10 Solved Questions with Answers
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2017
1. Among several factors for India’s potential growth,
savings rate is the most effective one. Do you agree? What are the other factors available for growth potential? (2017)Capital formation is the most important factor that drives the economic development of a nation. It is mainly the transfer of savings from households to the business sector that leads to increased output and economic expansion.
In India, savings have contributed a lot
in the economic development since the Indian economy took off in1960s and 70s. In the past few decades, it has been around 33% of GDP. However,high savings rate is a necessary condition but not a sufficient one for economic development.Many times high savings in isolation does not lead even to capital formation. One also needs sound banking and financial institutions to mobilize the savings of economy. At the same time,
presence of entrepreneurship is also critical toconvert savings into productive investment. Some other factors that are essential for growth potential are:- Infrastructure: Sound infrastructure is needed in terms of
good supply of power, electricity, roads, railways and robust means of communication. - Ease of doing business: There should be
environment to start and wind up the businesses in the economy. Bureaucratic hurdles inhassle freeacquisition of land and licenses should also be minimized. - Human Resource: Skilled
labour force is essential for the improved productive capacity ofeconomy .Capability ofhuman resource depends upon the skills, creativity, abilitiesand education of thelabour force. - Technology: It increases the productivity and competitiveness of the economy. Today R&D in every domain is essential to be competitive in the international and domestic market.
- Government policies: Policies decide the pace and direction of
economy . India has introduced GST recently to unify its own economy and remove the cascading effect of taxes at multiple points. India’s performance of Ease of Doing Business Index has also improved by 30 points (100th position in 2017) due to many policy initiatives. - Social and political factors: Social factors involve customs, traditions, values
and beliefs which contribute to the growth ofeconomy . Political factors such as participation of people informulation and execution of policies enhance the economic development.
India which is on the verge of reaping the benefits of demographic
dividend, must launch skill development initiatives to utilize the younglabour force. It should also improve ease of doing business and create a conducive environment for investment, better export performance to improveproductivity of the economy. - Infrastructure: Sound infrastructure is needed in terms of
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2017
2. Account for the failure of manufacturing sector in achieving the goal of labour-intensive exports. Suggest measures for more labour-intensive rather than capital-intensive exports. (2017)
A key lacuna in India’s growth has been slow growth of manufacturing in
labour-intensive sectors and concentration incapital intensive manufacturing sectors like auto parts, chemicals, softwareand pharmaceuticals. None of these sectors employ low-skilled workers in large numbers.The movement of workers out of agriculture into
export oriented manufacturing industry has been especially slow due torequirement of a certain level of skill which is absent amongst mostlabourers – resulting in jobless growth. Lack of ease of doing business in India due tolabour market rigidities, tax uncertainties, impediments to entrepreneurial growthhave further hindered the expansion of alabour-intensive export manufacturing in India.Measure to Promote Labour-Intensive Exports
- Ease Labour Law regulations such as wide-ranging and complex laws, mandatory contributions by low-paid workers, and lack of flexibility in part-time work etc. The government’s decision to
rationalise around 38 Labour Acts by framing 4labour codes is a positive step in this regard toencourage exporters to hire morelabour . - Promoting Labour-Intensive Sectors like apparel sector, leather and footwear also have high export potential.
- Uninterrupted and Cheap Power Supply for
labour-intensive manufacturers, who operate onlow profit margins and for whom high electricity costs can be a make or break issue. - Promoting the Role of SMEs as
intensity of SMEs is four times higher than that of large firms by providing adequate state support. MUDRA Bank should be promoted for this.labour - Skill development to fill the gap of semi-skilled and skilled workers that manufacturers in India face frequently.
Further, the tax
rationalisation under GST as well as the push for Entrepreneurship under Start-Up India and Stand Up India can also provide a suitable andfavourable environment forlabour-intensive exporters. - Ease Labour Law regulations such as wide-ranging and complex laws, mandatory contributions by low-paid workers, and lack of flexibility in part-time work etc. The government’s decision to
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2017
3. Examine the development of Airports in India through joint ventures under Public – Private Partnership (PPP) model. What are the challenges faced by the authorities in this regard. (2017)
Management of few of the airports through joint ventures under
PPP model is transformingcivil aviation sector in India. Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) projects were awarded to private players for Greenfield airports at Bangalore and Hyderabad.India’s decision to invite private players such as GMR and GVK has improved the passenger’s experience. It has led to better efficiency and capacity of airline operators. This has also resulted in
massive dividend to the State-owned Airports Authority of India. Modernisation of ports in India has improved the local and national economy and perception of India is changing in the global market.Private airports are making large profits due to increased traffic, higher aeronautical charges
and other non-aero revenue opportunities.However there are concernsof higher chargeson airlines and passengers. Cities like Chennai, Kolkataand Goa are not able to attract enough passenger and cargo services due to lack of commercial orientation of AAI.PPP model in
development of airport is creating following challenges for the authorities:- There is
absence ofregulatory framework for the entire aviation sector. - There is
lack of clarity over the degree of risk transfer to the private players in areas such as asset condition, construction cost, operation risk, non-insurable risk etc. - Lack of clarity is also evident in concessional agreement, revenue sharing and tariff structure framework.
- The projects are also delayed due to land acquisition, cost overruns, long gestation periods and lack of funding and investment.
All requisite steps are being taken to address the various challenges in this field. AAI is being suggested to improve its organizational capabilities. Alternate funding options are also being explored through combinations of equity, soft loans
and grants. All these steps will help India to developworld class facilities in civil aviation by 2020. - There is
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2017
4. Explain various types of revolutions, took place in Agriculture after Independence in India. How these revolutions have helped in poverty alleviation and food security in India? (2017)
India is primarily an agricultural economy and majority of people are still dependent on agriculture for their livelihood. After independence, development of agriculture has been assured by various revolutions supported by
government .Green Revolution – This revolution led to
tremendous rise in production of food grains, especially wheat, by use of high-yielding varieties of seeds, fertilizersand pesticide.White Revolution – Operation Flood (1970), an initiative of National Dairy Development Board has led to
revolution in m ilk production in India. The world’s largest dairy development programme transformed India from amilk deficient nation to world’s largest milk producer.Blue Revolution – This revolution focussed on management of fisheries sector and has led to
phenomenal increase in both fish production and productivity from aquaculture and fisheries resources of the inland and marine fisheries.Other revolutions which are no less significant includes yellow revolution(
oil seed production), goldenfibre revolution (jute), golden revolution (horticulture), silverfibre revolution (Cotton) and red revolution (meat production).Significance of these revolutions
- These innovations in agriculture have lifted millions of people out of poverty by generating rural income opportunities for farmers, farm
labourers , and also reduced prices for consumers. India has becomeself sufficient in food grain production with the help of green revolution. - The exponential rise in milk production has led to nutritional security among the masses. Per capita availability of milk has reached
all time high of 337gms/day. - These steps have provided avenues for income diversification for farmers.
To further carry on the momentum of these programmes and assure food security in long run in face of
population, there is an urgent need for an ‘evergreen revolution’ that should focus onever increasingall round development of the agriculture sector. - These innovations in agriculture have lifted millions of people out of poverty by generating rural income opportunities for farmers, farm
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2017
5. What are the reasons for poor acceptance of cost-effective small processing unit? How the food processing unit will be helpful to uplift the socio-economic status of poor farmers? (2017)
India being an agricultural country offers ideal conditions for
development of emerging food processing industry. Easy availability of raw materials, changing lifestyles in urban and rural areas andfavourable fiscal policies are giving a push to this sunrise sector.But small processing unit in India
are suffering from many challenges such as-- Infrastructure: Small processing units cannot invest heavily in infrastructural support such as grading, packaging, cold storage, warehousing, logistics, supply chains etc. They rely on the common facilities in these activities.
- Manpower: Skill shortage is hampering the competitiveness of this sector. There are few institutes which provide adequate training to the
labour force in this sector. - Seasonality and perishability: Most of the agricultural products such as fruits, vegetable, fisheries etc are highly perishable and thus increase the vulnerability of the entrepreneurs to wastage of commodities. The supply of raw materials is also seasonal in nature.
- Credit: Although the industry has been included in the priority sector lending, there are inherent risks involved in small enterprises.
- Competition: Increasing investment in the sector has led to intense competition which has adversely impacted the operating profitability of the units.
- Technology: Value addition is the key factor in the food processing but India still lacks the
universalisation of robust technology in this sector.
Food processing industry plays an important role in uplifting the socio-economic status of poor farmers through following ways:
- By providing a vital link between the agriculture and manufacturing sectors, it reduces the wastage of agricultural raw materials and increases
shelf life of food products. This helps farmers to sell more in the long run. - It links farmers to the agricultural market and provides them better income especially for horticultural products.
- Farmers can also earn more through more exports as value addition increases the competitiveness of products in the international market.
- It provides employment opportunities in sectors such as packaging, sampling, logistics and other non-farm activities. Thus it helps farmers to shift from farming to non-farming activities and have better lifestyles.
India must leverage all the available resources to emerge as a leader in food processing sector. It has come out with SAMPADA scheme, Mega Food Park Schemes, Value Addition Centres, Irradiation facilities etc. to promote this sector. However more needs to be done to enable small farmers to benefit from these initiatives.
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2017
11. One of the intended objectives of Union-Budget 2017-18 is to ‘transform, energize and clean India’. Analyze the measures proposed in the Budget 2017-18 to achieve the objective. (2017)
Budget in India is a socio-economic document that reflects the aims and aspirations of the government and people of India.
The initiatives in the Budget 2017-18 can be discussed under following heads –
1. Transforming India
- It concerns with those policies of the government that seek to transform the governance of the country and improve the quality of life of people.
- The budget has focused on upgrading the infrastructure of railways, roads, rivers, airports, telecommunications
and energy sector. But railways in India need comprehensive reforms as it is evident from recurrent accidents in different parts of the country. - Greater allocation for DeendayalAntyodaya Yojana is relevant in
context of skilling India and reaping the benefits of demographic dividend in India. - Rationalisation of tribunals is a positive step towards securing rule of law and effective delivery of justice.
- Tax administration is to be reformed through the strategy of RAPID (Revenue, Accountability, Probity, Information
and Digitalisation). This strategy will help to plug tax avoidance at various levels and increaserevenue of the government.
2. Energizing India
- There is focus on uplifting the conditions of various sections of society especially the youth and the vulnerable.
- The conditions of farmers are to be improved through settling the arrears under the FasalBima Yojana, setting up Micro Irrigation Fund and widening the coverage of National Agricultural Market (e-NAM).
However perishables are yet to be denotified from APMC acts by the states and model law to regulate contract farming has not come in public domain. - Mission Antyodaya will be strengthened to bring one crore households out of poverty by 2017. But there are no effective measures to better target the beneficiaries under this scheme.
- Different initiatives for development of youth has been proposed such as SANKALP, next phase of STRIVE,
extension of Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Kendras etc. But to energize youth of the country, robust IT infrastructure is a necessity which is hampering the learning outcomes in schools, colleges and skill development schemes.
3. Clean India
- It entails removing the evils of corruption, black-money
and non-transparent political funding. Digital economy is being strengthened through initiatives like JAM trinity, BHIM app, Financial Inclusion Fund, Amending Negotiable Instruments Act etc. But not much has been done to protect the digital payments and transactions from cyber frauds and thefts and accessibility to computers or mobiles is limited to few.- To bring transparency in the funding of political parties the limit of donation through cash has been fixed at Rs. 2000/- from one person and electoral bonds will also be issued in future.
The budget envisions to ‘transform, energize and clean India’ but it will not be materialized unless there is effective implementation of policies. Therefore the institutions to execute policies must be rejuvenated and a sound mechanism for the monitoring and evaluation of policies should also be established.
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12. “Industrial growth rate has lagged behind in the overall growth of Gross-Domestic-Product (GDP) in the post-reform period” Give reasons. How far the recent changes in Industrial Policy are capable of increasing the industrial growth rate? (2017)
Industrial policy 1991 set out directions for
industrialisation in an economy that began its journey inliberalisation . It dealt withliberalising licensing and measures to encourage foreign investments. However,Industrial growth rate could not match the pace with the overall growth of GDP.Constraints to industrial growth
- Inadequate infrastructure: Physical infrastructure in India suffers from
substantial deficit in terms of capacities as well as efficiencies. Lack of quality of industrial infrastructure has resulted in high logistics cost and has in turn affected cost competitiveness of Indian goods in global markets. - Restrictive labour laws: The tenor of
labour laws has been overly protective of force in the formal sector.labour - Complicated business environment: A complex multi-layered tax system, which with its high compliance costs and its cascading effects adversely affects
competitiveness of manufacturing in India. - Slow technology adoption: Inefficient technologies led to low productivity and higher costs adding to the disadvantage of Indian products in international markets.
- Inadequate expenditure on R&D and Innovation: Public investments have been constrained by the demands from other public service demands and private investment is not forthcoming as these involve long gestation periods and uncertain returns.
Recently Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) has proposed various changes in industrial policy that will focus on increasing the industrial growth rate in
following manner -- The new policy aims to attract $100 billion of FDI in a year, up from $60 billion in 2016-17, it will also aim at retaining investments and accessing technology.
- The policy aims to harness existing strengths in sectors like automobiles and auto-components, electronics, new and renewable energy, banking, software
and tourism. - The policy also aims to create globally scaled-up and commercially viable sectors such as waste management, medical devices, renewable energy, green technologies, financial services to achieve competitiveness.
- The policy will also push for reforms to enhance
labour market flexibility with an aim for higher job creation in the formal sector and performance linked tax incentives.
- Inadequate infrastructure: Physical infrastructure in India suffers from
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2017
13. What are the salient features of ‘inclusive growth’? Has India been experiencing such a growth process? Analyse and suggest measures for inclusive growth. (2017)
Inclusive growth is economic growth that creates
opportunity for all segments of the population and distributes the dividends of increased prosperity, both in monetary and non-monetary terms, fairly across society. The salient features of inclusive growth are:Participation: People are able to participate fully in economic life and have greater say over their future. People are able to access and participate in markets as workers, consumers and business owners.
Equity: More opportunities are available to enable upward mobility for more people. All segments of society, especially poor or socially disadvantaged groups, are able to take advantage of these opportunities.
Growth: An economy is increasingly producing enough goods and services to enable broad gains in well-being and greater opportunity. Economic growth and transformation is not only captured by aggregate measures of economic output (such as GDP
), but must include and be measured by other outcomes that capture overall well-being.Stability: Individuals, communities, businesses
and governments have a sufficient degree of confidence in their future and an increased ability to predict the outcome of their economic decisions.Sustainability: Economic and social wealth is sustained over time, thus maintaining inter-generational well-being. Economic and social wealth comprises
of a set of assets that contribute to human well-being, includinghuman produced (manufactured, financial, human, social) and natural capital.India’s economy continues to grow at an impressive rate, with projected annual GDP growth of 7.5% in 2017-18. As GDP per capita has more than doubled in last ten years, extreme poverty has declined substantially.
- Access to education has steadily improved, and life expectancy has risen.
- Financial inclusion has got a major boost with the expansion of rural banks and schemes like Jan-DhanYojna, incorporation of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) (JAM Trinity).
- Job, education and food entitlement schemes like MGNREGA, RTE
and Right to Food are also helping in deepening the growth further.
However India still is home to largest number of poor and malnourished children. Recent reports are suggesting huge income concentration in the hands of few. With looming agrarian distress and jobless growth, inclusive growth is still a distant dream for India.According to WEF report, India has been ranked 60th among 79 developing economies, below
neighbouring China and Pakistan, in the inclusive development index.Measures for inclusive growth
- Equity of access to quality basic education including basic financial literacy. Ex: RTE
- Ensuring quality health and sanitation facilities by making health a fundamental right.
- Gender parity measures through political representation, women reservation.
- Measures focused on social security benefits and gender parity, for ex., through gender budgeting.
- Creating employment opportunities through Make in India, Skill India etc.
Through these
measures inclusive growth can be ensured and the Gandhian dream of reaching to the last man standing in the row can be achieved. - Access to education has steadily improved, and life expectancy has risen.
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2017
14. What are the major reasons for declining rice and wheat yield in the cropping system? How crop diversification is helpful to stabilize the yield of the crops in the system? (2017)
Rice-wheat cropping system islabour , water, capitaland energy-intensive, and becomes less profitable asavailability of these resources diminishes. The problem is further exacerbated by dynamics of climate change. The relevant factors fordecline in yield are discussed below -- Decline in Soil fertility: Due to continuous irrigation and use of excessive flood irrigation,
soil in rice-wheat cropping system has become saline. It has resulted intodecrease in crop yield. - Climate change: According to studies, climate change has a negative effect on major crops such as wheat, rice
and maize. Increase in annual temperature range has also affected the crop yield of rice and wheat. - Increased input cost: High rate of infestation with weeds and pests along with contamination of
ground water have resulted intohigh cost of input forcultivation of rice and wheat. - Change in water availability: Due to excessive use of
ground water and consequent depletion of ground water resources, water availability has declined. This has resulted indecline in crop yield.
Therefore, it is imperative to focus on alternate crops. Crop diversification refers to a shift from the regional dominance of one crop to
production of a number of crops. Crop diversification helps in:- Maintaining soil fertility: Only those crops are grown in a particular region which are suitable to particular
agro climate zone and it helps in maintaining soil fertility because excessive use of nutrients, irrigation is not required. - To arrest depletion of ground water: It will help in diversifying cropping patterns from
water guzzling crops such as paddy to pulses, oilseeds, maize with the aim of tackling the problem of depleting water table. - Diversification can also provide habitat for beneficial insects and at the same time reduce colonization by
pest .
The government of India has launched crop diversification scheme in the original green revolution areas of Punjab, Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh. Under Crop Diversification Programme assistance is provided to states for conducting cluster demonstrations on alternate crops, promotion of water saving technologies, distribution of farm machinery, and awareness through training.
- Decline in Soil fertility: Due to continuous irrigation and use of excessive flood irrigation,
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15. How do subsidies affect the cropping pattern, crop diversity and economy of farmers? What is the significance of crop insurance, minimum support price and food processing for small and marginal farmers? (2017)
Government subsidizes agricultural inputs in an attempt to keep farm costs low and produc tion high.There are various subsidies available to farmers in terms of cheap input credit, seeds and fertilizers, subsidized electricity and irrigation etc. Agriculture subsidies always have some impact on various activities of agriculture.
Cropping patter
n: Crop selection gets distorted infavour of those crops which havehigh share of subsidies or attractlarge volume of subsidies. Forexample cheap electricity and irrigation subsidies motivated Punjab farmers to go forwater guzzling crops like rice.Crop diversity: Crop diversity gives way to the standard staple crops where there is assured market and cost of production is low due to subsidies. For
example wheat and rice are the standard crops in present times for Rabi and Kharif season respectivel y.Economy of farmers: Various subsidies ensure income support to farmers and safe stock of food grains. But at the same
time it leads to distorted production patterns, resulting in food inflation.Significance of various factors on small and marginal farmers
Crop insurance: It provides income security in case of crop failure due to natural and other reasons. It also gives them
cushion against their investment in agricultural activities.Minimum Support Price: Minimum prices ensure a minimum guaranteed income for the crops thereby hedging them from market fluctuations. Guarantee of a buyer while cultivation of crops gives a sense of financial security to the farmer.
Though high MSP for certain
produces such as wheat and rice drives farmers to take the "safe side" and thus shifts to cereal production rather than fruits, vegetables etc.Food processing: Through value
addition it ensures not only better income but long shelf life for the agro products. For the country like India where the wastage is high and over 80% of farmers are small and marginal with limited capacity, their income base can be enhanced through food processing.