7. Malnutrition in India is not merely a public health concern; it is also a challenge of social equity, human development and effective welfare governance. Discuss. (150 words, 10 marks)
Directions: Intro------Challenges - social equity, human development & welfare governance -----Conclusion.
Introduction:
Describe malnutrition (or) India’s status of malnutrition.
Main Body
Challenges of Social Equity
- Gender Discrimination
- Caste & Class disparities
- Regional imbalance
- Rural – urban divide
Challenges of human development
- Demographic divide
- Persistence of Malnutrition
- Low educational outcomes
Challenges of welfare governance
- Service delivery gaps
- Corruption
- Misuse of fund allocation
- Weak accountability
Conclusion:
Give a balanced conclusion.
India needs a life-cycle, equity-oriented and convergence-based approach that transforms nutrition programmes into effective investments in human capability and inclusive development.
8. Analyse the advantages and limitations of the generalist structure of the Indian Civil Services in contemporary governance. (150 words, 10 marks)
Directions: Intro----Advantages + Limitations------Conclusion.
Introduction:
Brief about the generalist structure of Indian Civil Services.
- Indian Civil Services (ICS) is the backbone of India's administrative architecture.
- Recruitment through a common competitive examination
- Enables serving across diverse administrative domains
- Administrative neutrality.
Main Body
Advantages
- Inclusive and holistic governance
- Wider knowledge
- Ground-level management
- Political neutrality
- Effective coordination across departments
- Strong implementation capacity
- Act as a bridge between political executives, specialists, field institutions and citizens.
Limitations
- Generalist vs Specialist conflict
- Knowledge gaps, especially in modern governance needs – cybersecurity, AI, etc.
- Frequent transfers – policy instability
- Possible bureaucratic centralisation
- Skill–role mismatch.
Conclusion:
Give a balanced conclusion.
India need not choose between “generalists” and “specialists” but evolve to a “generalist + specialist” model, combining administrative integration with domain expertise.
9. “IPMDA (Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness) bridges the gap between India’s SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) vision and the Quad’s collective Indo-Pacific strategy.” Make a critical assessment of the statement focusing on IPMDA. (150 words, 10 marks)
Directions: Intro----How IPMDA bridges the gap + Limitations/gaps + Critical assessment------Conclusion.
Introduction:
Describe IPMDA.
Main Body
How IPMDA bridges the gap?
- Overcoming India's Resource Constraints – Infuses Quad-scale technology, funding, and commercial data contracts to fulfil SAGAR’s objectives.
- Strengthening Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) – Enables participating countries to monitor illegal fishing, trafficking, piracy, maritime accidents and other suspicious activities.
- Capacity-building rather than alliance formation – IPMDA functions as a voluntary information-sharing network rather than a military alliance.
- Linking the Indian Ocean with the wider Indo-Pacific – IPMDA creates greater information connectivity across the Pacific and Indian Ocean spaces, thereby reducing maritime blind spots.
Critical limitations
- Unequal technological capacity – Smaller island and developing states may lack the infrastructure and expertise to effectively utilise shared data.
- Data sovereignty and trust – Questions regarding data ownership, classification and intelligence-sharing can constrain cooperation.
- Perception of China containment – Despite its non-alliance character, expanded maritime surveillance may be perceived by China as part of a containment strategy.
- Coverage gaps – Maritime awareness does not automatically translate into effective maritime enforcement or rapid response.
- Institutional fragmentation – Overlapping initiatives by the Quad, IORA, ASEAN and other regional mechanisms can create coordination challenges.
Conclusion:
Give a positive and neutral conclusion.
