Full GS2
Q1. Analyze the impact of the women Self Help Groups (SHGs) on the lives of women in rural areas. Illustrate any success stories to highlight its transformative effects. (10M)
Introduction
A self-help group (SHG) is a village-based financial intermediary committee normally consist of 10–20 local women or men. When the formal financial system fails to help the needy, then small groups volunteer to cater to the needs of the financially weak by collecting, saving and lending the money on a micro scale.
Body:
Impact of the women Self Help Groups (SHGs) on the lives of women in rural areas:
- Economic empowerment: it has enabled women to access credit, savings, and financial services, thereby promoting economic independence. It has financially empowered rural women within the family and in local community.
- g. The RUDI (Rural Urban Distribution Initiative) project in Gujarat, established a decentralized supply chain network for agricultural products, linking rural producers with urban consumers.
- Social reform: The Social capital of SHGs are an asset for solving various social issues in India e.g. gender based discrimination, dowry system, casteism
- There are many successful cases where SHG women have come together to close liquor shops in their village. E.g. Bihar Liquor ban
- Improved access to healthcare and education: SHGs have played a crucial role in raising awareness about health issues and promoting healthcare-seeking behaviour.
- Role of JEEVIKA in Bihar in nudging people towards constructing toilets in rural areas.
- Women SHGs and panchayat leaders are trying to find more meaningful solutions to the challenges of development. The women SHGs are involved in gram sabha meetings and in developing gram panchayat development plans.
- Over one lakh SHG women have been trained to conduct social audit of programmes to improve accountability to the community.
- Social empowerment: SHGs provide a space for women to come together, share experiences, and build social networks. They promote collective decision-making, confidence-building, leadership development, and awareness of women’s rights.
- The Kudumbashree movement in Kerala empowered women by giving them decision-making roles at the grassroots level, transforming their social status and challenging gender inequalities in the state.
- Skill development and capacity building: SHGs offer training programs and capacity-building initiatives to enhance women’s skills and knowledge. This has enabled women to acquire new skills, upgrade existing ones, and develop a diverse range of capabilities, improving their employability and income-earning potential.
- The Ajeevika project in Rajasthan focused on training women in traditional handicrafts, such as embroidery and weaving, and helped them establish linkages with markets.
Measures needed for rural empowerment through SHGs-
- Government programs can be implemented through SHGs. This will not only improve the transparency and efficiency but also bring our society closer to Self-Governance as envisioned by Mahatma Gandhi.
- Funding: Financial institutions must provide adequate financial assistance to the SHGs on the basis of their performance. Efforts must be made to provide loans to SHGs at less interest rates.
- Constant monitoring of the SHGs is the need of the hour. A separate government body to monitor the functioning and the progress of the SHGs can make it more successful.
- Frequent awareness camps can be organised by the Rural Development department authorities to create awareness about different schemes.
- Periodic capacity-building of all members, to make the group the collective.
- With the Government’s focus on digital financial inclusion, investing in training of group members for transition towards technological platforms.
- It is important to invest in providing the right kind of support to maximize the impact these groups can have on livelihoods.
- Emphasising SHG movement on women’s entrepreneurship as an engine of growth in rural India.
- There should not be any discrimination among members based on caste, religion or political affiliations
Conclusion
Thus, SHG approach is an enabling, empowering, and bottom-up approach for rural development that has provided considerable economic and non-economic externalities to low-income households in rural areas.
Value addition
Evolution of SHGs
- The concept evolved over decades and was pioneered by Noble laureate Mohammad Yunus as Self Help Groups (SHGs) in 1970s.
- SHG movement in India gained momentum after 1992, when NABARD realized its potential and started promoting it.
- NABARD’s SHG-Bank Linkage Program (SBLP) connected group members to formal financial services.
- Over the last two decades, the SBLP has proven to be a great medium for social and economic empowerment for rural women.
- India has witnessed state-led promotion of SHGs through a three-tiered architecture of community institutions at group, village and cluster level.
- In 1999, Government of India, introduced Swarn Jayanti Gram Swarojgaar Yojana (SGSY) to promote self- employment in rural areas through formation and skilling of SHGs.
Q2. Provide an overview of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in India, highlighting its mandate, functions, and responsibilities in combating economic offenses. Comment on the recent controversies surrounding it. (15M)
Introduction
The Directorate of Enforcement is a multi-disciplinary organization mandated with investigation of offence of money laundering and violations of foreign exchange laws. It functions under the Department of Revenue of the Ministry of Finance. Recent years has seen its functioning being criticised from various sections of society.
Body:
Mandate, functions and responsibilities of Enforcement Directorate (ED) in India:
Mandate:
- Combating Money Laundering: The primary mandate of the ED is to enforce provisions related to money laundering under the PMLA.
- It investigates and prosecutes cases involving the generation of illegal proceeds and the laundering of illicit funds.
- Foreign Exchange Management: The ED is responsible for enforcing the provisions of FEMA, which regulate foreign exchange transactions, external trade, and payments.
- It aims to prevent unauthorized foreign exchange transactions and maintain the stability of the country’s foreign exchange market.
Functions and responsibilites:
- Investigation and Prosecution: The ED conducts investigations into cases related to money laundering and foreign exchange violations. It has the power to summon individuals, examine witnesses, seize assets, and gather evidence.
- Attachment and Confiscation of Assets: The ED has the authority to attach and confiscate assets acquired through illegal means or involved in money laundering activities. It aims to deprive offenders of their ill-gotten wealth and deter others from engaging in similar offenses.
- International Cooperation: The ED engages in international cooperation and coordination to combat cross-border financial crimes. It works closely with foreign agencies and participates in mutual legal assistance treaties (MLATs) and international forums to share information, track illicit funds, and extradite offenders.
- Adjudication: The ED has the power to adjudicate cases related to violations under FEMA. It can impose penalties, confiscate assets, and take other legal actions against individuals and entities found guilty of non-compliance with foreign exchange regulations.
- Capacity Building and Awareness: The ED conducts training programs, workshops, and seminars to create awareness about money laundering, financial crimes, and compliance with relevant laws.
- Coordination with Other Agencies: The ED collaborates with various domestic agencies, such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Income Tax Department, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), to share information and coordinate efforts in combating economic offenses.
Recent controversies surrounding ED
- Tool for Political Vendetta: The governments of the day have been accused of brazenly using agencies like the ED, CBI to settle their own political scores.
- There are concerns of Enforcement Directorate’s powers being misused to harass political opponents and intimidating them.
- g. Between 2014 and 2022, 121 political leaders have been probed by the Enforcement Directorate out of whom 95 per cent are from opposition parties
- Inefficient functioning: The Investigation by ED is bound within the territory of India, while several high profile offenders have fled the country. E.g. Mehul Choksi, Nirav modi etc.
- Manpower and intelligence issue: There is also a problem of manpower and intelligence gathering in Enforcement Directorate, that leads to delay in timely identification and prosecution of offenders.
- Lack of transparency and clarity: The Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) is not given to the accused and the ED lacks clarity in selecting cases to investigate.
Way forward
- Dedicated Fund and Grant for the agency to ensure its independent functioning.
- Separate Recruitment for Enforcement Directorate on the lines of Civil Services.
- A separate Academy for training the manpower and to instill the right values and virtues in the functioning is needed.
- To Act without malice, prejudice or bias, and not allow the abuse of power.
- More powers to ED: Under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, ED can now confiscate properties of offenders outside India, which may not be ‘proceeds of crime’.
- Separate wings within ED for intelligence, surveillance and investigation can bring more efficiency.
- Standard Training from time to time, to sharpen the investigative skills, and learning from global best practices.
Conclusion
As a premier financial investigation agency of the Government of India, the Enforcement Directorate must function in strict compliance with the Constitution and Laws of India. It must endeavour to establish and maintain high professional standards and credibility.
Value addition:
Ethics
Q3. What do you understand by the term “conscience”? What is its essence- an inherent trait from birth or is it a learned behavior? Analyze.
Introduction:
Conscience is the part of us that judges how moral our own actions are and makes us feel guilty about bad things that we have done or things we feel responsible for.
Body:
As George Bancroft said “Conscience is the mirror of our souls, which represents the errors of our lives in their full shape.”
It is the trinity of,
It encompasses the ability to understand and share the feelings of others, experience self-conscious emotions like guilt and shame, and engage in cognitive processes to make moral judgments, collectively guiding one’s moral behavior and decision-making.
Essence of conscience:
Inherent Trait from Birth:
- At Birth: babies will often try to soothe others who are suffering, by patting and stroking.
- Deontological ethics: certain moral principles are inherent and universally applicable. For example, the prohibition against lying or killing is seen as intrinsic to human nature and is not contingent upon cultural or societal influences.
- Philosophers like Immanuel Kant emphasized the existence of a categorical imperative, an inherent moral command that individuals are bound to follow, suggesting that conscience is an innate characteristic.
While conscience can be developed inherently, it can also be a learned behaviour.
- Acquired values: and ethical standards through upbringing, education, and socialization. Children learn moral values from their parents, teachers, and society, internalizing them as their conscience matures. Eg: Caring for pets fosters empathy and compassion towards animals.
- Progressive ethics: For young children, fairness pretty much reduces to equality—everyone gets the same. It’s only with development that we come to an appreciation of the complex ways in which fairness might diverge from equality. Eg: Reservation for depressed classes.
- The utilitarian philosophy: morality of an action is determined by the overall utility it produces. This implies that individuals learn to evaluate the consequences of their actions and develop a conscience based on maximizing positive outcomes.
Conclusion:
Though babies have a conscience at birth it usually develops and matures through social learning, observation, and reinforcement.
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