SECURE SYNOPSIS: 11 JANUARY 2019
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.
Topic– Salient features of world’s physical geography.
Directive word
Discuss- this is an all-encompassing directive which mandates us to write in detail about the key demand of the question. we also have to discuss about the related and important aspects of the question in order to bring out a complete picture of the issue in hand.
Key demand of the question.
The question wants us to discuss as to why most of the world’s coal was formed during a particular period/ era- Carboniferous period.
Structure of the answer– write a few introductory lines about the
Body-
Discuss why most of the coal was formed during the Carboniferous period. E.g
- While coal deposits formed both before and after the Carboniferous, this period provided the mother lode. It occurred a bit over 300 million years ago.
- The evolution of the wood fiber lignin and the bark-sealing, waxy substance suberin variously opposed decay organisms so effectively that dead materials accumulated long enough to fossilise on a large scale.
- The second factor was the lower sea levels that occurred during the Carboniferous as compared to the preceding Devonian period. This promoted the development of extensive lowland swamps and forests in North America and Europe.
- During this period club mosses grow to the size of trees while insects also reached comparatively gigantic proportions due to the higher-than-modern oxygen concentration.
- The reason all that oxygen was present is the vast burial of organic material before it could be eaten by oxygen-respiring organisms.
- And while oxygen rose, atmospheric CO2 fell, eventually leading to glacial conditions. It was a massive carbon-cycle experiment that mirrored our current one but with carbon moving in the opposite direction, from the atmosphere into the ground, where it formed the coal.
- During the Carboniferous, the Pangaea supercontinent was coming together. And in a tropical swath along the equator, a mountain range (now the Appalachians) was being pushed up by continental collision.
- On either side of that growing mountain range, the crust bowed downward a bit as a result. Those ever-deepening bedrock buckets were positioned right beneath soggy tropical wetland regions etc.
Conclusion– based on your discussion, form a fair and a balanced conclusion on the given issue.
Introduction:
The Carboniferous is a geologic period and system that spans 60 million years from the end of the Devonian Period 358.9 million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Permian Period, 298.9 Mya. The name Carboniferous means “coal-bearing”. The Carboniferous coal beds provided much of the fuel for power generation during the Industrial Revolution and are still of great economic importance.
Body:
Most of the coal was formed during the Carboniferous period. The reasons for the same are
- Abundance of Lignin: The appearance of wood tissue and bark-bearing trees. The evolution of the wood fiber lignin and the bark-sealing, waxy substance suberin variously opposed decay organisms so effectively that dead materials accumulated long enough to fossilise on a large scale. Most organisms couldn’t eat the tough barks, except for the white rot fungus that lives on dead trees.
- Reduced Sea Level: The second factor was the lower sea levels that occurred during the Carboniferous as compared to the preceding Devonian period. This promoted the development of extensive lowland swamps and forests in North America and Europe.
- Biotic Evolution: Coal deposits formed both before and after the Carboniferous, this period provided the mother lode. It occurred a bit over 300 million years ago and species of club mosses grow to the size of trees. Insects also reached comparatively gigantic proportions due to the higher-than-modern oxygen concentration.
- Abundance of Oxygen: The reason all that oxygen was present is the vast burial of organic material before it could be eaten by oxygen-respiring organisms. Atmospheric CO2 fell, eventually leading to glacial conditions. It was a massive carbon-cycle experiment with carbon moving in the opposite direction, from the atmosphere into the ground, where it formed the coal.
- Late Evolution of Bacteria: Based on a genetic analysis of mushroom fungi, it was proposed that large quantities of wood were buried during this period because animals and decomposing bacteria had not yet evolved enzymes that could effectively digest the resistant phenolic lignin polymers and waxy suberin polymers. They suggest that fungi that could break those substances down effectively only became dominant towards the end of the period, making subsequent coal formation much rarer.
However, there are objections to the above theory as lignin isn’t even the only type of organic matter in Carboniferous-age coals. Thus, all the Carboniferous world’s lignin couldn’t have made its way into coal and at least some of it must have decayed.
Alternative Theory: The formation of coal requires two steps.
- First, there is a need of swampy environment where peat can accumulate in low-oxygen conditions that wards off decay.
- Second, the need to bury the whole organic matter quite deeply, allowing pressure and temperature to turn the peat into coal.
Explanation: During the Carboniferous, the Pangaea super-continent was coming together. And in a tropical swath along the equator, a mountain range (now the Appalachians) was being pushed up by continental collision. On either side of that growing mountain range, the crust bowed downward a bit as a result. Those ever-deepening bedrock buckets were positioned right beneath soggy tropical wetland regions. The end result was lots of deeply buried peat.
There was one other time in North American history with significant coal formation, and that was a period bracketing the mass extinction of the dinosaurs. Then, too, there was mountain-building (this time the Rockies) with a neighbouring basin, and hot, wet climate conditions.
Conclusion:
In India, the Gondwana coal (about 250 mya) belongs to the carboniferous period. Gondwana coal makes up to 98 per cent of the total reserves and 99 per cent of the production of coal in India.
Topic- Salient features of world’s physical geography.
Directive word
Discuss- this is an all-encompassing directive which mandates us to write in detail about the key demand of the question. we also have to discuss about the related and important aspects of the question in order to bring out a complete picture of the issue in hand.
Key demand of the question.
The question wants us to write in detail about the factors influencing the location of Industries in general and and historical movement of Iron and Steel industry across the world.
Structure of the answer
Introduction– Mention the relationship between location of Industries and the physical and human geography as well as history and politics of the region.
Body-
- Briefly discuss the factors affecting location of industries. E.g availability of raw material, land, water, labour, power, capital, transport and market etc.
- DIscuss the movement witnessed in Iron and Steel Industry. E.g
- The inputs for the industry include raw materials such as iron ore, coal and limestone, along with labour, capital, site and other infrastructure. The process of converting iron ore into steel involves many stages.
- Before 1800 A.D. iron and steel industry was located where raw materials, power supply and running water were easily available.
- Later the ideal location for the industry was near coal fields and close to canals and railways.
- After 1950, iron and steel industry began to be located on large areas of flat land near sea ports. This is because by this time steel works had become very large and iron ore had to be imported from overseas etc.
Conclusion– based on your discussion, form a fair and a balanced conclusion on the given issue.
Introduction:
Industry refers to an economic activity that is concerned with production of goods, extraction of minerals or the provision of services.
Body:
Many important geographical factors involved in the location of individual industries are of relative significance. But besides such purely geographical factors influencing industrial location, there are factors of historical, human, political and economic nature which are now tending to surpass the force of geographical advantages. Consequently, the factors influencing the location of industry can be divided into two broad categories – Geographical and Non- Geographical factors.
Geographical factors:
- Raw Materials: The location of industrial enterprises is sometimes determined simply by location of the raw materials. Modem industry is so complex that a wide range of raw materials is necessary for its growth. Further, finished product of one industry may well be the raw material of another. Example: pig iron, produced by smelting industry, serves as the raw material for steel making industry. Industries which use heavy and bulky raw materials in their primary stage in large quantities are usually located near the supply of the raw materials.
- Industries are often located with no reference to raw materials and are sometimes referred to as ‘footloose industries’ because a wide range of locations is possible within an area of sufficient population density.
- Power: Regular supply of power is a pre-requisite for the localisation of industries. Coal, mineral oil and hydro-electricity are the three important conventional sources of power. Most of the industries tend to concentrate at the source of power.
- The iron and steel industry which mainly depends on large quantities of coking coal as source of power are frequently tied to coal fields. Tata Iron and Steel Plant at Jamshedpur, the new aluminium producing units at Korba (Chhattisgarh) and Renukoot (Uttar Pradesh), the copper smelting plant at Khetri (Rajasthan) and the fertilizer factory at Nangal (Punjab) are near the sources of power and raw material deposits, although other factors have also played their role
- Labour: The prior existence of a labour force is attractive to industry unless there are strong reasons to the contrary. Labour supply is important in two respects (a) workers in large numbers are often required; (b) people with skill or technical expertise are needed.
- Transport: Transport by land or water is necessary for the assembly of raw materials and for the marketing of the finished products. The development of railways in India, connecting the port towns with hinterland determined the location of many industries around Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai.
- Market: The entire process of manufacturing is useless until the finished goods reach the market. Nearness to market is essential for quick disposal of manufactured goods. It helps in reducing the transport cost and enables the consumer to get things at cheaper rates.
- Water: Water is another important requirement for industries. Many industries are established near rivers, canals and lakes, because of this reason. Iron and steel industry requires large quantities of water (about 3 lakh litres per tonne), for their proper functioning.
- Site: Site requirements for industrial development are of considerable significance. Sites, generally, should be flat and well served by adequate transport facilities. Large areas are required to build factories. Now, there is a tendency to set up industries in rural areas because the cost of land has shot up in urban centres.
- Climate: Climate plays an important role in the establishment of industries at a place. Harsh climate is not much suitable for the establishment of industries. There can be no industrial development in extremely hot, humid, dry or cold climate.
Non- Geographical factors:
- Capital: Modem industries are capital-intensive and require huge investments. Capitalists are available in urban centres. Big cities like Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, and Chennai are big industrial centres, because the big capitalists live in these cities.
- Government Policies: Government activity in planning the future distribution of industries, for reducing regional disparities, elimination of pollution of air and water and for avoiding their heavy clustering in big cities, has become no less an important locational factor.
- Industrial Inertia: Industries tend to develop at the place of their original establishment, though the original cause may have disappeared. This phenomenon is referred to as inertia, sometimes as geographical inertia and sometimes industrial inertia. The lock industry at Aligarh is such an example.
- Efficient Organisation: Efficient and enterprising organisation and management is essential for running modem industry successfully. Bad management sometimes squanders away the capital and puts the industry in financial trouble leading to industrial ruin.
- Banking Facilities: Establishment of industries involves daily exchange of crores of rupees which is possible through banking facilities only. So the areas with better banking facilities are better suited to the establishment of industries.
- Insurance: There is a constant fear of damage to machine and man in industries for which insurance facilities are badly needed.
The inputs for the iron and steel industry include raw materials such as iron ore, coal and limestone, along with labour, capital, site and other infrastructure. The process of converting iron ore into steel involves many stages. The broad features of movement of Iron and Steel industry involved
- Before 1800 A.D. iron and steel industry was located where raw materials, power supply and running water were easily
- Later the ideal location for the industry was near coal fields and close to canals and
- After 1950, iron and steel industry began to be located on large areas of flat land near sea This is because by this time steel works had become very large and iron ore had to be imported from overseas
In India, iron and steel industry has developed taking advantage of raw materials, cheap labour, transport and market. All the important steel producing centres such as Bhilai, Durgapur, Burnpur, Jamshedpur, Rourkela, Bokaroare situated in a region that spreads over four states — West Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha and Chhattisgarh. Bhadravati and Vijay Nagar in Karnataka, Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh, and Salem in Tamil Nadu are other important steel centres utilising local resources.
Conclusion:
Thus, the location of industries is dependent on a combination of geographical and non-geographical factors.
Topic – Salient features of world’s physical geography.
3) Discuss the distribution of volcanoes in the world?(250 words)
GC Leong – CH3: volcanoes and earthquakes
Key demand of the question
The question expects us to discuss the distribution of volcanoes and the reasons behind such a distribution.
Directive word
Discuss – here your discussion should bring out the areas where volcanoes are found and why.
Structure of the answer
Introduction – Explain about volcanoes
Body – Explain the distribution of volcanoes in the world and the reason it is so. Here you have to explain about the areas where volcanoes are caused such as divergent plate boundaries, volcanoes caused by subduction where there are convergent plate boundaries, also where hot spots are located. Explain about the ring of fire.
Conclusion – Summarize your answer.
Introduction:
A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. The process is called Volcanism and has been ongoing on Earth since the initial stages of its evolution over 4 billion years ago.
Body:
Volcano eruptions on land in the last century alone have produced one and half billion tons of material per year, while the volume of basalts erupted by submarine volcanoes in mid-ocean rifts and along fracture zones is several times higher. Volcanic activity is widespread over the earth, but tends to be concentrated in specific locations. Volcanoes are most likely to occur along the margins of tectonic plates.
- Volcanoes at convergent plate boundaries:
Ocean-Ocean plate collision and Ocean – Continent plate collision: In subduction zones where oceanic plates dive under continental plates. As the oceanic plate subducts beneath the surface, intense heat and pressure melts the rock. Molten rock material, magma, can then ooze its way toward the surface where it accumulates at the surface to create a volcano.
Circum-Pacific Region: Also known as “Pacific Ring of fire” : about two-thirds of the world’s volcanoes are found in this region. The chain of volcanoes extends from Aleutian islands into Kamchatka, Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia, southward into Pacific Islands of Solomon, Tonga and New Zealand. On the other side of the pacific, the chain continues from the Andes to Central America (Guatemala, Costa Rica and Nicaragua), Mexico and right up to Alaska. Example: Mt. Fuji, Mt.Vesuvius, Stromboli, Etna etc.
- Volcanoes at Divergent plate boundaries:
Divergent boundaries within continents initially produce rifts which eventually become rift valleys. Example: In Africa’s East African Great Rift Valley– Mt.Kilimanjaro, Mt. Kenya, Mt. Cameroon.
Most active divergent plate boundaries occur between oceanic plates and exist as mid-oceanic ridges. Example: Mid- Atlantic ridge where there is a constant sea-floor spreading and formation of new plate boundaries. Iceland is a remarkable location in that a section of the north-Atlantic mid-ocean ridge is exposed on land.
Divergent boundaries also form volcanic islands which occur when the plates move apart to produce gaps which molten lava rises to fill.
- Volcanoes due to Hot Spots:
Hot spots are places where a chamber of magma has accumulated at depth beneath the surface. The volcanic islands of Hawaii are a notable example of this. The Hawaiian Islands ride atop the Pacific plate as it moves in a north-westerly direction over the hot spot that creates the volcanoes. Therefore, the oldest volcanic island is found at the northwest end of the chain and the youngest to the southeast. Volcanic activity ceases as the older islands move off the hot spot.
Way Forward:
Volcanoes have a huge impact on man and material as urbanization and globalization increases. The effects has impacts on flora, fauna and the global warming which can accelerate the climate change.
Topic- Salient features of world’s geography.
Directive word
Discuss- this is an all-encompassing directive which mandates us to write in detail about the key demand of the question. we also have to discuss about the related and important aspects of the question in order to bring out a complete picture of the issue in hand.
Key demand of the question.
The question wants us to write in detail about the current scenario of international migration and the prominent trends that can be witnessed in it. It also wants us to write in detail as to how it can be ensured that international migration is safe, orderly and regulated.
Structure of the answer
Introduction– write a few introductory lines about the history of International migration. E.g mention the migration of Home Erectus out of Africa etc.
Body-
- Discuss the recent trends in International Migration and the factors influencing it. E.g
- 258 million INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS were counted globally in 2017 – people residing in a country other than their country of birth. This represented 3.4% of the world’s total population.
- Highest category of Migrants- Labour followed by Displaced persons followed by students and then by Migrant Smuggling.
- Women migrants- around 48%
- Two-thirds immigrate to Europe or Asia
- In 2012, ILO estimated that 19 per cent of labour exploitation and 74 percent of sexual exploitation involves cross-border movement.
- In recent years, the number of children migrating unaccompanied has increased. In 2015–2016, there were five times as many children estimated to be migrating alone than in 2010–2011 (UNICEF, 2017b) etc.
- Discuss how international migration can be made more safe, orderly and regulated. E.g
- Collect and utilize accurate and disaggregated data as a basis for evidence based policies.
- Minimize the adverse drivers and structural factors that compel people to leave their country of origin
- Ensure that all migrants have proof of legal identity and adequate documentation
- Enhance availability and flexibility of pathways for regular migration etc.
Conclusion- based on your discussion, form a fair and a balanced conclusion on the given issue.
Introduction:
International migration is a global phenomenon that is growing in scope, complexity and impact. Migration is both a cause and effect of broader development processes and an intrinsic feature of our ever globalizing world. Migration has been historically positive. Migrants bring new ideas and high motivation.
Body:
The Global Migration Indicators 2018 report was released by Global Migration Data Analysis Centre (GMDAC) in association with International Organization for Migration (IOM). The recent trends in International Migration are:
- 258 Million INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS were counted globally in 2017 – people residing in a country other than their country of birth. This represented 3.4% of the world’s total population.
- They contribute about 10% of the global gross domestic production (GDP). Migrants’ remittance ($466 bn) is huge contributor to their home countries’ development.
- Highest category of Migrants- Labour (150.3 million) followed by Displaced persons (68.5 million) followed by students (4.8 million) and then by Migrant Smuggling or Irregular migrants (2.5 million).
- Women migrants around 48% and children around 14% formed the global migrant stock.
- Two-thirds immigrate to Europe or Asia.
- Based on changes in migrant stock data over time, researchers estimate globally that 35-40 million people migrate every 5 years.
- According to the ILO, there were an estimated 3 million migrant workers globally in 2013, meaning about two-thirds of all international migrants globally that year were migrant workers.
- In recent years, the number of children migrating unaccompanied has increased. In 2015–2016, there were five times as many children estimated to be migrating alone than in 2010–2011.
- 102,800 REFUGEES were admitted for resettlement worldwide in 2017.
Factors influencing migration:
People migrate for a number of reasons. These reasons may fall under these four areas: Environmental, Economic, Cultural and Socio-political. Within that, the reasons may also be ‘push’ or ‘pull’ factors.
- Push Factors: Push factors are those that force the individual to move voluntarily, and in many cases, they are forced because the individual risk something if they stay. Push factors may include conflict, drought, famine, or extreme religious activity.
- Poor economic activity and lack of job opportunities are also strong push factors for migration. Other strong push factors include race and discriminating cultures, political intolerance and persecution of people who question the status quo.
- Pull Factors: Pull factors are those factors in the destination country that attract the individual or group to leave their home. Those factors are known as place utility, which is the desirability of a place that attracts people. Better economic opportunities, more jobs, and the promise of a better life often pull people into new locations.
The huge numbers of migration has an impact on the socio-economic milieu of both the immigrated and emigrated places. Thus, it is imperative to make international migration more safe, orderly and regulated.
- Global Compact on Migration:
- The global compact on migration was adopted recently at an intergovernmental conference in Marrakech, Morocco by 164 UN Member States. Alongside, the UN also launched the Migration Network to support the compact’s implementation at country level.
- It aims at cooperation between states and promotes measures to strengthen regular migration pathways, to tackle irregular migration, and to protect human rights of migrants among other objectives.
- The Global Compact establishes a United Nations mechanism allowing Governments and companies to contribute technical, financial and human resources for implementing it.
- The signatories must ensure that the migrants are taken care of and their human dignity is upheld.
- Address the drivers of involuntary migration and create more legal avenues of migration. Example: war-torn countries like Syria, Rohingyas of Myanmar.
- Go back to the basics, to the historically positive nature of migration.
- Dispel the stereotypes: Countries that are not traditional destinations for migrants are going to have to learn to manage an extremely growing economic, social, religious and ethnic diversity.
- Collect and utilize accurate and disaggregated data as a basis for evidence based policies.
- Ensure that all migrants have proof of legal identity and adequate documentation. Regular processing which ensures the credibility of migrants.
- Enhance availability and flexibility of pathways for regular migration. Lack of opportunities of migration leads to illegal migration.
Conclusion:
While no substitute for development, migration can be a positive force for development when supported by the right set of policies. The rise in global mobility, the growing complexity of migratory patterns and its impact on countries, migrants, families and communities have all contributed to international migration becoming a priority for the international community. The target 10.7 of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in which member States committed to cooperate internationally to facilitate safe, orderly and regular migration.
Topic– Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.
Why this question
Since Lok Sabha has passed the citizenship amendment Bill, the Bill has caused issues in North East and ignited a debate. Such debate has to understood in depth.
Key demand of the question
The question expects us to discuss the details of the Bill, examine the reasons why it is leading to issues in North East, discuss other issues in the Bill and thereafter provide the way forward.
Directive word
Critically 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 . When ‘critically’ is suffixed or prefixed to a directive, all you need to do is look at the good and bad of something and give a fair judgement.
Structure of the answer
Introduction – In your introduction, highlight that lok sabha has recently passed the bill and highlight the issues it has created in North East.
Body
- Explain about the Bill – The Bill paves the way to grant citizenship to six religious minorities — Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians and Buddhists — from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who came to India before 2014.
- Discuss why it is leading to issues in North east
- there has been a strong resistance to the Bill (especially in Assam) as it would pave the way for giving citizenship, mostly to illegal Hindu migrants from Bangladesh, in Assam who came after March 1971, in violation of the Assam Accord of 1985.
- There are an estimated 20 million illegal Bangladeshi migrants in Assam and they have inalienably altered the demography of the state, besides putting a severe strain on the state’s resources and economy.
- The people of Assam — which has historically had the highest migration from what is now Bangladesh — see the bill as an unconstitutional attempt to undermine the current NRC process, and grant Indian citizenship to a large number of people who would otherwise be ineligible.
- Discuss the key issues in the Bill
- makes illegal migrants eligible for citizenship based on their religion and clearly violates Article 14 of the Constitution.
- The bill clearly violates the Assam Accord.
- The bill has potentially interesting implications for asymmetric federalism.
Conclusion – Give a fair and balanced view and discuss way forward.
Introduction:
The Citizenship Amendment Bill 2016 seeks to allow illegal migrants from certain minority communities in Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan eligible for Indian citizenship. In other words, it amends the Citizenship Act of 1955. The Bill was recently passed in the LokSabha. Nagaland, along with other north-eastern States, has witnessed several protests following the passage of the Bill in the Lok Sabha.
Body:
The key features of the bill are:
- Definition of Illegal migrants:
- The Citizenship Act, 1955 prohibits illegal migrants from acquiring Indian citizenship.
- The Bill amends the act to provide that the following minority groups will not be treated as illegal migrants: Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians and Buddhists — from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who came to India before 2014
- Citizenship by naturalisation:
- Under Citizenship Act, 1955, one of the requirements for citizenship by naturalisation is that the applicant must have resided in India for 12 of the 15 years preceding the date of application.
- It appeals for the minimum years of residency in India to apply for citizenship to be lessened from at least 11 to six years for such migrants.
- Cancellation of registration of OCI cardholder:
- The Bill provides that the registration of Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders may be cancelled if they violate any law.
The proposed legislation has polarised the Northeast and triggered a process of social and political realignment. Most disquietingly, it threatens to expose the faultlines that had led to the rise of sub-nationalist politics in the region in the 1980s.The bill is leading to following issues in North east:
- The Citizenship Amendment Bill has not been sitting well with the Assamese as it contradicts the Assam Accord of 1985, which clearly states that illegal migrants heading in from Bangladesh after March 25, 1971, would be deported.
- There are an estimated 20 million illegal Bangladeshi migrants in Assam and they have inalienably altered the demography of the state, besides putting a severe strain on the state’s resources and economy.
- Mizoram fears Buddhist Chakmas and Hindu Hajongs from Bangladesh may take advantage of the Act.
- Meghalaya and Nagaland are apprehensive of migrants of Bengali stock.
- Groups in Arunachal Pradesh fear the new rules may benefit Chakmas and Tibetans.
- Manipur wants the Inner-line Permit System to stop outsiders from entering the state.
The other key issues in the bill are:
- The bill seeks to facilitate granting of Indian citizenship for non-Muslim migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. This clearly violates Article 14 of our constitution.
- Article 14 guarantees equality to all persons, citizens and foreigners, differentiating between people on the grounds of religion would be in violation of the constitution.
- The bill has potentially interesting implications for asymmetric federalism.
- The proposed law violates India’s long-standing refugee policy. Although India does not have a codified refugee policy, the basic tenants of the scheme were listed by Jawaharlal Nehru during the Tibetan refugee crisis.
- One of the primary conditions given then was that refugees would have to return to their homeland once normalcy prevailed. The proposed law not only provides citizenship rights to such refugees, but greatly relaxes the procedure to avail of them.
- From reducing the registration fees to Rs 100 from Rs 3000 to delegating the authority from the Union government to district magistrate for speedy processing of applications, the proposed law serves citizenship to illegal immigrants on a platter.
- The Bill provides wide discretion to the government to cancel OCI registrations for both major offences like murder, as well as minor offences like parking in a no-parking zone or jumping a red light.
- Notwithstanding the tampering of domestic law with religious markers, the proposed Bill, if passed, will put our international relations in jeopardy. The Bill will stamp these countries as institutions of religious oppression and worsen bilateral ties in an already skewed regional socio-political atmosphere.
- The new law will also act as a push to the movement of India’s citizenship policy on jus soli to the racially manifested jus sanguine principle, something which was actively avoided by our constitution makers.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill also fails on the tenets of international refugee law. Although India is not a signatory to the 1951 UN Refugee Convention, granting refuge based on humanitarian considerations is arguably a norm of customary international law. There are two fallacies with the proposed law in this regard:
- First, the Bill terms minority religious people as migrants, when they are not migrants but refugees. The word migration refers to the voluntary movement of people, primarily for better economic prospects. In contrast, refugee is an involuntary act of forced movement. The concerns of refugees are human rights and safety, not economic advantage. The purpose and intention of the Bill, as stated by the home minister, is to provide shelter to vulnerable, religiously persecuted people whose fundamental human rights are at risk. The correct terminology is important because the laws and policies for migrants and refugees are entirely different.
- Second, shelter to individuals of a select religion defeats not only the intention but also the rationality of refugee policy. If the motive of the government is to protect religiously persecuted people in the neighbourhood, the question of why they are ignoring the Muslim community is inevitable.
Conclusion:
There is no harm in accommodating religiously persecuted people in the country. However, India’s ‘law of return’ should be looked at with suspicion, for it severely undermines the otherwise secular socio-legal framework of our nation. While religious persecution is a reasonable principle for differentiation, it cannot be articulated in a manner that dilutes the republican and secular foundations of citizenship in India, and goes against constitutional morality.
Topic– Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation
Why this question
The article discusses the impact of swachh Bharat mission in terms of numbers and the behavioural impact that it has managed to create. As we move into the fifth and final year of swachh Bharat mission, an assessment of the programme and its successes is important.
Key demand of the question
The question expects us to critically analyze whether the most important success of swachh Bharat mission lies in the behavioural change that it has led to or other things. Thus we have to give the numbers in terms of toilets having been constructed under SBM rural and urban, the number of villages which have attained ODF status, and the behavioural change that it has brought about. In the end your opinion is required on what the mission has achieved.
Directive word
Critically 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. When ‘critically’ is suffixed or prefixed to a directive, all you need to do is look at the good and bad of something and give a fair judgement.
Structure of the answer
Introduction – Give a brief introduction to the swachh bharat mission.
Body
- Discuss the objectives of swachh Bharat and what it has managed to achieve so far in terms of numbers. No of toilets constructed, no of villages declared ODF etc
- Discuss the achievements under the scheme
- Since October 2014, 91.5 million toilets have been constructed and 154.3 million rural households have toilets now. Goa and Odisha, however still lag behind. Barring these two states, IHHL (individual household latrine application) coverage in all states is in excess of 95 per cent (Telangana is marginally less). By October 2019, coverage should be universal.
- simple on-ground verification of numbers uploaded on the MDWS website in a few areas found that many of the toilets claimed may not actually exist on the ground. This was revealed when organizations working in those areas went to provide the communities where such toilets were built information on post-construction usage and instead found the toilets missing. This raises questions on the efficacy of the SBM’s monitoring systems. Also a lot of money has been spent on building of toilets without an indication, at least until now, of toilet usage.
- Discuss the achievements with respect to creating awareness with regards to sanitation and the role of swachhrahis
- programme has achieved success in area of raising awareness about sanitation. Any cleanliness initiative will not achieve its objective without people’s participation. To that extent SBM surely deserves a credit. Other important initiatives include Bal Swatchata mission that was launched to inculcate cleanliness values and personal hygiene amongst children. This would go a long way in
- Also discuss the positive impact of the scheme on sections of society such as manual scavengers etc
Conclusion – Give your view and discuss way forward.
Introduction:
Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) is perhaps the largest behaviour change campaign ever, aims to make India a clean nation. The mission will cover all rural and urban areas. The World Health Organization (WHO) believes that SBM could prevent about 300,000 deaths due to water borne diseases assuming we achieve 100 per cent coverage by October 2019.
Body:
Achievements of SBM so far:
- Five hundred and eighty four districts, 5,840 blocks, 244,687 gram panchayats and 541,433 villages are open defecation free (ODF).
- As of September 2018, the sanitation coverage of India is upwards of 93 per cent and over 465,000 villages have been declared ODF.
- Towards the end of 2017, an independent verification agency (IVA) conducted the National Annual Rural Sanitation Survey (NARSS), and found that 93.4 per cent people who had toilets, used them regularly. NARSS also re- confirmed the ODF status of 95.6 per cent of the villages that had been verified ODF by the state governments.
- Since October 2014, 91.5 million toilets have been constructed and 154.3 million rural households have toilets now.
- IHHL (individual household latrine application) coverage in all states is in excess of 95 per cent, except Goa and Odisha.
- Over the last four years, a cadre of 500,000 swachhagrahis has been created who have triggered lakhs of villages to become ODF.
- The foot-soldiers have helped in geo-tagging toilets, verifying household behaviour, converting old toilets and retro-fitting them, engaging in other forms of cleanliness.
- Bal Swatchata mission that was launched to inculcate cleanliness values and personal hygiene amongst children. This would go a long way in
However, some lacunaes are still present.
- States like Odisha, Goa, Tripura,Telangana are still lacking in IHHL (individual household latrine application) coverage.
- Simple on-ground verification of numbers uploaded on the MDWS website in a few areas found that many of the toilets claimed may not actually exist on the ground. This was revealed when organizations working in those areas went to provide the communities where such toilets were built information on post-construction usage and instead found the toilets missing. This raises questions on the efficacy of the SBM’s monitoring systems.
- Treatment of Faecal Sludge, quality and maintenance of toilets built are very poor. Adoption of twin-pit toilets in rural areas is still inadequate.
- City drains are still cleaned by manual scavengers leading to violation of rule of law and death of many scavengers.
Way Forward:
- Governmental Initiatives of Swachhata Pakwada Campaigns should be promoted to raise awareness of sanitation and hygiene. Adequate Budgetary Allocation should be given to construct twin-pit toilets at villages, public toilets etc.
- Teach them young: Children must be taught the importance of Sanitation and hygiene. Initiatives like Bal Swachhata Mission, Swachh Vidyalaya Abhiyan are pushing forward the objective.
- Competition raising initiatives like Swachha Survekshan Abhiyan will help in boosting the spirit of cities and towns to improve the ODF status.
- In places of water scarcity, trains etc. use of bio-toilets can be promoted.
- Technology like mini-jetting machines, robots to clean the clogged pits as done in Hyderabad and Trivandrum should be emulated in other places to curb manual scavenging.
- Swachhata Doots, NGOs and CSOs must be involved at the grassroots level to achieve 100% ODF by October 2nd, 2019.
Conclusion:
The success of the Swachh Bharat Mission is linked to the participation of the people. It depends on people changing their attitudes towards cleanliness, building and using toilets, and maintaining personal hygiene among other things. This means creating a ‘behavioural change’ in an individual is critical to help break old habits and norms.
Case Study of Behavioural Changes:
- Patakpur village in Unnao, UttarPradesh:
- A technique of behavioural change called community led total sanitation (CLTS) came in handy. World Vision India, a non-profit organisation, began working in the district to raise awareness.
- The technique helps shift the focus just acquiring the sanitation hardware to creation of open-defecation free villages. The onus of ensuring that all families have household toilets rests with the community. It integrates hygiene and health, keeping the community’s ownership sustained.
- They used rangoli (colored powder) to draw a map of our village to explain how the faeces gets into our water sources, contaminating it. It took a while, but they were eventually convinced that their homes wouldn’t become impure with toilets. Rather, not having one would make the village dirty and impure.
- Indore’s ‘Roko And Toko’ Push To Stop Open Defecation:
- Under this unique initiative take up by Indore’s civic body, ‘dibba gangs’ have been created to ‘roko aur toko’ those who defecate in the open. These ‘gangs’, mostly made up of schoolchildren, have taken to spreading the message by beating metal boxes loudly whenever they come across anyone defecating in the open.
- The ‘gang members’ can also impose a fine of ₹100 on anyone found defecating or urinating in the open. This initiative is successful since it involves members of the very community it is seeking to change.
Topic- Public/Civil service values and Ethics in Public administration: Status and problems
Why this question
The recent news of previous IAS topper having quit the service to join politics has brought the focus on this matter and the issue can be discussed from a GS4 perspective.
Key demand of the question
The question expects us to discuss the ethics behind a decision to quit civil service and join politics as a means of serving society
Directive word
Comment – When you are asked to comment, you have to pick main points and give your ‘opinion’ on them based on evidences or arguments stemming from your wide reading. Your opinion may be for or against, but you must back your argument with evidences.
Structure of the answer
Introduction – Highlight the incident of shah faesel quitting.
Body – Discuss whether it’s okay for a civil servant to quit his service to join politics. Discuss the implications of such a decision and whether it leads to diminishing the value of service.
Conclusion – Give a fair and balanced view.
Introduction:
The question of civil servants joining politics has been a topic of debate for a long time. Recent incident of a J& K cadre IAS officer quitting his job to join politics needs us to mull on whether it’s okay for an officer to join politics early or wait till retirement.
Body:
The ethical issues involved in joining politics before retirement:
- Affects foundational values: An officer resigning from his post usually has something better to look forward to. It could result into a situation where officers are lured by politicians by demanding favours in exchange for a party ticket in next election etc. This will violate political neutrality and integrity of an officer.
- Affects honesty and impartiality: There are possibilities that an officer to be in good books of political parties be biased to them. This makes him biased and partisan towards a party.
- Reduced Trusteeship: A civil servant is a trustee of the public. The partisanship and closeness to a political party can trust breaches between people and civil servants.
However, there is another school of thought which supports the civil servants joining points irrespective of resigning during job or post retirement. The argument from their side is
- The rules of the civil service and strict procedures followed by the government are in place to ensure equality and impartiality. But often these rules become an obstacle to achieving the very goal that those in the service set out to attain.
- Ultimately, it is his/her prerogative to decide the career path. The idea that one must wait till retirement to join politics is not set in stone. It’s a matter of personal choice.
Way Forward:
As long as the person is imbued with an ingrained spirit of service to her/his fellow humans and is firmly wedded to the principles of constitutional democracy, she/he can definitely contribute to the nation and its citizens in different capacities.
