CNA 05 Jan 2020:- Download PDF Here
TABLE OF CONTENTS
A. GS 1 Related B. GS 2 Related HEALTH 1. The double burden of malnutrition: need for urgent policy action GOVERNMENT SCHEMES 1. 171 hospitals de-listed from PM’s health scheme after fraud C. GS 3 Related ENVIRONMENT & ECOLOGY 1. How humans affect genetic connectivity of four mammals 2. Kerala to take more cover under Miyawaki forests D. GS 4 Related E. Editorials INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 1. Is West Asia headed for war? 2. Why has the U.S. crippled the functioning of the WTO? F. Tidbits 1. Hot and Dry down under 2. Research in India inadequate: C.N.R. Rao G. Prelims Facts H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions
A. GS 1 Related
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B. GS 2 Related
1. The double burden of malnutrition: need for urgent policy action
Context:
- India facing the double burden of both undernutrition and overnutrition has taken several steps to address the same. The article discusses the need for more evidence-based policymaking.
Background:
- Malnutrition, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO), refers to deficiencies, excesses, or imbalances in a person’s intake of energy and/or nutrients.
- The term malnutrition covers 2 broad groups of conditions. One is ‘undernutrition’—which includes stunting (low height for age), wasting (low weight for height), underweight (low weight for age) and micronutrient deficiencies or insufficiencies (a lack of important vitamins and minerals). The other is overweight, obesity and diet-related non-communicable diseases (such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer).
- The condition where some sections of the population are suffering from undernutrition while other sections are suffering from issues like obesity and overweight condition is often referred to as the double burden of malnutrition.
Details:
Issue of malnutrition in India:
- Reports of National Health & Family Survey, United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund, and WHO have highlighted that rates of malnutrition among adolescent girls, pregnant and lactating women, and children are alarmingly high in India.
- There is ample evidence to show the ill consequences of poor nutrition practices on individuals, families, society and the country at large. Despite the evidence, there was very little action taken to acknowledge, understand and act on the challenge of undernutrition in India.
Programmes and policy in India:
- India’s efforts in tackling malnutrition have received a new impetus. A range of programmes and policies have been launched.
- POSHAN Abhiyaan is primarily against child undernutrition. But given the interdependence of a child’s nutritional status on the maternal health condition, it also strives to work towards improving the nutritional status of adolescent girls and mothers. Read more on Poshan Abhiyaan.
- India’s National Nutrition Mission has brought focus onto the issue of malnutrition. Targets have been set and all stakeholders have been involved in the fight against malnutrition.
- National and State governments have mobilized all their resources, district administrators have been involved given the fact that they work at the grassroots level, the private sector has mobilized its own resources, while the civil society has continued to push for accountability and action.
- Anaemia Mukt Bharat focusses on the issue of Anaemia. Given the comparatively poor nutritional status of women and their special health needs, the programme envisages major interventions to reduce anaemia in India.
- Eat Right India movement focusses on improving nutritional literacy in India. It aims to promote healthy eating in India given the importance of food on the health profile of an individual.
Concerns:
- Despite the laudable progress made against malnutrition, there is still scope for further improvements.
- India’s National Family Health Survey (NFHS) shows that there has been a decline in child malnutrition numbers in the country, but various studies show that the rate of decline is very slow.
Key Challenges:
Regional imbalance in improvements:
- A report published in The Lancet Global Health Report with respect to a study made by the Indian Council of Medical Research, observes that the progress made in India in maternal and child undernutrition varies tremendously across the States. There have been uneven improvements.
Issue of malnutrition:
- The above report also highlighted how malnutrition was the largest contributor to child deaths in India as well as disability in adults. Malnutrition can thus be said to be a major impediment in the socio-economic development of India.
- Saving the lives of children under five in India will require a steady focus on nutrition.
Challenge of Over-nutrition in India:
- The Comprehensive National Nutrition Survey data reveals the worrying trend of the conditions of overweight, obesity and even early non-communicable disease becoming challenges even to children. About 10% of children under 19 years have pre-diabetes.
- This challenges the notion that overnutrition is a challenge for only adults.
The double burden of malnutrition:
- A recent study of the International Food Policy Research Institute and Emory University has highlighted how economic progress has helped reduce underweight condition among women but has also introduced the challenge of overweight condition among others.
- India’s adults bear a tremendous double burden of malnutrition. Some districts in India have levels of ‘overweight’ that are as high as 40%. Diabetes and increasing incidence of cardiovascular diseases in India point towards the increasing burden of over nutrition.
Effect of social determinants:
- A range of studies published by researchers in India and abroad demonstrate that social determinants related to gender, education, sanitation and poverty are key drivers of stunting and undernutrition.
- Early-life undernutrition is an important risk factor for later-life adult diseases. Poor nutrition in the first 1,000 days of a child’s life can also lead to stunted growth, which is associated with impaired cognitive ability and reduced school and work performance.
- Thus a vicious cycle of poverty leading to undernutrition and undernutrition perpetuating poverty leads to an impediment in the social development of the society. This is more of a challenge in a country like India.
- Addressing these underlying factors needs to be considered in the fight against malnutrition.
Way forward:
Differentiated strategies:
- Given the regional imbalances in improvements, there is a need for differentiated strategies to address the problem of child malnutrition in India. The interventions should be relevant to the region’s challenges. There is a need to understand the risk factors that contribute the most to malnutrition. This would ensure more effective interventions.
- Given the fact that there now exist both the problems of undernutrition and overnutrition, India will need a more nuanced approach to address malnutrition.
Addressing the problem of over nutrition:
- Need to incentivize the cultivation and consumption of a range of food commodities and not just cereals.
- Need to ensure supply of nutritive food like pulses in programmes such as the PDS, ICDS and school meals.
- Need to restrict the marketing of unhealthy foods and drinks.
- Should work towards improving nutrition literacy.
Evidence-based policymaking:
- Given the diversity and complexity of the challenge of malnutrition, there is the need for an evidence-based and data-driven approach to diagnosing the challenge of malnutrition in India’s states, districts and communities. There is a need to commit to evidence-informed policies and programmes.
- There is a need for increased use of data and science to inform India’s efforts, to track progress and to learn from both successes and failures.
- Silos in data systems should be broken and community health-workers and Anganwadi workers should be provided feedback on areas of good performance and where improvement is needed.
- The data from the comprehensive National Nutrition Survey must be made available to the scientific community.
- The World Health Organization’s updated Essential Nutrition Actions across the Life Course, offering evidence-informed options, is a critical guide that must be adapted to India’s needs.
Integrated approach:
- Given the interlink between malnutrition and social determinants, there is the need for a more integrated approach towards addressing malnutrition in India. Coherence is needed in areas of public policy across multiple ministries.
- It is imperative that policy efforts come together under a common umbrella and an overarching body is needed to ensure convergence.
For more information on this issue refer:
1. 171 hospitals de-listed from PM’s health scheme after fraud
Context:
Instances of fraud reported in the implementation of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY).
Background:
- The Ayushman Bharat Yojana – National Health Protection Scheme, which has now been renamed as Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, plans to make secondary and tertiary healthcare completely cashless. It is a scheme that aims to help economically vulnerable Indians who are in need of healthcare facilities.
- The PM Jan Arogya Yojana beneficiaries get an e-card that can be used to avail services at an empanelled hospital, public or private, anywhere in the country. With it, people can walk into a hospital and obtain cashless treatment.
- The insurance cover provided under the PM-JAY health insurance scheme is ₹5 lakh per family.
Measures taken:
Given the significance of the scheme and it involving a large amount of money, several measures were introduced to avoid fraud and leakage of benefits:
- A comprehensive set of anti-fraud guidelines has been in place since the launch of the scheme.
- There is the provision of pre-authorisation for most packages.
- All claims require mandatory supporting documents before approval and payment.
- Almost all States have dedicated anti-fraud units.
Details:
- The Centre’s ambitious healthcare insurance scheme, Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) — under the National Health Authority (NHA) has noted that as per details provided by the States, there has been fraud in the implementation of the scheme.
- Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab were among the States where frauds were detected at different stages of implementation of the PM-JAY.
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The National Anti-Fraud Unit (NAFU) at the NHA has detected the frauds on the basis of algorithms, developed internally.
- More than 390 hospitals of the over 19,000 empanelled across nine States have been either served show-cause notices, suspended, or de-empanelled, for alleged fraud.
Fake beneficiaries:
- Wrongful enrolment of beneficiaries has been observed leading to leakage of the benefits meant to the poor people in need of financial aid in times of health emergencies.
- The Pradhan Mantri Arogya Mitras (positioned at PM-JAY empanelled hospitals) and Village Level Entrepreneurs (positioned at Common Service Centres) have found to be involved in wrongful enrolment.
Abuse-prone packages:
- There are certain packages which are reserved for government hospitals by the State authorities. It was detected that private hospitals were performing these government-reserved procedures and blocking/submitting the same under a different package name or as an unspecified package.
Way forward:
- The responsibility for the closure action lies with the State health agencies.
- Though the scheme has several safeguards in place, the implementational stage is prone to fraud. There is a need for higher surveillance and appropriate punishment for fraud.
C. GS 3 Related
Category: ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT
1. How humans affect genetic connectivity of four mammals
Context:
A study from the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), on the effect of anthropogenic activities on genetic connectivity.
Background:
- The Anthropocene is a proposed geological epoch dating from the commencement of significant human impact on Earth’s geology and ecosystems, including, but not limited to, anthropogenic climate change.
- Changing landscapes, habitat loss, fragmentation, and global climate change have caused biodiversity decline worldwide.
- Biodiversity decline encompasses more than just species loss. It also includes the loss of genetic diversity within species and loss of ecosystems.
- The current rate of global diversity loss is estimated to be 100 to 1000 times higher than the (naturally occurring) background extinction rate and expected to still grow in the upcoming years.
Details:
- A study from the National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bengaluru, has brought to light the fact that anthropogenic activities have impacted genetic connectivity or the genetic flow among habitat patches.
- The genetic exchange happens predominantly during mating between animals of different habitat patches.
- Four wide-ranging mammals including the jungle cats, leopards, sloth bears and tigers were investigated for the genetic differentiation in the forests of central India.
Key findings:
- In several mammalian carnivores, juveniles disperse away from their mother’s territory to establish their own territory. Males are known to travel longer distances than females.
- The report analyzes how land-use, human population density, nearby roads and traffic affected the movement of animals and thus their genetic structure.
- The paper notes that tigers were impacted the most by the high human footprint. Tigers in central India do not have equally high genetic exchange throughout the landscape. Some protected areas, like Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, seem to be getting relatively isolated as reported even by the 2014 tiger census.
- Jungle cats were found to be the least impacted. This is because, in central India, they occupy a variety of habitats including forests, scrublands, grasslands and even irrigated agricultural fields close to the forests.
Concerns:
- Isolation of habitat patches due to habitat destruction and fragmentation, restricts animal movement among habitat patches and thus reduces genetic exchange and increases the probability of extinction.
Steps taken:
- India has started paying attention to wildlife corridors and encouraging engineering reforms to promote wildlife movements.
- In 2019, the Ministry of Environment along with the Wildlife Institute of India released a document that lays out the regulatory requirements for developing roads, railways, and powerlines while recognising the impacts on wildlife and people. National Highways Authority of India and all public works departments have been instructed to follow the guidelines.
Way forward:
- With increasing infrastructure and traffic, there is the need for a systematic study of the impact of roads on smaller species like jungle cat and jackals.
- There is a need to ensure the presence of mitigation structures like underpasses and overpasses to ensure that there is no fragmentation of the habitats with infrastructure development.
- Maintaining connectivity is critical to ensure long term persistence of a species.
2. Kerala to take more cover under Miyawaki forests
Context:
Kerala Government’s move to implement the concept of Miyawaki forests in more areas.
Background:
- ‘Miyawaki forests’ is a highly successful technique, pioneered by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki.
- By promoting natural vegetation on land destroyed by natural calamities and due to human activity along the Japanese coastline, Miyawaki managed to raise mini-forests.
- The concept involves raising indigenous and native trees in dense plantations mimicking forest settings. It involves the preparation of the substrate if the land involved is much degraded.
- It promotes natural vegetation on degraded land.
Significance:
- The Miyawaki method of afforestation has revolutionised the concept of urban afforestation by turning backyards into mini-forests. This concept has helped increase green cover in urban areas.
- It will help increase the green cover in India and also help meet India’s pledge in the Paris Climate Deal, which involved increasing carbon sequestration in India.
- The Miyawaki method evolved by promoting natural vegetation on land destroyed by natural calamities and due to human activity along the Japanese coastline. The replication of the model across Kerala, which has suffered floods, landslips and soil erosion, assumes significance given the Rebuild Kerala initiative.
Details:
- The highly successful technique of Miyawaki forests has been adopted by individuals in the State to increase the green cover in urban and semi-urban areas.
- Following the success by individual initiatives, the Kerala government has decided to employ the Miyawaki method of afforestation to add a green cover on government office premises, residential complexes, school premises, and puramboke land in Kerala.
- The Forest Department would be the nodal agency in the State.
- To take the initiative forward, each department has been asked to nominate nodal officers at the State and district levels and issue formal orders on the initiative.
D. GS 4 Related
Nothing here for today!!!
E. Editorials
Category: INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
1. Is West Asia headed for war?
Context:
The U.S. killing Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani, in an airstrike.
Background:
- Tensions between Iran and the U.S. have been steadily escalating with Washington pulling out of the Iran nuclear deal and tightening sanctions and Tehran resuming nuclear activity.
- There has been an increasing frequency of flashpoints in the gulf like the attacks on the ships and oil tankers, shooting down of drones and attack on Saudi’s oil refineries.
Reasons behind the Drone attack:
Attack on U.S. embassy:
- The latest escalation came in the backdrop of the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq after a U.S. air raid on a Shia paramilitary group trained and funded by the Iranians, killing at least 25.
- Soleimani, was the commander of the Qods Force, the external intelligence and security unit of the elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Gen. Soleimani was practically the commander of the Kataib Hezbollah and other Shia militias operating in Iraq thought to be behind the attack on the U.S. embassy.
Targeting Shia Militias:
- Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy commander of the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) was also killed in the airstrike. The PMF is an umbrella organization of pro-Iran Iraqi militias in which Kataib Hezbollah is a member.
- The PMF was founded in 2014 under Gen. Soleimani’s supervision when Iran was trying to put together militias in Iraq and Syria in the wake of civil wars in both countries.
- Iran’s main goal was to save the embattled regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria and defeat the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq, which was threatening the Baghdad government in 2014.
- The PMF played an instrumental role in defeating the IS. The militias fought alongside the Iraqi Army, with the U.S. providing air cover, and liberated Iraqi cities in the north and west from the clutches of the IS.
- But once the IS Caliphate was destroyed and tensions were on the rise between Iran and the U.S. after the U.S. pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, the PMF militias started targeting U.S. forces in Iraq.
Increasing attack on Americans in Iraq:
- Ever since Gen. Soleimani took over the Qods Force in 1998, he expanded the operations of the unit, by deepening Iran’s links with its proxy groups such as Hezbollah and the Badr Organisation or building new militias such as the Shia Popular Mobilization Units and Houthis.
- In September 2019, the U.S. State Department shut the consulate in the southern Iraqi city of Basra, citing “repeated incidents of fire from Iran-backed militias”. The U.S. repeatedly blamed Iran-backed militias for the attacks on American targets.
- U.S. officials also say that Iran proxies under Gen. Soleimani’s leadership were planning to carry out more attacks on U.S. interests in West Asia and that the assassination was carried out to deter them.
Iraq’s Position:
Significance of U.S. to Iraq:
- Post the toppling of Saddam Hussein from power, the U.S. has been a major security partner of Iraq.
- Presently there are about 5,000 American troops deployed in various parts of Iraq.
Significance of Iran to Iraq:
- Given the fact that Iran is Iraq’s neighbour and possesses enormous influence in the region, Iraq cannot totally ignore Iran.
- Most Shia political parties and leaders in Iraq have deep, historical ties with the Iranian regime. This has resulted in the significant influence of Iran in the politics of Iraq.
- Given the intricacy of Iraq’s domestic power dynamics and the influence Iran wields over the Iraqi polity, Iraq is unlikely to abandon Iran altogether.
- The Shia militias are a parallel military force and it is believed that it takes its orders directly from Tehran. They seem to favour Iran than their government at Baghdad.
Consequences in Iraq:
- The U.S.’s unilateral use of airpower within Iraq targeting Iraqi militias without the permission of the government has upset Baghdad. It claims that the attacks are against the security and sovereignty of Iraq.
- There have been street protests over the U.S. airstrikes.
- The Iraqi government is being pushed to a point where it has to choose between Iran and the U.S.
- The major possibility seems to be that the Iraqi government may ask the U.S. to leave the country as calls are getting louder from the Iraqi political class to expel U.S. troops from the country.
Possibility of War in West Asia:
- Iran has now vowed revenge for the killing, raising the risks of a direct war between the U.S. and Iran to an all-time high.
- After killing Gen. Soleimani, the U.S. has said it is committed to de-escalation and does not want the situation to go out of control indicating it is not in favour of a war.
- Unlike the other recent targeted assassinations carried out by the U.S. like that of Abu Musaib al-Zarqawi (leader of the al-Qaeda in Iraq), Osama bin Laden (founder of the al-Qaeda) and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, (founder of the Islamic State, or the IS), Soleimani, was a state actor. Iran might see this as an act of war like any sovereign country would do.
- Self-preservation or protecting the lives of the top leaders is the primary objective of any regime. No response from Iran would indicate weakness on the part of Iran and might affect its deterrence abilities in the future power plays.
- An Iranian attack could trigger a cycle of violence, with both sides targeting each other in West Asia. There is the possibility of a dramatic escalation in the regional shadow war between Iran and the U.S. and its allies, principally Israel and Saudi Arabia.
For more information on this issue refer:
CNA dated 4th Jan 2020 – Impact of Soleimani Assassination
2. Why has the U.S. crippled the functioning of the WTO?
Context:
The U.S. decisions making the World Trade Organization’s Appellate Body dysfunctional.
Background:
- In December 2019, the U.S. cut short its share of the funding to the WTO. This move has resulted in a shortage of funds for the Appellate Body of WTO to function.
- The U.S. has also stalled the selection process for filling six vacancies at the Appellate Body by virtue of the veto power it enjoys in the appointment process. Consequently, the Appellate Body is left with only one member, who will not be able to deliver any rulings on pending trade disputes since a quorum of three members is required to adjudicate any dispute.
- The U.S. has paralysed the World Trade Organization’s Appellate Body, which acts as the adjudicating body for any disputes in international trade.
Details:
Dispute settlement at WTO:
- Given the increasing global trade and an increasing number of disputes in such trade, a binding, two-stage dispute settlement system was established at the World Trade Organization in the 1990s.
- The Appellate Body consisting of seven standing members forms an important part of the dispute settlement system of the WTO.
Process of appeal:
- In the first stage for adjudicating trade disputes, a panel would decide cases brought before it by the members of the WTO.
- Rulings issued by the panels can be appealed at the Appellate Body. As part of the second-stage of adjudication, the Appellate Body can uphold, modify or reverse the legal findings and conclusions of the panel.
- The Appellate Body’s decisions are final and adopted within 30 days by the dispute settlement body.
Significance:
- Since Sanctions can be imposed on a member in case of its failure to comply with the Appellate Body’s rulings, the establishment of the Appellate Body has given teeth and credibility to the rules-based multilateral trading system.
- The appellate body has provided security and predictability in the multilateral trading system.
- The panels and the Appellate Body have issued rulings in many disputes. It has addressed major issues in the domain of trade remedies such as countervailing and anti-dumping measures.
Reasons for U.S. actions:
- The U.S. has of late taken an isolationist approach with respect to its trade policy. The U.S. China trade war is an example. It seems to favour more bilateral trade deals which would be more favourable to the U.S. than the multilateral framework approach of the WTO.
- Several U.S. provisions for imposing countervailing and anti-dumping measures were found to be inconsistent with core provisions of the WTO agreements. The functioning of the Appellate Body has posed hurdles to the U.S. for adopting unilateral measures in global trading.
- The independent and impartial functioning of the Appellate Body in complex trade disputes had become a problem for Washington over the past many years. The U.S. has raised concerns about adverse decisions that struck down the U.S.’s trade measures.
- Washington has repeatedly accused the Appellate Body of being partisan in procedures and rulings.
- The U.S. has repeatedly alleged that the appellate body was crossing the limits of its powers and growing more powerful than the WTO itself of which it is a part. The U.S. has argued that such a role of the Appellate Body is not reflected in the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU) framework agreed to by all the members of the WTO.
Efforts to revive the Appellate body:
- Many WTO members do not agree with the U.S.’s criticism of the functioning of the Appellate Body. Despite this, efforts were made to address the specific concerns raised by the U.S. about the Appellate Body.
- After hectic consultations, a draft decision was finalized. The draft decision included a package of reforms to improve the functioning of the Appellate Body.
- Despite an overwhelming acceptance for the package of reforms at the WTO General Council meeting in December 2019, the U.S. decided to reject the draft decision.
Concerns:
- The failure to break the deadlock on the functioning of the Appellate body, an important component of effective WTO dispute settlement mechanism, will act as a blow to the multilateral trading system. At the core of a functioning multilateral trading system is an effective dispute resolution mechanism.
- The dispute settlement system had led to reductions in unfair trade practices and had helped to strengthen the rules-based international trading system. The absence of it will hamper the global trade system.
- Given the fact that the majority of WTO members are developing and poor countries who mostly lack the political and economic power to enforce their rights and protect their interests in a system governed by power, this would severely impede their ability to benefit from global trade.
- The strangulation of the Appellate Body is a reflection of unilateralism and protectionism that are on a sharp rise. The absence of the Appellate Body paves the way for the return of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, 1947 rules which many countries consider as a step back in global trade.
For more on this topic refer:
F. Tidbits
- Australia is experiencing an unprecedented, drought fuelled bushfire crisis that has burned swathes of land across the continent over the last few months.
- 2019 has been Australia’s hottest and driest year which has made it more vulnerable to bushfires.
- There has been a rise of 1 degree Celsius in Australia’s temperature since 1910.
2. Research in India inadequate: C.N.R. Rao
- C.N.R. Rao, one of the foremost chemists in India, has stated that neither the quality nor quantity of publications that come out of India is adequate.
- The recent numbers show that India has climbed to the third position globally in the number of peer-reviewed science and engineering publications. It is also growing at a rate of about 10% as compared to the global average of 4%.
- A cause of concern has been the low citation rate. Several studies of publication trends have shown that India’s share in the world research output hovers around 5%. But the rate of citations — the number of times these articles are cited and used as a proxy for quality — is much lower at 2-3%.
G. Prelims Facts
Nothing here for today!!!
H. UPSC Prelims Practice Questions
Q1. Which of the following statements is/are correct?
- The Eat Right India Movement is an initiative of the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
- It involves providing fortified food to infants and lactating mothers at Anganwadi Centres.
Options:
a. 1 only
b. 2 only
c. Both 1 and 2
d. Neither 1 nor 2
See
Q2. The term Miyawaki is associated with which of the following?
a. Traditional dance of Tibet
b. Afforestation method
c. A musical instrument from Arunachal Pradesh
d. Traditional silk weaving technique
See
Q3. Which of the following statements is/are correct?
- The Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana provides an insurance cover of Rs.5 lakh per individual.
- The PMJAY beneficiaries get an e-card that can be used to avail services at any hospital, public or private, anywhere in the country.
- The eligibility for the PMJAY is based on the SECC 2011 data.
Options:
a. 1,2 and 3
b. 1 and 3
c. 2 and 3
d. 3 only
See
Q4. Arrange the following cities from North to South:
- Sydney
- Perth
- Brisbane
- Melbourne
- Canberra
Options:
a. 3, 2, 1, 5, 4
b. 3, 1, 2, 5, 4
c. 2, 3, 1, 4, 5
d. 2, 3, 4, 1, 5
See
I. UPSC Mains Practice Questions
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- India, facing the double burden of malnutrition, has taken several steps to address the same. Despite the progress made, there are still considerable challenges facing India in the fight against malnutrition. Comment. Also suggest suitable steps that need to be incorporated in India’s efforts. (15 marks, 250 words)
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- In the backdrop of the recent U.S. decisions and moves making the World Trade Organization’s Appellate Body dysfunctional, discuss the significance of the WTO’s Appellate body and the concerns associated with its current state of affairs. (10 marks, 150 words)
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