Answers: Mains Marathon – UPSC Mains Current Affairs Questions – April 19, 2018

Archives

Q.1) “Considering climate change, in the coming times, internal migration might be a forced decision to move rather than a choice.” Elaborate the statement and suggest some suitable measures to be adopted to strategically plan internal migration due to climate change. (GS – 3)   

Introduction:

• In “Groundswell: Preparing for Internal Climate Migration”, a recent report by the World Bank, it is estimated that in Latin America, South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa over 143 million people would be forced to move within borders by 2050 as a result of slow onset climate events alone
• In the worst-case scenario, about 40 million of these migrants would be in South Asia, which is the most populous of the regions studied, with a number of climate change effects anticipated.

Impact:

• With variability in the monsoons and warmer temperatures, crop failures will lead to migration from the Gangetic plains and from the rice-growing northeast of Bangladesh and the inundated coasts.
• The poor would be the worst affected by these slow onset events and most of them would migrate out of rural areas to nearby urban settlements, which would be cities and the peri-urban surroundings.
• Such “hotspots” of in and out migration would be stressed for natural resources, public services and livelihoods.

Measures to be adopted to strategically plan internal migration due to climate change

• Reducing GHG emissions is of utmost urgency, although that seems to be taking place at a pace determined by geopolitical as well as local initiatives
• Integrating internal migration with ongoing development planning is vital
• Ecosystems, part of the natural resources in peri-urban areas, ought to be protected as “special ecological zones”, so that as urban settlements expand, they don’t eat into ecosystem services
• Skill building, job training and other opportunities for education and jobs for locals and migrants would also have to become a focal point
• Rights for those who are forced to migrate would be fundamental in these preparations, as studies and experience have shown that ignoring issues of social justice and equity in adaptation can lead to serious governance failure.

Q.2) Critically discuss the role of Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in the cold-war era. How far NAM is relevant in the present multi-polar era? (GS – 2)

Introduction:

• Non-Aligned Movement(NAM) was formed in the backdrop of the end of Second World War when theworld was bipolar with countries allying either with the USA or the USSR.
• The newly Independent countries including India felt that alliance with either of the two blocs wouldimpede the individual growth and development of the nation.
• With the disintegration of USSR and the end of bipolarity the very reason for the existence of NAM came to be questioned.
• With the rise of many regional and multilateral groupings, a section of the academia believe that NAM has been sidelined.

India and NAM:

• Being the largest member-state of NAM, India has been one of the leaders of the movement since the time of Jawaharlal Nehru, one of the founding fathers of this movement.(Sukarno, Josip Broz Tito, Gamal Abdel Nasser and Kwame Nkrumah were the other founding fathers).

NAM in the cold war era:

Positive Role:

• NAM played an important role during the Cold War years in furthering many of the causes that India advocated like:

Decolonisation

• End to apartheid
• Global nuclear disarmament
• Ushering in of new international economic and information orders

Negative Role:

• Could not prevent India-Pakistan and Indo-China wars.
• During the wars, NAM members invariably adopted diplomatic positions that were not favourable towards or supportive of India.

Taking a broader perspective:

• Non-alignment stood for policy autonomy for the erstwhile newly independent countries. 2)These countries banded together because of their shared traditions and histories, which included anti-colonialism, anti-imperialism and anti-racism.
• The idea behind non-alignment thus conceived was to promote peace and security in a global arena where superpowers were constantly posturing to achieve their hegemonic ambitions.

Relevance of NAM in the present day context:

• Can be used as a platform to bring about disarmament.
• Voice of the South Bloc (Third World Countries)
• Stability in the rising multipolar world order
• Can help to contain the rise of China by raising a collective voice.
• A platform where India’s Leadership is recognized
• A unique platform of countries with dissimilar backgrounds and interests
• Can be used to gather support for India’s quest to become a permanent member of the UNSC.

Way Ahead:

• Non alignment as well as Non Aligned movement will always be relevant.
• India has a responsibility as the leader of the South Bloc hence should make use of NAM to protect the interest of smaller nations.

Q.3) Write short notes on:

a)  Genetic Drift in Science and Technology (GS – 3)

• Genetic Drift refers to the process by which the frequency of a particular gene in an environment may be affected due to chance events.
• So, a particular genetic trait may be annihilated by, say, a catastrophe that wipes out a species.
• Meanwhile, other genes may be favoured by such random events.
• This is in contrast to natural selection wherein genes are gradually favoured or discarded by the natural environment in which they exist.
• Genetic drift is generally attributed to American geneticist Sewall Wright although it can be traced to earlier works of other scientists like Charles Darwin.

b)  Place premium in Economics (GS – 3)

• Place premium refers to the additional income that a person can earn by moving from a place where wages paid for his labour are low to another place where they are higher.
• So people with similar skills can earn vastly different incomes over their lifetimes depending on their location.
• In a world that allows for free movement of people across borders, the place premium will gradually narrow down as a result of migration in search of better wages.
• The place premium explains the mass movement of people from less developed regions to more developed ones where real wages are much higher.