funding.
- Merits:
- It will solve the funding issue.
- Poor people will benefit. Justice will be done to them.
- Government machinery can be utilized for better service delivery.
- Demerits:
- It will put Subsidy burden on government.
- Company’s ownership of product will be diluted
- Merits:
- Option 3: Raising money through finance market
- Merits:
- It will solve the problem temporarily.
- Poor people will benefit
- Corporate Social Responsibility will be fulfilled
- Demerits:
- Investors may lose money in future.
- My company might come under severe financial stress.
- Merits:
- Option 4: collaborating with foreign company
- Merits:
- Not just poor of India, but of whole world will benefit.
- The problem can be solved in holistic manner.
- Demerits:
- Issues of Intellectual property rights may hamper this collaboration.
- foreign company may sell the drug at higher prices.
- Merits:
- Option 5: appealing to the public through media and NGO’s for collaboration and funds through sale of products
- Merits:
- Pool for social activities will be created
- Good publicity of company will be done.
- Increase in sales and profits which then are transfer to the project
- Demerits:
- It may also decrease the sale as price of company’s products will be increased.
- may take a long time to collect necessary funds
- Merits:
Conclusion
In the above scenario, I would go in for the combination of options 2 and 5 along with pitching in with some of my company’s CSR funds. This would ensure public goodwill for my company as well as ensure an easy, affordable access of the drug to the tribals. Compromises have to be struck between the profit motive of my company and the public good in a way that both benefit from each other in a complementary manner. This will also set a precedent for others to follow who are faced with such a dilemma thus increasing social capital and trust in society.
