This is question set #2 of ‘ClearIAS UPSC CSE 2016 Mains 30-day Answer Writing Program (AWP)’. AWP is a UPSC mains oriented program from ClearIAS.com that consists of 5 questions in each post, published (around 8 pm) every day. Each of the 5 questions are selected from 5 papers mentioned in UPSC Mains syllabus namely Essay, GS1, GS2, GS3 and GS4 (ethics). Browse archives here.
Questions for Answer Writing – Selections for today:
- Essay Paper: Higher education in India: challenges and strategies. (1000-1200 words – 125 marks)
- GS 1 Paper: LPG reforms initiated in 1991 brought big changes in Indian society. Discuss the changes in the backdrop of 25 years of liberalization. Is India better off? (200 words – 12.5 marks)
- GS 2 Paper: If concurrent Lok Sabha and Assembly elections were to be a reality, it would go against the political diversity essential for addressing the social diversity of India. Analyse this statement. (200 words – 12.5 marks)
- GS 3 Paper: India’s climate policy has been constantly hobbled by many strategic concerns. Should India ratify the Paris Agreement considering that many developed nations have not yet ratified the agreement. Discuss. (200 words – 12.5 marks)
- GS 4 Paper: Can ethics and diplomacy go together in International relations? Discuss with examples. (150 words – 10 marks)
Marking Scheme
We have revised our marking scheme for our model tests, taking into account the latest trends in UPSC evaluation. Always keep in mind that content of the answer is more important than its length. Credit will be given to the grasp of the question, to the point answer, brevity, knowledge, clarity of expression etc.
Considering that toppers score 380-420 marks in GS papers out of 1000, we consider 40% marks for any answer as ‘above average’. The GS marks of AIR1 for last 3 years is: Gaurav Agrawal (2013) -338/1000; Ira Singhal (2014) – 455/1000; Tina Dabi (2015) – 424/1000. Please have a look at our marking scheme for the 30-day AWP for 2016 Mains.
- 0-19% – Not satisfactory.
- 20%-29% – Needs improvement.
- 30%-39% – Good answer.
- 40%-49% – Above Average Answer.
- 50%-59% – Excellent Answer.
- 60% and above – Exceptional Answer.
Note: Aspirants can select any question they wish to answer in the comment space provided below specifying the question. Though we encourage to type answers for better readability, those who wish to write in paper using pen can also do the same. If you prefer the ‘pen and paper way’, then you need to scan your answers and upload in Google drive and share the link via comments. All the best!
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General Studies Paper 2 (GS2) Question Paper – UPSC Civil Services Main Exam (Written) 2019
General Studies Paper 4 (GS4) Question Paper – UPSC Civil Services Main Exam (Written) 2019
General Studies Paper 3 (GS3) Question Paper – UPSC Civil Services Main Exam (Written) 2019
I am a working professional and study after office hours. This means I get around 5-6 hrs daily (atleast on weekdays) .. so i may miss many tests of clearIAS ..
Will your team be kind enough to help those who are in situation like me and prepare a consolidated document with questions and model answer (in form of bullet points) which one can go through ?
Will sincerely appreciate it !
@Siddharth: We shall try, but we guess many of our readers would anyway make it and share it with others.
you can use insight ias secure compilation
Clearias team ,first of all thnx for dis awesome initiative.
Could u please provide points or complete coverage for essay paper.bcoz in GS one can go thru related topics from net but for essay one can have comprehensive coverage at one place.
Will be highly grateful to u .
Once again thnx for d initiative.
Thank you for the positive feedback. We plan to come up with some articles on essay in future.
Can u send me the note for study
Subscribe for our email updates.
ANS 3: simultaneous elections :
Recently election commission and also prime minister expressed the view that elections to lok sabha and assembly should be held simultaneously . This decision is currently under consideration and a report on the same has been submitted by a parliamentary committee. Many have welcomed this view and sited the following benefits :
1. Will help cutting down wasteful expenditure that takes place during elections.
2. More focus will be on governance rather than on rallying .
3. During Elections Due to Model code of conduct, a policy paralysis occurs . This will be prevented and government can focus on reforms and development.
4. Help to workers who work in different areas but have to go to vote in their native place , this will help them in voting once and can assert their right more easily.
However not many agree, the following are some concerns:
1. Statistics show that whenever state elections and lok sabha elections are held together, the voter usually votes for the same party. This may lead to disruption of political diversity.
2.Usually during elections and before elections , voter is considered the king maker and thus every party tries to try its best to follow best government models , develop areas and visit local areas . this will not happen and government will only be responsible once in 5 years now.
3. Expenditure and man force required to conduct elections at the same time in every state will be high, given our lack of experience and training this can turn into a big problem.
Thus before taking a final decision a lot of discussions should take place, its a welcome step but before we take a leap forward in this direction proper training of man force, proper planning needs to be done .
Concluding with a solution will always be appreciated. Like if simulataneous election is done, what all conditions should be done to factor in ur concerns. Or if not done, what all conditions. Like that. Pls reveiw mine
@Passerby: Thank you for helping peers with valuable suggestions. Keep it up.
thank you passerby 🙂 i will review the answer you write today 🙂
Though the positives and negatives are highlighted reasonably well, we feel that the answer has missed the core aspect- ie. the link between social and political diversity. Keep writing. There is a lot of scope for improvement.
Marks: 30%
thanks team for your review , will take ur feedback into account and improve.
The debate for simultaneous election to LS and assembly have been a long process.
Even though there are many benefits such as
1. Cost reduction
2. Less man power compared to separate election
3. Less time being spend on election campaign.
The statistical data reveals that in previous occasion where such simultaneous elections took place 90% of the time it was the same party which was elected at both state and centre .
Everywhere people are not well educated to distinguish between the policies and agenda of centre and state separately which influences their difference.
A state party formed from the concern state will be well verse with the issues at the state. Replacing them with a centre party will only delay the process of addressing the issues of the state.
This policy inspite of having many advantages lag in addressing the diverse society needs.
Concise. But my opinion would be to increase points. Pls review mine
Was close, but could have been better. Use the keywords – social diversity and political diversity and explain it in the context of the question.
Marks: 35%
If concurrent Lok Sabha and Assembly elections were to be a reality, it would go against the political diversity essential for addressing the social diversity of India. Analyse this statement.
ans) Recently Indian Prime minister talked about simultaneous elections to LokSabha and state assemblies. The idea sounds highly appealing due to following advantages:
1) ensure better governance with the availability of more time and resources.
2) reduce election expenditure and saved money can be utilized for public prupose
3) reduce the incidents triggered by communalism,casteism etc for political gains
However,simultaneous elections comes with many inherent problems like:
1) large number of EVMs required
2) huge human resources needed for elections and for its security
3) not really feasible in parliamentary democracy like India where government has to resign on the event of losing majority
But the most pressing issue is that simultaneous elections may work against political diversity which is essential for social diversity. This can be analysed as below:
India is a large democracy with large population who lacks good political literacy. This can distort the election results in case of concurrent elections
1) can result in same party in power both in centre and states. This will undermine the role of state parties which are better acquainted with state issues and cause the neglect of problems in state
2) the absence of regional parties at centre(in coalition governments), checks and balances may get affected and result in political domination
3) political parties representing vulnerable groups may go unrecognised rendering the voice of vulnerable sections of society unheard.
4) during concurrent elections, with poor political literacy there is a chance that local issue deciding the fate of the national elections. People fail to differentiate between state and national elections distorting the election results.
All these raises question about the idea of simultaneous elections. We need more debate and discussions. Welfare of all sections should be given priority.
Very good of u to analyse the ‘affecting diversity” part in-depth; which was what the question required. Good answer yaar.
Thanks yaar ?
Good attempt. You could have avoided the first half to save time. But you brought good points like poor political literacy and touched social and political diversity part. Try to be brief and straight away come with good points related to the crux of the question.
Marks: 40%
Thank u clearias for the review.. ?
Firstly thanks a ton to CLEAR IAS Team for your Prelims Test Series. It was of great help in clearing the first barrier. & thanks for this initiative too.
Here’s answer to question 3 –
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2ARw9hda5qARUtTZW13YnBlSmc/view?usp=drivesdk
Again good answer. Nice conclusion. Ur point c in first part is a broad generalisation. Dint go well with me as a reader. :). I would avoid such statements. Otherwise excellent. Kindly review mine
@Dheerendra: Thanks for recognizing our efforts in the Prelims Test Series. All the best for mains!
Regarding the answer, as @Passerby has rightly pointed out, you started with a generalization/conclusion in the introduction which should be avoided. But the rest of the answer is fine. You are well read. Keep it up. Stress on the keywords.
Marks: 40%
Thanx for your valuable insights @passerby & @clearIAS.
But please let me know if there is issue only with point C or with the first paragraph itself!
I had issue with only that point. Even that is a personal opinion.
LPG reforms initiated in 1991 brought big changes in Indian society. Discuss the changes in the backdrop of 25 years of liberalization. Is India better off?
The LPG reforms, compelled by the BoP crisis of 1991 has effected changes in all walks of life generally, and society in particular. Some of the changes that we see in society are:
1. Positive effects:
a. increase in GDP growth & employment has raised the general standard of living.
b. increase in number of foreign commercial giants have made possible our exposure to foreign ways of life.
c. liberalization increased competition making durables cheaper than before.
d. use of foreign made electronics reduced women’s hardships at the kitchen, thus increasing her time available for children.
e. increased migration helped in more income for the family.
2. Negative effects:
1. threat to local culture, due to homgenisation brought in by globalisation.
2. reduced role of family, due to advent of entertainment revolution.
3. reduced sharing of public spaces due to dominance of social media.
4. confrontation of cultures: e.g. Beef burgers were withdrawn by global brands.
Globalisation has had multifarious effect on our society. Having said that traditional India has opted for glocalisation whereas urban India went behind homogenisation of ideas & lifestyle. This is also apparent as an urban-rural dichotomy in India
Kindly review
Ah.. forgot to write second part
Excellent write up, though you didn’t explicitly addressed the second part – ‘is India better off?’. Appreciate your grasp of the question and the to-the-point answer. You kept your answer around Indian society, which shows your right comprehension. Also regarding changes, you mentioned the positives and negatives. Good. A right conclusion could have fetched more marks.
Marks: 40%.
Can ethics and diplomacy go together in International relations? Discuss with examples.
Most of the international relations are done on ethical pathways. The root of the aid diplomacy is also planted on these philosophies of helping the needy. Such initiatives have helped in meeting development needs of many countries, e.g indian aid for Afghan parliament; and also to quench the hunger of millions. e.g. Indan aid to even a rogue nation like North Korea. Ethics & Diplomacy can go hand in hand if they are bound to follow a common good. Eg: sharing of intelligence information among nations to pre-empt terrorist attack.
Nevertheless there have been instance of one upmanship even in diplomacy, where selfish national interests dominated. Eg: US invasion of Iraq on the pretext of WMD. These are result of myopic and self-centered world view, not bothered about the principle of natural justice.
At the same time, there have been many situations of ethical dilemma while doing diplomacy. There are situations where a normally unethical response is warranted. For eg. War. Here again the higher moral principle of defending the nation must prevail over death and injury of the enemy. It is justified by opportunity to save millions of civilians as well. Further, even in war principles of morality can be employed while treating prisoners of war, not over-reacting and responding with more than waht is required (e.g. use of nuclear weapons ) etc to prevent catastrophy and prove diplomacy and ethics can survive together.
Passerby..ur ethics answers are excellent with relevant examples .. Keep it up.. Other answers are also gud.. Best wishes.. God bless u?
@Passerby: Good points and good-line of thinking. We feel that you have good points, but could have better arranged the same. A better introduction and conclusion would always fetch you more marks. A suggestion for this question would be to start with the difficulties to couple together ethics and modern day diplomacy, but give examples of countries which stick to high ethical standards in-spite of the difficulties or short term gains. You may even mention the stand taken by Nehru on Kashmir – which was more ethical than practical.
Marks: 40%
Thank guys 🙂
Q2)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2ARw9hda5qAVW9udk5BRWVvZnc/view?usp=drivesdk
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2ARw9hda5qAb09hdVNWeUpxOGc/view?usp=drivesdk
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2ARw9hda5qAQS0wTUNFYlNrdG8/view?usp=drivesdk
This is ur prepared note, right? Can u answer this question directly? I mean covering only the societal part. I couldnt find many points when I attempted..
Yup buddy. This is a prepared note. A comprehensive write-up which i shared for larger good.
But regarding this question you are the best!
:). Appreciate ur large heart yaar.
I really hope someone can write a good answer on that question
Sir , can i write my answer in Hindi?
@Vishal: ClearIAS Team will be reviewing answers only in English. But if your medium for mains is different( Eg: Hindi or Tamil), you are free to write in that as well. We hope fellow candidates would ensure that your answers are properly reviewed. Appreciate your interest. Keep writing.
Q5)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2ARw9hda5qAckljckwzZXlsSEU/view?usp=drivesdk
Good examples u pointed out. Since u wrote on Indo-SL, was India really ethical in turning a blind eye on HR violations of NE SL? Israel-Palestine dilemma was a good observation.
Try to drop ethical jargon at will, to make it a UPSC answer
@Dheerendra: Good that you brought the term’ethical diplomacy’. Good examples too. But somewhere we felt you are deviating from the question. The question was ‘Can ethics and diplomacy go together in IR?’. So to not deviate from the question, it would have been great if you give examples specific to the case. Don’t mix up contradicting examples. And leave out unnecessary explanations/sentences.
Marks: 35%.
Thanks for the review.
Q4)
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B2ARw9hda5qASzNIZFExbG5Pcmc/view?usp=drivesdk
@Dheerendra: Taken a stand in the conclusion. Good. It would have been great if had you expressed the strategic concerns of India as well.
Some facts for reference: India, accounting for 4.1% of the total global emission, has become the 62nd country to ratify the Paris Agreement. With India on board, the total emission share of these countries reached 51.89% mark – just 3.11% less than the emission threshold to bring the Agreement into force. Once EU, accounting for 12.1% of the total global emission, joins it on Tuesday, the deal will enter into force after 30 days (early November).
Marks: 40%
Thanks @clearIAS. Please can you explain what all points can be enlisted for the strategic concerns? I couldn’t find them. It would be a favour.
Hi,
Please review. Written q2, q3 and q5 all in same file.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4NZjtBJpHhjd1JxelJGS2VYYzg/view?usp=sharing
Hi reg ethics answer: u only addressed only one side; could ve mentioned when it is dff to maintain ethical stds. Beautiful intro by the way.
other answers were also very good espcially gs2
Hi,
Please evaluate for Questions 2-5
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B15hLNfqIl10YzdPZFJOTVJ0bVk
Q2: I think it was a generalish answer, question was on society precisely.
Q3: excellent one.
Q4: could have added more points.
Q5: bring in more ethical issues; than IR and constitution. Why are the issues u mentioned unethical? adresss that
Keeping writing brother. Very legible handwriting
Thanks for the feedback passerby 🙂
I’m sorry I’m late, but I’d still love some response from you wonderful people.
Q. LPG reforms initiated in 1991 brought big changes in Indian society. Discuss the changes in the backdrop of 25 years of liberalization. Is India better off?
The LPG reforms have completely changed the landscape of the Indian economy, taking a stagnant and protectionist structure and making it more dynamic. The reforms have impacted the economy in the following ways
POSITIVES
1. INCREASED GROWTH – The Indian economy has gone from the so-called Hindu rate of growth towards world-class levels of 7-8% per annum
2. DIVERSIFICATION OF ECONOMY – As more and more sectors have been opened up to the private sector, the economy has diversified, thus helping achieve stability against global headwinds
3. GREATER ROLE IN WORLD TRADE – As India has opened her borders to the world, we have become a greater part of world trade, and the increasing incoming FDIs have contributed positively
4. STREAMLINED GOVERNMENT – As the government’s role in the economy has increased, it has been able to focus on its role as an economic regulator and the primary vehicle for social upliftment
5. SOLID ECONOMIC FOUNDATION – In contrast to 1991 when India faced a foreign exchange crunch and BoP crisis, today India has comfortable foreign exchange reserves, a manageable fiscal deficit and a stable economy
NEGATIVES
1. GREATER INEQUALITY – Unlike the majorly socialist model followed till 1991 which sought to lay emphasis on equality of benefits, the LPG era has seen rise in inequality – the rich have gotten richer, while the poor are often no better off
2. GREATER IMPACT OF GLOBAL EVENTS – Events such as the 2008 economic crisis affected India due to her globalized economy
3. UNRELIABILITY OF FOREIGN INVESTMENTS – The increasing role of FDI in the Indian market could potentially destabilize the economy if this money were to be suddenly repatriated
The overall impact of the LPG reforms has been overwhelmingly positive, and India has emerged as a major global economic power today, thanks to sustained growth over the last two decades. This growth has only been possible because of the LPG reforms.
Nice answer…good points…but focussed more on economy.. should have touched effects on society as well.