Topic: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.
5) Rising political discourse over the issues of nationalism and national security have pushed other vital issues such as health, education and the environment to the background. Critically analyse the statement with suitable justifications.(250 words)
Why this question:
The article weighs the pros and cons of national security being at the centre of developmental agenda and the cost that it imposes upon other factors of development such as in the issues of health, education and the environment.
Key demand of the question:
One must use hints from the article and explain with examples in what way everything else goes at the altar of national security.
Directive:
Critically analyze – When asked to analyse, 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, one needs to look at the good and bad of the topic and give a fair judgment.
Structure of the answer:
Introduction:
In brief narrate why the concept of national security is often emotive in nature.
Body:
Explain that nationalism, religious identity, terrorism, national security; and so on have a heightened priority in the country to such an extent that it catastrophically pushes under the carpet the most vital issues of development: health, education and the environment.
Use suitable examples; the 2019 elections had the focus around Pulwama, Balakot and Pakistan terror attacks.
Even after the Lok Sabha elections, the discourse on national security has only hardened with the National Register of Citizens (NRC), Kashmir (note: not the plight of Kashmiris), Article 370, and Pakistan (still) dominating the news space.
Conclusion:
Conclude that it’s high time for the development agenda to shift its focus to key parameters of development such as health, education and the environment.
