It is said that the provisions of the Forests Rights Act have not been fully implemented due to various factors. Critically examine these factors and suggest what needs to be done. (200 Words)

Ans:

FRA which is believed to reverse the historical unjustice meted out to the forest dwellers is still seem to lagging behind realising it's objective even after a decade of it's inception.

1. Complexities involved in the process of it's implementation, Gramsabhas though were given public authority status under FRA are lagged behind for 2 reaons. Firstly, indifferent attitude of the forest officials towards gram sabhas which is major glut in this empowerment process. Secondly, majority of the gram sabhas are unaware of their power and responsibilities.

2. Reluctance of the forest bureaucracy to give up the control hitherto enjoyed by them. It has been misinterpreted by the bureaucracy as the regularization of the forest dwellers encroachment.

3. Coordination issues between the centre and the states, where states are showing lack of will to fully implement the provisions of FRA.

Steps to be taken to speed up the implementation process are:

1. Forest officials till the ground level needs to be provided with effective orientation and training regarding the aspects of FRA. Process guidelines should be simplified and provided to the officials for swift implementation.

2. Use of technologies like GPS and colour coding to understand the areas where the implementation is lacking and analyse the reasons for the same in those areas.

3. Effective communication should be provided to the people through NGOs and Ciil Society along with the Forest Officials regarding the FRA to various gram sabhas and panchayats and also few people from every gramsabha can be nominated and provided training by the MoTA on FRA and their implementation.

Ans2:

FRA (2006) was enacted to undo the historical injustice that has been enflicted upon the tribal and marginal people during british time through recognising their right on land and forest resources for the sustenance and livelihood by granting them individual and community forest right.

However enactment of one part of the act which is provides for individual right has been implemented with full attention while the other provision regarding the recognition of community right has not picked up the pace.

According to MOTA 2015 report , total area that has been recognised under the act is meagre 73000 hectares which is one fifth of the potential land.Reasons for poor implementaion are

1.Reluctance of bureaucracy in implementing community rights as it will take away their jurisdiction over the forest other than those claimed by individual and shift it to the gram sabhas.

2.Complexity and huge task involve in the process like preparation of community and individual claims map , verification from the ground evidence and involvement of implementing authorities for the recognition and further if claim is rejected by authorities then explanation.

Steps need to be taken
1.Warning to the Forest bureaucracy for their resistance and poor implementation of the Act.
2.Awareness campaign about the community right provision as many forest communities and state administration are unaware of the provision.
3.Help from civil society can also be taken for the implementation.

Inclusive growth and development would not be fully inclusive untill tribal people and marginal section have their due right in resources which is being provided by the FRA. Further need of political will , clear direction to the state and district administration is inevitable for its implementation.

In your opinion, what ails higher education sector in India? Critically analyse these problems and examine if the government is helping the sector through its various policy measures. (200 Words)

Ans1:

--The higher education is a prime mover of knowledge and plays a key role in social welfare and overall growth of the society. But unfortunately, the higher education system in India, suffers both from irrelevance and ineffectiveness.

1. The main reason behind them seems to be a high level of politicisation at governance, leadership, teacher and student levels. All major stakeholders in the traditional university are politicised to a large extent and that tends to apparently contribute to the poor performance of a university.
2. Another reason can be seen as the usually low level of budget allocation to the education sector, which has always been a negligible portion of the GDP.
3. Also, vocational education is given lesser importance, and the syllabus contains mostly theoretical learning, which is largely irrelevant in professional sector.

--The various recent instances of political interferences, including that in Nalanda University, choice based credit system, curtailing the autonomy of IIMs, show that govt is doing little to show its support to the higher education system. All such measures may lead to deterioration of the system in the long run.
--On the other hand, some of the progressive steps taken include:

1. The recent increase in budget allocation to R&D sector, will encourage the scientific research in universities.
2. Ongoing student exchange programs also make the students aware of the better practices adopted in the education system in other countries.

--Education serves as the basis of development in any country and to reap the benefits of the present demographic dividend, it is imperative for the govt to boost this sector

Ans2:

Global reports indicate that very few institutes of India are in the top 200 list worldwide. This is unfortunate for a country with historical legacy of being the linchpin of higher education. Moreover, the number of students opting for higher education in India is low compared to other developing and developed countries. Numerous students prefer higher education in foreign universities than indian. These issues call for analysing the challenges of our higher education.

Some of them are :

1) Most of the public institutes of higher education provide only certificates rather than degrees. These certificates do not hold equivalent value of a degree and resuktantky receive less placement offers and job packages.
2) Funding for higher education has been low compared to other countries. This resulted in cash crunch, poor laboratories, low number of faculty, poor faculty training etc.
3) Politcial interference in appointment of directors, board, faculty is also present. Lack of autonomy is a major reason for poor performance.
4) Private institutes have low standards, charge exorbitant fees and teaching quality is sub standard with poor infrastructure an laboratory facilities. Regulation of these institutes is minimal and prone to corruption. Numerous over lapping jurisdiction of state and central bodies is a reason for that.
5) Emphasis on research and industry linkage is low. Collaboration with foreign institutes is also minimal.

The government has taken several measures to address these issues. The NID act and SPA act have made these institutes as national importance allowing them to grant degrees and empowering them to open branches. The central universities act aims to establish more universities in far flung areas. Introduction of CBCS along with giving universities autonomy in making changes to curriculum and course structure is laudable. However, these measures should also be accompanied by giving institutes more autonomy along with increased accountability. That is the way forward.

Do you think, considering the objectives and design of the newly launched Smart City Mission scheme by the government of India, it is suited for socio-cultural realities of India’s cities? Critically comment. (200 Words)

Ans1:

The government aims to create 100 smart cities in India. Smart cities are defines as cities which are liveable, enjoyable and safe. The uniqueness about these cities would be the use of Information technology as a means to achieve the above mentioned objectives. The government also proposes to adopt a bottoms up approach in creating these cities. Moreover all this has to be done with a vision for the poor is the governments objective. The mission adopts a competitive approach to select the cities. Before we analyse the suitability of the mission to India's socio cultural realities, it is imperative we understand them before.

Indian cities are heterogenous with people from diverse parts of the country residing there. Cities are places for the poor, middle class and the rich. Growth in cities is generally accompanied by migration from rural areas. Discrimination on caste, religion, gender lines has reduced drastically over the years but this still needs to be considered. The poor and vulnerable sections are at a nascent stage in using digital technology, so this factor must be considered as smart cities are highly technology dependent. Western idea of consumerism has not reached its zenith in India, space for spiritual and religious activities accompanied by cultural and festivals is mandatory in designing any smart city.

With these realities, we shall analyse the design of smart cities. Firstly, over emphasis on the technology part is detrimental due to poor access and coverage. It may leave out many people from availing services. Second, housing and transport have to be affordable because large population is expected to be poor or middle class. Thirdly, governance of the cities must be inclusive. Any hijack by upper caste and class people shall be avoided. Fourthly, we need an indian model of smart city which emphasises on community links, common festivals, space for religious activities of different religions and also takes care of different cultural programs and activities. Fifthly, focus on children, women and aged must also be included in the design.

Smart cities will be sustainable, inclusive and effective only if they take care of the poor smartly. The government envisages this vision and hence the smart city mission will be a watershed in indian urbanisation.

Ans2:

Recently Government has launched its flagship scheme "smart cities
mission' to build 100 smart cities across India with a corpus fund of Rs 48000
crore.

The main objectives of the mission are :

Building of 100 smart cities by efficiently utilizing available resource,
assets and infrastructure to enhance quality of urban life, promote clean and
sustainable environment by focusing on clean water, sanitation, solid- waste
management, e- governance. robust use of IT, housing for poor and citizen's
engagement

Though the scheme aims to overhaul urban landscape by use of innovation
and technology, it possesses certain grave challenges in socio-cultural realm.

Presently 1/3 of the total population lives in urban area and
contributes 60% to the national GDP. This involves a large number of migrant
and unorganized labor working in cities

Building smart Cities on line of American –style of urbanization which
are usually affordable by high income group will only institutionalize the
disparity and exclusion of these poor dwellers.

Secondly the regulatory mechanism and decisions on choice of basic civic
amenities are decided by well organised and wealthy association (For Ex: Residents’ welfare associations in Delhi) which wholly neglect the basic needs such as problems of slums and sanitation faced by poor migrants.

Thus in my opinion though the building of smart cities is in right direction to improve urban livability and transforming 100 urban cities into new centers of growth a due care is necessary to check social segregation and prevent them from becoming centers of disparities.

Critically examine how globalisation has affected various sections of urban society in India. Also compare and contrast them based on your own observation and experiences. (200 Words)

Ans1:

Globalization is perhaps the biggest turn in human history which has affected every facet of human life,and its effects are purely visible on Urban Indian society too.
On one hand it has:-
1)Changed the spending portfolios of the families with higher spending on recreation and entertainment rather than basic needs like food(Engel law)
making society form materialistic.
2)Promoted individualism in society leading to smaller families.This has severely affected old population due to lack of family support when needed most also leading to poor development of cultural values in children due to busy parents and unavailable Grandparents.
3)It has created rising trends of urbanization which is leading to high rural to urban migration and high slum population which increases inequality in society and higher crime rate.
however it has also brought several benefits to the urban societies:-
1)It has made people more rational and weakened the caste system.
2)Individualism has led to female empowerment as now family duties are not obligatory on then.
3)politically,concept of welfare state has come up to support the poor and needy who have lacked behind.

Hence we can see that globalization have both positive and negative effects on urban culture but on social level positive outweights negatives and on economic level negative outweights positives.

Ans2:


Liberalization, privatisation, globablization also known as the LPG reforms were the major reforms in the 1990s which resulting in the opening of the economy, removal of trade barriers and reduction of capital control. The post globalization era has marked many changes in the society and the economy.

It has had the following effects on various sections in the society :
1. Creation of greater job opportunities in mostly the skilled sector. This change has predominantly helped the educated middle class in getting jobs.
2. This has also resulted in making women financially independent in the urban areas. However, this again is limited to the educated class.
3. Has resulted in migration to urban centers. Widespread migration of unskilled laborers has resulted in overpopulated slums. Hence, leading to poor standard of living and poor well being of the laborers.
4. Migration of the youth and creation of more individualistic nuclear families has adversely affected the elderly population. The aged, the most vulnerable group, are hence, left to fend for themselves.
5. The children in belonging to the urban educated class gets less parental attention. Cases of depression are on the rise in such children because of lack of emotional support from parents.
6. The shift from labor intensive to technical processes has affected the unskilled laborers in getting jobs. Most end up getting paltry pay for labor intensive work. This is mostly caused due to lack of cheap vocational training.
7. Has adversely affected the owners of small enterprises and factories. They were not able to compete against the cheap manufactured goods especially from China,hence, rendering their factories uneconomical.

Thus, globalization has had its own share of positive and negative effects. It has caused increased disparity between the skilled and the unskilled and resulted in inequitable distribution of resources. The government should undertake initiatives to open cheap vocational training centers to impart skills to the unskilled so that they too reap the benefits of globalization.

Critically analyse various aspects of solid waste management in India such as its magnitude, cost on environment and lives, different models, policy measures etc and suggest what needs to be done to manage solid waste efficiently. (200 Words)

Ans1:

Solid waste consists of everyday items discarded by the people. It does not include electronic or medical wastes. With urbanization and increase in population, solid waste generated is bound to grow. The governments vision of creating smart cities and rejuvenating existing cities and also providing urban services in rural areas mean that solid waste generated in India will grow tremendously.

Solid waste has economic, environmental, social and health consequences. Environmentally, poor handling of solid waste results in contamination of ground water, reduces soil fertility, polluted water bodies and indiscriminate incineration results in air pollution and release of green house gases. These environmental concerns result in health consequences especially for the vulnerable and poor sections who are more exposed to this problem. Health issues increase the out of pocket expenditure of the people and has detrimental effect on their social security.

There are different models for solid waste management. South Africa outsources the work to private players and makes them accountable through concrete data analysis mechanism. Scandinavian countries are known for their expertise in producing huge amounts of energy from solid waste. In India, municipal bodies are responsible for managing the waste. Waste to energy is still in nascent stages. Landfill and incineration are major methods. Recycling has not been encouraged sufficiently. Moreover, an informal economy thrives in the recycling business of solid waste.

Presently, the policy guidelines for solid waste management are haphazardously, over lapping and lack clarity. No clear delineation of work is done. Accountability mechanism are minimal. Economic analysis of solid waste management is not done and as a result most of the burden borne by the municipal bodies. Instead polluter pays principle should be adopted. Emphasis on recycling through formalizing the informal sector. Building awareness among people. The swatch Bharat abhiyan is a right move in this direction and this has to be channeled into effective solid waste management.
By-Aj

Ans2:

Solid waste refers to solid or semi solid, insoluble material(including gases and liquids in containers) such as agricultural refuse,demolition waste,mining waste,municipal garbage and sewage sludge.

The magnitude of solid waste in India is on a a rise because of rapid population growth, urbanization and unchecked pollution. This has resulted in improper disposal of solid waste to improper waste management.

The following are the problems that arise from improper solid waste management :
1. Environment pollution : Improper solid waste management leads to soil, water and air pollution. Soil pollution is caused due to contamination of soil by untreated solid waste. Flooding and water run off from soil to water bodies results in water pollution and disposal of industrial and domestic solid waste to water bodies. Improper burning of solid waste leads to air pollution.

2. Health hazards : Improper waste management leads to health hazards and a greater tendencies of outbreak of epidemics like diarrhea,cholera,etc. Rag pickers and people living in and around the waste disposal sites form the most vulnerable group.

Currently in India there are two methods for SWM :
1. Sanitary landfill : This includes digging of land and filling it with treated solid waste. But with increased land cost, unavailability of land and high operational cost this method becomes more difficult to operate. Further, untreated waste disposed in landfills by the municipalities leads to soil contamination.
2. Incineration : The incineration methods used is highly inefficient.

The main problems faced is that the municipalities don't have proper the quantity of waste generated and a cost planning. Moreover, lack of reuse of reusable material and improper segregation leads to disposal of even recyclable materials. Lack of accountability on the part of citizens and industries also results in unchecked population.

For India to achieve its dream of economic development and environment sustainability , it is important that solid waste management is done in an efficient way through PPP(public private participation model). The Swach Bharat Abhiyaan is a positive step in this regard. It is important to promote and follow the 4Rs- refuse, reduce, reuse , replace for the people to generate less solid waste. New more efficient solid management methods should also be evolved.
By-Pooja.

Critically examine why the draft Institutes of Management Bill, 2015, drafted by the Human Resource Development Ministry, is being criticised by many academics. Do you find merit in their criticism of this Bill? Comment. (200 Words)

Ans:

Theproposed IIM Bill 2015 proposes to grant statutory status to thirteen existing
Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and declare them as Institutions of
National Importance to enable them to grant degrees instead of certificate and
Post Graduate Diploma, which lacked universal acceptability in the field of
academia and research.

The bill has been criticized on account of sweeping government control which will extend to an entire range of strategic and operational decisions of the institutes .Some of the proposed changes are :

1 Any change in curriculum, fees, course, remuneration, etc will need Center's approval.
2 Center will determine director's powers
3 Center will look into building maintenance
4 Board may lay down criteria to be followed by the Director but if they are
unsatisfied they should recommend inquiry against him to the Center
5 Pay variable pay to the director on basis of performance

I think the Criticism has merit because loss of autonomy of the IIM board to choose its director would mean institute will be centrally–governed rather than board governed. A centrally appointed director will be more accountable to the government than to its board. Also the emphasis is more on uniformity across the IIMs which ignores their diversity.

Government focus should be on creating more
number of institutes. Arm twisting in administrating a few premier institutes
will not help it to realise its goal of skill India.

Examine how the success of ongoing Iran nuclear deal negotiations would affect West Asia and India. (200 Words)

Ans1:

Talks on Iran nuclear agreement can be trace back to “Geneva Agreement”2013 titled as “Joint Plan of Action” in which Iran agreed to roll back its nuclear programme in exchange of relief from sanctions imposed by UN.

Effect of Sanctions on Iran:

1. Oil exports reduced to half and decline in oil prices

2. High cost of oil production

3. Negative GDP growth

Effect of Iran Nuclear Agreement on India:

1. India can import crude oil from Iran without any restriction

2. Chabahar port: Strategic position of Chabahar port will help India to bypass Pakistan and it will also provide connectivity to Central Asia and Europe via International North South Transport Corridor which is shorter and less expensive than Suez Canal

3. Transaction for crude oil will be done in Indian rupees.

Effect on West Asia:

1. Sectarian war is predominant in West Asia which is divided into two power blocks: one block led by sunni dominated force of Saudi Arabia and other block led by shia dominated Iran

2. By imposing restriction on Iran nuclear programmes, it ensures that nuclear programme in Iran will be for peaceful purpose, this will lead to rise of another power block ie Saudi Arabia in West Asia

Ans2:

IMPACT ON WEST ASIA:

Any success in this deal would mean the success of diplomacy over military belligerence, avoiding huge human causalities and political crisis which happened in cases like Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya. This has positive impacts to the world in general and West Asia in particular.

Though majority of the oil importing nations are free from supply gluts now thanks to the increase in oil supply, but there was a time when demand was very high than the supply which resulted in increase in oil prices. Oil prices would come down more, this is surely a relief as Iran can start exporting their oil without any major sanctions.

Iran's economy was crumbled because of the sanctions, any revival in this would have 2 cascading effects:

a. Growth of Iranian economy which would have great impact on the poverty and increase in livelihood opportunities. This acts as a barrier from the country slipping towards the terrorist activities,

b. Revival of the economy increases the scope economic transactions with Iran's neighboring nations, which can possibly act as an intervention in support of other initiatives to counter strategies of ISIS.

On the negative side, the friction of Iran with Israel and Saudi Arabia is bound to rise, as Iran will be back on the growth track which both these countries perceive as an eminent threat.

Though the outcomes of the nuclear negotiations are yet to come, any action on part of Israel and Saudi Arabia are dependent on these outcomes.

IMPACT ON INDIA:

India can increase it's quantum of oil import from Iran, as Iran accepts Indian rupee. This would relieve stress on Forex reserves. But it needs to be seen whether Iran still continues with Indian rupee after the sanctions are lifted.

Stable hold for India in West Asia is very important, strengthening of Iran would strengthen the initiative of Chahbahar port which is gate way to the Central and West Asia.

To conclude, it is Iran's best interest for the revival of their economy and any activities to undermine the whole process will remain as a blot on the trust of West Asia with rest of the world.

Critically analyse how India’s neighbours have assisted or hindered India’s efforts to curb terrorist activities of state and non-state actors affecting its internal security. (200 Words)

Ans1:

India’s internal security and stability is largely depends upon peace and stability of it neighbouring countries. India has both friendly nations: Myanmar, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and and unfriendly neighbours Pakistan and China. India and its relations with neighbours is dealt in detail as follows:

1. Myanmar: recently there was an ambush between Indian army and NE
insurgents National Socialist Council Nagaland (Khaplang), in which after
ambush these insurgents took safe haven in Myanmar territory but Myanmar supported India in destroying these militants.

2. Nepal: India and Nepal are working very closely in combating Maoists, recently
India donated 1 billion dollar to quake hit Nepal, and also India is helping
Nepal to formulate its constitution. India is acting as big brother to Nepal

3. Bangladesh: India and Bangladesh signed agreement to combat terrorism
and drug trafikking, India and Bangladesh also determined to grag insurgents
from each other’s territory.

4. Bhutan: with the help of India Bhutan send an ultimatum to terrorists
operating from its soil. Many Insurgets such as United Liberation Front of Asom(ULFA), National Democratic Front of Bodoland(NDFB), Bodoland Liberation Tiger Force(BLTF) have training camps in Bhutan. With the help of Bhutan Army, Indian Special Frontier force destroyed many militant camps in Bhutan.

5. Pakistan: Pakistan always supported the perpetrators of terrorism in
India such as Tehreek e hind, Al-Qaida, Lashker-e-Taiba, recently Pak released Zaki ur Rehman Lakhavi, main perpetrator of Mumbai blast.

6. China: In order to improve its relation with Pakistan, China is taking opposite stand against India, recently China blocks India’s request in UNSC in seeking clarification on release of Lakhvi.

India have taken many steps in improving its bilateral relations with its neighbours but for countries like Pakistan and China, India’s efforts seems to be in vain.

Ans2:

India's internal security has two dimensions - one related to domestic aspects such as land alienation etc. which resulted in naxalism and the other being the international aspect as in the linkage and connections of indian insurgents with international vested interests and also foreign actors destabilising our country through different measures. Both the dimensions are interconnected and this makes India's internal security highly dependent on peace and security in its neighbourhood.

The role of India's neighbours to curb terrorist activities against India have been mixed. Certain countries such as Bhutan, Bangladesh have helped us while Pakistan and China haven't been so helpful.

India launched joint operations with Bhutan and Bangladesh in taking out safe heavens of insurgents especially North Eastern insurgents in these countries. These countries have also helped in curbing their smuggling and arms trafficking activities.

Nepali Maoists are all edged to have funded indian Maoists. Relentless pressure from India and support from Nepali government has helped curb it to a great extent.

Pakistani government has been reluctant in punishing the 26/11 perpetuators. Moreover, the LeT and mujahideen heads roam freely in the country. Pakistani intelligence service has also been instrumental in fueling militants in Kashmir region. It hinders any indian move to attack these militant groups.

China recently has supported Pakistan in its non-punishment of Mumbai attack perpetuators in the UNSC. Moreover, China's aid to India's North Eastern insurgents cannot be ruled out.

Hence, it has been a mixed response for India. The way forward is in continuing joint operations with countries willing to support and putting pressure on the other countries either through international, multilateral or diplomatic means.

Should Mediation, a form of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR), be allowed in rape cases by the courts? Justify. (200 Words)

Ans:

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) as the name suggests, a mechanism to resolve the dispute. The first question to be understood is, whether rape is a dispute?

Dispute involves 2 or more aggrieved parties who claim that their rights have been violated and issue can be settled through negotiation like property dispute between the brothers in a family.

However in case of rape, there is one aggrieved party against the other who had committed this offence. Here rights and dignity of one individual is at stake not both the parties. Moreover, rape is a criminal offence as per the law unlike the disputes which are civil in nature.

Criminal activities affects the society at large, unlike the civil cases where private rights of the individuals are at stake.

Negotiation is a part of ADR, but is there any scope for negotiations in rape cases. What do the courts expect from the rape survivor by allowing for ADRs?, to give concessions to the convicts in terms of jail imprisonment or fine settlement.

By allowing ADRs, clearly undermines the seriousness of this offence and also gives an undue advantage to the convicts involved in this. Allowing ADR in rapes resembles the traditional and informal institutions where a village headman acts as a neutral authority in deciding the quantum of punishment to be inflicted upon the convict which in most cases is merely a small fine.

Justice J.S Verma Committee report that came out in the light of Delhi rape incident had strengthened the case by locating rape in the context of gender justice, ADRs would clearly be retreating from this path. Courts should appoint special bench for quicker resolve of such type of cases rather opting for ADRs for speedy trail.

Critically discuss the impact of urbanisation on children in India. (200 Words)

Ans1:
--The continuous and rapid growth of urbanisation in the world has touched every aspect of an individual’s life, which can be seen as both benefactory and derogatory to one’s behaviour.
--Same can be said for its impact on mindset of children of the modern world, which has both improved and ruined their lives.
--Positive:

1. Children today are more aware of their surroundings, and better connected with the outside world due to the technological advance.
2. Better availability and enhanced efficiency of the education system has helped in increasing the learning ability of the children.
3. Increase in economic status of the family helps in decreasing instances of health related problems among children.
4. The extent of patriarchal mindset has also decreased to some measure, leading to better gender sensitisation among children

--Negative:

1. The new gadgets have isolated the children from real world, while making them habitual of the virtual world.
2. Instances of obesity have increased due to more consumption of fast food
3. Instances of family strife increase when children seek more and more independence from their parents. Also, another reason for family strife can be that both the parents are working and cannot give enough time to their children, which hampers their individual development
4. Unchecked access of children to the internet has also led to growth of anti social elements in the society.

Ans2:
Urbanisation can be defined in two ways - Rural areas becoming urban and urban becoming more urban. The term urban means better infrastructure, services, facilities and opportunities in a broad manner. Urbanisation impacts the economy, polity, society, culture of the region, state and country. It affects all strata of the society. It's effect of children is multidimensional with pros and cons.

Pros :
1) Urbansiation provides children with more opportunities in different arenas such as cultural activities, sports tournaments, coaching centres etc.
2) With urbanisation, the quality of education may increase. This benefits children. But, most of the high quality schools are joined by elite children, hence their effect on the poorer sections is questionable.
3) Urbansiation comes with more integration of the society due to better connectivity, social media awareness and media coverage. These help children become more aware about happening around the world and country.
4) Urbansiation comes with better health facilities. Hence, the lower IMR and MMR in urban areas and high immunisation coverage. But again, this is not the case with urban poor.

Cons:
1) Urbansiation is not Eco-friendly, at least presently. The high pollution levels in Delhi is a case in point. This will harm children's health.
2) Reports suggest urbanisation has increased child labour. The migration of rural people into cities are vulnerable due to low economic and social conditions.
3) General observation suggest that there is a depletion in playing areas for children due to growth in construction activity.
4) Urbansiation is accompanied by growth of slums and unorganised colonies which are unhygeinic and have low sanitation thereby adversely affecting child health.

On the whole, urbanisation seems to benefit the affluent children and may even be disadvantages to the urban poor and rural migrants.

Ans3:
urbanization has a different impact on different sections of children. some are benefiting where as some other are not. here is a brief review.

good effects of urbanization-
1. the parents are getting more income due to multiple opportunities in urban areas. this is leading to betterment in the lives of children. things like malnutrition are uncommon in an average urban area.
2. more opportunities-
facilities like better schooling, recreation, scope for artistic development, child rights are more frequent in urban areas. they have a positive impact on child's development.
3.more freedom is being enjoyed by urban children due to relative affluence. things like bonded labor are limited in urban areas.

ill effects of urbanization-
1. destitute children, street children are commonly seen in urban areas.
2. slums, which are off shoots of urbanization are not favorable for a healthy mental growth in children.
3. things like crime, delinquency, prostitution, human trafficking, child labor are common here.
4. social dimension in affluent section also is being tuned out of consumerism. things like drug addiction are common here in teen age groups. individual centric mental development is also another cause of concern.

thus, the process of urbanization, which is unplanned is showing mixed results on our children. developmental processes in slum areas, attitudinal manipulations in affluent sections both are needed to create a healthy environment.

Do you think there should be minimum educational qualification for ministers to manage important sectors such as higher education efficiently ? Critically comment. (200 Words)

Ans:

The constitution of India does not mandate educational qualifications for becoming a minister. The only eligibility criteria being age. The rationale of the founding fathers for this move is the immense trust they had on the people in choosing suitable representatives and the capability of Indians to hold any difficult position.

In recent times especially post liberalisation, governance has become complicated. It requires proficiency and specialisation for better governance. Ministries such as finance, HRD, defence and external affairs etc. require plethora of skills and experience. In this regard, the question of minimum educational qualification for certain ministries is raised.

Arguments for :
1) The utility of education is known. Educational qualification hence would make ministers more adept at dealing with intricacies of governance.
2) Knwoledge on the given field would be an added advantage. A doctor to head the health ministry would be more effective in understanding and designing policies.
3) High educational qualification of ministers could motivate people to pursue higher studies especially the poor who see politicians as inspiration.
4) Eduvation will make it easier for the bureaucrats to deal with the minister.

Arguments against :
1) It goes against the spirit of our founding fathers of keeping the doors of governance open to every citizen of India.
2) Mandating compulsory educational qualification has the potential to create a barrier between the educated and non educated.
3) Educational qualification may be the start of introducing more such restrictions such as religion, gender, caste etc. It is against the spirit of democracy.
4) Morover, to determine the level of educational qualification which would be sufficient is itself ambiguous. Additionally, treating certain ministries differently is another issue. If ministries itself require educational qualification, then what about prime ministership?
5) The permanent executive is there to assist the political executive in dealing with the ministry, hence public spiritedness is more important than education.

The balance of the arguments and the spirit of the constitution suggest that compulsory educational qualification should not be imposed. Education does not guarantee performance, it is public spiritedness and the checks and balances inherent in our institutions which shall and will.

Write a critical note on the objectives and performance of the National Mission of Food Processing (NMFP) Scheme . (200 Words)

Ans:

-National Mission of Food Processing (NMFP) was a centrally sponsored scheme (CSS) introduced in 2012. The mission was to promote food processing industries in India by providing infrastructural support and 75% financial cost to the state governments.

Objective:
-The objective of the NMFP is-
1. to assist state governments in setting up infrastructure for food processing industries.
2. to spread the message about food processing and thus help in enhancing agricultural productivity.
3. to promote skill development for post-harvest and food processing industries.
4. to assist MSME in setting up Food processing units in terms of capital/technology/skill etc
5. to ensure and enhance food safety laws.

Performance:
-NMFP has performed very well within the last few years. This is evident from the fact that investors are still ready to invest in food processing units.

-Currently, the central government has decided to de-link the project and let the state government run it on its own. This led the central government to stop giving existing 75% fund to the state government.

-The state government should now focus to use the 10% extra revenue sharing given by the central government, as per the fourteenth Finance commission recommendations in funding the NMFP.

-the food processing industry in India is a rising and promising industry with investors ready to pump in money. This project should not be affected by the withdrawal of central government’s share in it. Instead state government should use this opportunity to mould the project according to its own needs and help increase farmers productivity.

“If IFS has to perform effectively, its elitism should be preserved, its attractiveness enhanced, and it should be brought to the centre of international relations as it was originally intended to be.” Do you agree with this view? Critically comment.

Ans:

Indian Foreign Service(IFS) is the nerve centre of diplomacy. With growing complex world relations IFS plays a major role but the elite nature of IFS is vanishing due to various reasons:

1. Personnel inadequacy: present intake of IFS officers (900) are too less compare to increasing missions of diplomacy.

2. Lateral entries: lateral entries of many IAS officers who are send in mission without proper training due to this quality of service is compromised. Even many ministries have officers who are specialised in international negotiations this creates disillusionment among IFS officers who are specially trained for the purpose.

3. No direct entry: IFS officers are recruited from same common entrance exam, so
disheartened aspirants who have not cleared for IAS opt for IFS, this reduces the zeal among officers

4. Less attractive and less desirable among aspirants

Reforms needed:

1. It should be made more lucrative so that the right candidate is chosen

2. Practice of ad hoc postings need to be ceased

3. Financial compensation for tough assignments

4. Shortage of personnel is not on mission abroad but in headquarters so temporary deputation from various ministries should be made

5. Separate entrance exam should be there for IFS so that only interested candidate may come forward for this

In many countries IFS is elitist service, India also should work towards in bringing its eliteness by strengthening its professional and specialized character.

Critically analyse the finding of the first national Socio Economic Caste Census (SECC). (200 Words)

Ans1:

1) 1/3rd of rural households has an uncertain source of income and lives in kutcha houses. Under SECC data, these will now be considered as poor under various schemes such as NFSA, RSBY, JSY etc.It will reducing leakage and also provides clear definition for identifying the poor which were missing in previous committees such as tendulkar, rangarajan etc.

2) 21% of total poor in rural areas belong to SC/ST. This brings out the fact that schemes targeted at these groups have not able to provide the required affects. Renewed attention with necessary changes in guidelines and implementation is need of the hour. 

3) The total percentage of poor under SECC is 31%; this puts an upper limit on the number. This will reduce fraud inclusions. But people who are drawn under the BPL line due to inflation, disaster etc. after the SECC has been conducted will remain out of the purview is a cause of concern.

4) MP is the poorest state in terms of less than 5k income a month with one kutchha house per household followed by chattisgarh and bihar. There is a greater need to financial and capacity support from the centre to these states.

The SECC list holds great significance for proper delivery of benefits under various government schemes. It is placed in public domain and also scrutinize by the GS. The claims raised against some households are re-surveyed. These facts provide credibility to the SECC data. The few concerns are that SECC list available on web is in image format making it difficult to use search option.

Ans2:

Ministry of rural development commenced the first 'Socio Economic and Caste census' in 2011 through a comprehensive door to door enumeration throughout the country .

Objective :
i) It can find number of people below poverty line.
ii) Authentic information that will analyse caste based population.
iii) Socio-economic status of the country.

Findings and analysis:
i) Nearly one in every three household still have uncertain source of income and they live in one room kutcha house. This data is helpful in analyzing number of people below poverty line and hence states could take adequate measures by providing them a source of income to uplift there condition.

ii) It will ensure better targeting of government schemes.
iii) Data on rural households include three categories

a) Those that were compulsory excluded
b) Those that were compulsory included
c) Those who lie in between.
iv) Data helped in analyzing the income of households, SC/ST population , housing possessions.
v) Those who were included are the one that were without shelter, destitute which account for less than one percent.
vi) Those who were excluded were the one having motorized vehicle , Kisan credit card with limit above 50,000 which were 39.4%.
Finding of census are similar to Rangarajan committee report which pegged poor at less than 32 rupees spending which was in contrast to Tendulkar committee report.
Findings of the report are still preliminary . Census on urban data will throw a better picture.

Recently the Law Commission informed the Supreme Court that the punishment for filing false affidavit by poll candidates be enhanced to a two-year prison-term and the person disqualified from contesting elections. Critically examine the issue and comment why such candidates be punished harshly. (200 Words)

Ans:

Supreme Court held that disclosing of information including the criminal antecedents in the affidavits is an important process which helps the voter to make well informed choices. Filing of false affidavits has a direct bearing on the integrity of an election.

Ensuring free and fair elections is a basic feature of our constitution.
Recent issue of the Ex-Delhi law minister who filed false affidavit as a degree holder of law, this attempt needs to be seen as the deliberate attempt to influence voters which the principles of our constitution.

Filing of false affidavits is an issue included under Section 125 A of the RP Act. This section acted as immunity for those who are committing such frauds, as this act entitles punishment of 6 months or a fine.

Firstly, the candidate can't be disqualified for filing a false affidavit and secondly delay in the court proceedings resulting in an unduly longer period between the framing of charges and conviction. These loopholes resulted in making this provision by the offenders as a mockery on democracy.

SC had asked the Law Commission to provide framework for curtailing these kind of offences. Commission had recommended that, Section 125 A be included under the Section 8(1) of the RP Act which results in the disqualification of an elected representative for filing false affidavits.

Strengthening of the law might act as an abundant caution against these offences. But, major difficulty lies in catching these offenders as it would be difficult and lengthy process for identifying such cases and bringing them to the justice.

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Union Government gives nod to promulgation of Ordinance to amend Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881

Union Government has given nod for promulgation of Ordinance to amend Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. 

Decision in this regard was Union Cabinet meet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. 

The ordinance paves way for filing of cheque bounce cases in place where the cheque was issued. 

This move that will benefit around 18 lakh people involved in such cheque bounce cases. 

In May 2015, The Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, 2015 was passed in Lok Sabha. 

However the bill was not able pass in Rajya Sabha where ruling NDA government is in minority. 

Background In 2014, Supreme Court had ruled that cases against those having defaulted on their cheque payments only need be filed in courts under which jurisdiction of the bank account of the accused fell. 

However, this ruling was not payee-friendly. So in order to protect of payee Union government brought amendment bill to by-pass the court’s order. 

About Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, 2015 

The amendment bill adds provision to specify the territorial jurisdiction of the courts in cases related to bouncing of cheques which was not present in the parent Act. 

It says that cases in this regard need to be filed only in a court in whose jurisdiction the bank branch of the payee lies. 

It also adds provision related to more than one case is filed against the same person before different courts for bouncing of cheques. 

In this matter, the case will be transferred to the court that has appropriate jurisdiction. The bill also amends the definition of cheque. 

Now it defines it as cheque in the electronic form which is signed in a secure system with a digital signature or using electronic system and drawn in electronic medium using any computer resource. 

About Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 

The Act defines bills of exchange, promissory notes, cheques and creates penalties for issues such as bouncing of cheques. It also specifies circumstances under which complaints for cheque bouncing can be filed.

Yellow-Breasted Buntings on the verge of extinction: Study

As per recent study published in the Conservation Biology journal, Yellow-breasted buntings (Emberiza aureola), a songbird are near to extinction. 

The study has mentioned that population this bird species which is also known as he “rice bird” in China has plunged by 90 percent since 1980 and disappearing from Eastern Europe, Japan and parts of Russia. 

The main reason mentioned in the study for decline of songbirds is illegal hunting for food and sold on the black market in China. 

Earlier in 1997, China had banned China the hunting of the species following initial population declines but failed to implement to conservation measures to protect them. 

Since 2013, Yellow-breasted buntings have been classified by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as an endangered species due to rapid population decline. 

The paper compares hunting of this species with the North American passenger pigeon, which became extinct in 1914 due to industrial-scale hunting. 

It should be noted that Yellow-breasted buntings is Eurasian passerine bird that belongs to the bunting family (Emberizidae). It is migratory bird wintering in south-east Asia, India, and southern China.

Nepal parties reach long-awaited deal

Nepal’s rival political parties have struck a historic agreement to end years of deadlock on a new constitution that will divide the country into eight provinces. This paves the way for a new federal structure.

Background:

• Nepal’s lawmakers began work on a new national constitution in 2008 following a decade-long Maoist insurgency that left an estimated 16,000 people dead and brought down the monarchy.
• But the political parties were unable to reach agreement and the resulting uncertainty left Nepal in a state of political limbo.

However, the agreement has left the crucial issue of the provincial borders unresolved — an omission which critics said would create future problems.

Details of the agreement:

• Under the deal, Nepal will continue with its current system of national governance which includes an executive Prime Minister and ceremonial President.
• A new federal commission will be tasked with drawing up internal borders and submit a proposal for approval in Parliament.
• The agreement includes a commitment to hold the country’s first local elections since 1997.

"It must be understood that IP is also located in unforgettable trademarks — in the creativity of writers, singers and others, in Geographical Indications (GI), and in traditional knowledge.” Critically examine the benefits of GI and explain why there is lack of awareness on GI compared to intellectual property rights.

Geographical indicator (GI) is a sign used on products that have a specified geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to its origin. These are covered under articles 22- 24 of TRIPS agreement.

The various benefits of GI are:

a) Preserving cultural heritage- by various legal protections to region's art and craft, its agricultural and industrial products. Ex. Banarasi saree, kanchepuram silk.

b) Social building and community participation- as there is need to strengthen its production and supply chain.

c) consumer benefits- these products must meet certain quality standards according to their norms.

d) socio-economic - competitive advantage, more added value, increased export opportunities, and strengthening of brand

e) environmental- mainly linked to agricultural products hence based on preservation of natural resources

f) nation at large because of socio-economic development, inclusive growth and preserving identity of INDIA (cultural clout)

Despite several advantages there is a widespread lack of awareness on GI compared to IPR because

i) GI are mainly the domain of socio-economical backward communities which lack knowledge of its benefits as well as its procedural mechanisms, unlike IPR or patent rights owner being from higher business houses having all sort of information and power.

ii) unaware of its value, fragmented qualities as well as prices which hampers the development of such industries.

iii) adulteration in qualities and lack of strict legal enforcement forcing these workers for diversion to earn livelihood elsewhere.

iv) ineffective support of govt institutions at grass root level- lack of proper infrastructure and financial mechanisms.
summing up there is a need to focus on awareness generation and capacity building to save these industries which are a symbol of cultural heritage and support for inclusive sustainable development.

Critically comment on various objections raised against the choice-based credit system (CBCS).

Ans1:

Choice Based Credit System (CBCS) is a step taken by the University Grants Commission (UGC) which directs all universities to offer a range of courses to their students. While such a system will offer more flexibility to the students, CBCS also has a lot of lacunae, which are leading to resentment against it. These are:

1. Common Syllabus - Along with CBCS, the UGC has also directed all Universities to have a common syllabus. While the objective behind this step is to enable inter-university transfer of students, this step will affect the quality of universities. And every university will be brought down to a common average level.

2. Bureaucratization of Education - A dynamic education sector requires that major initiatives are taken by the sectoral experts. However, in this case CBCS and its attendant conditions will lead to a bureaucratization of education and take away the autonomy of the Universities.

3. Stakeholder Resistance - There is increasing resistance from students and teachers against CBCS. It is necessary that their concerns are addressed. Otherwise the CBCS initiative could meet the fate of the aborted Four Year Undergraduate Program (FYUP) of the Delhi University.

4. Lack of Clarity - There is a lack of clarity about implementation of the system. Any initiative is only as good as its execution. Thus, there needs to be greater clarity about the implementation of CBCS.

The Indian Education sector is overdue for reforms and the UGC must be applauded for trying to invigorate the sector. However, experts and other stakeholders have raised valid concerns. These need to be suitably resolved and CBCS modified to ensure that the proposed reform take the education sector forward and not backwards.

Ans2:

And. CBCS was aimed at introducing multidisciplinary approach and facilitating migration from one university to another. However there are certain concerns against CBCS which are :

1. Unclear guidelines : Teachers have objected to unclear guidelines regarding the implementation of CBCS, leaving them in a state of confusion.

2. Top down approach : Implementation of CBCS will take away autonomy of education institutions to some extent in deciding their curriculum and give UGC more powers vis-a-via them.

3. Neglect of certain subjects : With the coming of CBCS, the popularity of already in-demand subjects will increase and the less popular subjects will further be neglected. Students will have a choice to opt out of them and switch to more popular subjects.

4. Preferring industry over academics : The design of CBCS may promote the demands of industry over that of academics and research as in student joining more vocation oriented courses, and may result into lower level of academic and research activities.

5. Difficulty in implementation : Introduction of CBCS will result in additional administrative overhead for the universities which are already facing problems such as delayed examination and result declaration due to crunch of manpower and other resources.

CBCS though a right step towards introducing multidisciplinary approach should be introduced phase-wise, taking all stockholders into consideration and strengthening the capacity of universities to introduce the system.

A recent news reported that the ministry of urban development had found that the funds set aside for schemes such as the Rajiv Rinn Yojana, the National Urban Livelihood Mission and the Rajiv Awas Yojana are not being utilized. Critically examine why.

Reports that funds set aside for government schemes are not utilised are nothing new. The reasons behind such a sorry state of affairs are as follows:

1. Improper Policy Formulation - A top down policy approach without wide consultations with the respective stakeholders sometimes leads to a policy which looks good in theory but is impractical in execution.

2. Politically driven Decisions - The 'big' schemes which can impact a lot of people also face the problem of political pressures impacting the decisions. Thus, decisions might solely be taken due to political considerations which are however, not viable or practical.

3. Incomplete Policies - Sometimes while the scheme is announced early, the structure and rules are not defined. This can create unrealistic deadlines which lead to inefficient policies.

4. Lack of incentive for Implementing agency - This is illustrated by the case of Rajiv Rinn Yojana which provides interest subsidy for housing loans. However it could cost a bank upto 25% of the interest. Thus, there is no incentive for any bank to promote the scheme.

5. General Lack of Awareness - While there is a plethora of schemes announced by the government, the intended beneficiaries hardly know about them. This particularly cause demand based schemes to suffer.

In order to really tackle any problem, wide ranging consultations are required between all the stakeholders - the target population, the implementing agencies, the political class etc. Only when there is an appreciation of the requirements and on ground conditions along with acceptability to all the stake holders could any such scheme become successful in its objectives.

Discuss the nature and effects of recent natural disasters that are said to be the consequences of climate change.

Climate Change is a major issue requiring global co-operation to mitigate its effects.In the recent past, there have been many unusual climatic events that have been attributed to climate change. Some of these are as follows

1. Unseasonal Rain and Hail - Large parts of India have been inundated by unseasonal rainfall and hail. This has aggravated farmer distress by affecting the standing crops. In extreme cases, the unseasonal rain has also caused floods causing widespread damage.

2. Extreme Heat Waves - There has been a spike in the frequency as well as intensity of heat waves. While IPCC estimates that the global average temperatures have risen by 0.8 degree centigrade in the past 100 years, in selected regions like south India, the average temperature rise has been of the order of 2-4 degrees centigrade.

3. Monsoon Variations - Climate change also affects the global wind patterns which has an effect on the monsoon winds that bring rains to India. The time and quantity of precipitation is majorly affected.

These natural disasters have the following effects:

1. They lead to agrarian distress as the crops are highly vulnerable to climate change.

2. It leads to a rise in deaths either by flooding or due to thermal stress. The poor are disproportionately affected as they cannot afford or otherwise access mitigation measures.

3. These events also have inflationary tendencies as they can cause shortages in the supply of food grains and rise in the demand of energy.

While due to their very nature, such events cannot be predicted, their effects can be mitigated by developing a proper plan in order to counter them. A study should also be conducted to ascertain the reasons behind the disproportionate effects of a heat wave in the southern state. Mitigation strategy would flow from the results of such a study.

Examine why tropical cyclones are named the way they are named around the world. Also examine the nature and causes of origin of cyclones in the Arabian Sea.

Tropical cyclones are developed in the regions lying between tropic of cancer and Capricorn.They are characterized by sudden increase in air temperature and wind velocity (wind velocity exceed 63 kph), decrease air pressure, emergence cirrus clouds in the sky, heavy rainfall, high waves in ocean, clouds are associated with thunder and lightning .

Cyclones are named-
1)to avoid confusion as they last for more than 7 days and more than one cyclone can developed in same basin.
2)easy communication between forecaster and general public.

REASONS:-
a)INITIAL DEVELOPMENT

-A warm sea water(26 degree centigrade) which provide abundant water vapor

-High relative humidity which helps condensation of water vapor into water droplets and clouds and release heat energy
-Atmospheric instability which helps in formation clouds with condensation of rising rising air over ocean
-Location 4-5 latitude degree from equator allows influence the forces due to earth rotation to take effect in reducing cyclonic wind circulation around low pressure

b)Mature tropical cyclone--spiral pattern of highly turbulent cumulus clouds which are accompanied by winds up to 250 kmph.

c)decay process--if central low pressure is weaken due to source of moist air being abruptly cut off the cyclone start decaying.