Monday, 17 July 2017

UPSC (Civil Services) Mains Exam GS Paper 3 Previous questions (2013 - 2016)



2013

1. With a consideration towards the strategy of inclusive growth, the new companies bill, 2013 has indirectly made CSR a mandatory obligation. Discuss the challenges expected in its implementation in right earnest. Also discuss other provisions in the bill and their implications.

2. What are the reasons for introduction of Fiscal responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) act, 2003? Discuss critically its salient features and their effectiveness.

3. What is meaning of the term tax-expenditure? Taking housing sector as an example, discuss how it influences budgetary policies of the government.

4. Food security bill is expected to eliminate hunger and malnutrition in India. Critically discuss various apprehensions in its effective implementation along with the concerns it has generated in WTO

5. What are the different types of agriculture subsidies given to farmers at the national and state levels? Critically analyze the agriculture subsidy regime with the reference to the distortions created by it.

6. India needs to strengthen measures to promote the pink revolution in food industry for better nutrition and health. Critically elucidate the statement.

7. Examine the impact of liberalization on companies owned by Indian. Are the competing with the MNCs satisfactorily?

 8. Establish the relationship between land reform, agriculture productivity and elimination of poverty in Indian Economy. Discussion the difficulty in designing and implementation of the agriculture friendly land reforms in India.

9. (A) Discuss the impact of FDI entry into multi-trade retail sector on supply chain management in commodity trade pattern of the economy.

     (B)Though India allowed foreign direct investment (FDI) in what is called multi brand retail through joint venture route in September 2012, the FDI even after a year, has not picket up. Discuss the reasons.

10. Discussion the rationale for introducing Good and services tax in India. Bring out critically the reasons for delay in roll out for its regime.

11. Write a note on India‘s green energy corridor to alleviate the problems of conventional energy.

12. Adaptation of PPP model for infrastructure development of the country has not been free from criticism. Critically discuss the pros and cons of the model.

13. Bring out the circumstances in 2005 which forced amendment to section 3(d) in the India n Patent Law, 1970. Discuss how it has been utilized by Supreme court in its judgment rejecting Novartis patent application for ―Glivec―. Discuss briefly the pros and cons of the decision.

14. What do you understand by fixed dose drug combinations (FDCs)? Discuss their merits and demerits.

15. What do you understand by Umpire decision review in cricket? Discuss its various components. Explain how silicon tape on the edge of a bat may fool the system?

16. 
a. What is digital signature? What does its authentication mean? Giver various salient built in features of a digital signature.
b. How does the 3D printing technology work? List out the advantages and disadvantages of the technology.

17. 
a. What is an FRP composite material? How are they manufactured? Discuss their applications in aviation and automobile industry
b. What do you understand by run of the river hydroelectricity project? How is it different from any other hydroelectricity project?

18. How important are vulnerability and risk assessment for pre-disaster management. As an administrator ,what are key areas that you would focus in a disaster management

19. What are the consequences of illegal mining? Discuss the ministry of environment and forests‘ concept of ―GO AND NO GO‖ zones for coal mining.

20. Enumerate the National Water Policy of India. Taking river Ganges as an example, discuss the strategies which may be adopted for river water pollution control and management. What are the legal provisions for management and handling of hazardous wastes in India?

 21. Money laundering poses a serious threat to country‘s economic sovereignty. What is its significance for India and what steps are required to be taken to control this menace?

22. What are social networking site and what security implications do these sites present?

23. Cyber warfare is considered by some defense analysts to be a larger threat than even Al Qaeda or terrorism. What do you understand by Cyber warfare? Outline the cyber threats which India is vulnerable to and bring out the state of the country‘s preparedness to deal with the same.

24. Article 244 of Indian Constitution relates to Administration of Scheduled areas and tribal areas. Analyze the impact of non-implementation of the provisions of fifth schedule on the growth of Left Wing Extremism.

25. How far are India‘s internal security challenges linked with border management, particularly in view of the long porous borders with most countries of South Asia and Myanmar?

                                                           2014

1. Normally countries shift from agriculture to industry and then later to services, but India shifted directly from agriculture to services. What are the reasons for the huge growth of services vis-à-vis industry in the country? Can India become a developed country without a strong industrial base?

2. ―While we flaunt India‘s demographic dividend, we ignore the dropping rates of employability.‖ What are we missing while doing so? Where will the jobs that India desperately needs come from? Explain.

3. There is also a point of view that Agricultural Produce Market of Committees (APMCs) set up under the State Acts have not only impeded the development of agriculture but also have been the cause of food inflation in India. Critically examine.

4. ―In the villages itself no form of credit organization will be suitable except the cooperative society.‖ – All India Rural Credit Survey.Discuss this statement in the background of agricultural finance in India. What constraints and challenges do financial institutions supplying agricultural finance face? How can technology be used to better reach and serve rural clients?

5. The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 has come into effect from 1st January, 2014. What are the key issues which would get addressed with the Act in place? What implications would it have on industrialization and agriculture in India?

6. Capitalism has guided the world economy to unprecedented prosperity. However, it often encourages short-sightedness and contributes to wide disparities between the rich and the poor. In this light, would it be correct to believe and adopt capitalism for bringing inclusive growth in India? Discuss.

7. Explain how Private Public Partnership arrangements, in long gestation infrastructure projects, can transfer unsustainable liabilities to the future. What arrangements need to be put in place to ensure that successive generations capacities are not compromised?

8. National Urban Transport Policy emphasizes on ‗moving people‘ instead of ‗moving vehicles‘. Discuss critically the success of the various strategies of the Government in this regard.

9. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the defence sector is not set to be liberalized. What influence this is expected to have on Indian defence and economy in the short and long run?

10. Scientific research in Indian universities is declining, because a career in science is not as attractive as are business professions, engineering or administration and the universities are becoming consumer-oriented. Critically comment.

11. Can overuse and free availability of antibiotics without Doctor‘s prescription, be contributors to the emergence of drug-resistant diseases in India? What are the available mechanisms for monitoring and control? Critically discuss the various issues involved.

12. In a globalized world, Intellectual Property Rights assume significance and are a source of litigation. Broadly distinguish between the terms-copyrights, Patents and Trade Secrets.

13. Should the pursuit of carbon-credits and clean development mechanisms set up under UNFCCC be maintained even though there has been a massive slide in the value of a carbon credit? Discuss with respect to India‘s energy needs for economic growth.

14. Drought has been recognized as a disaster in view of its spatial expanse, temporal duration, slow onset and lasting effects on vulnerable sections. With focus on the September 2010 guidelines from the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), discuss the mechanisms for preparedness to deal with likely El Nino and La Nina fallouts in India.

15. Environmental Impact Assessment studies are increasingly undertaken before a project is cleared by the Government. Discuss the environmental impacts of coal-fired thermal plants located at coal pitheads.

16. ―The diverse nature of India as a multi-religious and multi-ethnic society is not immune to the impact of radicalism which is seen in her neighbourhood.‖ Discuss along with strategies to be adopted to counter this environment.

17. International civil aviation laws provide all countries complete and exclusive sovereignty over the airspace above their territory. What do you understand by ‗airspace‘? What are the implications of these laws on the space above this airspace? Discuss the challenges which this poses and suggest ways to contain the threat.

18. How does illegal transborder migration pose a threat to India‘s security? Discuss the strategies to curb this, bringing out the factors which give impetus to such migration.

19. In 2012, the longitudinal marking for high-risk areas for piracy was moved from 65 degrees east to 78 degrees east in the Arabian Sea by the International Maritime Organization. What impact does this have on India‘s maritime security concerns?

20. China and Pakistan have entered into an agreement for development of an economic corridor. What threat does this pose for India‘s security? Critically examine.

                                                                   2015

1. The nature of economic growth in India in recent times is often described as jobless growth. Do you agree with this view? Give arguments in favour of your answer.

2. Livestock rearing has a big potential for providing non-farm employment and income in rural areas. Discuss suggesting suitable measures to promote this sector in India.

3. In view of the declining average size of land holdings in India which has made agriculture non-viable for a majority of farmers, should contract farming and land leasing be promoted in agriculture? Critically evaluate the pros and cons.

4. How can the ‗Digital India‘ programme help farmers to improve farm productivity and income? What steps has the Government taken in this regard?

5. In what way could replacement of price subsidy with Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) change the scenario of subsidies in India? Discuss.

6. What are the impediments in marketing and supply chain management in developing the food processing industry in India? Can e-commerce help in overcoming these bottlenecks?

7. Craze for gold in Indians has led to a surge in import of gold in recent years and put pressure on balance of payments and external value of rupee. In view of this, examine the merits of the Gold Monetization Scheme.

8. ―Success of ‗Make in India‘ programme depends on the success of ‗Skill India‘ programme and radical labour reforms.‖ Discuss with logical arguments.

 9. To what factors can the recent dramatic fall in equipment costs and tariff of solar energy be attributed? What implications does the trend have for the thermal power producers and the related industry?

10. There is a clear acknowledgement that Special Economic zones (SEZS) are a tool of industrial development, manufacturing and exports. Recognizing this potential, the whole instrumentality of SEZs requires augmentation. Discuss the issues plaguing the success of SEZs with respect to taxation, governing laws and administration.

11. What do you understand by ‗Standard Positioning Systems‘ and ‗Precision Positioning Systems‘ in the GPS era? Discuss the advantages India perceives from its ambitious IRNSS programme employing just seven satellites.

12. What are the areas of prohibitive labour that can be sustainably managed by robots? Discuss the initiatives that can propel research in premier research institutes for substantive and gainful innovation.

13. Discuss the advantages and security implications of cloud hosting of servers vis-à-vis in-house machine-based hosting for government business.

14. India‘s Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL), which has a database containing formatted information on more than 2 million medicinal formulations, is proving a powerful weapon in the country‘s fight against erroneous patents. Discuss the pros and cons of making this database publicly available under open-source licensing.

15. Discuss the Namami Gange and National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) programmes and causes of mixed results from the previous schemes. What quantum leaps can help preserve the river Ganga better than incremental inputs?

16. The frequency of earthquakes appears to have increased in the Indian subcontinent. However, India‘s preparedness for mitigating their impact has significant gaps. Discuss various aspects.

17. Human rights activists contantly highlight the view that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 (AFSPA) is a draconian act leading to cases of human rights abuses by the security forces. What sections of AFSPA are opposed by the activists? Critically evaluate the requirement with reference to the view held by the Apex Court.

18. Religious indoctrination via digital media has resulted in Indian youth joining the ISIS. What is ISIS and its mission? How can ISIS be dangerous for the internal security of our country?

19. The persisting drives of the Government for development of large industries in backward areas have resulted in isolating the tribal population and the farmers who face multiple displacements. With Malkangiri and Naxalbari foci, discuss the corrective strategies needed to win the Left Wing Extremism (LWE) doctrine affected citizens back into the mainstream of social and economic growth.

20. Considering the threats cyberspace poses for the country, India needs a ―Digital Armed Force‖ to prevent crimes. Critically evaluate the National Cyber Security Policy, 2013 outlining the challenges perceived in its effective implementation.

                                                                    2016

1. How globalization has led to the reduction of employment in the formal sector of the Indian economy? Is increased informalization detrimental to the development of the country?

2. Women empowerment in India needs gender budgeting. What are the requirements and status of gender budgeting in the Indian context?

3. Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) is necessary for bringing unbanked to the institutional finance fold. Do you agree with this for financial inclusion of the poorer section of the Indian society? Give arguments to justify your opinion.

4. What are ‗Smart Cities‘? Examine their relevance for urban development in India. Will it increase rural-urban differences? Give arguments for ‗Smart Villages‘ in the light of PURA and RURBAN Mission.

5. Justify the need for FDI for the development of the Indian economy. Why there is gap between MOUs signed and actual FDIs? Suggest remedial steps to be taken for increasing actual FDIs in India.

6. Comment on the challenges for inclusive growth which include careless and useless manpower in the Indian context. Suggest measures to be taken for facing these challenges.

7. What is water-use efficiency? Describe the role of micro-irrigation in increasing the water-use efficiency.

8. What is allolopathy? Discuss its role in major cropping systems of irrigated agriculture.
9. Discuss the role of land reforms in agricultural development. Identify the factors that were responsible for the success of land reforms in India.

10. Given the vulnerability of Indian agriculture to vagaries of nature, discuss the need for crop insurance and bring out the salient features of the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY).

11. Give an account of the current status and the targets to be achieved pertaining to renewable energy sources in the country. Discuss in brief the importance of National Programme on Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs).

 12. Discuss India‘s achievements in the field of Space Science and Technology. How the application of this technology has helped India in its socio-economic development?

13. Why is nanotechnology one of the key technologies of the 21st century? Describe the salient features of Indian Government‘s Mission on Nanoscience and Technology and the scope of its application in the development process of the country.

14. Rehabilitation of human settlements is one of the important environmental impacts which always attracts controversy while planning major projects. Discuss the measures suggested for mitigation of this impact while proposing major developmental projects.

15. The frequency of urban floods due to high intensity rainfall is increasing over the years. Discussing the reasons for urban floods, highlight the mechanisms for preparedness to reduce the risk during such events.

16. With reference to National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) guidelines, discuss the measures to be adopted to mitigate the impact of the recent incidents of cloudbursts in many places of Uttarakhand.

17. The terms ‗Hot Pursuit‘ and ‗Surgical Strikes‘ are often used in connection with armed action against terrorist attacks. Discuss the strategic impact of such actions.

18. ―Terrorism is emerging as a competitive industry over the last few decades.‖ Analyse the above statement.

19. Border management is a complex task due to difficult terrain and hostile relations with some countries. Elucidate the challenges and strategies for effective border management.

20. Use of Internet and Social Media by non-state actors for subversive activities is a major security concern. How have these been misused in the recent past? Suggest effective guidelines to curb the above threat.