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Initial Thoughts:

• Overall, GS Paper 2 was on the expected lines. Questions from each section of the syllabus were asked in the UPSC Mains GS Paper 2.
• The static syllabus and current events were properly balanced.
• As stated in the UPSC Syllabus, General Studies Paper 2 was a great blend of Governance, Constitution, Polity, Social Justice, and International Relations.
• In the governance and social issues section, the main focus was on schemes and acts, and experts advise aspirants to now keep a track of all the flagship schemes and acts and not just the ones launched in past year.
• Three out of four questions in the IR section were from recent current affairs, emphasising the importance of current affairs in this area.

Most of the topics were directly covered from the Samajho’s Corner: Static Topics Repository for Mains

SMAP Initiative and Important Topics for UPSC Mains-2022

• Overall Polity and Constitution sections were medium on the difficulty level.
• The questions were straightforward and simple. Even though the questions were easy to score, the topics required a solid conceptual grasp of the constitution and its provisions, as well as some current information on the subject (with examples).
• This section had questions from a range of sub-topics such as the role of the National Commission for Backward Classes, Model Code of Conduct, the procedures through which the Presidents of India and France are elected, the role of the Vice-President of India as the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, etc.

Questions:

Q1. “The most significant achievement of modern law in India is the constitutionalization of environmental problems by the Supreme Court.” Discuss this statement with the help of relevant case laws. (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Structure, Organization and Functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary;
Covered in Polity SMP NOTES and Samajho’s Corner: 1. Article 21 and 2. Environment conservation related laws in India

Q2. “Right of movement and residence throughout the territory of India are freely available to the Indian citizens, but these rights are not absolute.” Comment. (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Indian Constitution—Historical Underpinnings, Evolution, Features, Amendments, Significant Provisions and Basic Structure.
Covered in Polity SMP NOTES: Article 19

Q4. Discuss the role of the Vice-President of India as the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Parliament and State Legislatures—Structure, Functioning, Conduct of Business, Powers & Privileges and Issues Arising out of these.

Covered in Polity SMP NOTES: Vice President and Speaker of Lower House & Chairman of Upper House

Q5. Discuss the role of the National Commission for Backward Classes in the wake of its transformation from a statutory body to a constitutional body. (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Functions and Responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies.

Covered in Polity SMP NOTES: Constitutional Bodies

Q11. Discuss the procedures to decide the disputes arising out of the election of a Member of the Parliament or State Legislature under The Representation of the People Act, 1951. What are the grounds on which the election of any returned candidate may be declared void? What remedy is available to the aggrieved party against the decision? Refer to the case laws. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Salient Features of the Representation of People’s Act.

Covered in Polity SMP NOTES: Salient features of Representation of Peoples Act

Q12. Discuss the essential conditions for exercise of the legislative powers by the Governor. Discuss the legality of re-promulgation of ordinances by the Governor without placing them before the Legislature. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Appointment to various Constitutional Posts, Powers, Functions and Responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies.

Covered in Polity SMP NOTES: Governor

Q13. “While the national political parties in India favour centralisation, the regional parties are in favour of State autonomy.” Comment. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Issues and Challenges Pertaining to the Federal Structure

Covered in Polity SMP NOTES: 1. Federal vs Unitary form of Government and 2. Centre-State Relations

Q14. Critically examine the procedures through which the Presidents of India and France are elected. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Comparison of the Indian Constitutional Scheme with that of Other Countries.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner: Comparison of the Indian Constitutional Scheme with that of the other countries

Q15. Discuss the role of the Election Commission of India in the light of the evolution of the Model Code of Conduct. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Powers, Functions and Responsibilities of various Constitutional Bodies.

Covered in Polity SMP NOTES: Constitutional Bodies

• The questions from Governance and Social Justice ranged from moderate to easy. The static syllabus and current events were properly balanced.
• Almost all questions were along expected lines, and nothing unusual was asked.

Questions:

Q3. To what extent, in your opinion, has the decentralisation of power in India changed the governance landscape at the grassroots? (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Devolution of Powers and Finances up to Local Levels and Challenges Therein.

Covered in Polity SMP NOTES.

Q6. The Gati-Shakti Yojana needs meticulous co-ordination between the government and the private sector to achieve the goal of connectivity. Discuss. (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Government Policies and Interventions for Development in various sectors and Issues arising out of their Design and Implementation.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner in various articles. Key highlights of the Union Budget 2022-23

Q7. The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 remains only a legal document without intense sensitisation of government functionaries and citizens regarding disability. Comment. (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Welfare Schemes for Vulnerable Sections of the population by the Centre and States and the Performance of these Schemes; Mechanisms, Laws, Institutions and Bodies constituted for the Protection and Betterment of these Vulnerable Sections.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre & States & the performance of these schemes

Q8. Reforming the government delivery system through the Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme is a progressive step, but it has its limitations too. Comment. (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Welfare Schemes for Vulnerable Sections of the population by the Centre and States and the Performance of these Schemes; Mechanisms, Laws, Institutions and Bodies constituted for the Protection and Betterment of these Vulnerable Sections.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre & States & the performance of these schemes

Q16. Besides the welfare schemes, India needs deft management of inflation and unemployment to serve the poor and the underprivileged sections of society. Discuss. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Welfare Schemes for Vulnerable Sections of the population by the Centre and States and the Performance of these Schemes; Mechanisms, Laws, Institutions and Bodies constituted for the Protection and Betterment of these Vulnerable Sections.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre & States & the performance of these schemes

Q17.Do you agree with the view that increasing dependence on donor agencies for development reduces the importance of community participation in the development process? Justify your answer. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Development Processes and the Development Industry — the Role of NGOs, SHGs, various groups and associations, donors, charities, institutional and other stakeholders.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner in various articles. Development processes and Development Industry

Q18. The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 remains inadequate in promoting incentive-based system for children’s education without generating awareness about the importance of schooling. Analyse. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner: Issues related to the management of Social Sector/Services relating to health, education, human resources

• This section’s questions were also on the expected lines. Almost all the questions were current affairs based, straightforward and easy to score.

Questions:

Q9. ‘India is an age-old friend of Sri Lanka.’ Discuss India’s role in the recent crisis in Sri Lanka in the light of the preceding statement. (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: India and its Neighborhood- Relations.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner and Video by ROHIT DAGAR SIR: 1. Sri Lankan Economic Crisis Explained and 2. India-Sri Lanka Relations Explained

Q10. Do you think that BIMSTEC is a parallel organisation like the SAARC? What are the similarities and dissimilarities between the two? How are Indian foreign policy objectives realized by forming this new organisation? (Answer in 150 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and Agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner:  BIMSTEC

Q19. How will I2U2 (India, Israel, UAE and USA) grouping transform India’s position in global politics? (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Bilateral, Regional and Global Groupings and Agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner.

Q20. ‘Clean energy is the order of the day.’ Describe briefly India’s changing policy towards climate change in various international fora in the context of geopolitics. (Answer in 250 words)

Topic in the syllabus: Effect of Policies and Politics of Developed and Developing Countries on India’s interests, Indian Diaspora.

Covered in Samajho’s Corner.