01 DEC 2015

1) Nai Talim and  Gandhiji:-

News:- President’s address at Gujrat Vidyapith.

• Nai Talim is a spiritual principle which states that knowledge and work are not separate. Mahatma Gandhi promoted an educational curriculum with the same name based on this pedagogical principle.
• It can be translated with the phrase ‘Basic Education for all’.However, the concept has several layers of meaning. It developed out of Gandhi’s experience with the English educational system and with colonialism in general. In that system, he saw that Indian children would be alienated and ‘career-based thinking’ would become dominant. In addition, it embodied a series of negative outcomes: the disdain for manual work, the development of a new elite class, and the increasing problems of industrialization and urbanization.
• The three pillars of Gandhi’s pedagogy were its focus on the lifelong character of education, its social character and its form as a holistic process. For Gandhi, education is ‘the moral development of the person’, a process that is by definition ‘lifelong’.
• The constituents of Nai Talim are the 3-H: heart, hand and head. To put this philosophy into practice, Gandhiji promoted an academic curriculum of ‘basic education for all’. With ashram shalas and buniyadi schools operating in the remote areas, Gujarat is perhaps the only state where Nai Talim exists in an institutional form. Nai Talim infers charitra nirman or character building, whose relevance is increasing by the day. Learning with value-orientation must guide our approach in education.
• The motto of Gujarat Vidyapith is “Sa Vidya Ya Vimuktaye”, or “Education that Liberates”.

2)National Capital Goods Policy (Draft) :-

• A draft base paper on National Policy on Capital Goods was prepared by the Department of Heavy Industry (DHI)- Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Joint Task Force on Capital Goods and Engineering.
• What is Capital Goods:-
  • Goods that are used in producing other goods, rather than being bought by consumers.They are used to produce consumable goods.
  • “Capital Goods” sector comprises of plant and machinery, equipment / accessories required for manufacture / production, either directly or indirectly, of goods or for rendering services, including those required for replacement, modernization, technological upgradation and expansion.
• The Policy:-
  • In a challenging global environment, India has earned the distinction of being one of the fastest growing economies in the world over the last decade. During this period manufacturing sector has exhibited a growth rate of ~7%, and has been a strong contributor to overall GDP growth
  • However GDP contribution of manufacturing at ~18% is still low when compared to other developing countries (25-35%). This promises a significant upside for manufacturing in the coming decades, provided the fundamental enablers to create a vibrant manufacturing ecosystem are in place.
  • Capital goods sector is extremely crucial for the development of the country’s economy for the following two important reasons:-
    • Capital Goods is considered as a strategic sector and development of domestic capabilities is essential from a national self-reliance and security perspective
    • Capital Goods sector has multiplier effect and has a bearing on the growth of user industries as it provides critical inputs, i.e., machinery and equipment to the remaining sectors covered under the manufacturing activity
  • The capital goods sector contributes 12% to the total manufacturing activity (which is about 15% of the GDP).The sector has grown at the rate of 15% per annum over the last decade.
  • Concerns:-
    • The capital goods component in industrial production has lagged in recent years due to slow pace of domestic demand leading to growing dependence on imports and following slow growth in the world economy.Further, in the globalized world and as trade barriers in the form of tariffs are reduced, not all capital goods manufacturers have been able to tap the global opportunity.
  • Vision and Mission:-
    • To increase the share of capital goods contribution from present 12% to 20% of total manufacturing activity by 2025.Become one amongst top 10 capital goods producing nations of the world.
    • To determine enablers and set mission for each enabler, complementing vision. For example enablers such as availability of Finance, Raw Material, Innovation and Technology (R&D), Skills Development, Productivity, Quality & Environment Friendly Manufacturing Practices (No Defect, No Effect), Exports (Share in the Global Markets), Domestic Demand, etc.
    • Creating an Eco-system for globally competitive Capital Goods Sector
    • Creation and Expansion of Market for Capital Goods Sector
    • Promotion of Exports
    • Human Resource Development development in this sector
    • Technology & IPR utilization and realizing the best of technology
    • Introduction of Mandatory Standards to safeguard the sector
    • Focus on SME Development which can empower and employ many

3)VIP Security:-

• At present there are 257 protectees in the Central List under different categories. There is no fixed number of persons, other than VVIPs, Cabinet and other Ministers, to whom security is provided.
• Types of Security :-
  • Security is provided on the basis of threat assessment of individuals and the category of security (Z+, Z, Y & X) is decided on the basis of nature and gravity of the threat. Threat assessment is done by the security agencies to determine the nature and gravity of threat faced by an individual.
• Security arrangements for the Central Protectees was last reviewed in the meeting held on 10.09.2015. At present, there are a total of 257 central protectees under various categories (Z+ = 34, Z=66, Y=109 & X=48).

4)SAADMEx-2015:-

• South Asian Annual Disaster Management Exercise-2015
• The few important objectives of the SAADMEx-2015 are as under:-
  • Strengthen the effective utilization and quick deployment of Search and Rescue (SAR) Teams for Disaster Relief and Emergency Response.
  • Effective activation of national process for regional response and operationalization of regional mechanism for collective response to disaster in the region.
  • Management of mass casualties which, among others, would involve Communication breakdown and engineering difficulties.
  • Effective and timely utilization of aid/humanitarian assistance.
  • Coordination and information sharing with foreign embassies in disaster affected country.
  • Media coordination and control of information flow.
  • Special needs of vulnerable population.
  • Addressing strategic issues related to existing national and regional procedures and coordination mechanisms for large-scale disaster management
• The Exercise had three components:-
  • Table Top Exercise (TTx)
  • Field Training Exercise (FTx)
  • After Action Review (AAR)

5) IMF names yuan global reserve currency:-

• The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund on Monday decided to include the Chinese currency, the renminbi (yuan), into its basket of currencies that make up the IMF’s Special Drawing Right (SDR). The decision was taken during the IMF’s five-yearly review of the basket of currencies.
• To know all about reserve currency read from the below link :-
  • http://upsctree.com/2015/11/10/10-nov-2015/

Questions of the Day

MCQS:-

1)Which among them is not a reserve currency ?

1. Euro
2. Yuan
3. Franc
4. Rupee

2)Which is not among them is not 3-H of  Nai Talim of Gandhiji :-

1. heart
2. hand
3. head
4. human

3)Which among them is not the 3 components of SAADMex-2015:-

1. Table Top Exercise (TTx)
2. Field Training Exercise (FTx)
3. After Action Review (AAR)
4. Human Resourcs Executive (HRx)

4)Which among them is not the component of  National Capital Goods Policy (Draft) ?

1. Creating an Eco-system for globally competitive Capital Goods Sector
2. Focus on SME Development
3. Introduction of Mandatory Standards
4. Creating National Integrated Capital goods market

Questions to be answered in 150-200 words:-

1. India has failed to add value based education in to formal education.  In light of this , Gandhiji’s Nail Talim way of education seems more relevant now which  can not only help a youth be  educated  but also will make him/her more ethical  . Discuss.
2. Enhancing the capital goods industry will ultimately result in empowerment of rural poor. Comment.
3. The recent launch of gold monetization scheme by Government of India will not be a major  success – simply because gold is largely attached to people’s emotion . Critically Analyse.
   • About Gold monetization scheme :- http://upsctree.com/2015/11/06/06-nov-2015/

P.S. – The question on gold scheme was asked in an interview.

PDF DOWNLOAD