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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3

DISASTER MANAGEMENT
1. Introduction to Disaster Management
a. What is a Disaster?
b. What is a Hazard?
c. What is Vulnerability?
d. What is Risk?
e. What is Capacity?
f. Classification of Disasters
g. Disaster Management Cycle

2. Disaster Management in India

a. Background
b. National Disaster Management Act
c. National Policy on Disaster Management
d. The National Disaster Management Plan
e. Disaster Management Cycle in India

3. Natural Hazards in India

a. India: Vulnerability Profile
b. Natural Disasters
c. Man Made Disasters

4. International Cooperation and Current Developments

a. Global Frameworks for Disaster Risk Reduction
b. Partnerships with International Agencies
c. India's Leadership Initiatives
d. Bilateral Agreements with Countries

5. Miscellaneous Topics
a. Disaster Insurance
b. Community Based Disaster Management.
c. Role of Social Media in Disaster Management
d. Retrofitting of Buildings- The Key is to Let it Swing
e. Climate Change and Disasters
f. Poverty and Disasters
g. Miscellaneous NDMA Guidelines
h. National Disaster Plan for Animals

ECONOMICS
1. Introduction
2. Evolution of Indian Industry
a. The Pre-Reform Regime
i. Industrial Policy Regime in the Pre-Reform Period
ii. Major Features of Pre-1991 Industrial Policy
iii. Assessment of Pre-1991 Industrial Policy

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3
b. Beginning of Reforms in the 1980s
c. New Industrial Policy, 1991
i. Assessment of New Industrial Policy (NIP)
3. Initiatives Taken by the Government for Industrial Development
a. Disinvestment
b. Ease of Doing Business in India
c. E- Biz Project
d. Make in India Initiative
e. National Manufacturing Policy
f. Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC)
g. Steps Taken for Promotion and Development of MSMEs

GOVERNMENT BUDGETING
1. Budgeting: Meaning and Importance
2. The Union of India’s Budget
a. Components of the Government Budget
i. Revenue Account
ii. Capital Account
iii. Statistics as Given by the Union Budget
b. Stages in Enactment
i. Presentation of Budget
ii. General Discussion on Budget
iii. Scrutiny by Departmental Committees
iv. Demand for Grants
v. Appropriation Bill
vi. Finance Bill
3. Weaknesses in the Budgetary Process
a. Weaknesses in Resource Allocation and Use
b. Weaknesses in the Indian Budgetary System and Implementation
4. Budgetary Reforms
a. Medium Term Budget Frameworks
b. Prudent Economic Assumptions
c. Top-Down Budgeting Techniques
d. Relaxing Central Input Controls
e. An Increased Focus on Results
f. Budget Transparency
g. Modern Financial Management Practices
5. Recent Changes in Union Budgeting
6. Scrapping of Plan and Non-Plan classification
7. Merging of Railway and General Budget
8. Budget Advancement
9. Evolution of Budgeting
a. The Line Item Budget
b. Performance Budgeting
c. Outcome budgeting
d. Zero-based Budgeting
e. Gender Budgeting

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3
f. E-Budgeting

INFRASTRUCTURE
1. Introduction
2. Relation between Infrastructure & Economic Development
3. Roads and Road Transport
a. Government Initiatives
b. Way Ahead
c. Additional Schemes/Initiatives
d. New Initiatives
e. Green Initiatives
f. E- Initiatives
g. Road Connectivity Projects with Neighbouring Countries
h. Recommendations of Rakesh Mohan Committee (National Transport Development
Policy
4. Committee (NTDPC))
5. Railways
a. Rolling Stock
b. Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFCs)
c. Commission of Railway Safety
d. Key Developments
e. Various Committees for Reforms
f. Challenges and Suggestions
g. Key Issues
6. Civil Aviation
a. Agencies related to Civil Aviation
b. Challenges & Recommendations
c. Recommendations of NTDPC
7. Ports and Shipping
a. National Maritime Development Programme (NMDP)
b. Shipping
c. Coastal Shipping
d. Inland Water Transport
e. Shipping Corporation of India
f. Shipbuilding Industry in India
g. Key Developments
h. Challenges
i. Recommendations of NTDPC
8. Energy
a. Projected Energy Demand
b. Energy Efficiency
c. Energy Pricing
d. Oil and Gas Production
9. Power
a. Power Availability in India
b. Key Developments in Power Sector
c. Coal
10. Renewable Energy
a. Policy Initiatives

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3
b. Key Developments
11. Telecommunications
a. Present Status
b. Tele-Density
c. Composition of the Market
d. Broadband
e. National Telecom Policy
f. Manufacturing of Telecom Equipment
g. Universal Service Obligation Fund
h. National Optical Fiber Network (NOFN)
i. Transition to New Internet Protocol
j. Regulatory Framework
k. Research & Development
l. Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs)
12. Kelkar Committee Report: Revisiting & Revitalizing the PPP Model of Infrastructure
13. Development

LAND REFORMS IN INDIA

1. Introduction
2. Need for Land Reforms in India
3. Objectives of Land Reforms in India
4. Historical Background
5. Land Reforms in India
a. Legal Framework for Land Reforms
b. Measures undertaken for Land Reforms
i. Digital India Land Record Modernization Programme
6. Land Acquisition in India
a. The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation
and
7. Resettlement Act,
a. The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation
and
8. Resettlement (Second Amendment) Bill
9. Analysis of Land Reform Measures
10. Future of Land Reforms
11. Suggestions for the Future

AGRICULTURAL SUBSIDIES AND MINIMUM

1. SUPPORT PRICE
2. Introduction
3. Agriculture Subsidies
a. Types of Agriculture Subsidies in India
i. Explicit Input Subsidies
ii. Implicit Input Subsidies
iii. Output Subsidies
iv. Food Subsidies
b. Agriculture Subsidies on the basis of Mode of Payment

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3
i. Direct Subsidies
ii. Indirect Subsidies
c. Issues related to Agriculture Subsidies and their Possible Resolution
d. Agriculture Subsidies and WTO
i. Historical Background
ii. Indian Agriculture Subsidies and WTO
4. Agriculture Pricing Policies
a. Minimum Support Price
i. Need of MSP Policy
ii. Critical Evaluation of Minimum Support Price

ECONOMICS FOR ANIMAL REARING

1. Introduction
2. Different Categories of Animals
3. Role of Livestock in Indian Economy
4. Present Status of Animal Rearing in India
5. Challenges faced by Animal Husbandry Sector
6. Government Initiatives to Overcome the Challenges
a. National Action Plan (Through NLM)
b. National Livestock Mission
c. National Mission on Bovine Productivity (NMBP)
d. National Program for Bovine Breeding and Dairy Development (NPBB&DD)
i. Rashtriya Gokul Mission
e. Dairy Entrepreneurship Development Scheme
f. National Dairy Plan
g. National Mission on Protein Supplement
7. Pink Revolution
a. Poultry Sector
8. Fisheries
a. Challenges Faced by the Fisheries Sector
b. Blue Revolution – Neel Kranti Mission
i. Vision
ii. Mission
iii. Objectives
iv. Strategy – Central Sector Assistance Schemes
c. National Policy on Marine Fishery
9. Operation Flood
10. Need of a Second White Revolution to Overcome Supply Side & Demand Side Challenges

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3

FOOD PROCESSING AND RELATED INDUSTRIES

ININDIA – SCOPE AND SIGNIFICANCE, LOCATION,
UPSTREAM AND DOWNSTREAM REQUIREMENTS,
SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
1. Food Processing Industry
2. Evolution of the Food Processing Sector in India
3. Supply Chain of the Food Processing Sector
a. Backward and Forward Linkages
4. Scope and Significance of the Food Processing Sector in India
5. Potential of Processed Food Sector in India
6. Factors Responsible for Success of Food Processing Sector in India
7. India’s Strengths in the Food Processing Sector
8. A Brief SWOT Analysis of the Food Processing Industry in India
9. Policy Initiatives and Measures Taken by the Government to Support the Food Processing
10. Sector
a. Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006
b. Infrastructure Development in the Food Processing Sector
c. Challenges that still remain despite Government Initiatives
d.
PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, BUFFER
STOCKS AND FOOD SECURITY
1. Public Distribution System in India
a. Objectives
b. Evolution and Functioning of PDS
c. Limitations of PDS In India
d. Targeted Public Distribution System
i. Key Features of TPDS
ii. Issues related with TPDS
e. Recent PDS Reforms
f. Revamping of PDS
g. Alternatives to PDS
h. Universal vs. Targeted Debate
i. Food Corporation of India (FCI)
i. Recommendations of High Level Committee on Restructuring of FCI
2. Buffer Stocks
a. Introduction
b. Buffer Stock Policy of India
c. Critical Evaluation of Buffer Stocks in India
3. Food Security
a. Introduction
b. Qualitative and Quantitative Dimensions of Food Security
i. Quantitative Dimension of Food Security in India

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3
ii. Qualitative Dimension of Food Security in India
c. Why Securing Food is a Challenge?
i. Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS)
ii. Mid-Day Meal (MDM) Scheme
iii. Critical Appraisal of ICDS and MDM
d. National Food Security Act
i. Key Features of the Act
ii. Critical Evaluation of NFSA
e. WTO and Food Security
i. Recent debates in WTO meets over Food Security

TECHNOLOGY MISSIONS
1. Introduction
2. Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH)
3. National Mission on Agriculture Extension and Technology (NMAET)
4. National Mission on Oilseeds and Oil Palm (NMOOP)
5. National Saffron Mission
6. Technology Mission on Citrus
7. Technology Mission on Coconut
8. Technology Mission on Oilseeds, Pulses and Maize (TMOP)
9. Jute Technology Mission
10. Technology Mission on Cotton (TMC)
11. Sugar Technology Mission
12. National Mission on Bio Diesel
13. National Mission on Food Processing
14. National Food Security Mission
15. National Mission on Medicinal Plants
16. National Mission on Micro-Irrigation
17. National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA)
18. Green Revolution – Krishonnati Yojana

MAJOR CROPS & CROPPING PATTERN

1. Cropping Pattern
a. Cropping Systems
b. Significance of Cropping System
c. Factors Affecting the Cropping Pattern
d. Types of Cropping Systems
i. Mono-Cropping
ii. Multiple Cropping
2. Major Crops in India
3. Cropping System in India
a. Evolution
b. Categories of Crops in India
i. Based on End Usage

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ii. Based on Seasons
c. Cropping Patterns in India
4. Major Agricultural Regions or Zones of India

INVESTMENT MODELS
INFRASTRUCTURE
1. Models Used in the Planning Process
a. Harrod – Domar Growth Model
b. Mahalanobis Strategy of Economic Growth
c. Planning Model Adopted in India
2. Infrastructure Investment Models
a. Financing of Infrastructure: Need, Issue and Challenges
b. Issues in Infrastructure Financing
c. Measures Taken by the Government
d. Public-Private Partnership (PPP) in Infrastructure
e. EPC MODEL
f. Swiss Challenge Model
g. Hybrid Annuity Model
3. Models of Foreign Investment
a. Why the Need for Foreign investment
b. Forms of Foreign Investment
c. Foreign Direct Investment
d. Foreign Institutional Investors
e. Recent Initiatives to promote Foreign Investment

SECURITY

CHALLENGES TO INTERNAL SECURITY

THROUGH COMMUNICATION NETWORK
1. Introduction
2. What is Communication Network
3. Role of Communication Network in Today’s World
a. Special Case – Communication Network in the Smart city
4. Threats to Communication Networks
a. Natural Threats
b. Human induced threats
5. Importance of Securing Communication Networks
6. Challenges in Securing Communication Network
7. Recent Developments
8. Way Forward

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3

SECURITY CHALLENGES AND THEIR

MANAGEMENT IN BORDER AREAS
1. Introduction
a. What is Border Management
2. Indo-China Border
a. Challenges Along the China Border
b. Initiatives Taken for Effective Border Management
c. Way Forward
3. Indo-Pakistan
a. Challenges Along the Border
b. Initiatives Taken by Government
4. Indo-Nepal
a. Challenges Along the Border
b. Initiatives Taken for Effective Border Management
c. Way Forward
5. Indo-Bhutan
a. Challenges Along the Border
i. Border Dispute
ii. Other Issues
b. Initiatives Taken
6. Indo-Bangladesh
a. Initiatives Taken
7. Indo-Myanmar
a. Challenges at Indo-Myanmar border
b. Steps taken by government
c. Way Ahead
8. Indo-Sri Lanka
a. Challenges along the border
i. Katchatheevu Island
ii. Fishermen Issue
b. Initiatives Taken
c. Way Forward
9. General Recommendations for Better Border Management
10. General Government Initiatives for Border Management
a. Border Area Development Programme
b. Development of Integrated Check Posts (ICPs)
11. Coastal Security
a. Challenges
b. Maritime Security & Threats
c. The Coastal Security Architecture
i. The Customs Marine Organisation (CMO)
ii. The Indian Coast Guard (ICG)
iii. The Marine Police Force
iv. Present Coastal Security System
d. Initiatives in Coastal Security Architecture
e. Way forward

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3

MONEY LAUNDERING
1. Introduction
a. Why is Money Laundered?
b. How is Money Laundered?
c. Various Techniques Used for Money Laundering
d. Hawala and Money Laundering
i. Cryptocurrency: The New Hawala
2. Impact of Money Laundering on Nation
3. Prevention of Money Laundering
a. Indian Mechanisms to Combat Money Laundering
i. Prevention of Money Laundering Act
ii. Financial Intelligence Unit - India (FIU-IND)
iii. Enforcement Directorate
b. Global mechanisms to Combat Money Laundering:
i. Vienna convention
ii. The Council of Europe Convention
iii. Basel Committee’s Statement of Principles
iv. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF)
v. United Nations Global Programme Against Money Laundering (GPML)
vi. Other Organization and Initiatives against Anti-Money-Laundering (AML)
4. Challenges in Prevention of Money Laundering
5. Way forward

ROLE OF MEDIA AND SOCIAL NETWORKING

SITES IN INTERNAL SECURITY CHALLENGES
1. Media
1.1. Introduction
1.2. Role of Media in India
1.3. National Security& Media
1.4. Where Media is Misleading? – Threat to Internal Security
1.5. Existing Regulations and Restrictions
1.6. Measures to tackle the threat
2. Social Media
2.1. Introduction
2.2. Social Media vs Social Networking
2.3. Types of Social Media
2.4. National Security & Social Media
2.5. Threat to Internal Security
2.6. Available Checks and Balances: Regulations
2.7. Measures to Tackle the Threat

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3

LINKAGES BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND

SPREAD OF EXTREMISM
1. Concepts and Definitions
a. Terrorism
b. Extremism
c. Radicalisation
2. India’s Internal Security Situation
3. Left Wing Extremism (Naxalism) in India
a. Origin and Evolution
b. Different Phases of LWE
c. Objective of LWE in India
d. Strategy of the Naxal Movement
e. Causes for Spread of Left Extremism
f. Factors that Sustain the Movement
g. The Government of India’s Approach
h. Review and Monitoring Mechanisms
i. Important Schemes for LWE Affected States
j. What needs to be done?
4. North-East Insurgency
a. Causes for NE Insurgency
b. Reasons for the Existence of the Armed Ethnic Groups
c. Government Initiatives Towards North East Insurgency
d. What Needs to be Done?
5. Jammu and Kashmir Insurgency
a. Two Dimensions of the Kashmir Conundrum
b. Reasons for J & K Insurgency
c. Government’s Approach Towards Insurgency in J & K
d. The challenges faced by the state
e. Why Militancy has failed in Kashmir?
f. What needs to be done?

CHALLENGES TO INTERNAL SECURITY

THROUGH COMMUNICATION NETWORK
1. Introduction
2. What is Communication Network
3. Role of Communication Network in Today’s World
a. Special Case – Communication Network in the Smart city
4. Threats to Communication Networks
a. Natural Threats
b. Human induced threats
5. Importance of Securing Communication Networks
6. Challenges in Securing Communication Network
7. Recent Developments

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 GENRAL STUDIES - 3
8. Way Forward

CYBER SECURITY
1. Introduction to Cyber Security
a. Cyberspace
b. Cyberthreats
i. Cyber Crime/ Cyber Attacks
ii. Cyber terrorism
iii. Cyberwarfare
iv. Cyber Espionage
c. Importance of Cyberspace
d. Challenges in defending cyberspace
2. Cybersecurity in India
a. Current situation
b. Steps taken by Government in Cybersecurity
c. Legal Framework
i. National Cybersecurity Policy
ii. Information Technology Act
iii. Criticisms of the Information Technology Act
iv. National Telecom Policy
d. Institutional Framework
i. National Cybersecurity Coordination Centre (NCCC)
ii. India’s Computer Emergency Respose Team (CERT-In)
iii. National critical information infrastructure protection centre (NCIIPC)
iv. Indian cyber-crime coordination centre (I4C) and Cyber Warrior Police force
v. Cyber Swachchta Kendra (CSK)

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 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

SECURITY
CYBER SECURITY
As per Information Technology Act, 2000, “Cyber security means protecting
information, equipment, devices computer, computer resource, communication
device and information stored therein from un authorized access, use, disclosure,
disruption, modification or destruction.”
Cyberspace
India’s Cyber Security Policy 2013 defines cyberspace as a complex environment
comprising interaction between people, software and services, supported by
worldwide distribution of information and communication technology devices and
networks.
Cyber threats
Cyber threats can be disaggregated into four baskets based on the perpetrators and
their motives - Cyber Espionage, Cyber Crime, Cyber Terrorism, Cyber Warfare.
Cyber Crime/ Cyber Attacks
Cyber-attack is “any type of offensive maneuver employed by individuals or whole
organizations that targets computer information systems, infrastructures, computer
networks with an intention to damage or destroy targeted computer network or
system.”
These attacks can be labeled either as Cyber-campaign, Cyber-warfare or Cyber-
terrorism depending upon the context, scale and severity of attacks. Cyber-attacks
can range from installing spyware on a PC to attempts to destroy the critical
infrastructure of entire nations.
Cyber terrorism
Acts of Terrorism related to cyber space or act of terrorism executed using Cyber
technologies is popularly known as 'cyber terrorism'.
“Cyber terrorism is the convergence of terrorism and cyber space. It is
generally understood to mean unlawful attacks and threats of attacks against
computers, networks, and information stored therein when done to intimidate
or coerce a government or its people in furtherance of political or social
objectives, Further, to qualify as cyber terrorism, an attack should result in
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
violence against persons or property or at least cause enough harm to
generate fear, Serious attacks against critical infrastructures could be acts of
cyber terrorism depending upon their impact.”
It should be noted here that if they create panic by attacking critical
systems/infrastructure, there is no need for it to lead to violence. In fact such
attacks can be more dangerous.
Besides, terrorists also use cyberspace for purposes like planning terrorist attacks,
recruiting sympathizers, communication purposes, command and control,
spreading propaganda in form of malicious content online to brain wash, funding
purposes etc. It is also used as a new arena for attacks in pursuit of the terrorists’
political and social objectives.
Cyber warfare
“The use of computer technology to disrupt the activities of a state or
organization, especially the deliberate attacking of information systems for
strategic or military purposes.” These hostile actions against a computer system or
network can take any form. On one hand, it may be conducted with the smallest
possible intervention that allows extraction of the information sought without
disturbing the normal functioning of a computer system or network. This type of
intervention is never notice by user and is continuing.
Other type may be destructive in nature which alters, disrupts, degrades, or destroy
an adversary’s computer systems.
Cyber Espionage
As per Oxford dictionary, Cyber espionage is “The use of computer networks to
gain illicit access to confidential information, typically that held by a government
or other organization.” It is generally associated with intelligence gathering, data
theft and, more recently, with analysis of public activity on social networking sites
like Facebook and Twitter. These activities could be by criminals, terrorists or
nations as part of normal information gathering or security monitoring.
Examples of Cyber Espionage include- 2014 hacking of major US companies to
steal trade secrets by Chinese officials; Titan Rain; Moonlight Maze; NSA
surveillance Program as revealed by Edward Snowden in USA.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
Importance of Cyberspace
Cyber Security has assumed strategic and critical importance because of following
reasons:
• Cyberspace has become key component in the formulation and execution of
public policies.
• It is used by government to process and store sensitive and critical data which if
compromised can have devastating impact.
• Taking down cyberspace will result into disruption of many critical public
services like railways, defense systems, communication system, banking and other
financial system etc.
• Several states are developing the capabilities in the area of cyberattacks which
can alter outcomes in the battlefield.
• Individuals are using internet based services at a growing pace making them
vulnerable to cybercrimes, such as- online bank frauds, surveillance, profiling,
violation of privacy etc.
Challenges in defending cyberspace
The task of tackling cyber-attacks is more difficult than conventional threats due to
following reasons
• Diffused and intangible threat in the absence of tangible perpetrators coupled
with low costs of mounting an attack makes it difficult to frame an adequate
response.
• Difficult to locate the attacker who can even mislead the target into believing that
the attack has come from somewhere else.
• Absence of any geographical constraints enabling attackers to launch attack
anywhere on the globe
• Need of international cooperation - Cyberspace are inherently international even
from the perspective of national interest. It is not possible for a country to ignore
what is happening in any part of this space if it is to protect the functionality of the
cyberspace relevant for its own nationals.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
• Rapidly evolving technology needs investment, manpower and an ecosystem to
keep track of global developments, developing countermeasures and staying ahead
of the competition.
• Non-existence of foolproof security architecture due to low resources
requirement for attacker to launch attack coupled with potential bugs in any system
• Human element in cyber security – Target users, themselves, make mistakes and
fall prey to cyber attack. Most sophisticated cyberattacks have all involved a
human element: Stux net needed the physical introduction of infected USB devices
into Iran’s nuclear facilities; the 2016 cyber-heist of $950 million from Bangladesh
involved gullible (or complicit) bankers handing over SWIFT codes to hackers.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

CHALLENGES TO INTERNAL SECURITY THROUGH

COMMUNICATION NETWORK
Communication networks are a part of Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) and
are crucial for the connectivity of other critical infrastructure, viz. Energy;
Transportation (air, surface, rail & water); Banking & Finance;
Telecommunication; Defence; Space; Law enforcement, security & intelligence;
Sensitive Government organisations; Public Health; Water supply; Critical
manufacturing; E-Governance etc. Threats to communication networks can be both
through the network as well as to the network.
The cyber-attacks coordinated from remote locations have potential to compromise
these communication networks and disrupt critical infrastructure which depends on
them. In India, where various threats are already present in the form of terrorism,
insurgency, naxalism, hostile nations etc., the protection of communication
network pose significant challenges to internal security.
Communication Network
Communication network is the interconnection of electronic gadgets and devices
that enable them transmit information in the form of data, voice and videos. The
network infrastructure includes hardware and software resources such as mobile,
laptops, sensors, servers, web applications, satellites, SCADA, LAN, WAN, Optic
fiber network etc. It provides the communication path and services between users,
processes, applications, services and external networks/the internet.
Critical Infrastructure (CI) - “Those facilities, systems, or functions, whose
incapacity or destruction would cause a debilitating impact on national security,
governance, economy and social well-being of a nation”.
In section 70 of IT Act 2000, Critical Information Infrastructure (CII) is defined as:
“The computer resource, the incapacitation or destruction of which, shall have
debilitating impact on national security, economy, public health or safety.”
With the increasing convergence of communication technologies and shared
Information systems in India, critical Sectors are becoming increasingly dependent
on their CII. These CIIs are interconnected, interdependent, complex and
distributed across various geographical locations. Threats to CII, ranging from
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
terrorist attacks, through organized crimes, to espionage, malicious cyber activities
etc., are following a far more aggressive growth trajectory. Any delay, distortion or
disruption in the functioning of these CIIs has the potential to quickly cascade
across other CII with the potential to cause political, economic, social or national
instability.
Protection of CII and, hence, Critical infrastructure of the Nation is the one of the
paramount concerns of the Government.
Role of Communication Network in Today’s World
• Critical Infrastructure sectors use communication network to perform not just
auxiliary functions but also every vital function, be it human resource
management, production, project management or business analytics.
• It enables voice and data communication
• The financial sector is increasingly using digital technologies like net banking,
ATM networks etc. which are dependent on communication network. Any breach
in the communication infrastructure of banking sector could pose danger to the
financial stability of India.
• It connects infrastructure systems, subsystems and constituents in such a manner
that they have subsequently become highly interrelated and interdependent. For
instance, the power sector is getting transformed into Smart Grid using
communication networking technologies.
• Similarly, smart cities, smart agriculture etc. are heavily dependent on
interconnected systems.
• Large industrial and manufacturing facilities also use automation and thus depend
on information infrastructure
• Also, the government is investing huge resources in creation of e-government
though various programs such as National e-Governance Plan, Digital India, e-
Kranti etc.
• Thus, the network infrastructure has become the backbone of the entire critical
infrastructure and is ubiquitous in our lives.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

LINKAGES BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND SPREAD

OF EXTREMISM
Terrorism
There is no single universally accepted definition for terrorism because the concept
is invariably political and cannot be framed in a manner that excludes the state.
Most acceptable words to understand terrorism are ‘acts committed with the
objective of seriously intimidating a population, destabilising or destroying
structures of a country or international organisation or making a government
abstain from performing actions’
Extremism
Extremism is generally understood as constituting views that are far from those of
the majority of the population. Accordingly, one definition describes extremism as
‘activities (beliefs, attitudes, feelings, actions, strategies) of a character far
removed from the ordinary’. Though this is clearly a relative term which invites
disagreement regarding benchmarks, it is broadly agreed that extremist views are
not necessarily illegal and do not automatically lead to violence or harm.
Indeed those with extremist views, who may also choose to observe extreme
practices with no impact on the civil liberties of fellow citizens, are rightly
protected under fundamental freedoms and human rights norms.
Radicalisation
Like terrorism and violent extremism, radicalisation is a contested term with
various definitions.
It is commonly understood, however, as the social and psychological process of
incrementally experienced commitment to extremist political and religious
ideologies.It does not necessarily mean that those affected will become violent.
However, when a decision is made that fear, terror and violence are justified to
achieve ideological, political or social change, radicalisation to violent extremism
occurs.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
Left Wing Extremism (Naxalism) in India
The roots of LWE in India lie in the leftist/Communist political movements, labour
and agrarian unrests, the revolutionary societies and the tribal revolts that erupted
during various phases of colonial rule in India.
The independence of India from the clutches of foreign rule raised immense hopes
among the landless, tribals and other downtrodden sections within the country. It
didn’t take too long for the masses to realise that independence had brought
nothing new for them and almost everything had remained the same. Neither was
there any hope of change in the future. Electoral politics was dominated by the
land owners and the land reforms that were promised were not being taken up in
the expected spirit. The old exploitative structure had continued in a different garb.
This led to a lot of disillusionment and frustration among the masses. They could
recollect the prophesies of the early leftist leaders and revolutionaries that the
political independence of India from British rule would in effect mean a change of
exploiters and the socio-economic structure would remain the same and that an
armed revolution will be needed to end the exploitation.
This disillusionment found expression in the increased support in favour of the left
parties in second general elections in Kerala. At the same time, the Communist
Party of India (CPI) in Bengal was also gaining strength and the United Front (of
which it was a part) was the main opposition party. The radicals within the party
accused the party leadership of being “revisionists” as they opted for parliamentary
democracy. The growing dissensions within the party ultimately led to the split of
the CPI. The newly formed party, i.e. Communist Party of India (M) also
participated in the United Front governments in Bengal and Kerala in 1967. But
nothing substantial was realised on the ground.
The discontentment grew and the radicals within the CPI (M) began to doubt the
revolutionary zeal of the leadership. They were convinced that an armed revolution
was the only way out. Since they were deeply inspired by Mao’s success in China,
they wanted to replicate the same in India.
They lost patience and started mobilising the tribals, the landless and the share-
cultivators and began what is termed as the revolutionary “armed struggle” in
certain pockets of Bengal. The movement crystallised into an organised armed
movement in the aftermath of a police firing incident in Naxalbari village in the
Darjeeling district of West Bengal on May 25, 1967
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

ROLE OF MEDIA AND SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES

IN INTERNAL SECURITY CHALLENGES
Any communication channel through which any kind of information, news,
entertainment, education, data, promotional messages etc. can be disseminated is
called media.
Mass media refers to communication devices, which can be used to communicate
and interact with a large number of audiences in different languages. Be it the
pictorial messages of the early ages, or the high-technology media that are
available today, mass media has become an inseparable part of our lives.Media can
be broadly classified as:
• Print Media (newspapers, magazines, books and Brochures, Billboards, etc.)
• Electronic Media (news websites, social networking sites, mass SMS schemes,
television, internet, radio, cinema etc.)
• New Age Media (Mobile Phones, Computers, Internet, Electronic Books)
Role of Media in India
For a country like India, the backbone of its democracy and the propagator of its
national interests remains the access to information and expression. It helps
citizens to make responsible and objective choices, to promote accountability by its
officials, to provide solutions to conflict resolution, and also to encourage diverse
views of its diverse people. This access of information has allowed the Indian
media to play the role of watchdog that holds the Government accountable in all its
activities, and also functions as theonly mode of expression for its people.
The role of media in a democracy like India, therefore, can be summed up as
to:
• Inform and educate people objectively, impartially and in an unbiased manner
about security threats and challenges
• Unbiased reporting with the restraints of self regulations
• Promotion of the principles of healthy democracy
• Respect for the Constitutional Provisions
• To build a bridge between people and governments at the national level
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
• Uphold fairness, justice, national unity and international cooperation
• Inform, educate, entertain, publicize and most importantly correct the excesses in
any society.
• Highlight the trouble spots in the society and press the government and public to
devise suitable mechanisms to eliminate them
• Shape the perceptions of government, influence public opinion, promote
democracy, good governance as well as influence peoples’ behavior and support
people- oriented policies Following the globalization, the responsibilities of media
have also widened. It has to play a role for preserving and pursuing the national
interests of the state and highlighting its perspective along with the global issues. It
has to examine the conduct of international relations and again to highlight the
trouble spot at global level in lieu of global security.
National Security& Media
The media and national security policy of a nation have a strong connection in the
contemporary environment. Television news in India, with far too many channels
competes for viewership 24/7, and with the ‘Breaking News’ sensation, sets the
pace for the print media. The distinction between facts, opinions, and
speculationhas blurred into irrelevance.
The connection between the media and national security policy is both direct and
indirect. In the case of a strong administration, news is news and policy is policy.
Under less certain administrations with low approval ratings and certainly
administrations whose policies are undeveloped or who do not have a solid
philosophical basis of operation; are subject to greater degrees of influence by
dramatic reporting.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

MONEY LAUNDERING
Money laundering is the process of taking money earned from illicit activities,
such as drug trafficking or tax evasion, and making the money appeared to be
earnings from legal business activity.
Why is Money Laundered?
Illegal arms sales, smuggling, and other organized crime, including drug
trafficking and prostitution rings, can generate huge amounts of money.
Corruption, embezzlement, insider trading, bribery and computer fraud schemes
can also produce large profits. The money generated from such illicit activities is
considered dirty and needs to be laundered to make it look ‘clean’. The criminals
need a way to deposit the money in financial institutions. Yet they can do so if the
money appears to come from legitimate sources. By successfully laundering the
proceeds, the proceeds can be made to appear ‘clean’ and the illicit gains may be
enjoyed without fear of being confiscated or being penalized
How is Money Laundered?
Traditionally money laundering has been described as a process which takes place
in three distinct stages.
Placement Stage – At this stage criminally derived funds are introduced in the
financial system. This is the riskiest stage because of large amounts of cash
involved which can catch the eyes of law enforcement agencies. So the launderer
breaks large amounts of cash into less conspicuous smaller sums that are then
deposited directly into a bank account, or is used to purchase monetary instruments
such as cheques, money orders etc.
Layering stage - It is the stage at which complex financial transactions are carried
out in order to camouflage the illegal source. In other words, the money is sent
through various financial transactions so as to change its form and make it difficult
to follow. Layering may be done by below mentioned ways:
• Several bank-to-bank transfers which may be in small amounts.
• Wire transfers between different accounts in different names in different
countries.
• Making deposits and withdrawals to continually vary the amount of money in the
accounts.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
• Changing the money's currency.
Various Techniques Used for Money Laundering
1. Structuring Deposits: This is a method of placement whereby cash is broken
into smaller deposits of money which is then exchanged by many individuals
(known as “smurfs”) to avoid anti-money laundering reporting requirements. This
is also known as smurfing because many individuals (the “smurfs”) are involved.
2. Shell companies: These are companies without active business operations. They
take in dirty money as "payment" for supposed goods or services but actually
provide no goods or services; they simply create the appearance of legitimate
transactions through fake invoices and balance sheets.
3. Third-Party Cheques: Counter cheques or banker’s drafts drawn on different
institutions are utilized and cleared via various third-party accounts. Since these
are negotiable in many countries, the nexus with the source money is difficult to
establish.
4. Bulk cash smuggling: This involves physically smuggling cash to another
jurisdiction and depositing it in a financial institution, such as an offshore bank,
with greater bank secrecy or less rigorous money laundering enforcement.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

SECURITY
SECURITY CHALLENGES AND THEIR MANAGEMENT IN BORDER
AREAS
India has 15,106.7 km of land border and a coastline of 7,516.6 km including
island territories. Securing the country’s borders against interests hostile to the
country and putting in place systems that are able to interdict such elements while
facilitating legitimate trade and commerce are among the principal objectives of
border management. The proper management of borders, which is vitally important
for national security, presents many challenges and includes coordination and
concerted action by administrative, diplomatic, security, intelligence, legal,
regulatory and economic agencies of the country to secure the frontiers and
subserve its best interests.
BORDER MANAGEMENT
While Border Security Approach deals only with defending the borders, the Border
management is a broader term which involves not only defending the borders but
also the protections of interests of the country on aligning borders.
The Department of Border Management in the Ministry of Home Affairs focuses
on management of the international land & coastal borders, strengthening of border
policing & guarding, creation of infrastructure such as roads, fencing & flood
lighting of the borders and implementation of the Border Area Development
Programme (BADP). Some problems currently afflicting the management of our
borders including maritime boundaries are:
• Hostile elements have access to latest technology, unprecedented use of money
power, organisational strength, maneuverability, wide choice available for
selecting theatre of action for surprise strikes and strategic alliances with other
like-minded groups.
• No proper demarcation of maritime and land borders at many places leading to
conflicts.
• Artificial boundaries having difficult terrains like deserts, swampy marshes etc.
which are not based on natural features thus making them extremely porous and
easy to infiltrate.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
• Multiplicity of forces on the same borders leading to problems of coordination,
command and control.
• Border Guarding Forces like Border Security Force etc. lack infrastructure. They
need to be appropriately strengthened both in terms of equipment and manpower.
• Problems faced by local people due to tough measures taken during anti-terrorism
and anti-insurgency operations generate discontent which should be addressed
prudently otherwise hostile elements try to leverage this discontent to their benefit.
• Cross-border terrorism targeted to destabilise India
• Illegal migration in eastern region causing socio-economic stress as well as
demographic changes
• Sporadic aggression on China border
• Cross border safe houses for insurgent in north eastern neighbours
• Smuggling of arms and explosives, narcotics and counterfeit currency
• Enhanced instances of smuggling, piracy, breach of coastal security
In light of above stated problems, there is need of utmost vigilance on the borders
and strengthening the border guarding forces. However, it should also be taken
care that the security of borders does not impede cross-border interactions and is
beneficial to mutual economic and cultural relationship. A detailed discussion on
border management with
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

ECONOMICS
INFRASTRUCTURE
Infrastructure Investment Models
Financing of Infrastructure: Need, Issue and Challenges The relationship
between infrastructure development and economic growth is well established in the
literature. While infrastructure development facilitates economic growth; economic
growth increases demand for more infrastructure. Thus, development of adequate
and quality infrastructure is a necessary if not sufficient condition to maintain
growth momentum in any economy. However, infrastructure development is an
arduous job for any country as it involves huge investments, long gestation
periods, procedural delays and returns spread over a long period of time. These
unique features of infrastructure development raise some issues which are specific
to the financing of infrastructure.
To revert back to the high economic growth rate (8-9%), the rate of investment has
to increase substantially (We need 1 Trillion Dollars of investment in infrastructure
in next two to three years- National Investment and Infrastructure Fund). This is
evidenced by the decline of growth rate and investment rate in last couple of years.
Let us look at the broad pattern of financing of infrastructure in our country before
highlighting some of the issues involved in it.
Issues in Infrastructure Financing
• Funding Gap - Funding Gap is the most important issue that we face on this front.
The slowdown in the economy has further aggravated this funding gap in the
infrastructure sector.
• Fiscal Burden - Almost half of the total investment in the infrastructure sector
was done by the Government through budget allocations. But the Government
funds have competing demands, such as, education, health, employment
generation, among others.
• Asset-Liability Mismatch of Commercial Banks - After the budgetary support,
next in line for financing infrastructure were funds from the commercial banking
sector. However, it is a well-known fact that these are institutions that primarily
leverage on short-term liabilities and, as such, their ability to extend long-term
loans to the infrastructure sector is limited.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
This is because, by doing so they get into serious asset-liability mismatches.
• Investment Obligations of Insurance and Pension Funds - From the point of view
of asset liability mismatches, insurance and pension funds are one of the best
suited institutions to invest in the infrastructure sector. This is because, in contrast
to the commercial banking sector, these institutions leverage on long-term
liabilities. However, they are constrained by their obligation to invest a substantial
portion of their funds in Government securities. Of course, in a way, this facilitates
the financing of gross fiscal deficit of the Central Government and hence enables
the Central Government to make more investments.
However, this limits the direct investment of these institutions in the
infrastructure sector
• Need for an Efficient and Vibrant Corporate Bond Market - An active corporate
bond market can facilitate long-term funding for the infrastructure sector.
However, despite the various initiatives taken by the Reserve Bank, Securities &
Exchange Board of India and Government of India, the corporate bond market is
still a long way to go in providing adequate financing to the infrastructure sector in
India.
• Developing Municipal Bond Market for Financing Urban Infrastructure -For
large scale financing urban infrastructure which is assuming critical importance in
the context of rapid urbanization, conventional fiscal transfers to the urban local
bodies or municipals from governments are no longer considered sufficient.
As a result, there have been some earnest experimentations by these bodies to tap
unconventional methods of financing such as public private partnerships (PPPs),
utilizing urban assets more productively, accessing carbon credits, etc. but then
these do not address the financing needs. One possible way of addressing the
problem is developing a municipal bond market.
• Insufficiency of User Charges - It is a well-known fact that a large part of the
infrastructure sector in India (especially irrigation, water supply, urban sanitation,
and state road transport) is not amenable to commercialization for various reasons,
such as, regulatory, political and legal constraints in the real sector. Due to this,
Government is not in a position to levy sufficient user charges on these services.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
The insufficiency of user charges on infrastructure projects negatively affect the
servicing of the infrastructure loans. Generally, such loans are taken on a non-
recourse basis and are highly dependent on cash flows.
Hence, levy and collection of appropriate user charges becomes essential for
financial viability of the projects.
• Legal and Procedural Issues - Infrastructure development involves long gestation
periods, and also many legal and procedural issues. The problems related to
infrastructure development range from those relating to land acquisition for the
infrastructure project to environmental clearances for the project. Many a times
there are legal issues involved in it and these increase procedural delays.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

MAJOR CROPS & CROPPING PATTERN

Cropping Pattern
Cropping pattern refers to the proportion of area under different crops at any given
point of time in a unit area. It indicates the temporal and/or spatial arrangement of
crops in a particular area. There are different types of cropping patterns depending
on the availability of various factors/resources
Cropping Systems
A cropping system is a broader term than cropping pattern and includes the sum
total of all crops and the practices used to grow those crops on a field or farm. It
comprises of all components, such as water, soil, technology etc. required for the
production of a particular crop and the interrelationships between them and the
surrounding environment.
Types of Cropping Systems
Mono-Cropping
Mono-cropping or monoculture refers to growing of only one crop on a piece of
land year after year.
• It may be due to climatic and socio-economic conditions or due to specialisation
of a farmer in growing a particular crop. For example, groundnut or cotton or
sorghum are grown year after year due to limitation of rainfall, while in canal
irrigated areas, under a waterlogged condition, rice crop is grown as it is not
possible to grow any other crop.
Multiple Cropping
It is the practice of growing two or more crops in the same field within a given
year.
• It is the intensification of cropping in time and space dimensions, i.e., more
number of crops within year and more number of crops on same piece of land in
any given period.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
• Double-cropping is a case where the land is occupied by two crops, which are
grown in a year in sequence. It includes mixed-cropping, intercropping and
sequence cropping.
Mixed Cropping: Two or more crops grown in the same field within a given year
without a definite row arrangement. It is a common practice in most of dry land
tracts of India. Seeds of different crops are mixed in certain proportion and are
sown.
• The objective is to meet the family requirement of cereals, pulses and vegetables.
Ex: sorghum, pearl millet and cowpea are mixed and broadcasted in rain-fed
conditions.
Inter-cropping: It includes growing two or more crops simultaneously with
definite row arrangement on the same field with an objective of higher productivity
per unit area in addition to stability in production.
• It was earlier practiced as an insurance against crop failure under poor rainfall
conditions. If done unscientifically, it might lead to intercrop competition for
available resources.
Requirements for successful Inter-cropping:
o The timing of peak nutrient demands of component crops should not overlap.
o Competition for light should be minimum among the component crops.
o The difference in maturity of component crops should be at least 30 days.
Types of Intercropping: Combinations of various crops can vary in terms of spatial
or temporal arrangement. On the basis of these variations, following types of
intercropping have been identified.
Crop rotation: Crops are changed in the field from year to year according to a
planned sequence rather than the same crop being grown in the same field again
and again.
1. Row intercropping: Growing two or more crops simultaneously where one or
more crops are planted in rows. It is a variation in space dimension. For example,
maize + greengram (1:1), maize + blackgram (1:1), groundnut + redgram (6:1)
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
• Variations include alley cropping, where crops are grown in between rows of
trees, and strip cropping, where multiple rows, or a strip, of one crop are alternated
with multiple rows of another crop.
2. Strip-intercropping: Two or more crops are planted in the same field in alternate
strips.
• Strips are wide enough to permit independent cultivation but narrow enough for
the crops to interact. Ex. groundnut + redgram (6:4) strip.
Advantages of intercropping
• It leads to better use of growth resources including light, nutrients and water.
• Intercropping of compatible plants also encourages biodiversity by providing a
habitat for a variety of insects and soil organisms that would not be present in a
single-crop environment. This in turn can help limit outbreaks of crop pests by
increasing predator biodiversity.
• Along with suppression of weeds it causes yield stability - even if one crop fails
due to unforeseen situations, another crop will yield and gives income.
• Successful intercropping gives higher equivalent yields (yield of base crop +
yield of intercrop), higher cropping intensity.
• It reduces pest and disease incidences and improves soil health and agro-
ecological system.
• Reducing the homogeneity of the crop increases the barriers against biological
dispersal of pest organisms through the crop.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

TECHNOLOGY MISSIONS
Technology Missions are mission-mode projects aiming towards rejuvenating
agriculture sector & its sub-sectors via technological enhancements. Techniques
adopted for such purposes are generally scientific and mechanized, and support is
provided by the Government to procure such advancements by ways of subsidy,
promotion, credit-linked subsidy, soft loans, etc.
Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH)
• The mission was approved in 2013
• It was targeted to achieve a growth rate of 7.2% in the horticulture in Twelfth
Plan.
• MIDH is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for the holistic growth of the horticulture
sector covering fruits, vegetables, root & tuber crops, mushrooms, spices, flowers,
aromatic plants, coconut, cashew, cocoa and bamboo.
• While Government of India (GOI) contributes 85% of total outlay for
developmental programmes in all the states except the states in North East and
Himalayas, 15% share is contributed by state governments. In the case of North
Eastern States and Himalayan States, GoI contribution is 100%.
• Similarly, for development of bamboo and programmes of National Horticulture
Board (NHB), Coconut Development Board (CDB), Central Institute for
Horticulture (CIH), Nagaland and the National Level Agencies (NLA), GoI
contribution is 100%.
The strategy of the MIDH will be on production of quality seeds and planting
material, production enhancement through productivity improvement measures
along with support for creation of infrastructure to reduce post harvest losses and
improved marketing of produce with active participation of all stake holders,
particularly farmer groups and farmer producer organisations. The interventions
under MIDH will have a blend of technological adaptation supported with fiscal
incentives for attracting farmers as well as entrepreneurs involved in the
horticulture sector. It has subsumed 6 ongoing schemes:
1. National Horticulture Mission (NHM): applied in all states and UTs except NE
and Himalayan Region. It targets small and marginal farmer.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
2. Horticulture Mission in NE and Himalayan Region (HMNEH): Targets small
and marginal farmers of NE and other Himalayan states.
3. National Bamboo Mission: applied in all states and UTs to address
developmental issues of Bamboo. It mainly emphasized on propagation and
cultivation of bamboo, with limited efforts on processing, product development
and value addition. There was weak linkage between the producers (farmers) and
the industry.
• Restructured National Bamboo Mission: The Cabinet Committee on Economic
Affairs (chaired by the Prime Minister) approved Centrally Sponsored Scheme of
National Bamboo Mission (NBM) under National Mission for Sustainable
Agriculture (NMSA) for remaining period of Fourteenth Finance Commission
(2018-19 & 2019-20).
• An outlay of Rs. 1290 crore (with Rs. 950 crore as Central share) is provisioned
for implementation of the Mission.
The restructured NBM strives:
• To increase the area under bamboo plantation in non-forest Government and
private lands to supplement farm income and contribute towards resilience to
climate change.
• To improve post-harvest management through establishment of innovative
primary processing units, treatment and seasoning plants, primary treatment and
seasoning plants, preservation technologies and market infrastructure.
• To promote product development at micro, small and medium levels and feed
bigger industry.
• To rejuvenate the under developed bamboo industry in India.
• To promote skill development, capacity building, awareness generation for
development of bamboo sector.
4. National Horticulture Board (NHB) schemes: will address developmental issues
on commercial horticulture through entrepreneurs involving institutional financing.
Applied in all States and UTs
5. Coconut Development Board (CDB) schemes: applied in States and UTs
producing Coconut
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
6. Central Institute of Horticulture (CIH), Nagaland schemes: in NE states,
focusing on HRD and capacity building MIDH works closely with National
Mission on Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA) and also provides technical advice
and administrative support to the Saffron Mission, and other horticulture related
activities like Vegetable Initiative for Urban Clusters (VIUC) funded by
RKVY/NMSA. It encourages aggregation of farmers into farmer groups like
FIGs/FPOs (Farmer Interest Groups/Farmer Producer Organisations) and FPCs
(Farmer Producer Companies) to bring economy of scale and scope. The overall
objective of the scheme is to strengthen nutritional security through enhanced
horticulture production and augmenting farmers’ income.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, BUFFER STOCKS

AND FOOD SECURITY
Public Distribution System in India
Public distribution system is a government-sponsored chain of shops entrusted
with the work of distributing basic food and non-food commodities to the needy
sections of the society at very cheap prices.
Objectives
● to provide essential consumer goods at cheap and subsidized prices to the
consumers.
● to insulate them from the impact of rising prices of these commodities.
● to maintain the minimum nutritional status of our population.
● to put an indirect check on the open market prices of various items.
It is supplemental in nature and is not intended to make available the entire
requirement of any of the commodities distributed under it to a household or
section of the society. Yet, it acts as a safety net and attempts socialization in
matter of distribution of essential commodities.
Evolution and Functioning of PDS
In India PDS is working since 1960s. It was initially a general entitlement scheme
for all consumers without any target.
• In 1992, a Revamped PDS (RPDS) was launched in 1775 blocks throughout the
country to strengthen and streamline the PDS as well as to improve its reach to
poor families especially in the far-flung, hilly, remote and inaccessible areas.
RPDS covered areas where special programmes were under operation such as
Drought Prone Area Program (DPAP), Integrated tribal development program
(ITDP), Desert Development Program (DDP), and certain Designated Hill Areas
(DHA).
• In 1997, Targeted PDS (TPDS) was launched with focus on the poor families. It
aimed to benefit 6 crore poor families for whom 7.2 MT foodgrains was earmarked
annually. Over and above the TPDS allocation, ‘additional allocation’ was also
given periodically to the states. This transitory allocation was to benefit APL
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
population. But, this allocation was issued at higher prices than the ones at BPL
quota.
• In December 2000, Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) was introduced for poorest
of the poor people (the hungry) and 25kg/month per household (increased to 35kg
in 2002) was provided at the highly subsidised rate of Rs 2/kg of wheat and Rs
3/kg of rice. The scheme aimed to reach one crore Antyodaya households. Since
then, AAY has undergone three phases of expansion and now covers 2.5 crore
poorest of the poor people. In between 2003-2006, 3 expansions took place which
included 1.5 crore people (38% of BPL) belonging to terminally ill, widows, senior
citizens with no societal support, landless and marginal farmers, rickshaw pullers,
rag pickers, primitive tribal groups, etc have been added to AAY.
• In 2013, National Food Security Act (NFSA) was enacted. It introduced
individual entitlement of 5 kg per person per month foodgrains to around 82 crore
of population. The PDS seeks to provide to the beneficiaries two cereals, rice and
wheat and four essential commodities viz. sugar, edible oil, soft coke and kerosene
oil. However, state governments, which actually manage the system at the ground
level, are exhorted to add other essential commodities like pulses, salt, candles,
matchboxes, ordinary clothes, school text books/copies and the like. Supply of
additional items through PDS is especially relevant in interior areas, which are
away from markets and where one or two traditional shopkeepers, who also double
up for money-lenders, have the market monopoly. A number of state governments
have set up Civil Supplies or Essential Commodities Corporations to buy such
additional items directly from the manufacturers and use the existing structure of
PDS to arrange for the sale at lower than market rates. Making available the six
essential commodities (rice, wheat, sugar, edible oil, soft coke and kerosene oil) to
the state government is the responsibility of the central government.
The PDS distributed commodities worth more than 98,000 crore in 2014-15
through 5.21 Lakh Fair Price Shops. Rice, wheat, sugar and kerosene have been the
four major items of distribution under PDS. Other than them, edible oils, coal and
cloth have also been distributed through it. Coarse grains (jowar, bajra, maize, etc)
virtually remained absent from it as their combined sales have amounted to less
than 1% of the total PDS sales. Pulses, which are an important source of protein for
poor, constitute only about 0.2% in total PDS sales.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

Limitations of PDS In India

1. Limited benefits to poor from PDS: Rural poor have not benefited much from
PDS and their dependence on the open market has been much higher than on PDS.
Urban poor face the similar scenario. Since, there is residential requirements for
ration cards, a large number of homeless people, migrants etc. are automatically
left out of the food security.
2. Urban Bias: For quite a longer period of time, PDS remained limited mostly to
urban areas. Although things have changed now and there has been expansion of
PDS in rural areas but its effectiveness in terms of timely and adequate availability
remains meager. Also, their meaningfulness in remote, inaccessible, backward
areas remains under question.
3. The burden of food subsidy: After inclusion of NFSA-2013, the burden of food
subsidy has become huge. Also, APL have no incentive to buy from PDS, so there
has been increasing stock with FCI. Other than that the procurement prices have
been rising continuously due to rich farmers’ lobby and issue prices are getting
lower due to populist policies. All of this together are making the PDS
unsustainable.
4. Inefficiencies in the operations of FCI: The economic cost of FCI food grains
operation has been rising on account of increase in procurement prices and other
costs (distribution cost, carrying cost, etc.) and also due to inefficiencies caused by
highly centralised and bureaucratic mode of operations.
5. PDS results in Price increases: Due to large procurement of food grains every
year by Government, the net quantities available in open market reduces. This
leads to increase in Price. This dual market system i.e. PDS and Open market
operates to the disadvantages of poor, especially those who are excluded from the
food security system.
6. Leakages from PDS: The major part of leakage is due to diversion of food grains
to the open markets because of widespread prevalence of corruption. Transport and
diversion losses also takes place. There is problem of ghost beneficiaries as well.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3

ECONOMICS FOR ANIMAL REARING

Ever since the beginning of civilization, humans have depended on animals for
many requirements, such as that of food (milk, meat and egg), clothing (hide or
wool), labour (pulling, carrying load) and security etc. The development of
desirable qualities in all such animal species, through creating better breeds, has
been an important human achievement. For this, humans have consistently tried to
improve the breeds of domesticated animals to make them more useful for them.
The branch of science, which deals with the study of various breeds of
domesticated animals and their management for obtaining better products and
services from them is known as Animal Husbandry. The term husbandry derives
from the word “husband”, which means ‘one who takes care’. When it incorporates
the study of proper utilization of economically important domestic animals, it is
called Livestock Management.
Different Categories of Animals
• Wild: Those that breed better where they are free than they do when they are
captivated. They have no common use for humans. Example Lion, Tiger,
Rhinoceres, Deer etc.
• Tamed: Those, which are caught from the wild and trained to be useful to humans
in some way. Elephant, Chimpanzee, Gorilla, Yak etc.
• Domesticated: Those that are of use at home and are easily bred and looked after
by humans. Common domesticated animals are dog, horse, cow, sheep, buffalo,
fowl etc.
Role of Livestock in Indian Economy
• Output functions such as source of edible (milk, meat, egg) and non-edible (wool,
leather, hides) products.
• Input functions such as providing draught power (bulls/oxen), dung, urine etc. in
crop production.
• Economic functions by providing steady income - being the source of milk, meat
and eggs almost round the year.
 GENERAL STUDIES - 3
• Risk Coverage in case of crop failures or other disasters and are considered as
'Banks on hooves'.
• More equitably distributed compared to land, thus has more potential for
increasing farmers’ income. Rapid growth of the livestock sector can be even more
egalitarian and inclusive than growth of the crop sector because those engaged in it
are mainly small holders and the landless.
Present Status of Animal Rearing in India
• According to NSSO 68th round survey, 16.44 million people are engaged in the
activities of farming of animals, mixed farming, fishing and aquaculture.
• It contributes around 4% of GDP and 25% of Agricultural GDP.
• India has one of the largest cattle population in the world.
• Value of milk alone in 2014-15 was Rs 4.92 Lakh crore which was more than the
value of wheat and rice combined i.e. 3.6 Lakh crore.
• Milk Production: India is the largest producer of milk in the world with 165.4
million tones in 2016-17, and per capita availability of 355 g/day.
• Egg Production: 88.1 billion, with per capita availability of 66 eggs/annum in
2016-17
• Wool Production: 43.5 million kg in 2017-18
• Meat Production: 7 million tonnes in 2015-16
• Fisheries Production: India is the second largest producer of Fish (marine + fresh
water) and also, the second largest producer of Fresh Water Fish. About 108 lakh
tonnes of Marine and 17 lakh tonnes of inland fisheries produced in 2016-17. Due
its large coastline, India has high potential for fisheries.
• India is first in total buffalo population (56.7%) in the world, second in cattle
population, second in fish production, second in goat and third in sheep population
in the world.
Challenges faced by Animal Husbandry Sector
• Lack of access to organized markets and meager profits distract farmers from
investing into improved technologies and quality inputs. Informal market
intermediaries often exploit the producers.
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• Shrinking and degrading pastures coupled with limitations of fodder, lack of
sufficient veterinary care and apathy to assisted reproductive technologies have
been the major constraints in reaching the full potential of animal husbandry e.g.
potential of raising Pashmina goats’ viz. Changthangi in Ladakh and Chegu in
Himachal Pradesh remains under exploited due to above reasons.
• Livestock extension services are almost absent. The extension format,
methodology and set-up established for agriculture has failed to cater to the needs
of the livestock sector.
Consequently, only 5.1% of the farm households were able to access any
information on animal husbandry against 40.4% for crop farming. The only
centrally sponsored scheme on
“Livestock extension and delivery services” with a budgetary outlay of Rs. 15.00
crore remained non-operational.
• Sufficient facility / setup for disease diagnosis, reporting, epidemiology,
surveillance and forecasting are not on board. Several diagnostic kits required for
disease surveillance and monitoring are imported at a huge cost. The limited
diagnostics available in the country are produced by few laboratories and are not of
desired quality.
• Testing of milk for safety and quality parameters at the collection centers is
almost nonexistent.
Lack of proper anaerobic waste treatment and dairy by-product utilization are the
other concerns. Due to quality concerns of milk, value addition and export
potential has not been fully exploited.
• India has huge diversity of animals, which are adaptable to harsh climate, limited
nutrition, and resistance to diseases and stress. Populations of most of these breeds
have alarmingly gone down due to comparative preferences for highly productive
exotic breeds. This calls for an immediate action for systematic conservation,
genetic improvement and sustainable utilization of indigenous livestock breeds.
• There is also a huge demand of Indian ethnic meat products in the international
market.
However, lack of international processing standards is the hindrance.
Unfortunately, schemes on modernization of slaughterhouses and by-product
utilization have not been effectively implemented.
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• Bulk of the investment for livestock development comes from the state
governments. The central government contributes about 10% to the total
investment. There is hardly any private sector investment in animal husbandry
• Microbial contamination, antibiotic residues and adulteration in milk, meat and
animal feed is rampant. Quality control for veterinary drugs and vaccines is almost
non-existent.
There is a need to establish food testing laboratories duly accredited by the Food
Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) to check adulteration

SUBSIDIES AND MINIMUM SUPPORT PRICE

The Indian Government plays a vital role in agriculture sector development. The
government’s role is diverse and varied including, but not limited to, self-
sufficiency, employment creation, support to small-scale producers for adopting
modern technologies and inputs, reduction of price instability and improvement of
the income of farm households.
This vital role can take a number of forms such as import-export policies and
domestic policies like price support programmes, direct payments, and input
subsidies to influence the cost and availability of farm inputs like credit, fertilizers,
seeds, irrigation water, etc. Of all the domestic support instruments in agriculture,
input subsidies and product price support are the most common.
Agriculture Subsidies
An agriculture subsidy is a governmental financial support paid to farmers and
agribusinesses to supplement their income, manage the supply of agricultural
commodities, and influence the cost and supply of such commodities.
Agriculture subsidies act as an incentive to promote agricultural development and
as an instrument of stimulating agricultural production and attaining self-
sufficiency. In order to attain the goal of self-sufficiency in food, government
adopts short term policies such as support prices of products and input subsidy to
stimulate the products to increase the food production. It is expected that subsidies
contribute to better cropping pattern, employment and income of the beneficiaries.
But in most development programmes, subsidies are one among the many
developmental inputs being provided. Thus the observable changes in cropping
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pattern, employment level and overall incomes are because of the joint effect of all
the efforts going on. Therefore, these changes cannot be attributed solely to
subsidies.
Types of Agriculture Subsidies in India
Explicit Input Subsidies
Explicit input subsidies are payments made to the farmers to meet a part of the cost
of an input. These are in the nature of explicit payments made to the farmer. For
example, subsidy on improved or high yielding variety seeds, plant protection
chemicals and equipments, improved agricultural implements and supply of mini-
kits containing seeds, fertilizers and plant protection chemicals for certain crops
are the explicit subsidies. These are usually made available to small and marginal
farmers and those belonging to scheduled castes and tribes. The objective of such
subsidies is to induce the farmers to adopt yield increasing inputs so that they are
able to realize the benefits of new technology. The coverage of these subsidies in
terms of crops, inputs, regions and target groups has been changing from time to
time. Explicit subsidies have formed only a small fraction of the development
expenditure of Central/ State Governments
Implicit Input Subsidies
While there is transparency in explicit input subsidies, implicit input subsidies are
hidden in nature. The latter arise on account of the mechanics of pricing of inputs.
If inputs whose prices are administratively determined are priced low as compared
to their economic cost, it becomes a case of implicit subsidization. As far as the
farmer is concerned, he does not receive any direct payment but somebody in the
economy accounts for the difference.
Output Subsidies
Subsidization of agricultural sector through output pricing means that by a
restrictive trade policy, the product prices in the domestic market are maintained at
levels higher than those that would have prevailed in the absence of restrictions on
trade. On the other hand, if the trade policies have resulted in keeping the domestic
prices lower than the corresponding border reference price, the policies have taxed
the agricultural sector. The border reference price is the free on board prices in the
case of exportables and cost, insurance and freight price in the case of importables.
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Food Subsidies
There is an important subsidy linked to the agricultural sector and that is the food
subsidy. The twin policy of providing market support to the foodgrains producers
and supplying atleast a part of the requirement to consumers at reasonable prices,
along with the policy of maintaining a buffer- stock of required quantity for
national food security, involves cost in the form of meeting the differences
between the economic cost and issue prices of food grains. This is what is called
the food subsidy and appears explicitly in the Union Budget.