"Tundra regions are ecologically fragile but economically important." Examine this statement critically. (Answer in 150 words)

हिंदी में प्रश्न पढ़ें

“टुन्ड्रा प्रदेश पारिस्थितिक दृष्टि से नाजुक लेकिन आर्थिक दृष्टि से महत्वपूर्ण हैं।” इस कथन का आलोचनात्मक परीक्षण कीजिए। (उत्तर 150 शब्दों में दीजिए)

The question as printed in the 2026 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.

Tundra ecosystems are ecologically fragile: permafrost, short growing seasons and slow-recovering lichens, mosses and dwarf shrubs. With Arctic amplification, the region is warming nearly four times faster than the global average, and thawing permafrost releases methane and carbon dioxide that accelerate global warming.

Yet the tundra is economically important. It holds major hydrocarbons (Russia's Yamal gas fields, Alaska's North Slope), minerals such as Norilsk's nickel and palladium, and the emerging Northern Sea Route, and sustains Nenets and Sami reindeer herding and subsistence fishing.

Critically, the two are in tension. Pipelines and roads fragment permafrost and disrupt migratory corridors, while thaw undermines economic value itself, as in the 2020 Norilsk diesel spill after a fuel tank's supports subsided. The economic importance is also uneven: activity is enclave-based, capital-intensive and seasonal, farming is negligible, and gains often go to distant corporations rather than local communities.

Thus the tundra's economic utility cannot be detached from its ecological limits; unchecked exploitation erodes the stability that sustained economic activity requires.

How this answer will be evaluated

Framework: GS1 Geography: Physical-Human Linkage

What earns full marks: Balanced analysis of fragility vs. economy with specific examples and mechanisms.

Evaluation rubric

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

The answer Critically evaluate the paradox of tundra's ecological vulnerability versus its economic utility. 10 marks · 150 words

examine— intro → how/why with reasoning → evidence → conclusion
Must cover
- Define ecological fragility (permafrost, short growing season, slow recovery)
- Identify economic resources (hydrocarbons, minerals, reindeer herding, shipping routes)
- Explain the mechanism of climate change impact (Arctic amplification, permafrost thaw feedback)
- Critically link exploitation and fragility, including limits of the economic value (enclave, high-cost, benefits not local)
- Provide specific regional examples (e.g., Yamal, North Slope, Norilsk)
Loses marks
- Narrating general geography without critical analysis
- Ignoring the 'fragile' aspect of the statement
- Vague generalizations without specific examples
Earns more
- Mention specific resources (oil, gas, nickel, palladium, rare earths)
- Reference indigenous livelihoods (Nenets/Sami reindeer herding)
- Discuss infrastructure challenges from permafrost thaw (e.g., 2020 Norilsk diesel spill)
- Strategic value of the Northern Sea Route
Extra mark
- 30-second sketch map of tundra belt
- Specific statistic on permafrost extent

What "Critically examine" is asking you to do

Test the proposition the question puts to you and return a finding on how far it holds. Examine stems carry a claim, or ask whether something has happened, and expect evidence weighed both ways before the extent is stated — often with remedial measures attached. “Critically” is not a section added at the end: name the yardstick you are judging by — the evidence, the stated objective, a constitutional principle, a rival explanation — and let a verdict close each part of the body. Where the question quotes a claim, that verdict must land on the claim itself, accepted, qualified or rejected, and not on the theme in general.

Structure that answers it

Restate the claim as the question frames it → evidence that supports it → evidence that undercuts it → the conditions under which it holds → verdict on how far it stands

Where marks are lost

Merits in one paragraph, demerits in the next, and a conclusion calling for a balanced and holistic approach. That is a survey with the judgement left out and it holds the answer in the middle band. The opposite error is reading “critically” as permission to attack — and with the odd pairings, critically describe or critically explain, the exposition still carries most of the marks, the judgement being a layer on it rather than a substitute for it.

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