MAINS DAILY QUESTIONS & MODEL ANSWERS
Q1. Discuss the advantages of using biofuels as a sustainable alternative in the energy industry. Give some suggestions on how to persuade the country to use biofuels.
GS III – Environmental Conservation
- A type of fuel known as “biofuel” is produced from the biomass of plants or animal waste. It is commonly produced using sugarcane, corn, sugarcane waste, and cow dung. Unlike fossil fuels, they are categorised as renewable sources of energy. The two most often used biofuels are ethanol and biodiesel. Climate change and the escalating health problems brought on by air pollution from the burning of fossil fuels are driving an increase in the usage of biofuels.
Utilising biofuels as an alternative source of sustainable energy has the following advantages:
- Reduce dependency on imports: A country is more vulnerable to supply interruptions when it depends heavily on imported fuels. According to the International Energy Agency, India’s yearly import cost for fossil fuels will treble by 2040. Utilising biofuels would seem to be a reasonable strategic choice for the energy sector in this case.
- Simple to obtain: A variety of wastes, such as crop waste, manure, and other wastes, can be used as feedstock to create biofuels. A straightforward and reliable source of biofuels could result from this.
- Sustainability: One of the main benefits of using biofuel is that it is more sustainable than fossil fuels. Reducing the use of fossil fuels and converting to biofuels can both reduce carbon dioxide emissions because biofuels are carbon neutral.
- Increased use of renewable energy sources, such as biofuels, in rural areas is directly tied to decreasing poverty.
- The production of biofuels, particularly in rural regions, can have a significant impact on the capacity to create jobs. For instance, according to a study by Bloomberg, the increase in ethanol production alone could lead to the creation of nearly 700,000 additional jobs across the country.
- Since biofuels are compatible with current engine architecture, engine lifetime is boosted. Additionally, they have a higher cetane rating and greater lubricating properties, which can increase engine longevity, reduce maintenance needs, and generally reduce pollution levels.
Government interventions in this regard:
- The government can take steps to encourage the use of biofuel buses for public transport within a predetermined timeframe. This would support the modernization of our public transit networks, improve citizen health, boost the economy, and create jobs.
- Increasing the production of biofuels: Both rural and urban wastelands as well as city-produced municipal rubbish should be utilised to create sustainable biofuels.
- Providing the energy needed to meet infrastructural needs: India’s energy demand is growing at a rate of more than 3% annually. To achieve this aim with cleaner alternatives, increased biofuel production is required along with the building and maintenance of infrastructure, such as processing plants, blending pumps, storage facilities, and distribution networks.
- Investments in research and development (R&D): To assist R&D initiatives in the bioenergy sector, the focus should be on strengthening partnerships between academics and business as well as creating specialist research institutes and laboratories.
- Getting rid of roadblocks: Governments must get rid of obstructions in the way of sustainability goals, like the scarcity of feedstock and the low level of consumer acceptance of biofuels.
- Technology adoption: Countries like Sweden and Brazil have used ethanol widely to achieve their economic and environmental aims. For instance, the entire Brazilian automotive sector uses flex-fuel engines. The blending varies depending on the price of crude oil around the globe and the availability of feedstock for biofuels. Lessons from these countries can be applied to the adoption of technology.
- In response to the importance of biofuels, the government has already enacted the national policy on biofuels for 2018, the ethanol blending programme, and other initiatives. In a culture that is increasingly concerned with sustainability, biofuels offer a workable, environmentally friendly, and low-carbon alternative.
Q2. Describe the reasons for the slow expansion of India’s industrial sector. Also suggest some corrective measures?
GS III – Indian Economy
- Manufacturing will grow by 1.3% yearly, less than agriculture and all significant service industries, according to preliminary estimates of the national revenue for 2022-2023. The services sector in India has grown substantially in recent years. In the meanwhile, manufacturing growth has remained lacklustre. To increase the GDP contribution of the manufacturing sector, the government has introduced a number of schemes in recent years, such as the Make in India initiative in 2014. Despite these steps, the industrial sector nevertheless faces numerous challenges and grows slowly.
The manufacturing industry’s sluggish expansion is due in part to:
- India has to solve its inadequate infrastructure, which includes inadequate ports, energy, and other facilities. For instance, figures show that China spends 20% of its GDP on infrastructure development, while India only invests 3% annually. Infrastructure is the foundation of every sector, but manufacturing in particular since generating the necessary items requires massive production facilities.
- Low Productivity: India’s manufacturing sector has lower productivity when compared to other developing nations and the service industry. The prevalence of small enterprises that are unable to benefit from economies of scale contributes in part to the low productivity of the manufacturing sector.
- Services-driven growth: The manufacturing sector’s share of GDP has remained constant over the past few decades, despite important product market reforms in the early 1990s, including as trade liberalisation and the repeal of industrial licensure. More than 50% of India’s GDP is generated by the service sector, which has been a major contributor to the country’s growth.
- India experienced ‘premature deindustrialization’ at the level of macro-manufacturing. The manufacturing-to-GDP ratio unexpectedly declined before achieving an optimum pace of development, creating an unfriendly manufacturing environment and a fragmented labour market.
- Lack of skilled labour: The development of the manufacturing sector is influenced by the availability of a trained and skilled labour force in the country.
- The difficulty of doing business in India is impacted by high tariffs, out-of-date labour laws, thin policy frameworks, and regulatory uncertainty. Another concern is the acquisition of land for the development of manufacturing facilities.
To boost the nation’s manufacturing demand and growth, the following activities should be taken:
- Economic zones need to be changed since they now provide exemptions from a number of present regulations, including those that deal with employment, taxation, and business establishment. These regions might act as a reform-catalyst, quickening the development of more extensive national reforms.
- Reforming labour laws: An increase in labour costs and confusion are caused by the proliferation of labour regulations, many of which are inconsistent. In this situation, India has consolidated all extant labour laws into four new labour codes.
- Investment Attraction: The manufacturing sectors that will provide the country with the advantages it needs—rapid job creation, technological innovation, and depth in strategically important industries—need to be investment attractive.
- Since it can give Indian enterprises a competitive edge and access to new markets, export-led manufacturing is supported.
- Enhancing education and training: Employers complain about substantial skill gaps, and less than 25% of graduates are believed to be employable in manufacturing. This demonstrates the benefits of higher spending on top-notch education, which is essential for skill development and would help reduce inequality and social isolation.
- Getting rid of infrastructure bottlenecks: Over the past 20 years, India has undertaken tremendous infrastructure investments. Infrastructure has degraded in several areas as a result of missed investment goals. Therefore, infrastructure development need to be the primary goal of encouraging manufacturing-led growth.
- Manufacturing expansion was one of the 1991 economic reforms’ objectives. However, it disregarded the need for a robust ecosystem, which includes infrastructure, training, and education, for manufacturing to succeed. The PM Gati Shakti Plan, Startup India, and the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) are just a few of the initiatives that the government has put in place to promote manufacturing-led growth. Manufacturing firms, financial institutions, governments, investors, and consumers must work together today to realise the manufacturing sector’s unrealized potential and attain the target of a USD five trillion economy by 2025.
