SECURE SYNOPSIS: 08 AUGUST 2018
NOTE: Please remember that following ‘answers’ are NOT ‘model answers’. They are NOT synopsis too if we go by definition of the term. What we are providing is content that both meets demand of the question and at the same time gives you extra points in the form of background information.
General Studies – 2
Topic– Indian Constitution- historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments,
significant provisions and basic structure.
Why this question
Srikrishna Committee has been in the news lately for coming out with the draft data protection Bill. While some have praised the bill for suggesting a framework to ensure data protection, critics have argued that the Bill sacrifices individual freedom in favour of collective security and nation’s economy. This question requires you to examine this debate.
Key demand of the question
The question expects us to bring out both the sides of the aforementioned debate. Next, we need to examine the provisions of the committee’s suggestions to see whether the point of the critics has any merit. Our fair and balanced view on this debates needs to be mentioned at the end.
Directive word
Analyze – When asked to analyze, you have to examine methodically the structure or nature of the topic by separating it into component parts and present them as a whole in a summary.
Structure of the answer
Introduction – Give an overview of the committee’s observations and suggestions, the provisions of the data protection Bill.
Body
- Give an overview of the debate along with the relevant provisions of the draft Bill
- Explain why this claim has been made in the question that the Bill’s recommendations do not only undermine the legal principles stated by the SC in Puttaswamy judgement but also re-interpret them.
- Give reasons why the above claim might not be true. Take suggestions from the Hindu article
Conclusion – Give your opinion on the debate based on your arguments and suggest way forward.
Background:-
India is one of the few major democracies in the world without a national privacy and data protection framework. The absence of this was noted in the Supreme Court’s famous Puttaswamy ruling which clarified that there is a fundamental right to privacy, and also, that the state has an obligation to protect this right by enacting appropriate legislation.
Srikrishna committee report important principles:-
- The Srikrishna committee submitted its report and draft Bill to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology recently. The Committee was constituted last year to examine issues related to data protection, recommend methods to address them, and draft a data protection Bill.
- This is a landmark report in many ways, given its multiple but critical touch points: a nascent but growing digital economy, the unmapped and uneasy relation between citizens (the committee calls them “data principals”) and data managers (“data fiduciaries”), the state’s contentious role, the legal dilemma of trying to constrain globally mobile data within local legislative jurisdictions, among many others.
Draft bill on date protection :-
- Rights of the individual:
- The Bill sets out certain rights of the individual. These include: (i) right to obtain confirmation from the fiduciary on whether its personal data has been processed, (ii) right to seek correction of inaccurate, incomplete, or out-of-date personal data, and (iii) right to have personal data transferred to any other data fiduciary in certain circumstances.
- Obligations of the data fiduciary:
- The Bill sets out obligations of the entity who has access to the personal data (data fiduciary). These include: (i) implementation of policies with regard to processing of data, (ii) maintaining transparency with regard to its practices on processing data, (iii) implementing security safeguards (such, as encryption of data), and (iv) instituting grievance redressal mechanisms to address complaints of individuals.
- Data Protection Authority:
- The Bill provides for the establishment of a Data Protection Authority.
- The Authority is empowered to:
- (i) take steps to protect interests of individuals
- (ii) prevent misuse of personal data
- (iii) ensure compliance with the Bill.
- It will consist of a chairperson and six members, with knowledge of at least 10 years in the field of data protection and information technology. Orders of the Authority can be appealed to an Appellate Tribunal established by the central government and appeals from the Tribunal will go to the Supreme Court.
- Grounds for processing personal data:
- The Bill allows processing of data by fiduciaries if consent is provided. However, in certain circumstances, processing of data may be permitted without consent of the individual. These grounds include:
- If necessary for any function of Parliament or state legislature, or if required by the state for providing benefits to the individual
- If required under law or for the compliance of any court judgement.
- To respond to a medical emergency, threat to public health or breakdown of public order.
- For reasonable purposes specified by the Authority, related to activities such as fraud detection, debt recovery, and whistle blowing.
- Grounds for processing sensitive personal data:-
- Processing of sensitive personal data is allowed on certain grounds, including:
- Based on explicit consent of the individual
- If necessary for any function of Parliament or state legislature, or, if required by the state for providing benefits to the individual
- If required under law or for the compliance of any court judgement.
- Sensitive personal data includes passwords, financial data, biometric data, genetic data, caste, religious or political beliefs, or any other category of data specified by the Authority.
- Additionally, fiduciaries are required to institute appropriate mechanisms for age verification and parental consent when processing sensitive personal data of children.
- Processing of sensitive personal data is allowed on certain grounds, including:
- Transfer of data outside India:
- Personal data (except sensitive personal data) may be transferred outside India under certain conditions.
- These include: (i) where the central government has prescribed that transfers to a particular country are permissible, or (ii) where the Authority approves the transfer in a situation of necessity.
- Exemptions:
- The Bill provides exemptions from compliance with its provisions, for certain reasons including: (i) state security, (ii) prevention, investigation, or prosecution of any offence, or (iii) personal, domestic, or journalistic purposes.
- Offences and Penalties:
- Under the Bill, the Authority may levy penalties for various offences by the fiduciary including (i) failure to perform its duties, (ii) data processing in violation of the Bill, and (iii) failure to comply with directions issued by the Authority.
- For example, under the Bill, the fiduciary is required to notify the Authority of any personal data breach which is likely to cause harm to the individual. Failure to promptly notify the Authority can attract a penalty of the higher of Rs.5 crore or 2% of the worldwide turnover of the fiduciary.
- The Bill allows processing of data by fiduciaries if consent is provided. However, in certain circumstances, processing of data may be permitted without consent of the individual. These grounds include:
- The Bill provides for the establishment of a Data Protection Authority.
Srikrishna committee undermined privacy concerns in the following ways :-
- Government is the data collector and user :-
- The committee proposes that the basic requirement of notice-and-consent could be lowered or waived altogether for state functions or social welfare purposes, among others. This also includes provision of services, issuing of licenses, etc. This looks extremely vague and could lead to misuse.
- Societal interest :-
- There is an important societal interest which is furthered by protecting the right to privacy.
- Economic development :-
- The committee report endorses a view that the right to privacy dissolves in the face of amorphous claims of economic development.
- The common good and the economy come first and individuals second.
- Ignores constitution:-
- It ignores the very structure of the Constitution in which the chapter guaranteeing enforceable Fundamental Rights stands on its own, preceding the one setting out unenforceable Directive Principles of State Policy.
- In doing the so, the report attempts to open the right to privacy to allow the state the most convenient means by which to realise its regulatory agenda.
- Thereport says that to see the individual as an atomised unit, standing apart from the collective, neither flows from Indian constitutional framework nor accurately grasps the true nature of rights litigations.
- Supreme court judgment is sidelined:-
- It even undermines the supreme court judges thought that the individual is the focal point of the Constitution because it is in the realisation of individual rights that the collective well being of the community is determined.
- The committee and the bill recommends heavy penalties for private sector’s breach of data privacy laws but adopts a lenient stand regarding the state’s infractions.
- On the right to be forgotten:-
- Regarding this, the bill notes that that ‘data principal’ which means the individual or the person providing their data, has a right to “right to restrict or prevent continuing disclosure. But the bill does not allow for a right of total erasure like the European Union’s GDPR does.
Topic – Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.
Why this question
Skill development is critical for enabling the youth and the domestic workforce to be productive and in order to increase their employability. The government has taken various initiatives in this direction, with establishing and/ or supporting skill training centres being one of them. It is essential to know the Somaiya Committee report which deals with this particular aspect.
Directive word
Comment- here we have to express our knowledge and understanding of the issue and form an overall opinion thereupon.
Key demand of the question.
The question wants us to express our knowledge and understanding of write in detail about the findings of the Somaiya committee report and express our opinion thereupon.
Structure of the answer
Introduction– Write a few lines about the history of Industrial Training Institutes and Skill development centres and their rising number.
Body-
- write a few lines about the Somaiya Committee. E.g its official name, head, purpose of formation and when it presented its report.
- Bring out the findings of the report and discuss the grim situation of the skill training centres in India. E.g shappy and temporary infrastructure, disregard for norms rather than efficiency for huge participation of private sector, the lack of a regulator for skill development, with teeth, has led to poor quality affiliation, assessment and certification; poorly paid teachers and poor quality teaching etc.
Conclusion– briefly discuss what should be done in this regard. E.g mention the Shantha Prasad Committee recommendations- better oversight, with a national board for all skill development programmes. The core work (accreditation, assessment, certification and course standards) should not be outsourced; A ranking of the ITIs on several parameters such as the one done by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council in tertiary education can be replicated; need to create a unified national vocational system etc.
Background :-
- Industrial Training Institutes and Industrial Training Centers are post-secondary schools in India constituted under Directorate General of Employment & Training (DGET), Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Union Government to provide training in various trades.
- The ITIs were initiated in the 1950s. In a span of 60 years, until 2007, around 1,896 public and 2,000 private ITIs were set up.However, in a 10-year period from 2007, more than 9,000 additional private ITIs were accredited
- National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) today has more than 6,000 private training centres.
Somaiya committee:-
- It is the standing Committee on Labour (2017-18) headed by Kirit Somaiya, on the “Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and Skill Development Initiative Scheme” of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE)
Findings of the committee:
- Government unable to regulate private institutions for quality:-
- The committee says that it is not efficiency but a disregard for norms and standards. However, the ITIs are not alone.
- The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) today has more than 6,000 private training centres. Since it has short-term courses and its centres open and close frequently, it is all the more prone to a dilution of standards.
- It outlines instances of responsibility outsourcing, no oversight, connivance and an ownership tussle between the Central and State governments.
- The lack of a regulator for skill development with adequate powers has led to poor quality affiliation, assessment and certification.
- Quality Council of India :-
- Private-ITI accreditation troubles started when the Quality Council of India (QCI), a private body, was hired due to high workload of affiliation and shortage of [government] staff .
- The QCI did not follow accreditation norms created by the National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT) and it appears that neither scale nor standard was achieved, but only speed.
- ITIs often run into issues with no one to take ownership :-
- A case in point is the examination process for instance the question paper is prepared by the NCVT, but administered and evaluated by instructors of the State Councils for VT. So The NCVT has no role in actually assessing quality.
- Evading scrutiny:-
- There are 183 cases pending in High Courts on non-compliance of norms by the ITIs. However, the short-term training programmes of the Ministry evade any scrutiny and action. For example, the Standard Training Assessment and Reward scheme spent Rs.850 crore in 2013-14 with no norms for quality.
- There were no Aadhaar checks, attendance requirements and batch size limitations.
- Issues with Private ITIs:
- Private sector engagement in skill development has been taken up by standalone private training partners and not employers who could have made the system demand-driven.
- They offered training in less than five trades (in government ITIs it is less than 10), had fewer classrooms and workshops for practice and their teachers were very poorly paid.
Way forward:-
- There is a need to implement Sharda Prasad Committee recommendations.
- India needs better oversight, with a national board for all skill development programmes. The core work (accreditation, assessment, certification and course standards) cannot be outsourced.
- Like every other education board (such as the CBSE), a board is required in vocational training that is accountable.
- India should also have a mandatory rating system for the ITIs that is published periodically. A ranking of the ITIs on several parameters such as the one done by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council in tertiary education can be replicated.
- There should be one system, with one law and one national vocational education and training system.
- India needs to create a unified national vocational system where the ITIs, NSDC private vocational trainers and vocational education in schools, and the other Central ministries conducting training gel seamlessly and can learn from, and work with each other. A unified legal framework can facilitate such a unification.
- Skilling teachers :-
- There is also a critical need to reskill ITI teachers and maintain the student-teacher ratio. Since technology obsolescence is a continuous challenge, financial support envisaged through the NSDC should be extended to the ITIs.
- Institutional reforms such as moving the office of the Directorate General of Employment from the Ministry of Labour to the MSDE would help. It would also complement the Directorate General of Training already under MSDE.
- Reimbursable industry contribution (RIC) a 1-2% payroll tax that will be reimbursed when employers train using public/private infrastructure and provide data need to be implemented.
Topic– Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.
Why this question
The world is being transformed by technology at a very rapid rate and in unpredictable ways. It is essential to know about how technology is shaping the world and what could be its policy implications for India.
Directive word
Comment- here we have to express our knowledge and understanding of the issue and form an overall opinion thereupon.
Key demand of the question.
The question wants us to present our opinion on the way technology is shaping the world and discuss in detail about the possible policy implications for India.
Structure of the answer
Introduction– write a few lines about the growing penetration of technology across the world, automation, growth of a closely knit economy with increasing dominance of multinational companies, foreign investment etc. Mention that they have implications for any modern nation, especially India, the world’s fastest growing large economy.
Body-
Discuss in points, what could be the possible policy implications for India.
E.g Global commerce is increasingly transacted electronically and Foreign capital relocates with remarkable speed on the first signs of perceived fragility or on spotting an emerging opportunity. This demands an inbuilt safeguards to hedge against risks of volatility; globally harmonised intellectual property regime is bound to take shape, elbowing out the current flexibility available with India; a silo based approach needs to be jettisoned for carving out a unified technology policy as Modern technology is facilitating remarkable convergence; need to focus on embedding Indian manufacturing into global value chains in areas of advanced manufacturing etc.
Conclusion– based on your discussion, form a fair and a balanced conclusion on the issue.
Background :-
- Technological innovation has changed the overall effectiveness and benevolence over time and with regard to sustainability. With rapid technological development taking place in terms of increase in automation, cyber security, artificial intelligence it is necessary to focus on technological innovation.
Policy implications for India :-
- There is a need to focus on embedding Indian manufacturing into global value chains in areas of advanced manufacturing etc.
- India lost out on the electronic hardware manufacturing, by signing off on the Information Technology Agreement in 1997. Zero import duties for electronic goods practically thwarted development of hardware manufacturing industry. Therefore universalisation of digital skills must be an integral part of the education policy.
- Issues of equity, affordability and ethics, need regulatory oversight.
- ‘Net neutrality’ and ‘universal roaming facility’ have posed questions of equity. The disparity between digital access in rural and urban areas is skewing equality of opportunity
- Regulators would need to strike a balance between the democratising influence of technology and the need for moderation and security.
- Concerns on cyber security and privacy are growing.
- Public outrage over massive data leak at Facebook and ‘Wikileaks’ exposed the vulnerabilities in data security.
- The EU has enacted the General Data Protection Regulation 2018 which gives individual citizens greater power on personal data.
- The Srikrishna Committee has submitted a draft legislation on data protection to the Union government.
- Unregulated expression on social media and the social repercussions of ‘Fake News’ are posing a new set of challenges.
- Lateral entry is recommended:-
- The world is witnessing an intersection of 21st century technology with archaic institutions of governance. Policy formulation and regulation can no longer be the sole remit of the generalist civil service. Civil service needs constant knowledge upgrade on technology. Short sabbaticals to the corporate sector would help.
- Lateral entry of global specialists with strong background in technology is the need of the hour.
- Technology has altered the nature of global finance and commerce. Global commerce is increasingly transacted electronically rather than along sea lanes.
- Global commerce is increasingly transacted electronically and Foreign capital relocates with remarkable speed on the first signs of perceived fragility or on spotting an emerging opportunity. This demands an inbuilt safeguards to hedge against risks of volatility
- Globally harmonised intellectual property regime is bound to take shape, pushing out the current flexibility available with India
- A silo based approach needs to be jettisoned for carving out a unified technology policy as Modern technology is facilitating remarkable convergence.
General Studies – 3
Topic- Indian Economy – Issues
Why this question
The article discusses the observations of the Somaiya committee on ITIs which paints a sad picture of the status of Skill India Mission. Since this mission is one of the key government initiatives, this report provides good filler material for preparing Skill India and other related topic for mains.
Directive word
Discuss – The findings of the report has to be discussed, along with an analysis of what this means for the progress of Skill India Mission.
Key demand of the question
The question expects us to explain the role that ITIs are expected to play in skilling of people. Next, we need to examine the observations and issues pointed out by the standing committee of parliament with regards to ITIs. We need to discuss in detail the reasons for poor performance of ITIs and give suggestions for course correction
Structure of the answer
Introduction – Give the status of skilling in India which is despite the various missions undertaken by the government
Body
- Discuss the observations made by the committee regarding the status of ITIs – increase in numbers since inception, mostly private, show a scant regard for norms and standards etc. Also touch upon the observations made with regards to NSDC.
- Discuss the issues plaguing skilling efforts such as – quality control, lack of regulator for skill development, responsibility outsourcing, no oversight, connivance and an ownership tussle between the Central and State governments. Discuss these issues in detail along with its impact.
- Discuss the way forward by talking about the Sharda Prasad committee recommendations
Conclusion – Emphasize on the importance of skilling and give a way forward.
Background:-
- The two goals in ‘Skill India’ are, first, to meet employers needs of skills and, second, to prepare workers (young and old) for a decent livelihood but India seemed to have failed in both.
Somaiya committee:-
- It is the standing Committee on Labour (2017-18) headed by Kirit Somaiya, on the “Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and Skill Development Initiative Scheme” of the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE)
Findings of the committee:
- Government unable to regulate private institutions for quality:-
- The committee says that it is not efficiency but a disregard for norms and standards. However, the ITIs are not alone.
- The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) today has more than 6,000 private training centres. Since it has short-term courses and its centres open and close frequently, it is all the more prone to a dilution of standards.
- It outlines instances of responsibility outsourcing, no oversight, connivance and an ownership tussle between the Central and State governments.
- The lack of a regulator for skill development with adequate powers has led to poor quality affiliation, assessment and certification.
- Quality Council of India :-
- Private-ITI accreditation troubles started when the Quality Council of India (QCI), a private body, was hired due to high workload of affiliation and shortage of [government] staff .
- The QCI did not follow accreditation norms created by the National Council for Vocational Training (NCVT) and it appears that neither scale nor standard was achieved, but only speed.
- ITIs often run into issues with no one to take ownership :-
- A case in point is the examination process for instance the question paper is prepared by the NCVT, but administered and evaluated by instructors of the State Councils for VT. So The NCVT has no role in actually assessing quality.
- Evading scrutiny:-
- There are 183 cases pending in High Courts on non-compliance of norms by the ITIs. However, the short-term training programmes of the Ministry evade any scrutiny and action. For example, the Standard Training Assessment and Reward scheme spent Rs.850 crore in 2013-14 with no norms for quality.
- There were no Aadhaar checks, attendance requirements and batch size limitations.
- Issues with Private ITIs:
- Private sector engagement in skill development has been taken up by standalone private training partners and not employers who could have made the system demand-driven.
- They offered training in less than five trades (in government ITIs it is less than 10), had fewer classrooms and workshops for practice and their teachers were very poorly paid.
Way forward:-
- There is a need to implement Sharda Prasad Committee recommendations.
- India needs better oversight, with a national board for all skill development programmes. The core work (accreditation, assessment, certification and course standards) cannot be outsourced.
- Like every other education board (such as the CBSE), a board is required in vocational training that is accountable.
- India should also have a mandatory rating system for the ITIs that is published periodically. A ranking of the ITIs on several parameters such as the one done by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council in tertiary education can be replicated.
- There should be one system, with one law and one national vocational education and training system.
- India needs to create a unified national vocational system where the ITIs, NSDC private vocational trainers and vocational education in schools, and the other Central ministries conducting training gel seamlessly and can learn from, and work with each other. A unified legal framework can facilitate such a unification.
- Skilling teachers :-
- There is also a critical need to reskill ITI teachers and maintain the student-teacher ratio. Since technology obsolescence is a continuous challenge, financial support envisaged through the NSDC should be extended to the ITIs.
- Institutional reforms such as moving the office of the Directorate General of Employment from the Ministry of Labour to the MSDE would help. It would also complement the Directorate General of Training already under MSDE.
- Reimbursable industry contribution (RIC) a 1-2% payroll tax that will be reimbursed when employers train using public/private infrastructure and provide data need to be implemented.
Topic– Internal security
Why this question
Tax havens often comes to mind when we talk of black money. It is a significant challenge for any nation, and the article presents an alternative viewpoint of dealing with tax havens, which needs examination.
Key demand of the question
The question expects us to explain what tax havens are and how do they impact a nation’s economy and security. Thereafter we need to evaluate the viewpoint expressed in the article given in the link which holds that crackdown on tax havens lead to lowering of ability to recover taxes.
Directive word
Examine – When you are asked to examine, you have to probe deeper into the topic, get into details, and find out the causes or implications if any .
Structure of the answer
Introduction – Explain what tax havens are.
Body – Discuss the threat that tax havens pose to economy and security of nations through its role in tax evasion and money laundering. Thereafter, we need to examine whether our method of dealing with tax havens helped us in resolving issues, or whether we need to think of alternatives to dealing with tax havens
Tax havens:-
- Tax haven is defined as a place where there is low or no taxes at all, thereby giving shelter and protection from the loss of money.
- This gives many advantages to companies and citizens of countries that charge high income taxes, but of course, it is disadvantageous to the nations that lose these tax revenues.
- There are roughly 45 tax havens today in the world among which Switzerland tops the rank.
- As of February 2008 theOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) there are three factors to identify whether the jurisdiction is tax haven or not:
- Lack of transparency:-
- A lack of transparency in operation of the legal or administrative provision is another factor to determine the tax havens.
- It must have a low rate of taxation:-
- Tax havens impose nominal taxes as a place to be used by non-residents to escape high taxes in their country of residence.
- Laws to protect financial information:-
- This is the most vital feature of a tax haven as it protects the financial information of the investor with a high level of supremacy.
- These are the routes through which half of international trade now takes place. Apart from high-net-worth individuals, tax havens are liberally used by multinationals and their army of accountants and lawyers for tax planning and transfer pricing. They are also places for money launderers.
- Tax havens have some common characteristics such as ease of setting up companies/trusts/foundations, minimal disclosure requirements, the possibility to hide beneficial ownership, and low or no effective taxation on income or wealth.
- Lack of transparency:-
How they pose a threat to national security :-
- Tax havens are increasing inequality, poverty, reducing the financial market and thus promoting corruption.
- Tax haven cannot be a benefit to the Indian economy:-
- The size in which tax haven causing danger to the Indian economy can be determined from the fact that Mauritius which is a small country with an economy 1/100th the size of the Indian economy is one of the major exporter of foreign capital to India (Approx 43% of the Indian FDI). This part states why tax haven is a great danger to India than other developed countries.
- According to reports the amount of money stashed away from India between 2002- 2006 is estimated to be the US $ 27.3 billion annually.
- Another major consequence of tax havens which is not a benefit to the Indian economy is that they are the contributors to the weakening of the quality of institutions, bureaucracy, and political system.
- Terrorism:-
- A major concern to the Indian economy is the use of tax havens for the undercover financing of terrorist activities.
- Phenomenon of routing black money to tax havens has given birth to what is called round-tripping.
- Illegal activities:-
- The worry is that the anonymity that tax havens offer allows other kinds of illegal activity to flourish too. The world over billions made through illegal routes such as drug trafficking and arms smuggling are said to be laundered through tax havens.
Crackdown on tax havens helps in recovering taxes :-
- Tax havens help large corporations, foreign investors and other big guys sidestep Indian tax laws.
- Supports the illegal accumulation of wealth :-
- Organisations like Oxfam have often characterised tax havens as “anti-poor” since they help the rich avoid paying taxes to governments.
Crackdown has its own disadvantages :-
- International case study :-
- Existence of tax havens allowed corporations to invest in the U.S. despite the country’s high tax rates because tax havens helped to lower the effective U.S. tax rate. But with the crackdown on tax havens, corporations could no longer serve U.S. consumers.
- Despite the crackdown on tax havens, the practice of shifting profits to avoid paying higher taxes continues unabated.
General Studies – 4
Topic- Contributions of moral thinkers and philosophers from India and world.
6) Values play a central role in the ancient philosophy of India. Discuss. (250 words)
Why this question
Indian philosophies is one of the oldest philosophies in the world with certain peculiar traits and lines of thought. Indian philosophy has a lot to share with the western and eastern philosophies but also differs from them in certain key respects.
Directive word
Key demand of the question.
The question simply wants us to dig deep into the Indian philosophy and write in detail about the role and importance of values in Indian philosophy.
Structure of the answer
Introduction– briefly discuss Indian philosophies roots in vedas and their link with morality.
Body –
- Discuss main schools of Indian Philosophy and differentiate between orthodox and heterodox schools of thought.
- Discuss the similarities of Indian philosophies and their stress on linking philosophy with practice. E.g Indian ethics is based on Purusarthas i.e. ultimate goal of life. The Indian conception of values- viz the four connote as the goals of human life to be achieved through activities or practice, Indian philosophy is mainly axiological and additionally, cosmological and epistemological etc.
Conclusion– present a balanced and fair conclusion on the key demand of the question.
Answer:-
Values occupy utmost importance in life and society; they play a vital role in the making of a life human. Indian ethical traditions have been one of the great repositories of moral thought in world philosophy whose insights have influenced early Greece, Europe, Asia, and the New World.
Indians distinguish between two classes of Indian philosophies: astika and nastika. The astika systems respect the Vedas to some degree. They are: Sankhya, Yoga, Vedanta, Mimamsa, Nyaya, and Vaisheshika. The nastika systems reject Vedic thought Jain, Buddhist and materialist (Charvaka).
Indian systems shared many ethical values, too. Generally, passions and desires were to be controlled, and harm was not to be done to any forms of life. Indian philosophies share many concepts such as dharma, karma, samsara, reincarnation, dukkha, renunciation, meditation, with almost all of them focussing on the ultimate goal of liberation of the individual through diverse range of spiritual practices (moksha, nirvana).
Indian ethics is based on Purusarthas which refers to a goal, end or aim of human existence. There are generally considered to be four such puruṣarthas, namely:
- Dharma: Religious, social and/or moral righteousness, both spiritual and ritual. Dharma, in its very early meaning is equated to rta which in the form of natural law, is the maintenance of the order (Ethical order) of Universe.
- Artha: material and/or financial prosperity as well as pursuit of meaning
- Kama: material pleasure
- Mokṣa: spiritual liberation or renunciation as well as detachment
