{"id":17986,"date":"2018-03-31T13:07:03","date_gmt":"2018-03-31T07:37:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/?p=17986"},"modified":"2018-03-30T15:07:21","modified_gmt":"2018-03-30T09:37:21","slug":"answers-mains-marathon-upsc-mains-current-affairs-questions-march-30-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/answers-mains-marathon-upsc-mains-current-affairs-questions-march-30-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"Answers: Mains Marathon \u2013 UPSC Mains Current Affairs Questions \u2013 March 30, 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/blog.forumias.com\/mains-marathon\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Archives<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Q.1) Do you think that re-implementation of Rashtriya UchchatarShiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) can bring about major reforms in the educational sector of India? Justify your answer with relevant examples (GS \u2013 1)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Introduction: <\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rashtriya Uchchattar Shiksha Abhiyan is a holistic scheme of development for higher education in India initiated in 2013 by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Potentials of Rashtriya UchchatarShiksha Abhiyan (RUSA):<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The potentials of Rashtriya UchchatarShiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) are as follows:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Findings of the performance review: <\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Funding linked to reforms has had a visible impact on higher education.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Before:<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When RUSA began, the gross enrolment ratio (GER) was 19.4%, faculty vacancies were at a high level of 60%, and a large number of universities were bloated with a teacher-student ratio of 1:24<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now: GER is 25.2%, faculty vacancies are down to 35%, the ban on faculty recruitment by States has been lifted, and and the teacher-student ratio is now 1:20<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Reforms in universities:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Several universities in Karnataka, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been right-sized.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Visible governance reforms:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Critical governance reforms such as the formation of the SHEC and merit-based appointments of vice-chancellors in Odisha, Goa, Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu are visible.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Improvement in accredited institutions:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There has been an improvement in the number of institutions accredited and their scores.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2012, 106 State universities and 4,684 colleges were accredited. By 2017, an additional 145 State universities and 5,445 Colleges were accredited.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Release of funds linked to reforms:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The scheme is largely based on the conditional release of funds linked to reforms in the key areas of governance, learning-teaching outcomes, reaching out to the unreached and infrastructure support<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Process driven scheme: <\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">RUSA is a process-driven scheme.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Its design and conceptualisation were finalised through extensive consultations with all key stakeholders, especially State governments.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Preparatory grants:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Grants were released to States to have the required systems, processes, and the technical support in place. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Conclusion: <\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thus, re-implementation of Rashtriya UchchatarShiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) can bring about major reforms in the educational sector of India<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Q.2) \u00a0What proactive policies should India take \u00a0to refresh its domestic engagement with the the Tibetian community without escalating the tensions with China? Elaborate. (GS-2)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Introduction:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While Indian strategists have handed down the idea of a Tibet card for decades, it is time to revise this policy with a thorough evaluation of the ground, from New Delhi to Beijing and Lhasa to Dharamshala. <\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>What India proactive policies should India take \u00a0to refresh its domestic engagement with the the Tibetian community?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The proactive policies should India take \u00a0to refresh its domestic engagement with the the Tibetian community are as follows: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There is an urgent need for community outreach, surveys and a referendum, if necessary, to map what the Tibetan community in India wants in its future.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For those who want to make India a permanent home, especially those in the new generation, India must reconsider its citizenship laws.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Above all, the Indian foreign policy establishment needs to stop seeing the Tibetan population in India as a strategic tool. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Why using the Tibetan card is not a correct strategy?<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Using the Tibetan card is not a correct strategy because of the following reasons: <\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Tibet had no role in deteriorating relations with China: <\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ties between New Delhi and Beijing have deteriorated over the past few years for a number of reasons unconnected to the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan population in India<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Changing ground realities in Tibet: <\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Development of Tibetan cities: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The landscape of Tibet, now crisscrossed with railway lines, super-speed highways, tunnels and airports, has changed drastically in the past two decades e.g. Beijing-Lhasa railway line, the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) now sees many more such engineering marvels (albeit at the cost of its environment), and downtown Lhasa has all the trappings of a modern city<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Demographic shift in Tibet (Increasing Chinese influence): <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With Beijing populating areas with majority \u2018Han\u2019 Chinese workers, encouraging mixed marriages, and mainstreaming Chinese culture into the region<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><b>Decreasing outflow of Tibetan refugees to India: <\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The outflow of refugees from Tibet has been curtailed by the Chinese authorities over the last decade, mainly by convincing Nepal to close a popular route and the once bustling informal trade route between India and Tibet has also dried up<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>New Generations born in India unaware of situation in Tibet: <\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">New generations of Tibetans born in India are brought up as exiles, without a real sense of what Tibet may actually be like, should they ever return<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Weak relations with India: The government\u2019s attitude towards giving them citizenship has been stern, although it lost its case in the Delhi High Court (Namgyal Dolkar v. Government of India) and must give citizenship to all Tibetan refugees born between 1950 and 1987, the cut-off year.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Uncertain future of Tibetan leadership: <\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">During his lifetime, the Dalai Lama has been a unifying force, guiding the community through their struggle in a peaceful manner, while accepting an autonomous Tibet as a part of China but after him, the direction the community takes will be of vital interest to India as well<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Conclusion:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">India\u2019s \u201cTibet card\u201d is out of step with all the shifts on the ground, and the government needs a proactive policy that takes into account these new realities.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Q3) Write short notes on: <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bt Cotton (GS-3) <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bt cotton is a genetically modified organism (GMO) cotton variety, which produces an insecticide to bollworm.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bt stands for Bacillus thuringiensis &#8211; a soil bacterium which contains a toxic gene called Bt gene.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aim: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The aim is to make the cotton crop resistant to bollworm. <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hence through genetic engineering the gene is inserted into the cotton seed. <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Due to this the toxin will no more be harmful to the plant because bt gene now becomes a part of it just like other genes. <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Along with this, a gene responsible for high yield is chosen from another cotton variety and fused into the same seed. <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally a seed is produced which is pest resistant and high yielding. <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">GSAT 6A (GS -3) <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">GSAT-6A is a communications satellite operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Around 17 minutes after lifting off, the three stage GSLV Mk.ll rocket flying on GSLV F08 mission successfully injected the satellite into a Geosynchronous Transfer orbit.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the coming days, the scientists will fire the thrusters on board the satellite to manoeuvre it to a geostationary orbit at an altitude of 36,000km from earth.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Features: <\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">GSAT-6A features a 6-metre (20 ft) unfurlable S-band antenna similar to the one used on GSAT-6 <\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The new GSLV is different from previous ones as ISRO has accompanied the new Vikas engine that gives 6% more thrust and 50% increased payload carrying capabilities.<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The next generation engine, which powered the rocket&#8217;s second stage, has increased the payload capacity by 2.5 tonnes.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Archives Q.1) Do you think that re-implementation of Rashtriya UchchatarShiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) can bring about major reforms in the educational sector of India? Justify your answer with relevant examples (GS \u2013 1) Introduction: Rashtriya Uchchattar Shiksha Abhiyan is a holistic scheme of development for higher education in India initiated in 2013 by the Ministry of&hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/answers-mains-marathon-upsc-mains-current-affairs-questions-march-30-2018\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Answers: Mains Marathon \u2013 UPSC Mains Current Affairs Questions \u2013 March 30, 2018<\/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-17986","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":1704698219},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17986","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=17986"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17986\/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=17986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/forumias.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}