Mains Practice Questions

Essay Topics

1. The arc of the moral universe is long but it bends towards justice.
2. Empathy is a quality of character that can change the world.

Q. Suppose you are an officer-in-charge of implementing a social service scheme to provide support to old and destitute women. An old and illiterate woman comes to you to avail the benefits of the scheme. However, she has no documents to show that she fulfils the eligibility criteria. But after meeting her and listening to her you feel that she certainly needs support. Your enquirers also show that she is really destitute and living in a pitiable condition. You are in a dilemma as to what to do. Putting her under the scheme without necessary documents would clearly be a violation of rules. But denying her the support would be cruel and inhuman.

1. Can you think of a rational way to resolve this dilemma?
2. Give your reasons for it. (250 words)

Q. What is international ethics? Explain its significance with the help of examples. (250 words)

Q. A technology should be evaluated both on the basis of its utility and the intention of its creator. Critically examine. (250 words)

Q. Genome India Project provides an opportunity for India to make great progress in the fields of biotechnology, agriculture and healthcare. Discuss. (250 words)

Q. Indigenous people are one of the most vulnerable sections facing climate change, however, they can act as change agents, towards mitigating and adapting to climate change. Discuss. (250 words)

Q. Growing criminalisation of polity is a threat to the basic structure of the constitution. Discuss. (250 words)

Q. Progress from Millennium Development to Sustainable Development entails a shift in the focus from universalizing access to education towards the delivery of quality education. Explain. (250 words)

Q. What do you understand by sex ratio? Examine the implications of a declining sex ratio and meta son preference? What are the reasons for such trends in India? (250 words)

Q. Examine the significance of prehistoric paintings found in India. Also, trace the changes that occurred in the painting styles during this period. (250 words)

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a branch of Computer Science that enables the computer system to analyze data and situation and make a decision as a human do. It learns from experience, uses learning to reason, recognizes images, solves complex problems, understands languages and creates perspective, etc. It is seen as a foundation of the Industrial Revolution 4.0. Many companies have already started to use AI to do some of the work. 

But such applications raise troubling ethical issues because AI systems can reinforce what they have learned from real-world data, even amplifying familiar risks, such as racial or gender bias. Examples abound. In 2014, Amazon developed a recruiting tool for identifying software engineers it might want to hire; the system swiftly began discriminating against women, and the company abandoned it in 2017. In 2016, ProPublica analyzed a commercially developed system that predicts the likelihood that criminals will re-offend, created to help judges make better sentencing decisions, and found that it was biased against blacks.

1. Identify the ethical issues involved in the use of AI.
2. By what means, we can inculcate ethical and moral values in an AI-based system?
3. Is it too soon for the world to adopt the AI?

Q. What do you understand by the following quotation?

"If there is a sin in the world, it is weakness; avoid all weakness, weakness is sin, weakness is death."

Q. Putting the citizen first is the guiding principle of good governance. Discuss. (250 words)

Q. Discuss the significance of National Infrastructure Pipeline for India. Also examine the associated challenges. (250 words)

Q. What do you understand by 'curtailment of power' in the energy sector? How is it affecting the generation of renewable energy in India? (250 words)

Q. What do you understand by Digital literacy and financial literacy? Explain their significance for India. (250 words)

Q. Decentralisation in school management and governance is the key for fixing and reviving the broken governance system of rural education in India. Discuss. (250 words)

Q.  The environmental problems are simultaneously linked with social problem. Discuss. (250 words)

Q . What is meant by the ‘age structure’ of a population? Why is it relevant for economic development and growth? (250 words)

Essay Topic

One can win the election by a majority but you need consensus to rule.

Essay Topic

Social media can reduce social barriers and bring an inclusive democracy.

Indian Parliament recently passed Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019, which amends the Citizenship Act, 1955 to grant citizenship to undocumented immigrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan belonging to six religious communities, who came to India on or before December 31, 2014. There have been nationwide protests against the Act and many scholars are terming it violative of the Constitution. 

Suppose that you are an IAS officer stationed at Indore. You yourself believe that the Act is discriminatory and may lead to communal polarization of the country. You have got the information that two opposite religious groups are planning for 'Pro CAA' and 'Anti CAA' protests respectively. The venue and timing of both protests are the same. There are high chances of the matter getting out of hand and turning into communal riots that might spread in the whole district. 

1. Identify the ethical issues involved in the case.
2. What is the best possible course of action to solve the matter in a peaceful manner?

Q. What do you understand by the term ‘distributive justice’? How can it be a better philosophy to bring social justice? (150 words)

Q. How emotional intelligence can be a way to happiness? (150 words)

Q. The present-day food system is one of the main drivers of deforestation and biodiversity loss. Examine. (250 words)

Q. What are “orphan crops”? How are they significant for ensuring food security globally? (150 words)

Q. What do you understand by ‘Double Burden of Malnutrition’? Suggest steps that can be taken to tackle the Double Burden of Malnutrition. (250 words)

Q. India needs to focus on quality and unique solutions through technology to improve delivery systems of education. Comment. (250 words)

Q. What do you understand by ‘welfare state’? Do you think that India is a welfare state in true sense? (250 words)

Q. What were the reasons for the French Revolution? Examine its impact on French society in particular and on the world in general. (250 words)