{"id":13276,"date":"2017-12-15T13:33:20","date_gmt":"2017-12-15T08:03:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/?p=13276"},"modified":"2017-12-13T11:34:31","modified_gmt":"2017-12-13T06:04:31","slug":"answers-mains-marathon-upsc-mains-current-affairs-questions-december-14","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/answers-mains-marathon-upsc-mains-current-affairs-questions-december-14\/","title":{"rendered":"Answers: Mains Marathon \u2013 UPSC Mains Current Affairs Questions \u2013 December 14"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/mains-marathon\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Archives<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Q.1) Rising cases of mental health disorders in India needs a more proactive approach from the government. What are the major reasons and issues concerning the rise? (GS-1)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Introduction:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Almost 7.5% of Indians suffer from major or minor mental disorders that require expert intervention.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>What are the rising factors that affect the mental illness?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The rising factors that affect the mental illness are as follows: <\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Depressive disorders:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Depressive disorders are characterized by <\/span><b>sadness, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, disturbed sleep or appetite, feelings of tiredness, and poor concentration.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Anxiety disorders:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Anxiety disorders refer to a group of mental disorders characterized by feelings of anxiety and fear.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Other rising reasons of mental illness are:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a fast-paced lifestyles, \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">high stress \u00a0because of complexities of living,<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a breakdown of support systems, and<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">challenges of economic instability.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Major issues with mental health disorders in India:<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The major issues concerning mental health are as follows: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Due to the <\/span><b>social stigma<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> associated with mental disorders, nearly 80 per cent of those with mental disorders had not received any treatment.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is a <\/span><b>scarcity of mental health services<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the public health services.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Poor utilization of available services<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by the patients in the rural areas is a common phenomenon.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is a <\/span><b>limited and poor understanding<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of psychological distress.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Limited acceptance of modern medical care<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for mental disorders among the general population is.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>How should the mental health care in India be strengthened?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The measures to be taken in the country are as follows: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Patients should be able to <\/span><b>access health care without humiliation<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of proving their financial status or bitterness of social stigma.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Within families and across social groups<\/span><b>, a mutual sense of responsibility and affiliation towards each other<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> must be reinforced, through rituals and culture, social training or self-learning.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is a <\/span><b>need to constitute a national commission<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> on mental health comprising professionals from mental health, public health, social sciences and the judiciary to oversee, facilitate support and monitor and review mental health policies.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Targeted social interventions such as the disability allowance, mandated by the Mental Health Care Act and the Rights of Persons with Disability Act, <\/span><b>must adopt an integrated single window health and social care system <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">that will minimize cumbersome bureaucracy.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Q.2) \u201cIn spite of adverse environmental impact, use of pesticides is still a common practice in India. Instead, sustainable agriculture is the alternative key. \u201d Discuss. \u00a0(GS-3)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Introduction:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The production of pesticides started in India in 1952.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The <\/span><b>pattern of pesticide usage in India is different from that for the world in general<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In India, <\/span><b>76% of the pesticide used is insecticide, as against 44% globally<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The main use of pesticides in India is for <\/span><b>cotton crops, followed by paddy and wheat.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>What are the alternatives to pesticides?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are alternatives to using pesticides. These are generally known as <\/span><b>sustainable agriculture or alternative agriculture<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Some of the alternative methods are as follows:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Organic farming:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0It relies on fertilizers of organic origin such as compost manure, green manure, and bone meal and places emphasis on techniques such as crop rotation and companion planting.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Crop rotation:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Crop rotation is the practice of growing a series of dissimilar or different types of crops in the same area in sequenced seasons.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It helps in reducing soil erosion and increases soil fertility and crop yield.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Polyculture:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Polyculture is agriculture using multiple crops in the same space, providing crop diversity in imitation of the diversity of natural ecosystems, and avoiding large stands of single crops, or monoculture.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Trap crops: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A trap crop is a plant that attracts agricultural pests, usually insects, away from nearby crops.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This form of companion planting can save the main crop from decimation by pests without the use of pesticides.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Organic farming<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is an alternative agricultural system which originated early in the 20th century in reaction to rapidly changing farming practices.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It relies on fertilizers of organic origin such as <\/span><b>compost manure, green manure, and bone meal and places emphasis on techniques such as crop rotation and companion planting<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>What are the harmful effects of pesticides?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The adverse impacts of pesticides are as follows: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Accidents in pesticide manufacturing units cause \u00a0<\/span><b>great loss of human life<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The high risk groups exposed to pesticides include <\/span><b>production workers, formulators, sprayers, mixers, loaders and agricultural farm workers<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Harmful chemicals may <\/span><b>seep into and contaminate<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> ground water. ( which can further lead to <\/span><b>Bio-accumulation and bio-magnification)<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Repeated use of pesticides on cotton, fruits, vegetables, tobacco and other crops <\/span><b>causes harm to beneficial organisms like biocontrol agents, soil, wild and aquatic life.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Pesticides may <\/span><b>kill grain- and plant-feeding birds<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Q.3)In the recent times, India saw a massive decline of sawfish. In this regard, \u00a0can it be said that these marine species appear to be more threatened than tigers and elephants? Give reasons for your answer. (GS-3)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Introduction:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Today, the sawfish is seen to have a population of less than 10 times in over a decade.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Scientists are also worried about the possible disappearance of other species from the region even before they were known to science.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>The scenario of the marine extinction in details:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Species Survival Commission Shark Specialist Group reviewed the extinction risk and conservation status of all chondrichthyans naturally reproducing \u00a0in the region.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The assessment revealed that <\/span><b>27 species were near threatened and 19 others were of least conservation concerns.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was also known that <\/span><b>less was known about 29 to evaluate their risk of extinction<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The assessors were of the view that <\/span><b>the increasing decline in the extent and quality of habitat is due to coastal development and other anthropogenic disturbances.<\/b><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Particularly for those critical habitats that many species depend on <\/span><b>coral reefs, mangroves, sea grasses pose a serious threat to the survival of many species.<\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>What are the reasons for extinction?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Scientists have narrowed down several of the most likely causes of mass extinction. Some of them are as follows:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For many years, <\/span><b>killing by human<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> was a major factor of extinction. Humans kill other species for many reasons including food, recreation, and to protect themselves and their properties.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For example, exploitation is responsible for 55% of the main extinction threat to North American marine fishes.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Biological<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><b>physical<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><b>chemical<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> factors in most ecosystems are tightly intertwined. Hence changes in one of these factors can result in changes of others.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Exploitation of habitat can therefore profoundly influence many components of a system. <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">More recently, <\/span><b>climate change<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> such as global warming has increased local water temperatures beyond the suitable range of many species.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Such changes have made exceptionally productive areas, such as up welling regions, become less productive due to changes in the food web. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>What are the necessary measures to be taken?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The necessary measures to be taken: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is a need of a <\/span><b>concrete research work and protection offered<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to these endangered species.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The government machinery, including the fisheries department and coastal police, should <\/span><b>find out how these fishes are caught<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If any illegal practice is followed, then it <\/span><b>should take appropriate action because it is an endangered species.<\/b><\/li>\n<li>Circulars are to provided to fishermen&#8217;s cooperatives to release such species if caught by accident<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Archives\u00a0 Q.1) Rising cases of mental health disorders in India needs a more proactive approach from the government. What are the major reasons and issues concerning the rise? (GS-1) Introduction: Almost 7.5% of Indians suffer from major or minor mental disorders that require expert intervention. What are the rising factors that affect the mental illness?&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/answers-mains-marathon-upsc-mains-current-affairs-questions-december-14\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Answers: Mains Marathon \u2013 UPSC Mains Current Affairs Questions \u2013 December 14<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":2292,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[25,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mains-marathon-answers","category-public","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/pen-paper-laptop.jpg?fit=1000%2C500&ssl=1","views":{"total":0,"cached_at":"","cached_date":1704753068},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/61"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}