"Besides being a moral imperative of a Welfare State, primary health structure is a necessary precondition for sustainable…

"Besides being a moral imperative of a Welfare State, primary health structure is a necessary precondition for sustainable development." Analyze. (Answer in 150 words) 10 marks

हिंदी में प्रश्न पढ़ें

"एक कल्याणकारी राज्य की नैतिक अनिवार्यता के अलावा, प्राथमिक स्वास्थ्य संरचना धारणीय विकास की एक आवश्यक पूर्व शर्त है।" विश्लेषण कीजिए। (उत्तर 150 शब्दों में दीजिए)

The question as printed in the 2021 General Studies paper

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Model answer

Drafted with AI by UPSC Answer Check against this question's marking rubric, to the 150-word length. UPSC does not publish answers for Mains — this is one way to score well, not an official key. How we build rubrics and answers.

(a) Moral imperative of a Welfare State: Primary healthcare gives effect to Article 47 (duty to improve public health) and the Right to Health read into Article 21. Schemes like Ayushman Bharat cut out-of-pocket expenditure, shielding poor households from catastrophic health spending and breaking the intergenerational poverty trap (SDG 1).

(b) Precondition for sustainable development: ASHA-led grassroots services raise institutional deliveries and reduce MMR and IMR, converting the demographic dividend into capable human capital, while Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (formerly Health and Wellness Centres) bring NCD screening close to home. Good health (SDG 3) improves learning outcomes (SDG 4), enables gender equality through maternal care (SDG 5), and sustains a productive workforce for growth and decent work (SDG 8).

How this answer will be evaluated

Framework: GS2: Social Justice & Health

What earns full marks: Clear link between health and development, cites Art 47/21, mentions SDG 3 or NHP 2017, balanced analysis.

Evaluation rubric

Each sub-part is marked on its own, against the marks and word limit printed on the paper.

The answer Link primary health structure to sustainable development and welfare state obligations. 10 marks · 150 words

analyse— intro → causes → effects → stakeholders/linkages → way forward
Must cover
- Define primary health structure (PHC/ASHA/ANM)
- Explain health as a precondition for development
- Link health to human capital and productivity
- Mention constitutional mandate (Art 47/21)
Loses marks
- Reciting Articles without analysis
- Focusing only on moral imperative, ignoring development
- Closing with a generic way forward instead of analysing the link
Earns more
- Reference to SDG 3 (Health and Well-being)
- Mention of National Health Policy 2017
- Link to poverty reduction and social equity
- Reference to Universal Health Coverage (UHC)
Extra mark
- Cite specific Supreme Court judgment on right to health
- Reference to 2nd ARC or Law Commission on health

What "Analyse" is asking you to do

Break the subject into its working parts and show how they act on each other. The marks are in the interconnections — which factor drives which, and what the resulting structure explains — not in the inventory of factors.

Structure that answers it

Define the whole → separate it into its parts → show which part drives which → what that interaction produces → what the structure implies

Where marks are lost

A flat list of causes with no account of which drives which. An answer of neatly separated headings, each self-contained, scores as description.

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