The Prayas ePathshala

Exams आसान है !

06 February 2023

MAINS QUESTIONS DAILY QUESTIONS & MODEL ANSWERS

Q1. For the throngs of people who cannot afford anything better, slums in cities are the worst place they could possibly live in poverty. Analyse. (250 words)

Paper & Topic: GS II – Social Issues

Model Answer:

Introduction:

According to the Census of India 2011, slums are residential areas with housing that are unfit for human habitation because of deterioration, overcrowding, poor planning and design of those buildings, small streets or poor street layouts, a lack of ventilation, light, or sanitation facilities, or any combination of these factors that endanger safety and health. Modern urbanisation is unavoidably characterised by slums, and people who live in slums actively assist others who do not by promoting economic progress.

Body:

Indian slums:

2,543 out of 4,041 Statutory Towns (or 63% of them) reported having slums in the Census of 2011.
Slums were reportedly concentrated in Maharashtra (21,359) Slum populations increased from 52 million in 2001 to 65.5 million in 2011.

Factors contributing to the emergence of slums:

Population explosion: Growing urban populations and poverty push the poor to dwell in slums, which expands the size of slums.
A regional development imbalance also encourages rural residents to relocate to the city, increasing urban population density and driving the urban poor into slums.
India’s urban population density has increased by 45% in the last 15 years. By 2026, it is anticipated that 40% of people would reside in urban areas.
There is a high demand for land since urban populations are becoming more dense.
Due to a shortage of adequate land, urban poor people are forced to live in ever-denser neighbourhoods, which leads to the growth of slums.
inefficient urban planning
Slum dwellers regularly violate strict, frequently out-of-date urban planning laws in order to meet their housing needs, which is a key contributor to the expansion of slums.
Governments usually fail to involve slum dwellers at all stages of development, which is another problem.
The failure of governments to keep up with urbanisation is frequently the result of bad policies, a lack of funding, and corruption.
City officials are unable to meet the numerous demands for infrastructure supply to meet economic and social needs due to the growing urbanisation.
Municipal administrations also find it difficult to make connections between the trajectory of economic development and what that means for urban growth and, consequently, housing demands. Strategic planning and intervention present significant challenges to the goal of managing rapid urbanisation.
Lack of cheap homes Another factor contributing to the expansion of slums is the difficulty of developers to supply the market with affordable housing due to higher material and labour costs brought on by a labour shortage.
Slum development has been encouraged by the discrepancy between the increasing demand for affordable urban housing and the inadequate supply.
When the demand surplus is more than what the formal economies can supply, an informal residence, such as a slum, usually steps in to fill the void.
Because they are less wealthy than wealthy groups in the formal land markets, slum dwellers generally live in remote areas like landfills.
The urban poor also do not have access to institutional financial resources that could aid in home purchases or the maintenance of a new way of life in new housing.
a movement from rural to urban Slum expansion in Indian cities is mostly due to rural-to-urban migration.
Unprepared metropolitan areas have a hard time keeping up, which leads to several issues such a housing shortage, unemployment, and the growth of slums.
Social aspects: Due to social sluggishness, people are also compelled to live in crowded neighbourhoods far from the action. Scheduled Castes (SCs), for instance, are more prevalent in slums, where they make up one in every five people.

Problems that slum dwellers must deal with:

Poverty Cycle That Never Ends With a few notable exceptions, income or capability poverty is viewed as a key characteristic of slum districts. It is viewed as a cause (and, to a significant extent, a consequence) of slum circumstances rather than as a trait of slums per se.
Physical and legal manifestations of slum conditions hamper social and human growth. Additionally, it is well known that slums are socially isolated places with high rates of crime and other disruptive social behaviours.
According to certain definitions, these locations are connected to vulnerable population groups including recent immigrants, those who have been internally displaced, or people who are members of racial or ethnic minorities.
Poor nutrition, little to no education, and limited or no access to healthcare are typically associated with low income, all of which inhibit the development of human capital and keep slum residents ensnared in the cycle of poverty.
Slums display pathological social signs such drug use, intoxication, criminal activity, graffiti, and other deviant behaviour and are socially alienated from the rest of urban society.
Slum dwellers are more likely to fall victim to societal ills including child trafficking, prostitution, and begging.
Residents of slums commonly experience these societal ills, regardless of their gender.
Health: Slum dwellers are far more likely to contract respiratory and water-borne illnesses because they lack access to basic amenities like clean water, sanitary facilities, and hygiene services.
Diseases spread easily in this area because of the dense population, inadequate bathroom facilities, and close closeness of the homes.
Additionally, slum dwellers are more likely to get more serious illnesses including cancer, HIV/AIDS, and water-borne illnesses like cholera and typhoid.
lack of essential infrastructure or services The absence of hygienic facilities, clean water sources, energy sources, drainage systems, and waste collection systems makes slums easy to spot. Sometimes, things like unlit walkways and unsurfaced roadways aggravate them. 58% of India’s slums have open or no drainage, according to the Census of 2011.
43% of the populace is responsible for bringing water from neighbouring towns.
26% of people do not have access to clean drinking water.
34% of buildings lack restrooms, and 19% allow open defecation.
There are two power disruptions per day.
A residence that violates building codes Slum neighbourhoods are well-known for having a large number of housing structures that don’t adhere to construction codes and are typically constructed utilising fragile, subpar building materials.
Little room per person, high occupancy rates, and cohabitation by multiple families are signs of overcrowding.
In many slum homes, multiple people share a single room that is used for living, sleeping, and cooking.
confined living spaces and dangerous locales: Poor living conditions are caused by a variety of things, including a lack of essential services, open sewers, limited access to highways, inconsiderate trash disposal, contaminated ecosystems, etc.
Slums also spread in risky areas, such as next to facilities that emit harmful gases or landfills. Slums frequently have high infant mortality rates, subpar educational levels, child marriage, and child labour in addition to famine and malnutrition.
High rates of crime Furthermore, it is well accepted that slum areas have high crime rates.
This is brought on by the government’s disdain for issues like law and order, education, and government services in slum regions.

How to Continue:

Instead of concentrating primarily on building homes for slum inhabitants, efforts should be directed on developing alternate means of subsistence and the social and economic infrastructure required to support them.
Housing and population policies based on housing rights and the right to a clean environment must be applied at all levels for urban planning to be effective. The objectives of these programmes must be inclusive cities and the eradication of poverty.
In order to address any potential issues in the future, consideration must be given to income creation, transportation, and beneficiary empowerment.
A three-pronged strategy should be employed to get rid of slums in cities: giving people clear, free titles will allow them to utilise the property as a tangible asset.
The facilities and services that supply individual households with access to water, power, and sewage, as well as the collection of solid waste, street lighting, community security, and law enforcement protection, should all be upgraded.
the establishment of low-income, high-density zones that allow private property owners to make improvements to their homes and rent out their areas to approved businesses without taking any chances.

Q2. A large and diverse demography make up India’s populace. Therefore, a differential planning approach is needed in the fields of education, health, and skill development in order to benefit from the demographic dividend. Discuss. (250 words)

Paper & Topic: GS II – Social Issues

Model Answer:

Introduction:

India has long been praised as China’s key competitor in terms of economic development. India has one of the youngest populations on an ageing planet. By 2020, India’s median age will be merely 28 years old. One of the key reasons for this is that 59% of Indians are under the age of 30. Since 2018, India’s population of working-age people (15–64) has grown more quickly than its population of dependent people. The working-age population will keep growing for another 37 years, or until 2055. The belief that the young population of India will see higher economic growth when they enter the workforce has maintained.

Body:

India has trouble taking use of the demographic dividend:

Health: Access to care is horribly unequal in India and the country’s healthcare system is appallingly underfunded. The burden of out-of-pocket medical costs and the lack of competent public healthcare decrease or eliminate people’s ability to invest in their children’s human capital.
Fighting malnutrition is challenging due to the ineffective operation of the public distribution system (PDS) (corruption and leaks), increased economic disparity, and lack of nutritional knowledge.
Education: The general population’s progress in basic literacy has been merely mediocre (the ability to read and write). But there are sizable caste and religious inequalities as well as persistent gender inequalities.
Professional and functional literacy are in poor shape. Indian graduates are not particularly employable and do not support the changing economic structure or global competitiveness.
Increasing Inequality: A sizable portion of India’s population lives in poverty, making it challenging for them to get essential healthcare and education.
Growing social and economic inequality has a negative impact on socioeconomic mobility.
The inability of people to move up the social ladder inhibits the growth of human capital and leaves a large percentage of the population mired in a cycle of poverty.
Lack of Skill: Just 10% of India’s 470 million working-age inhabitants receive any kind of training or access to opportunities for skilled employment, according to the National Sample Survey.
There is a huge supply and demand gap when it comes to trained labour and employment opportunities, which could eventually put pressure on the economy.
inadequate use of technological knowledge: India’s capacity to fairly distribute its gains by placing enough focus on skilling and health and its rate of technological growth are at odds.
The application of technological advancements that have been concentrated in a small number of industries has benefited a small number of elite segments of society.
Growth without jobs: India’s high growth rate period (2004-05 to 2010-11) has resulted in much fewer jobs than past periods of economic growth.
About 47% of the workers in India is still employed in the notoriously under- and covertly unemployed agricultural sector.
The majority of the workforce is employed in the unorganised sector, which pays workers poorly and provides little in the way of social security.
According to data from the International Labor Organization and the World Bank, rates of female labour force participation are falling, with rates in India falling from 34.8% in 1990 to 27% in 2013.
It has been established that factors related to socioculture and rising family incomes are the main drivers of this decline.
Another disturbing issue is the fact that a significant portion of qualified women leave the workforce due to factors like marriage, family responsibilities, and a lack of local employment—especially in rural areas.

A alternative approach to planning is necessary:

In order to create an equitable and sustainable growth for India, the government is putting the most emphasis on social infrastructure, including education, health care, and social protection.
The disparities in spending on social infrastructure like health and education should be filled by strengthening the delivery systems for government programmes. People’s health, education, and skill development must be protected and supported if there is to be long-term, inclusive economic growth and a reduction in income inequality.
India needs to allocate more funds to health and education. The National Health Policy 2017 and the NEP 2020 both recommend that India boost its spending on health and education from its current levels to at least 2.5% and 6% of GDP, respectively. Therefore, better policies will be needed to preserve and even enhance health and lifespan.
Right now, more and better schools are required, especially in rural areas. It also advocates for enhanced transportation links between rural areas and nearby metropolitan areas.
India has to invest more in human capital production at all levels, including primary and secondary education, higher education, cutting-edge research and development, and vocational training, to increase the skill sets of its growing working-age population.
Major initiatives like Make in India, Digital India, and Skill India must be implemented in order to create convergence between skill development and employment generation.
Closing gender inequalities in education, skill development, employment, and earnings as well as reducing social inequities that are entrenched in society have been the main goals of the development plan to strengthen human capacities.
A few of the projects include forums for mentoring aspiring business owners in cooperation with corporations, improved infrastructure, skill development, simple access to funding, and eliminating barriers to entrepreneurship.
Models for decentralised development For each state, a different social policy is needed to take into consideration the diverse rates of population growth. South and west India’s population growth is significantly slower than that of the central and eastern regions.

Conclusion:

A diversified approach is necessary to capitalise on the demographic dividend. Additionally, it’s important to engage with youth and promote an environment that encourages entrepreneurship. The demographic dividend offers them a unique opportunity to enhance living standards, but countries must act fast to manage their ageing populations and put policies in place that will ensure a safe and smooth transition from the first to the second demographic dividend.