World Geography
Q1. List down the main determinants of the location of Cotton textile industries in various parts of the world, including India? (10M)
Introduction
Cotton textile industries, which encompass various stages of textile production, from spinning and weaving to dyeing and finishing, require a careful assessment of geographical factors to ensure operational efficiency and cost-effectiveness. The interplay between these determinants ultimately shapes the competitive advantage and success of cotton textile industries in different parts of the world.
Body:
Main determinants of the location of Cotton textile industries in various parts of the world:
- Availability of Raw Materials: Cotton textile industries require a steady and abundant supply of raw cotton. Therefore, proximity to cotton-producing regions is a crucial factor in determining the location of these industries. Areas with favourable agro-climatic conditions for cotton cultivation tend to attract textile manufacturing units.
- For example, Ahmadabad and Surat from Gujarat.
- Labour Supply: Textile manufacturing is a labour-intensive industry, and the availability of a skilled and affordable workforce is an essential consideration. Locations with a large population or regions with a high concentration of skilled textile workers are often preferred.
- g. Bangladesh and Vietnam are emerging as major supplier of cotton textiles due to availability of cheap labour.
- Infrastructure and Transportation: Easy means of transport facilities for easy procurement of raw material and disposing of finished goods to domestic and foreign markets are dominating factors in the location cotton industries.
- For instance, Cities like Shanghai and Guangzhou have well-developed transportation systems, facilitating the movement of raw materials and finished goods.
- Market Access: Proximity to domestic and international markets is an important determinant. Cotton textile industries often locate themselves close to their target markets to minimize transportation costs and ensure timely deliveries. Areas with well-developed trade routes and a strong consumer base provide an advantage.
- g. The cotton textile industry that developed in Japan and China as well as in other countries has both inland and world-wide markets.
- Power supply: Cotton textile manufacturing is an energy-intensive process, and the availability of reliable and affordable energy sources is crucial. Locations with access to adequate electricity, natural gas, or other sources of energy are preferred to ensure smooth operations and minimize production costs.
- For instance, Cotton Textiles Industries shifted from Kanpur to western region of the country due to erratic power supply.
- Access to Technology and Innovation: The textile industry is constantly evolving, with advancements in technology and innovation driving efficiency and competitiveness. Locations that offer access to cutting-edge technology, research institutions, and skilled professionals in textile engineering and design are being preferred choice now for establishment of cotton textile industry.
- g. Chemnitz and Aachen cities of Germany has strong position in this sector primarily due to their access to cutting-edge technology.
Conclusion
A huge population is dependent on growing of cotton as well as textile industry. The labour-intensiveness, low-capital and high export incentives, urbanization and demand changing fashion has led to setting up of many decentralised textile centres in India and World.
Q2. How does the distribution of lithium and cobalt resources vary across the world, including in the Indian sub-continent? In what way does this distribution impact global geopolitics and trade? (15M)
Introduction
Lithium and cobalt are critical elements in batteries that power mobile phones, laptops and electric vehicles, the centrepiece of future transport solutions. The global race for these minerals is intensifying in the wake of the growing use of such vehicles. India is also scrambling to acquire lithium and cobalt mines abroad, along with other resources, to ensure that it has access to such strategic minerals.
Body:
Distribution of lithium and cobalt resources across the world and in Indian subcontinent:
- Lithium: Lithium resources are unevenly distributed globally, with the majority of known reserves concentrated in a few countries. The largest lithium reserves are found in:
- Australia: Australia is the leading producer of lithium, accounting for approximately 51% of the world’s total lithium resources. The Greenbushes lithium mine in Western Australia is one of the largest lithium mines globally.
- Chile: Chile possesses significant lithium reserves and is the second-largest producer. The Salar de Atacama salt flats in northern Chile are known for their vast lithium deposits.
- China: China is a major player in lithium production and has both lithium reserves and production facilities. The country has been actively investing in lithium resources to support its growing electric vehicle industry.
- Argentina: Argentina holds substantial lithium reserves, particularly in the “Lithium Triangle” region shared with Bolivia and Chile. The Salar del Hombre Muerto is one of Argentina’s prominent lithium-producing areas.
- Other countries: with notable lithium reserves include Zimbabwe, Canada, Portugal, and the United States.
- Indian subcontinent: India does not have significant lithium reserves, it has been actively exploring and developing its lithium resources. The states of Rajasthan and Karnataka in India have been identified as potential lithium-rich regions.
- Recently, Geological Survey of India (GSI) has for the first time established Lithium inferred resources of about 6 million tonnes in the Salal-Haimana area of the Reasi District of Jammu & Kashmir (UT).
Cobalt: Cobalt resources are also geographically concentrated, with a limited number of countries possessing significant reserves. The primary cobalt-producing countries include:
- Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC): is the leading producer of cobalt globally, accounting for more than half of the world’s cobalt supply. The mineral-rich Katanga region in the southern part of the country is a major cobalt-producing area.
- Australia: Australia is a notable cobalt producer, primarily extracting cobalt as a byproduct of nickel mining. The country has several mines with cobalt reserves, including the Murrin Murrin mine in Western Australia.
- Other countries with notable cobalt reserves include Canada, Russia, Cuba, Madagascar, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and Zambia.
- Indian subcontinent: In the Indian subcontinent, cobalt resources are limited, and India primarily relies on imports to meet its cobalt requirements. However, India has been exploring domestic sources of cobalt, primarily as a by-product of nickel mining.
Implications of uneven distribution of Cobalt and Lithium on global geopolitics and trade:
- Geo-economics: the uneven distribution of these critical minerals has wider geo-economics implication for world. For instance, there is competition between the countries to control over the region which has these minerals.
- g. countries like USA and China trying to influence third world countries which can lead to geopolitical rivalries.
- Supply chain: Forming forward and backward supply chains will create problems when the reserves are mostly limited to one country. Supply chain is a complex phenomenon and resilience of a system is not solely dependent on physical disruptions but also on dynamic factors such as societal and geo-political (g. environmental regulation, speculative market and export ban).
- For instance, the export restrictions would raise the world price, threat the stable supply and hamper global transition to low-carbon energy and mobility systems.
- Trade imbalance: Countries with significant cobalt and lithium reserves can export these resources, contributing to their trade surpluses. Resource-importing nations, particularly those heavily reliant on EV production or renewable energy, may face trade deficits.
- Dependence on imports can affect economic stability and hinder the development of domestic industries that rely on cobalt and lithium.
- Regional security: As the critical rare earth mineral resource is strategic in nature, its uneven distribution leads to great power conflict over the control of the region.
- For example, disputes in South China Sea.
- Technological security: The un-even distribution of these resource has led to high degree of technological insecurity in the cobalt and lithium mineral deficient countries. It also, directly affects their strategic autonomy.
- For instance, many Western countries heavily rely on cobalt and lithium imports, particularly from the DRC and other resource-rich nations.
- Environmental security: The environmental and social impacts of cobalt and lithium mining have gained increasing attention. Concerns about water usage, deforestation, pollution, and labour conditions have prompted calls for sustainable and responsible mining practices.
- g. Reports indicate that approximately 2.2 million litres of water are needed to produce one tonne of Lithium.
- Diplomatic leverage: The lop- sided distribution of these mineral resource is a vital factor in leveraging its availability for diplomatic gains.
- For example, India’s major dependence on South American countries for lithium, provides it with a diplomatic bargain over India.
- Balance of Trade: The un-even distribution of these resources affects the balance of trade between the importing and the exporting countries. This in turn affects the Foreign-exchange reserves of the country.
- Worldwide the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is by far the world’s largest producer of cobalt, accounting for roughly 70 percent of global production. countries like India does not have any primary cobalt resources and imports these resources.
- Growth: Un-even distribution of these metals also has led to un-even growth across the globe. Rise in import prices directly hamper the capabilities of the government to spend on welfare objectives.
- For instance, the ongoing CoVid pandemic hugely impacted industries dependent on imports of these minerals for manufacturing in India and world.
Conclusion
The electric-vehicle (EV) revolution is ushering in a golden age for battery raw materials, best reflected by a dramatic increase in price for two key battery commodities, lithium and cobalt, over the past 24 months. In addition, the growing need for energy storage, e-bikes, electrification of tools, and other battery-intense applications is increasing the interest in these commodities.
Ethics
Syllabus: Attitude: content, structure, function
Q3. “What your behaviour is might not always be reflective of your attitude” Explain the reasons behind such dichotomy. (10M)
Introduction:
Attitude is defined as a person’s mental tendency, which is responsible for the way he thinks or feels. Behavior implies the actions, moves, conduct or functions of an individual.
Body:
Reasons behind the dichotomy between behavior and attitude:
- Situational factors: a person who believes in healthy eating may indulge in unhealthy food choices when surrounded by friends at a party.
- Behavioral traits: such as Acceptance to Authority. For Instance, many housewives in Indian exhibit a high tolerance for domestic violence even though they may hold negative attitudes towards violence.
- Emotional state and mood: Murder of Shraddha walker and many such incidents reveal that people can be caught in a fit of rage so intense to kill their partner.
- Social Expectations: Our behaviour usually changes depending on people we are around such as with family , friends , colleagues etc but our attitudes remain the same.
- Hypocrisy: It is not uncommon to witness public figures who advocate for certain causes or espouse particular values but engage in behavior contradictory to their stated attitudes.
- Cognitive Dissonance: we believe in the importance of environmental conservation but still many a times use single-use plastic bottles due to convenience or availability.
- Personal Growth and Reflection: At workplace we may have negative attitude towards the manager, senior executives but we still behave positively around them.
- Moral Dilemmas: Despite being a Gandhian lal bahadhur shastri led Indian during 1965 war for the protection of the country.
Conclusion:
Self-awareness, reflection, and a commitment to ethical decision-making can help bridge the gap between behaviour and attitude, promoting greater integrity and moral coherence.
Case study
Q4. You grew up as an extrovert who liked to mingle with people, you enjoy good conversations with others and find it a lot easier to interact with others than one of your best friends. Unlike you, this best friend of yours is an introvert who does not find it that easy or even necessary to mingle with people all the time. However, he has a close-knit group of friends whom he considers to be his best friends. One day, you were approached by others in your close-knit group to be part of a trip they had planned. You readily accepted it. On the day of the trip, you come to know that your other best friends had purposefully chosen not to invite your introvert friend knowing that he might find it unease to mingle with a much larger group who were invited to this trip.
You felt sad at this turn of events. Once you came back, though your introvert friend did not complain about what had happened, you started to see that his attitude was changing gradually. He was growing more distant and distant with even his close-knit group. He hardly went out or seemed like he had any passion for anything left.
His mother confronts with your mother that she is worried about her kid behaving the way he is.
In the context of the above, answer the following questions:
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- How would you convince your friend to change his stance in the present case? Justify your course of action adequately.
- What factors, in your opinion, shapes the mindset of extrovert and introvert individual?
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Introduction:
The case study explores the friendship between two individuals, delving into its complexities and the impact of exclusion on relationships.
1. How would you convince your friend to change his stance.
The ethical principles that guide any private relationship are:
- Care and affection: express my concern for his well-being and share that I’ve noticed a change in his behavior. I would assure him that his feelings are valid and that I value his friendship.
- Confidentiality: I would emphasize the importance of understanding and respecting each other’s differences, I want him to share and would promise him that I wouldn’t share the conversation with other in the group.
- Truthfulness: I would explain the situation from my perspective, emphasizing that I did not have control over the invitation process and that I genuinely missed having him on the trip.
- Responsibility & Accountability: I would apologize for any hurt or discomfort caused by the actions of others and assure him that I would have preferred for him to be there.
- Tolerance and acceptance of minor imperfections: I would emphasize the importance of our friendship and how much I value his presence in my life. I would ensure that his introverted behaviour isn’t a concern to me and I love him for the way he is.
Ethics in private relationships are based on emotional bonds rather than any formal procedure that regulates them and therefore, informal in nature. I would above and beyond to help my friend to find an
- Emotional connect: like the Life of Karna (A character from Mahabharata) whose friendship for Duryodhan broke all boundaries of even blood relationships since he fought against his own brothers (Pandavas) to honour the Ethics of friendship.
- Renewed Bonding: Based on his response, I would try to find common ground and explore alternatives, such as planning smaller, more intimate outings or finding activities that align with his interests and comfort level such as movies sports etc.
- Friendship of goodness: In the book “The Nichomachean Ethics”, Aristotle discusses three Types of Friendship- friendships based on utility, pleasure and goodness.
Based on this goodness , I hope to encourage my friend to reconsider his stance and gradually reconnect with his close-knit group.
2.Factors that shape the mindset of an introvert and extrovert
- Genetics: Attention to detail due to more reactive nerves. introverts are carefully attending to their internal thoughts and feelings at the same time.
- Personal Experiences: Introverts may have had past experiences that reinforced their preference for solitude or smaller social interactions. For instance , being an extrovert staying alone at home during Corona lockdown make me reconsider my approach towards larger social interactions.
- Environmental Factors: cultures that value assertiveness and sociability such as Latin American cultures, extroverted traits may be more encouraged and rewarded. In contrast, cultures that emphasize introspection and reflection such as Japanese.
- Social conditioning : reinforcing stereotypes that introvert or extroverts are the only mindsets. But in reality, all tend to be ambiverts.
Both personality traits have their strengths and can contribute positively to society. Understanding and appreciating these differences can foster inclusivity and create environments that cater to the needs and preferences of both.
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