Paper I — Q5
Answer the following in about 150 words each: (a) Analyse the workers' movement in India in the pre-Independence period. (10…
Answer the following in about 150 words each: (a) Analyse the workers' movement in India in the pre-Independence period. (10 marks) (b) The Preamble of the Indian Constitution reflects itself as a 'social contract'. Elucidate. (10 marks) (c) Legislative Council is a house without any effective powers. Comment. (10 marks) (d) How far is the National Commission for Backward Classes an empowered body? Assess its role in the context of rising demand for backwardness among dominant communities. (10 marks) (e) High concentration of economic activities and consumption patterns in post-liberalisation period has led to the failure of environmental movements in India. Elucidate. (10 marks)
हिंदी में प्रश्न पढ़ें
निम्नलिखित में से प्रत्येक का उत्तर लगभग 150 शब्दों में दीजिए : (a) स्वतंत्रता-पूर्व काल में भारत में श्रमिक आंदोलन का विश्लेषण कीजिए। (10 अंक) (b) भारतीय संविधान की उद्देशिका अपने में 'सामाजिक समझौते' को दर्शाती है। व्याख्या कीजिए। (10 अंक) (c) विधान परिषद बिना प्रभावशाली शक्तियों वाला सदन है। टिप्पणी कीजिए। (10 अंक) (d) राष्ट्रीय पिछड़ा वर्ग आयोग कितनी सशक्त संस्था है? प्रभावशाली समुदायों में पिछड़ेपन की बढ़ती मांग के संदर्भ में इसकी भूमिका का आकलन कीजिए। (10 अंक) (e) उत्तर-उदारीकरण काल में उपभोग पद्धतियों और आर्थिक गतिविधियों के प्रति उच्च समर्पण ने भारत में पर्यावरणीय आंदोलनों को असफलता की ओर प्रसारित किया है। व्याख्या कीजिए। (10 अंक)
Directive word: Analyse
This question asks you to analyse. The directive word signals the depth of analysis expected, the structure of your answer, and the weight of evidence you must bring.
See our UPSC directive words guide for a full breakdown of how to respond to each command word.
How this answer will be evaluated
Approach
This multi-part question requires approximately 150 words per sub-part (750 words total). For (a) 'analyse' demands causal examination of workers' movement phases; (b) 'elucidate' requires unpacking Preamble as social contract theory; (c) 'comment' needs balanced assessment of Legislative Council powers; (d) 'assess' calls for evaluative judgment on NCBC empowerment; (e) 'elucidate' demands clarifying post-liberalisation environmental movement failures. Allocate roughly equal time (~3 minutes) per sub-part given equal 10-mark weightage, with brief introductions, analytical bodies, and crisp conclusions for each.
Key points expected
- (a) Workers' movement: Phases from early welfare associations (1880s) to militant trade unionism (1920s); role of AITUC (1920), communists, Congress socialists; limitations—communal divisions, lack of peasant-worker alliance, colonial repression
- (b) Preamble as social contract: Locke/Rousseau influence; 'We the People' as sovereign source; transfer of power to state with fundamental rights (individual liberty) and directive principles (collective good) as mutual obligations
- (c) Legislative Council assessment: Limited powers—money bills, no confidence, dissolution; delaying powers only; exceptions—Karnataka/Telangana where it blocked bills; federalism argument vs. democratic deficit
- (d) NCBC empowerment: 102nd Amendment (2018) constitutional status; indelible backwardness criteria; contrast with NCSC/NCST (no suo motu powers, recommendatory role); dominant caste demands—Jat, Maratha, Patidar agitations; creamy layer exclusion challenges
- (e) Post-liberalisation environmental failure: Economic concentration—SEZs, mining corridors; consumption patterns—middle-class environmentalism; movement fragmentation—Narmada Bachao Andolan partial success vs. POSCO, Vedanta failures; state-corporate nexus weakening EIA
Evaluation rubric
| Dimension | Weight | Max marks | Excellent | Average | Poor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Demand-directive understanding | 20% | 10 | Correctly interprets all five directives: 'analyse' for (a) shows causal chains and phased evolution; 'elucidate' for (b) and (e) unpacks theoretical/explanatory mechanisms; 'comment' for (c) presents balanced critique; 'assess' for (d) delivers evaluative judgment with evidence; no directive confusion or generic treatment | Recognises most directives but treats some interchangeably—e.g., 'analyse' becomes description, 'assess' lacks clear judgment, or 'comment' is one-sided; minor directive-concept mismatch in one sub-part | Fundamental directive confusion—describes when asked to analyse, asserts without assessment, or treats all five as identical 'write short notes'; fails to adjust analytical depth to directive demand |
| Content depth & accuracy | 20% | 10 | Historically and constitutionally precise: (a) cites 1928 Bombay textile strike, Roy vs. Joshi factions; (b) references Constituent Assembly debates (Shiva Rao, Munshi); (c) names Article 169, 182/208 powers; (d) specifics 102nd Amendment, Indra Sawhney; (e) cites Jairam Ramesh EIA 2020 dilution; no factual errors | Broadly accurate with minor errors—wrong dates for AITUC, conflates Preamble amendments (42nd vs. original), vague on NCBC post-2018 status, or generalises environmental movements without specific post-1991 policy shifts | Significant factual errors—claims workers' movement succeeded in economic demands, misstates Preamble as amended in 1950, believes Legislative Council can reject money bills, confuses NCBC with NCSC powers, or pre-dates liberalisation to 1980s |
| Structure & flow | 20% | 10 | Five distinct sub-answers clearly demarcated; each with mini-introduction (context), analytical body addressing directive, and conclusion; seamless logical progression within 150-word constraint; effective use of connectors ('however', 'consequently') and signposting for cross-part coherence | Sub-parts identifiable but uneven structure—some lack conclusions, others over-introduce; occasional paragraph breaks missing; word distribution skewed (one part 200 words, another 80); readable but mechanical flow | Undifferentiated wall of text or poorly labelled parts; no internal structure within sub-answers; abrupt jumps between (a)-(e); severe imbalance—some parts mere bullet points, others essay-length; illegible organisation |
| Examples / case-law / data | 20% | 10 | Rich, specific evidence: (a) All-India Trade Union Congress 1920, Girni Kamgar Union 1928, Meerut Conspiracy Case; (b) Kesavananda (1973) on Preamble as key to interpretation; (c) Andhra Pradesh abolition 1985, recent Telangana revival; (d) 102nd Amendment, Janhit Abhiyan v. Union (2018); (e) Narmada Bachao Andolan, POSCO Odisha, Vedanta Sterlite Thoothukudi, EIA 2020 notification | Some relevant examples but gaps—mentions AITUC without year, cites Preamble cases vaguely, knows Legislative Council delay powers but no state examples, NCBC mentioned without constitutional amendment, environmental movements named without post-1991 specificity | No concrete examples or wildly inappropriate ones—generic 'many strikes', 'some court cases', 'various states', 'several commissions', 'environmental groups protested'; fails to anchor analysis in specific institutional or historical evidence |
| Conclusion & analytical edge | 20% | 10 | Each sub-part ends with sharp synthesis: (a) workers' movement as incomplete class formation due to colonial-nationalist contradiction; (b) Preamble as living social contract requiring constant renegotiation; (c) Legislative Council as federal necessity despite democratic deficit; (d) NCBC's structural weakness perpetuating competitive backwardness politics; (e) environmental movements' strategic repositioning needed beyond NIMBY-ism; demonstrates original critical insight | Serviceable summaries restating points without synthesis; some conclusions missing or generic ('thus we see'); limited critical engagement—describes rather than evaluates; no clear argumentative thread across sub-parts | No conclusions or abrupt endings; purely descriptive throughout; fails to engage with question's evaluative demands ('analyse', 'assess', 'comment'); no evidence of independent critical thinking; memorised reproduction without application |
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