9 PM UPSC Current Affairs Articles 30 November, 2024

Mains Oriented Articles

GS PAPER - 1

Decline in male sterilisation (vasectomy) rates in India

Source: The post decline in male sterilisation (vasectomy) rates in India has been created, based on the article “Indians need to share contraceptive responsibility” published in “The Hindu” on 30th November 2024

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper1-Society-population and associated issues

Context: The article discusses the decline in male sterilisation (vasectomy) rates in India, highlighting gender disparities in family planning. It suggests improving awareness, offering incentives, and learning from other countries to increase male participation in sterilisation to achieve gender equality and better family planning outcomes. Decline in male sterilisation rates in India.

Why is Male Sterilisation Declining in India?

Declining Rates: Male sterilisation rates fell from 80.5% in 1966-70 to 0.3% by NFHS-4 (2015-16) and remained constant in NFHS-5. Female sterilisation dominates, accounting for 37.9%.

Barriers:

Social beliefs: Men often think sterilisation is a woman’s responsibility.

Economic concerns: Fear of losing wages discourages men from undergoing the procedure.

Misconceptions: Myths about libido and masculinity prevent acceptance.

Lack of awareness: Women and men are unaware of cash incentives for vasectomies.

Service gaps: Rural areas lack skilled providers and awareness among community health workers.

What should be done?

1. Improve Service Delivery: Train more healthcare providers, especially in rural areas, to perform no-scalpel vasectomies. Strengthen national health systems to align with goals.
2. Awareness campaigns: Peer-group discussions in schools and sustained communication can break myths and destigmatise vasectomies.
3. Cash incentives: Enhance monetary benefits for men undergoing vasectomies, as seen in Maharashtra’s 2019 study where incentives boosted uptake. Madhya Pradesh’s 50% increase in incentives in 2022 is an example to replicate nationwide.
4. Learn from Other Countries:
5. South Korea: High vasectomy rates due to progressive norms and gender equality.
6. Bhutan: Government-led vasectomy camps and quality services increased uptake.
7. Brazil: Mass media campaigns raised awareness, boosting rates from 0.8% to 5% over decades.

Question for practice:

Discuss the reasons for the decline in male sterilisation rates in India and the measures that can be taken to address this issue.

GS PAPER - 2

Benefits and Concerns of One Nation Subscription

Source: The post Benefits and Concerns of One Nation Subscription has been created, based on the article “ONOS bitten: Bringing down cost of access to research papers is only one of many issues” published in “The Hindu” on 30th November 2024

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2- Governance-Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Education

Context: The article discusses India’s “One Nation, One Subscription” (ONOS) plan, which aims to make expensive research journals accessible to publicly funded institutes. However, it criticizes the plan for favoring foreign publishers, ignoring open-access models, and lacking transparency and consultation. Benefits and Concerns of One Nation Subscription.

For detailed information on One Nation One Subscription (ONOS) Scheme read this article here

What is the “One Nation, One Subscription” (ONOS) plan?

1. The ONOS plan centralizes access to research journals for publicly funded institutes in India.
2. Approved on November 25, 2024, it replaces library consortia with government-negotiated deals.
3. The government allocated ₹6,000 crore for three years to provide access to journals from 30 major publishers.
4. ONOS aims to reduce costs for underfunded institutes and scholars.

What are the benefits of ONOS?

1. It makes research journals accessible to underfunded institutes.
2. Scholars at government-funded institutions can access research without extra costs.
3. It centralizes the subscription process to save resources.

What are the concerns of ONOS?

1. Limited Scope: ONOS benefits only publicly funded institutes, excluding private institutions and independent researchers.It continues to support commercial publishers who profit from publicly funded research.
2. It ignores alternative open-access models like: Green Open Access: Free public access by default. Diamond Open Access: Free for both authors and readers.
3. Transparency Issues: No clarity on journal selection or monitoring to remove irrelevant or predatory journals.
4. The stagnation of research and development spending, as a percentage of GDP, raises concerns about resource prioritization.

Question for practice:

Examine the benefits and concerns associated with India’s “One Nation, One Subscription” (ONOS) plan.

Sharp slowdown in India’s economic growth

Source: The post sharp slowdown in India’s economic growth has been created, based on the article “Express view: RBI’s dilemma— with low growth, narrowing choices” published in “Indian Express” and the article “Deregulation, reforms key to spur growth: CEA Nageswaran” published in “Live mint” on 30th November 2024

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper3- Economy-Growth

Context: The article discusses India’s economic slowdown in the second quarter of the fiscal year 2024-2025 (FY25). GDP growth fell to 5.4%, below expectations. Key sectors like manufacturing and construction slowed, and urban demand weakened. Reasons include high inflation, global factors, and excess rainfall. However, stronger rural demand and increased government spending may boost growth in the year’s second half. Sharp slowdown in India’s economic growth.

What is the Current State of Economic Growth?

1. India’s GDP growth slowed by 270 basis points year-on-year to 5.4% in Q2 FY25, below the 6.5% forecast.
2. Sequentially, GDP growth eased by 130 basis points from 6.7% in Q1.
3. GVA grew 5.6% in Q2, down from 7.7% in the same period last year and 6.8% in Q1.

What factors impacted growth?

1. Domestic Factors:
2. Urban Demand Slowdown: Urban demand declined due to high food inflation and subdued real wage growth, as highlighted by the finance ministry.
3. Rainfall Effects: Excess rainfall reduced footfalls, impacting urban activity.
4. Private Consumption Weakness: Lower private demand further weakened growth momentum.
5. Sectoral Slowdown:
6. Mining sector has contracted.
7. Manufacturing grew only by 2.2%, a significant drop from 7% in the prior quarter.
8. Construction and utilities (electricity, gas, and water supply) have also slowed down.
9. Services such as finance, real estate, and professional services are growing more slowly.
10. Global Factors:
11. Global Factors: Import dumping and excess global manufacturing capacity impacted growth, as noted by V. Anantha Nageswaran.
12. Geopolitical Uncertainty: Risks surrounding the US presidential election heightened economic uncertainties.

What measures did the Chief Economic Adviser recommend?

1. Deregulation: Focus on reducing regulatory burdens to improve business efficiency and growth.
2. Structural Reforms: Prioritize long-term reforms to address domestic economic challenges.
3. Strengthen Public Investment: Shift expenditure from revenue to long-term growth-oriented investments.
4. Reassess Hiring Practices: Review hiring and compensation models in the private sector for better workforce management.
5. Address Barriers to Capital Formation: Examine impediments like excessive rainfall and election uncertainties.
6. Boost Manufacturing: Tackle issues like stagnant steel production despite rising consumption.

What are the projections for future growth?

1. India remains one of the fastest-growing economies. Growth is expected to rebound in the second half of FY25, driven by stronger rural demand after a good monsoon and harvest, as well as increased government spending.
2. The finance ministry anticipates higher capital expenditure in the coming months.

Question for practice:

Examine how the Chief Economic Adviser’s recommendations aim to counteract the factors contributing to India’s economic slowdown.

Changing Landscape of Liberal Arts Education

Source: The post changing landscape of Liberal Arts education has been created, based on the article “A liberal arts degree is worth much more than realised” published in “The Hindu” on 30th November 2024

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper2- Governance-Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Education

Context:  The article discusses the decline of liberal arts education in North America and Europe, its re-emergence in places like the UK and Hong Kong, and its growing importance in India. It highlights the value of soft skills, critical thinking, and preparing students for global citizenship. Changing Landscape of Liberal Arts Education.

What is the status of Liberal art education in the west?

1. Decline in Popularity: Liberal arts education in the West is facing a significant decline, especially in North America and Europe, after the 2008 recession.
2. Drop in Majors: In the United States, the percentage of humanities majors dropped from 14% in 1966 to 7% in 2010.
3. Criticism of Practicality: Liberal arts degrees are criticized for not equipping students with tangible, marketable skills and failing to offer financial returns.
4. Perception Issues: The New Yorker (2023) described liberal arts as a field for the elite, focused on unremunerative pursuits.
5. Renewed Interest in Europe:
   1. Liberal arts, once rooted in abstract ideas, now focus on reasoning, critical thinking, and interdisciplinary knowledge.
   2. The University of Nottingham introduced a liberal arts program in 2019, reflecting renewed interest in the UK.
   3. In Hong Kong, universities shifted to a U.S.-style four-year model, blending breadth and specialization.
   4. Asia often integrates liberal arts as part of specialized degrees, combining technical training with humanistic perspectives.
6. Evolution in Approach: While traditional liberal arts are shrinking, there is a shift towards integrating interdisciplinary and real-world skills.

What Is the Role of Liberal Arts in India?

1. India, traditionally focused on engineering and medicine, has seen rising interest in liberal arts.
2. Employers value skills like creativity, communication, and teamwork, which liberal arts students bring.
3. Critics question whether liberal arts can address societal problems like poverty, hunger, and inequality.
4. Indian liberal arts programs promote experiential learning and mentorship to attract young minds.

For detailed information on Fixing idealism in humanities education in India read this article here

How Do Liberal Arts Prepare Students for the Future?

1. Liberal arts develop soft skills such as critical thinking, research, and effective communication.
2. Employers praise liberal arts graduates for solving problems creatively and working in multidisciplinary teams.
3. These programs combine diverse content, technology, and mentorship to create global citizens.
4. Liberal arts graduates prove their relevance by addressing real-world challenges with creativity.

Question for practice:

Examine the evolving role and relevance of liberal arts education in addressing global and societal challenges across different regions.

Prelims Oriented Articles (Factly)

Ajmer Sharif and Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti

News: An Ajmer court recently accepted a petition by the Hindu Sena, which claims that a  Shiva temple lies beneath the Ajmer Sharif dargah.

About Ajmer Sharif

• It is the shrine of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, the revered Sufi saint from Persia.
• The shrine was built by Mughal King Humayun.
• The white marble dome of Chishti’s shrine, as seen today, was built in 1532.
• It is an example of Indo-Islamic architecture.
• The shrine has been visited by rulers like Muhammad bin Tughlaq, Sher Shah Suri, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, Dara Shikoh and Aurangzeb.
• The death anniversary of Moinuddin Chishti is called the Urs Sharif festival.

About Sufism Sufism is a mystical form of Islam that emphasizes a spiritual search for God. It emphasizes on devotion, and asceticism while rejecting materialism. The Sufis were organised in a number of different silsilahs (orders). The Sufi pirs lived in Khanqahs with their disciples. The Khanqah (the hospice) was the centre of Sufi activities.

About Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti

Early life

• He was born in Sijistan (modern-day Sistan) in Iran in 1141-42 CE.
• By 20, Moinuddin had traveled widely, studying various subjects in Bukhara and Samarkand. He later met Khwaja Usman Harooni, a Sufi master, who became his mentor.
• After years of spiritual training, Moinuddin was initiated into the Chishti order and set on his own path.

Journey in India

• He arrived in Delhi Sultanate during the reign of the sultan Iltutmish.
• After Muizuddin Muhammad bin Sam defeated Prithviraj Chauhan in the Second Battle of Tarain (1192) and established rule in Delhi, Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti began living and preaching in Ajmer.

Chishti Order (Chishtiya):

• The Chishti order was founded in the 10th century by Abu Ishaq Shami in the town of Chisht near Herat in Afghanistan.
• In India, Chishtiya Order was founded by Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti
• Chistis renounced material possessions as distractions from focusing on God and avoided involvement with the secular state.
• Disciples of Khwaja Moin-Uddin Chishti, like Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki, Fareeduddin Ganj-e-Shakar, Nizamuddin Auliya, and Naseeruddin Charagh, spread and popularized Chishti teachings.

Other major Sufi Orders in India:

Suhrawardi Order:

• It was established in India by Sheikh Bahauddin Zakariya.
• Unlike the Chishti saints, the Suhrawardis maintained close ties with the state. They accepted gifts, jagirs from sultans.

Naqshbandi Order:

• In India, this order was established by Khwaja Bahauddin Naqshbandi.
• From the beginning, this Order’s mystics stressed the Shariat’s observance and denounced all innovations or biddat.

The Qadri order

• This order was popular in Punjab and founded in the 14th century by Sheikh Abdul Qadir of Badaun.
• Sheikh Abdul Qadir and his sons were supporters of the Mughals under Akbar.

Cyclone Fengal

News: A depression in the southwest Bay of Bengal has grown into a deep depression and may soon become Cyclone Fengal.

Cyclones Cyclones are a fast inward air movement around a low-pressure area. In the Northern Hemisphere, the air circulates anticlockwise, while in the Southern Hemisphere, it moves clockwise. Cyclones are typically associated with intense storms and severe weather. There are two types of cyclones: a. Tropical cyclones-These form over warm ocean waters in tropical and subtropical regions. They are characterized by low pressure, high winds, and heavy rain. b. Extra Tropical cyclones– They are also known as wave cyclones, mid-latitude cyclones, or temperate cyclones. They develop in the mid and high latitudes, outside the tropics. They are less intense than tropical cyclones.

Origin of the Name ‘Fengal’

• Proposed by– Saudi Arabia
• The name Fengal is rooted in Arabic, reflecting the region’s linguistic and cultural identity.

Cyclone Naming Process

• Cyclones in the North Indian Ocean are named by member countries of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) panel.
• This panel includes 13 nations: Bangladesh, India, Iran, Maldives, Pakistan among others.
• Each member contributes a list of potential names, which are used sequentially as cyclones form in the region.
• Cyclone names are used in order and not reused. After Fengal, the next will be Shakhti(contributed by Sri Lanka), followed by Montha (contributed by Thailand).

Cyclones in the Arabian Sea vs. Bay of Bengal

• Cyclones occur less frequently in the Arabian Sea than in the Bay of Bengal, mainly due to variations in sea surface temperature, wind patterns, and geographical conditions.
• The Bay of Bengal has more favorable conditions for cyclone formation, such as warm waters and low vertical wind shear.

Cyclone prone regions in India

Asiatic Lion

News: A study reveals Asiatic Lions in Gujarat coexist with humans through mutual adaptation, legal protection, economic incentives among others.

About Asiatic Lion

1. The Asiatic Lion, also called the Persian Lion or Indian Lion, is a subspecies of Panthera leo leo found only in India.

2. Habitat– They are confined to the Gir National Park and wildlife sanctuary and its surrounding environments in Gujarat’s Saurashtra district.

3. Characteristics:

• Asiatic lions are slightly smaller than African lions
• In contrast to African Lion, Asiatic Lion has a longitudinal fold of skin running along its belly.
• The fur color ranges from rudy tawny with black speckles to sandy or buff-grey, sometimes with a silvery sheen in certain lights.
• Males have only moderate mane growth at the top of the head, so that their ears are always visible.

4. Conservation Status

• IUCN Red List: Vulnerable
• CITES: Appendix I
• Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972: Schedule I

About Gir National Park

• Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary, located in the Junagadh district of Gujarat.
• The Gir Forests is the only natural habitat of Asiatic lions.
• It was designated as a sanctuary in 1965 and a national park in 1975.
• The Gir Forest is the largest contiguous stretch of dry deciduous forests in western India’s semi-arid region.
• Gir is closely associated with the “Maldharis,” a traditional pastoral community that has lived in harmony with the lions for generations. Their settlements are called “nesses“.

Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution

News: Kuki leaders in Assam’s Karbi Anglong have agreed to surveys in their villages to check for people from Manipur. Karbi Anglong is governed under the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution.

About Sixth Schedule

• Article 244(2) of the Indian Constitution provides for the Sixth Schedule that applies to the administration of tribal areas in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram.
• The Sixth Schedule provides for the establishment of autonomous district councils (ADCs) or regional autonomous councils (RCs) to govern these areas.

Key features of Sixth Schedule

Autonomous Districts and Autonomous Regions:

• The Governor is empowered to organize and reorganize the autonomous districts.
• He can also increase, decrease the boundaries or alter the name of any autonomous district.
• If an autonomous district is inhabited by different Scheduled Tribes, the Governor can divide the district into separate Autonomous Regions.

Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) and Autonomous Regional Councils (ARCs):

• Composition of ADCs– ADCs consists of not more than thirty members, with four nominated by the Governor and the rest elected. The Bodoland Territorial Council is an exception, allowing up to forty-six members.
• ARC’s– A separate Regional Council shall be established for each area designated as an autonomous region.
• Powers-Autonomous District Councils (ADCs) and Autonomous Regional Councils (ARCs) oversee land use, inheritance laws, and social customs. They possess legislative, executive, and financial powers, including the authority to collect taxes and manage local resources.

Exemptions and Modifications- Acts of Parliament or state legislatures may not apply directly or may apply with modifications.