Mains 2021 Result declared - In or Out?
So Mains 2021 has begun. Essay Paper is here
1. https://blog.forumias.com/upsc-ias-mains-2021-essay-question-paper/
2. GS Paper 1 : https://blog.forumias.com/download-upsc-ias-mains-2021-gs-1-question-paper
3. GS Paper 2 : https://blog.forumias.com/download-upsc-ias-mains-2021-gs-2-question-paper
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How was your paper? How did you approach the paper?
@Duryodhan it's Norman Lowe!😢 Sh*t, don't even remember reading this part in it🤦🏾♂️
Kaash ab padhna bhi naa pade fir se. 😭
History optional pplI never read any world history book fully ,even Norman iowe only the world wars sectionEven then I didn't take notes for revision instead I relied exclusively on 2018 topper Vikram Grewal notes & Baliyan notes along with my cursory understanding after reading Norman IoweAnyone else relied exclusively on topper/coaching notes for revision??I know its not good method but time paucity and lack of revisions left me no choice
World history m yahi problem h. Sab bahut scattered h ,ek book m nhi milta .
But topper notes p rely tbhi Krna chahiye jab books thik se cover ki ho.
Tk17,RaGaThe problem is, Russia has always been invaded from its western border and there are no natural barriers preventing the same. The whole of Ukraine and countries to its north, Belarus, Poland, Lithuania etc are plains which has historically offered little resistance to the invading armies. Whether it was Napoleon or Hitler, they all took the same route. So once the USSR came out of World War 2, they made it a point to keep those countries within their sphere of influence as a security buffer. So when NATO started placing their missiles in those countries in the Baltics, Russia got uneasy. Whether or not NATO would actually invade is immaterial. It's the constant looming threat that counts. However Baltic nations in NATO were still acceptable because the land border is not as large as Ukraine and Russia has a small enclave of Kaliningrad on the Baltic sea shore.The solution is NATO giving assurance that they will not admit Ukraine. Ukraine is kind of a buffer state between Europe and Russia. Its geography and history does not allow it to take any side. It at all cost has to find a coexistence with Moscow.
Putin is only asking for assurance that NATO will not be expanded. They have repeatedly violated this assurance and expanded NATO in 5 waves apparently. Putin has no option left but to retaliate. Otherwise, it will be an existential threat to Russia. Economic sanctions/military involvement/Kadi Ninda etc dont matter in front of existential crisis.
But don't you think its a bit naïve to believe Putin's version of the story? - the same one which says Russia is facing an existential threat. If that is the case, then why doesn't he enjoy domestic support for this invasion? Its his mad adventure to cling to power, coupled by the old Soviet nostalgia which can't stand former states flourishing once out of its sphere of influence.
And even if there are security concerns, surely an invasion and indiscriminate bombing of cities, including civilian buildings, is not the answer. Russia is the aggressor, not the victim.
As for Ukraine, its a sovereign country, with every right to decide which alliance to join, especially for self defence. If Putin's agenda was to stop NATO expansion in Europe, then his moves have been laughable. All this while, with what's going on Ukraine, he's displaying exactly why European countries need NATO. This is manifest in how Finland is in the process to expedite its joining of NATO or how Switzerland and some other states have abandoned their age-old policy of neutrality to help Ukraine with arms, and support sanctions against Russia.
This geography partly explains why Putin did what he did.
Russia has been ravaged from southern steppe people as well. The reason why Ivan the terrible extended Russias boundry to far east was to keep itself safe from tatars. I think Putin should be more worried about china with its huge population and technology leadership on the south and not a greying and thinning western Europe. Also I believe every power has a beginning and end. Romans , ottoman, British , Japanese , Germans, all have lived through their phase of greatness and now Russia's is also nearing. P5 me abhi kayde se British or French ka point nhi hai other than acting as proxies of USA , or kuch saalon baad Russia ka bhi nhi rhega. Natural resources and defence vs vibrant economy and advanced tech , latter will win in any case. The flame burns the brightest just before being extinguished. Putin is overstretching himself like Hitler. Putin's excuse for invading Ukraine reminds me of how dev Raya 2 invaded Firoz Shah bahman's territory on pretext of pursuing the beautiful daughter of a goldsmith but later the Raya had to give his own daughter's hand to Firoz shah in the war that ensued.
I dont know how invasion of Ukraine serves any of his goals. The western alliance is all the more stronger. And i think America's pivot to indopacific would have given Russia more room for maneuver than the present scenario ever will. Trump's exhortation to Germans to pay for their own security will now be realised along with NATOs renewed relevance as cherry on top. China gets a distracted USA, Europeans get to freeride on USA, except Russia gets a bloodynnose.
Maybe through dialogue with India playing the same role between Russia and USA as pakistan in normalising relationship between USA ànd China during 1970s, Russia could have won concessions. West has repeatedly denied memebership of Nato to Ukraine on pretext of corruption etc and there is no reason to believe this wouldnt have continued in future as USA looked to channeling all its energies to indopacific.
I don't know if it makes sense so be considerate guys n gals
Villanelle,AureliusM
Anduin,RaGaAnduin,Tk17,RaGaYes, its southern border is vulnerable too in the caucasus, that's why we saw Georgia war in 2008 although that was due to the stupidity of Georgia's then president Saakashvili. Ukraine and Georgia are red lines for Russians and when NATO announced to the world in 2008 Bucharest summit that theywilladmit Ukraine and Georgia into NATO, it raised eyebrows everywhere. It was clearly seen as a way of encircling Russia.Russia has been ravaged from southern steppe people as well. The reason why Ivan the terrible extended Russias boundry to far east was to keep itself safe from tatars. I think Putin should be more worried about china with its huge population and technology leadership on the south and not a greying and thinning western Europe. Also I believe every power has a beginning and end. Romans , ottoman, British , Japanese , Germans, all have lived through their phase of greatness and now Russia's is also nearing. P5 me abhi kayde se British or French ka point nhi hai other than acting as proxies of USA , or kuch saalon baad Russia ka bhi nhi rhega. Natural resources and defence vs vibrant economy and advanced tech , latter will win in any case. The flame burns the brightest just before being extinguished. Putin is overstretching himself like Hitler. Putin's excuse for invading Ukraine reminds me of how dev Raya 2 invaded Firoz Shah bahman's territory on pretext of pursuing the beautiful daughter of a goldsmith but later the Raya had to give his own daughter's hand to Firoz shah in the war that ensued.
I dont know how invasion of Ukraine serves any of his goals. The western alliance is all the more stronger. And i think America's pivot to indopacific would have given Russia more room for maneuver than the present scenario ever will. Trump's exhortation to Germans to pay for their own security will now be realised along with NATOs renewed relevance as cherry on top. China gets a distracted USA, Europeans get to freeride on USA, except Russia gets a bloodynnose.
Maybe through dialogue with India playing the same role between Russia and USA as pakistan in normalising relationship between USA ànd China during 1970s, Russia could have won concessions. West has repeatedly denied memebership of Nato to Ukraine on pretext of corruption etc and there is no reason to believe this wouldnt have continued in future as USA looked to channeling all its energies to indopacific.
I don't know if it makes sense so be considerate guys n gals
As far as other areas to the south are concerned, Russia has settled its border with China. Mongolia is not really a concern for Russia, it has historically been a concern for China. Mongolia being heavily under USSR influence was also a reason for tensions between USSR and China. But now that Mongolia is more or less neutral, its not a bone of contention for either Russia or China. Thus only its western border needs to be addressed.
As to the other points you mentioned, yes Russia is a declining power and it has no hopes of returning to the once mighty USSR but that doesn't mean a country would abandon its security interests. Invasion of Ukraine was coming for a long time. Everyone knew it. The west knew it more than anyone else. Inclusion of Ukraine and Georgia in the Bucharest declaration of NATO was strongly opposed by France and Germany but the Americans under Bush still included it. Europeans knew it would come back to haunt them in the future and it did. If only NATO had not overstretched its ambitions, it would have found an ally in Russia against China and USA's Asia pivot would have gone through without this hiccup. Now, China gets a few more years of free run. It has already surpassed USAs economy in PPP terms, after a few more years of running wild it will overshadow the West.
I think West has stabbed itself in the foot through Ukraine.
Dionysus,Ayushi7
Any idea how many of those who get recommended by upsc appear for the exam again.. I m talking about those who do not get IAS or IFS(it's obvious btw)
My personal opinion.. majority of them try to improve their rank..
But the question is.. how many of them succeed in making it to the list again..
VERY FEW...
Despite knowing what it takes to get into the list they struggle to secure a rank..
Doesn't that signify that this exam is very unpredictable..
Subjectivity of the evaluators and neck throat competition for each mark is what sums up the whole story..
Any comments folks...
Street_lamp,
Any idea how many of those who get recommended by upsc appear for the exam again.. I m talking about those who do not get IAS or IFS(it's obvious btw)
My personal opinion.. majority of them try to improve their rank..
But the question is.. how many of them succeed in making it to the list again..
VERY FEW...
Despite knowing what it takes to get into the list they struggle to secure a rank..
Doesn't that signify that this exam is very unpredictable..
Subjectivity of the evaluators and neck throat competition for each mark is what sums up the whole story..
Any comments folks...
I think that if they r able to clear prelims they hv high chance of getting a rank. Bt the trick is in prelims. Role of luck is high there. Also after selection if one gets deviated from study few days before exam there chance reduces ( due to high role of rote memorization in prelims)
*** mann ki baat
Philip_Marlowe,Hypothetical question ❓
Suppose this war gets out of control, and nuclear bomb is detonated by Russia over Ukraine and NATO ups the ante and there is a full blown crisis of nuclear world war ( Russian foreign minister threatened the same today) and in this scenario suppose result is declared and we have interview scheduled during the period of this crisis ( now please don't use ifs and buts that upsc won't conduct interviews in this scenario, coz pls remember this is a hypothetical scenario) the question iswould you appear for the interview ?
** I was just thinking after reading that statement and i sincerely hope such scenario never happens to the world or to us. So pls don't troll me for asking this question.
Answer from my side- i probably would if transport from my city is available.
» show previous quotesYes, its southern border is vulnerable too in the caucasus, that's why we saw Georgia war in 2008 although that was due to the stupidity of Georgia's then president Saakashvili. Ukraine and Georgia are red lines for Russians and when NATO announced to the world in 2008 Bucharest summit that theywilladmit Ukraine and Georgia into NATO, it raised eyebrows everywhere. It was clearly seen as a way of encircling Russia.
As far as other areas to the south are concerned, Russia has settled its border with China. Mongolia is not really a concern for Russia, it has historically been a concern for China. Mongolia being heavily under USSR influence was also a reason for tensions between USSR and China. But now that Mongolia is more or less neutral, its not a bone of contention for either Russia or China. Thus only its western border needs to be addressed.
As to the other points you mentioned, yes Russia is a declining power and it has no hopes of returning to the once mighty USSR but that doesn't mean a country would abandon its security interests. Invasion of Ukraine was coming for a long time. Everyone knew it. The west knew it more than anyone else. Inclusion of Ukraine and Georgia in the Bucharest declaration of NATO was strongly opposed by France and Germany but the Americans under Bush still included it. Europeans knew it would come back to haunt them in the future and it did. If only NATO had not overstretched its ambitions, it would have found an ally in Russia against China and USA's Asia pivot would have gone through without this hiccup. Now, China gets a few more years of free run. It has already surpassed USAs economy in PPP terms, after a few more years of running wild it will overshadow the West.
I think West has stabbed itself in the foot through Ukraine.
Border is settled , but there's no buffer between Manchuria and Russia. And Russia has been wary about allowing Chinese farmers in the region but yet due to worsening relations with yhe west these Chinese farmers are going on large numbers and there's fear of demographic change which explains why Russia courted India to invest in Far east. So theres a potential point of conflict, and china has also been slowly making inroads in central Asia which Russia considers its backyard.
Ab thak gye. Ek Mann keh rha sab justified hai in name of security interests , dusra keh rha aise toh duniya me rule of jungle or matsynyaya ho jayega. So ab jo bhi hai so hai. It's like sometimes you know something is wrong but you don't know how to articulate it and convince yourself fully.
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