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Last 5 Years – Change in UPSC
Syllabus and Pattern
Note: This year notification from UPSC has
clearly stated that there is no change in the
syllabus for UPSC Examination 2017. This
article is only an attempt to formulate the
series of changes that UPSC Syllabus has seen
over the last five years.
It’s not a secret that although its steady and stealth changes; UPSC
has maintained its repo towards having a tact syllabus and pattern of
the examination. We should also acknowledge that even though we have
seen quite a change in UPSC syllabus and pattern, to our surprise,
most of it are on the positive side.
Some background on UPSC Syllabus and Pattern
UPSC is considered as the toughest exam in the world. There are trolls
that say its syllabus has everything that’s under the sun. This fact,
while chuckles a lot of us, is frightening if you are planning to
prepare for the examination. This alleged urban bias exam, UPSC, is
conducted in three stages; Prelims, Mains and the Personality Test.
Who decides the changes in UPSC Syllabus and Pattern?
The Union Government of India appoints an expert committee usually
headed by a former IAS who takes over the task and systematically
evaluate the effectiveness of the existing scheme of the Civil
Services examination. The committee refers to certain disciplines that
assure the inclusiveness in the selection process. The committee also
reviews the recommendations of previous expert committees.
Terms of reference of the committee:
Plan of Examination
System of Evaluation
Mechanism of designing
Logistical requirements for conduct
To form an opinion—the expert committee also looks for suggestions and
feedbacks from the public. Since It has a direct effect on the student
body, students are generally expected to give their suggestion on the
following areas; Age relaxation, Numbers of attempts Permitted, Test
of English Proficiency and Optional Subject; but you can also suggest
an improvement attributed to any part of the UPSC.
Changes in Last 5 Years
In last 5 years, UPSC has introduced various major and minor changes
in its examination pattern and syllabus;
2011
UPSC replaced the optional subject in Prelims with the CSAT.
2013:
UPSC replaced 2 optional subjects with 1 optional subject.
UPSC restructured the number of General Studies Papers. UPSC
divided previous 2 papers of GS into 3, and introduced a new
paper; Paper 4 – ‘Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude’.
The total number of Marks allotted for essay increased from 200 to
250.
Increase in the number of questions and decrease in the word limit
2014
UPSC increased the number of essays in the exam from 1 to 2. Now
there are two sections with four optional choices which previously
was a single section with four optional choices.
Total number of attempts permitted for the exam increased from 4
to 6
Maximum age limit increased from 30 to 32 for general candidates
2015
Pre-2015, both GS and CSAT were considered for merit. From 2015,
only GS remained as a merit test while CSAT was turned into a
qualifying exam.
Source: xaam.in
Trade facilitation agreement
in services
India submitted at WTO a proposal for a trade facilitation agreement in
services which is aimed at easing the movement of skilled workers across
borders.
The proposal will be taken up by an expert committee at the WTO
headquarters, post which it will be taken up for discussion among all WTO
members.
Minister of commerce, Nirmala Sitharaman confirmed that India has
submitted a legally vetted paper on Trade facilitation agreement in
services at Geneva.
In the initial phase, till March 17 only the council for trade in
services members will be part of the discussion. After that to build
awareness all WTO members will be made part of discussions.
India is planning to push the proposal at the upcoming WTO ministerial
meeting which will be held in Argentina in December.
What the pact aims to achieve:
Primarily, easing the cross-border movement of skilled workers.
Ensure portability of social security contributions.
Single window mechanism for foreign investment approvals.
Cross border insurance coverage to boost medical tourism.
Trade Facilitation Agreement(TFA) in
goods:
First administrative deal to be signed in 21 years at Bali.
It aims to streamline, simplify and standardize custom procedures which will cut
help cut trade cost.
It will also add 2.7 percent to world trade growth and more than half a percent to
world GDP growth.
It will reduce logistic costs, as goods will move faster.
Access to export and import data on a real-time basis, as all the ports will be
connected electronically.
Developing countries are required to build infrastructure capacity for faster
clearance of cross border shipments.
TFA in services as part of new issues:
The Trade facilitation agreement in services could be seen as a new issue
and India would be under pressure to allow discussion on other new
issues, which are not part of the ongoing Doha round negotiations.
India has earlier opposed attempts made by certain developed nations for
inclusion of new issues in WTO, though it agreed for an informal and nonbinding discussion. India’s stand is that the proposed Trade Facilitation
agreement(TFA) in services is about facilitation, that is making market
access effective and commercially meaningful and not about new market
access.
This essentially means that like the agreement in goods trade, the
proposed agreement is also expected to cover discrepancies in trade in
services, as well as procedural and administrative issues and principles
that apply to all.
It will not deal with market access issues because that will involve
domestic regulations which the proposed agreement does not seek to
address.
Source: xaam.in
Should
triple
outlawed?
talaq
be
Zakia Soman, co-founder of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, an
autonomous organisation, and a co-petitioner in the triple
talaq case before the Supreme Court, writes:
It is the constitutional obligation of the government to
enable Muslim women to obtain a level playing field
There are four or five judgments where the triple talaq
provision has been struck down as invalid. But it has not led
to this un-Koranic practice being rooted out from our society.
Triple talaq continues to be the most common method of
divorce. We had done a sample study of 4,710 women and found
that out of 525 women who were divorced, 349 were victims of
triple talaq. While the courts have settled the matter, we
have to look at the unjustness of the entire process. How can
we accept that a man can simply utter the word talaq thrice or
communicate it through phone with no witness deemed necessary
and where the burden is on the wife to legally contest it?
There is no law binding the man, he can just act on his whim.
This is absolutely unfair and must be stopped.
Seeking a level playing field
Let me cite a case from Madhya Pradesh where a woman who did
not wake up when her husband returned late from work received
talaq thrice when she was asleep! She was informed about her
husband’s decision by her mother-in-law. It is a convoluted
argument to say that triple talaq is not an issue only because
a few judgments have declared it invalid. Why should a man
have unilateral powers to divorce, and the woman just comply?
What is wrong in seeking a level playing field between husband
and wife? Such arguments only further the patriarchal order.
As far as the Koran is concerned, triple talaq is just not
valid. There are verses calling for reconciliation and
mediation over a period of 90 days involving both sides. The
objective is that the woman should not be rendered a
destitute. Also, when the final pronouncement of talaq is
made, the women should not be menstruating. This is an evolved
system of jurisprudence calling for just and fair divorce.
All we are seeking is that the Supreme Court should lay down
the procedure for talaq based on the talaq-e-ehsan method.
There is a debate about personal laws being violative of
fundamental rights. But the personal law being practised by
the Muslim community in India is not based on Koranic
injunctions. Rather triple talaq is a violation of the tenets
of justice and fairness.
Gender justice is a central tenet of the Koran and gender
inequality and triple talaq are in violation of the Koranic
principles. In fact, in the Koran, the very conception of
humankind is based on an equal footing between man and woman.
But patriarchal misinterpretations and distortions rule our
lives. Any talk of reform in personal law is brushed aside as
interference in religious matters.
On a Uniform Civil Code
As far as our position on the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) is
concerned, we are clear that a secular law alternative must be
available to every citizen. This alternative exists in the
form of the Special Marriages Act. But abolition of triple
talaq and UCC are two separate issues. The UCC question
applies to the entire Indian population, not just Muslims.
Muslim personal law needs drastic reform just like the Hindu
code or the Christian laws. There has been a legal
discrimination of Muslim women in our country. Muslim women
are still subject to the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat)
Application Act, 1937 which is silent on triple talaq, nikah
halala and polygamy. We need to be brought on a par with Hindu
sisters and Christian sisters who have a legal recourse. The
Hindu women have the Hindu Succession Act and the Hindu
Marriage Act. We are a patriarchal society and it is not as
though Hindu and Christian women have attained equality. But
they do not face legal discrimination the way Muslim women do.
It is the constitutional obligation of the government to
enable Muslim women to obtain justice. It is not about the BJP
or the government but about gender justice for Muslim women.
Kamal Faruqui, former chairperson of the Delhi Minorities
Commission and founder-member of the All India Muslim Personal
Law Board, writes:
Triple talaq is a Koranic injunction. But it depends on the
terms drawn up in the marriage contract
The pronouncement of triple talaq is acceptable to all four
schools of thought in Islam and though not desirable, it is
very much a Koranic injunction. Those who criticise it do not
understand the Koran. Having said that, I should also state
that eventually it comes down to the nikahnama, which is a
contractual obligation between the two parties. If the terms
of the contract do not have provisions against triple talaq
and have not been contested before being accepted, the
pronouncement of talaq at one go or over the prescribed period
of three months is allowed in the Koran. Don’t forget that
Islam is the first religion in the world to institutionalise
marriage. Nikah imposes conditions, prescribes equality of
women, maintenance of children and so on.
Conditions for triple talaq
But please don’t assume that the Koran does not condone talaq.
It has been described as one of the worst options to be
exercised only under extenuating circumstances. It allows for
an exit when the marriage breaks down but only under certain
conditions. The talaq-e-ehsan, one form of divorce, is over a
period of three months and it is only after the completion of
the third month that you are no longer man and wife. The
talaq-e-bidat or triple talaq at one go allows the man to
exhaust all the options at once. Again, if the nikahnama has
proscribed it, then the man cannot take recourse to this
divorce. Divorce is one of the worst things in the institution
of marriage and allowed only in extreme situations. Even when
a person goes to buy a pen, he is bound by contractual
agreement. In the case of a nikah/marriage, the contract is
between two parties in the presence of at least two witnesses.
We are governed by the Muslim Personal Law (Shariat)
Application Act, 1937, and if the Supreme Court says this must
be revisited, we will oppose it.
Many misconceptions
I also wish to clear the misconception on the number of triple
talaqs practised among Muslims. We moved RTIs to find out the
divorce rates among the religions in India and I can share
with certitude that it is the least prevalent among Muslims.
It is rare among Muslims. And those who practise it are
usually the uneducated and the poor who do not know their
Koran or those who are misled by others. It is also incorrect
to say that triple talaq has been banned in 22 countries; it
has been regulated in most of said countries. You could have
concerns about why is it that a man can take recourse to
uttering talaq and not the woman. Under Islam, the man shares
the greater responsibility in marriage as far as maintenance
of his wife and children are concerned. He has many duties to
fulfil and many responsibilities too. That is why he has been
given the responsibility of ending the marriage only when it
breaks down. Women too have the option of khula. She will have
to approach the qazi if her husband is absconding, of bad
character and so on.
We will plead before the apex court to have a separate
department with people who are well-versed in the Sharia laws
if at all the court wishes to mediate on the matter. So far,
the courts have been very careful in interpreting personal
laws — which are part of the fundamental right to religion for
every citizen of the country.
Syeda Hameed, Women’s rights activist, educationist, a former
member of the Planning Commission, and the first woman Qazi
from Lucknow, writes:
Why rake up matters that have already been settled by the SC
and create discord between communities?
Back in 2002, the Supreme Court had given its ruling on triple
talaq in the Shamim Ara v. State of U.P. case — when Justice
R.C. Lahoti and Justice P. Venkatarama Reddi said a mere
pronouncement of talaq in response to a woman’s plea for
maintenance cannot be treated as pronouncement of talaq. In
order to be valid, talaq has to be pronounced according to the
Koranic injunction. Triple talaq, in fact, was banned in 2002
by the apex court and I don’t recall the All India Muslim
Personal Law Board and other affiliates protesting against the
judgment. There was a similar judgement from the Aurangabad
Bench of the Bombay High Court in the Dagdu Pathan v. Rahimbi
case (2002) which struck down triple talaq. So I am perplexed
why Shayara Bano, who recently filed a public interest
litigation before the Supreme Court, was not advised by her
lawyers that the issue had been addressed and settled in the
past.
Cues in the Koran
An unnecessary controversy has been created now when all the
contesting parties that are shouting had earlier kept quiet.
The whole triple talaq issue is repugnant to Islam and those
who say it legitimises Islam are doing a great disservice to
Islam.
The whole point of talaq is to find a dignified way of getting
out of a marriage that has irrevocably broken down. But it is
not that simple. It is actually very difficult to get out of
marriage. The Koran states the conditions which have to be
observed. Triple talaq must be pronounced over three months.
One per month. During the months, mediation is essential with
both parties being represented during the negotiation. This is
a Koranic injunction and it is only after following these
conditions that talaq is granted and once granted is
irrevocable. You cannot say that you uttered the word in a
drunken stupor; neither can you pronounce it over the phone or
send it on email or fax it or send a text message. But I feel
that the community has to look within and take the lead in
reforming such reprehensible practices, or else the state will
interfere with personal laws. And it has already been settled
that personal law is in sync with the constitutional rights
guaranteed to all citizens.
Egalitarian treatment
On the issue of polygamy, which is again being contested in
court, it is conditional on so many things as spelt out in the
Koran, which makes it abundantly clear that it is against
human nature to give egalitarian treatment to everyone. So,
the concept of four wives is simply not possible if you follow
the letter and spirit of Koran. It specifies that in case
there is more than one marriage, it is essential that
identical treatment is given to each wife. But since this is
not possible given human nature, it is best to have only one
wife. The Prophet married Hazrat Khadija. She was 15 years
older than him, she was a widow, and he worked for her. It was
she who proposed marriage. This is the Prophet’s Sunnah
(practice). What example does it provide for the believers?
Islam is going through a turbulent phase world over and this
issue can be used as an excuse to create discord between
communities giving rise to a communal situation. I also fear
that the hardliners will raise the spectre of ‘Islam in
danger’ through this issue. I am afraid this is not the right
time to debate on matters that have been settled by the
courts.
Source: xaam.in
Why
Earth’s
inner
core
doesn’t melt?
An energy distribution cycle keeps the core solid
despite it being hotter than the surface of the Sun
Scientists have discovered why the crystallised iron
core of the Earth remains solid, despite being hotter
than the surface of the Sun.
Researchers at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in
Sweden found that on the edge of the inner core, pieces
of crystals’ structure continuously melt and diffuse
only to be reinserted due to high pressure like
“shuffling deck of cards.”
This energy distribution cycle keeps the crystal stable
and the core solid.
Spinning within Earth’s molten core is a crystal ball —
actually a mass formation of almost pure crystallised
iron — nearly the size of the moon.
Understanding this strange, unobservable feature of our
planet depends on knowing the atomic structure of these
crystals — something scientists have been trying to do
for years.
As with all metals, the atomic-scale crystal structures
of iron change depending on the temperature and
pressure the metal is exposed to.
Atoms are packed into variations of cubic, as well as
hexagonal formations. At room temperatures and normal
atmospheric pressure, iron is in what is known as a
body-centred cubic (BCC) phase, which is a crystal
architecture with eight corner points and a centre
point.
However at extremely high pressure, the crystalline
structures transform into 12-point hexagonal forms, or
a close packed (HCP) phase.
At Earth’s core, where pressure is 3.5 million times
higher than surface pressure — and temperatures are
some 6,000 degrees higher — scientists have proposed
that the atomic architecture of iron must be hexagonal.
Anatoly Belonoshko from KTH said data showed that pure
iron likely accounts for 96% of the inner core’s
composition, along with nickel and possibly light
elements.
Temperature impact
At low temperature, BCC is unstable and crystalline
planes slide out of the ideal BCC structure. But at
high temperatures, the stabilisation of these
structures begins much like a card game — with the
shuffling of a “deck.”
Mr. Belonoshko said in the extreme heat of the core,
atoms no longer belonged to planes because of the high
amplitude of atomic motion.
“The sliding of these planes is a bit like shuffling a
deck of cards. Even though the cards are put in
different positions, the deck is still a deck.
Likewise, the BCC iron retains its cubic structure,” he
said.
Such a shuffling leads to an enormous increase in the
distribution of molecules and energy — which leads to
increasing entropy, or the distribution of energy
states.
That, in turn, makes the BCC stable, he said.
Source: xaam.in
What
is
the
difference
between GSLV and PSLV? (GS
3,Prelims 2017 )
Both PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) and GSLV
(Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) are the
satellite-launch vehicles (rockets) developed by ISRO.
PSLV is designed mainly to deliver the “earthobservation” or “remote-sensing” satellites with liftoff mass of up to about 1750 Kg to Sun-Synchronous
circular polar orbits of 600-900 Km altitude.
The remote sensing satellites orbit the earth from
pole-to-pole (at about 98 deg orbital-plane
inclination). An orbit is called sun-synchronous when
the angle between the line joining the centre of the
Earth and the satellite and the Sun is constant
throughout the orbit.
Due to their sun-synchronism nature, these orbits are
also referred to as “Low Earth Orbit (LEO)” which
enables the on-board camera to take images of the earth
under the same sun-illumination conditions during each
of the repeated visits, the satellite makes over the
same area on ground thus making the satellite useful
for earth resources monitoring.
Apart from launching the remote sensing satellites to
Sun-synchronous polar orbits, the PSLV is also used to
launch the satellites of lower lift-off mass of up to
about 1400 Kg to the elliptical Geosynchronous Transfer
Orbit (GTO).
PSLV is a four-staged launch vehicle with first and
third stage using solid rocket motors and second and
fourth stages using liquid rocket engines. It also uses
strap-on motors to augment the thrust provided by the
first stage, and depending on the number of these
strap-on boosters, the PSLV is classified into its
various versions like core-alone version (PSLV-CA),
PSLV-G or PSLV-XL variants.
The GSLV is designed mainly to deliver the
communication-satellites to the highly elliptical
(typically 250 x 36000 Km) Geosynchronous Transfer
Orbit (GTO). The satellite in GTO is further raised to
its final destination, viz., Geo-synchronous Earth
orbit (GEO) of about 36000 Km altitude (and zero deg
inclination on equatorial plane) by firing its in-built
on-board engines.
Due to their geo-synchronous nature, the satellites in
these orbits appear to remain permanently fixed in the
same position in the sky, as viewed from a particular
location on Earth, thus avoiding the need of a tracking
ground antenna and hence are useful for the
communication applications.
Two versions of the GSLV are being developed by ISRO.
The first version, GSLV Mk-II, has the capability to
launch satellites of lift-off mass of up to 2,500 kg to
the GTO and satellites of up to 5,000 kg lift-off mass
to the LEO. GSLV MK-II is a three-staged vehicle with
first stage using solid rocket motor, second stage
using Liquid fuel and the third stage, called Cryogenic
Upper Stage, using cryogenic engine.
S.P.S. JAIN, former Member Engineering, Indian
Railways, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh
P.K. JAIN, Deputy Director, Satellite Communication,
ISRO, Bengaluru
Source: xaam.in