 Good evening, friends. Welcome to the Hindu News Analysis by Shankar A. S. Akademi for the date 24th of November 2023. Displayed here are the list of news articles that we will be going through today. Now, without wasting time, let's start the discussion. Look at this news article. This article is about the social audit of the Mandrega scheme. This news article reports that only six states and union territories have somewhat completed the social audit of works done under the Mandrega scheme. In such states, the social audit was done in more than 50% of the Gram Panchayats. According to the news article, Kerala is the only state to conduct social audit in 100% of the Gram Panchayats. The states are complaining that the social audit is delayed because the central government does not release the funds for the social audit units. On the other hand, the center is continuously saying that if the social audit are not conducted regularly, then the center's share of funds under the Mandrega will be withheld. Overall, the news article says that the high rate of corruption is one of the primary concern that hinders the effective social audit of Mandrega scheme. This is all about the news article given here. In this context in our discussion today, let us understand the concept of social audit in detail. First of all, what is social audit? A social audit is a process by which people are empowered to audit government schemes and programs along with the government officials. To say it in other words, social audit is the process of monitoring and verifying the implementation of government program by the local people. Social audit helps to ensure that the scheme appropriately reflects the priorities and preference of the local people. It also helps to verify whether the scheme most effectively serves the public interest. For example, let us take the Mandrega scheme. See, the central government has launched the Mandrega scheme in 2005 under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005. On one hand, this scheme provides job guarantee to the rural households. On the other hand, this scheme helps to strengthen the rural economy through the creation of infrastructure. Basically, this scheme involves the participation of the rural household in creating rural infrastructure. See, the section 17 of the Mandrega Act mandates the conduction of social audit in all works done under the Mandrega scheme. So, this scheme empowers the rural people to audit the Mandrega scheme. This helps to discover the preference and priorities of the local people. This in turn enables the government authorities to alter the scheme according to the needs of the local people. This is one example of social audit in India. Now moving forward, let us see the origin of social audit in our country. The concept of social audit has been recognized for the first time in India by the introduction of the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Act in 1992. As we all know, the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendment Act have guaranteed constitutional status to Panjaitiraj institutions and the urban local bodies. These acts enable the local authorities to perform social audits in addition to their regular duties. Years later, the government included social audit as one of the main provisions to the 9th five-year plan. The 9th five-year plan emphasized that for the effective functioning of Panjaitiraj institution, the social audit must be conducted. Then the Mandrega Act that was enacted in 2005 mandates that social audit must be conducted on all works which are done under the Mandrega scheme. After that, the government has placed social audit as one of the mandatory provisions in various schemes like National Rural Livelyhood Mission, National Social Assistance Program, Pradhan Mandri Avas Yojana and so on. This is about the history of social audit in our country. Now moving on, let us see about the significance of social audit. Firstly, social audit brings in transparency and accountability in implementing government policies. Secondly, social audit helps to discover corruption and malpractices involved in the implementation of the scheme. Thirdly, social audit encourages the concept of participatory democracy by involving people directly in monitoring the progress of the government schemes. Fourthly, social audit helps the government to get real-time feedback on the outcome of the scheme. This in turn helps the government to work on proper areas. And finally, social audit helps the government to identify the preferences of the local people. This in turn helps the government to frame better policies that suit the local people. These are all some of the significance of social audit. Moving forward, let us see the challenges in conducting social audit in our country. The first and foremost problem is corruption. Most of the time, the government officials submit fake reports to the government without conducting social audit or they may delay submitting the reports. This is being done in areas where there are no proper work done under the scheme due to corruption. This defeats the whole purpose of social audit. Secondly, most people who audit the work do not follow the proper rules mandated under the scheme. This is due to difficulty in understanding social audit rules and lack of technical knowledge. In addition to this, there is no provision for penalties if the auditing people fail to adhere to the rules. This affects the effective implementation of social audit. And finally, there is no proper institutional mechanism to conduct and monitor social audits. This hinders the effective social audit of government programs. Apart from this, the people who are involved in social audit are not provided with any incentive. This factor discourages the active participation of the local people in social audits. These are some of the important challenges in conducting social audit in our country. And that's all regarding this discussion. In this discussion, we saw what is social audit, then we saw the origin of social audit in India, then we saw the significance of social audit and the challenges in conducting social audit in our country. Now with this, let us conclude this discussion and take up the next news article. Look at this article. According to this article, the Tamil Nadu government has decided to launch Diploma Courses on Villa Parti and Folk Music at the Tamil Nadu Dr. J. J. Lalitha Music and Fine Arts University. This decision has been taken on the request of Carnatic vocalist Mr. T. M. Krishna. In this background, let us understand the unique features of folk music and Villa Parti. See, folk music is a genre of music that has been passed over from generation to generation over several years. They are mainly passed on through oral means. While classical music adheres to the Natya Shastra rules and cultivates a Guru Sisha tradition, folk music is a music of the people and it has no hard and fast rules. They have a variety of themes and are of full of musical rhythms. They are also said to be beats allowing them to be dance oriented. There are various types of folk music associated with each state in our country. Moving forward, let us see the important features of folk music. Firstly, as we already saw, the knowledge associated with folk music is transmitted orally rather than in a written form. So, the musical composition cannot be traced to a specific source. Its propagation and survival are based on the acceptance by the local community. Secondly, some folk music consists of classical ragas. For example, Raga Manda is very popular in Rajasthani folk music. Thirdly, each performance is unique to a specific region and it is a reflection of the rural society and culture. They try to convey stories of life and traditions that have been forgotten are on the verge of disappearing. Fourthly, increased repetition is involved in this type of music. The first line of a folk music is important and usually the other lines are said to rhyme with it. Lyrics of the folk songs are mostly in the form of a set of questionnaire that help develop a relationship between the performer and the listener. Some of the famous themes of the folk music include agriculture, caste, region, children, God and Goddesses and local tradition. These are some of the important features of folk music. Moving forward, let us see some points about Villupattu. The term Villupattu means bow song. It is a form of musical theatre which is popular in Kerala and some part of Tamil Nadu. In Villupattu, stories of Ramayana are narrated using a bow-shaped instrument. It is one of the folk music in India. Simple tunes and verses make the story told by Villupattu easy to follow for the listener. The main storyteller narrates the story while striking the bow. The bow rests on a mud pot kept facing downwards. A co-performer beats the pot while singing. This is how a Villupattu musical theatre takes place. Since Villupattu is a form of musical storytelling method, the local government sometimes utilizes this as a vehicle for social message and propaganda. These are some important problems related points about Villupattu. And that's all regarding this discussion. In this discussion, we saw the unique features of folk songs and we also saw some important points about Villupattu. Now let us conclude this and take up the next news article. Look at this news article. This news article talks about a novel written by Kalki Krishnamurti. The title of the novel is Sivahamin Sabadham. In this particular novel, Kalki describes the role of Paranjodhi in aiding Pallava King Narasimha Varman 1 to capture the Vattapi. Vattapi used to be the capital of Badami Chalukyas and currently it is located in the Bijapur district of Karnataka. This news article mainly focuses on Paranjodhi who is also called Sirtundar. This is about the article given here. In this context in our discussion today, let us look at some of the problems related facts with respect to the Chalukya dynasty. See, the Chalukyas ruled part of southern and central India between the 6th century and the 12th century CE. There were three distinct but related Chalukya dynasties. Firstly, there is the Badami Chalukyas. They are the earliest Chalukyas with their capital at Badami which is also called as Vattapi. They ruled from mid 6th century. Badami Chalukyas started declining after the death of their greatest king, Pulikashin II in 642 CE. Secondly, we have the Eastern Chalukyas. They emerged after the death of Pulikashin II. They mainly ruled over the Eastern Deccan with the capital at Vengi. They ruled till the 11th century CE. Thirdly, there is the Western Chalukyas. They are the descendants of the Badami Chalukyas. They emerged in the late 10th century and ruled from Kalyani. Kalyani is nothing but modern-day Basava Kalyan. These are the three distinct but related Chalukya dynasties. Moving forward, let us look at the accomplishments of the Chalukya dynasty. Pulikashin I founded the Chalukya Empire with his capital at Vattapi. Kirtivarman I, son of Pulikashin I, captured Kunkan and Northern Kerala. Likewise, Mangalesha, brother of Kirtivarman I, conquered the Kadambas and the Gangas. The greatest of the Chalukya king was the Pulikashin II. He ruled from 609 CE to 642 CE. He extended the Chalukya rule to most part of the Deccan. Chinese pilgrim, Huang Zhang, visited the kingdom. Huang Zhang described Pulikashin II as a good and an authoritative king. Pulikashin II even received a Persian mission. It is depicted in the Ajanta cave painting. He also maintained diplomatic relations with the king of Persia, Kusru II. Though a Hindu, Pulikashin II was tolerant towards Buddhism and Jainism. He conquered almost the entire south-central India. He is famous for stopping the Northern King Harsha in his tracks while he was trying to conquer the southern part of the country. He had defeated the Pallava king Mahendra Verma I, but he was later defeated and killed by Mahendra Verma's son and successor Narasimha Verma I. After the defeat of Pulikashin II at the hands of the Pallava king Narasimha Verma I, Badami remained under the Pallava control for the next 13 years. This is how the fall of the Chalukyan Empire began. Now finally, let us look at the administration of the Chalukyas. See, the Chalukyas had a very good navy making them a maritime power. They also had a well-organized army. Their regime gave a boost to the development of the Kannada and the Telugu literature. Sanskrit along with the local languages also thrived. The temples under the Chalukyas are a good example of the Vesara style of architecture. Vesara style is nothing but a combination of Dravidian and the Nagara style of temple architecture. This style is called Deccan style or Karnataka Dravidha style or the Chalukyan style of architecture. And that's all regarding this discussion. In this discussion, we saw various prelims related facts about the Chalukya Empire. Now with this, let us conclude this discussion and take up the next news article. Look at this article. Our Prime Minister recently declared the extension of Prathan Mandiri, Garib Kalyan Annyojna for five more years. He announced this during an election rally in Chattisgarh. See, the scheme provides five kilogram of free food grains monthly to beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act. So 80 crore Indians will continue receiving free food grains until 2028 through this initiative. On the other hand, Indian government aims to become the world's third largest economy by reaching a GDP of $5 trillion. This article raises a question that despite these economic growth, significant portion of our population will still experience hunger. This is about the editorial article. In our discussion today, we will understand the important points mentioned in the article through a mains answer rating approach. Before that, let us look at the syllabus. This topic comes under GS Paper 3 and it falls under the topic of Indian economy and issues related to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment. This is the syllabus. Now let us look into the question. India's dream of becoming a $5 trillion economy is a realistic possibility. Critically comment. In this question, critically comment is the main directive word. This is one of the most commonly used directive in the mains examination. When the directive word is critically comment, we have to pick out the core points and give our opinion based on that. It is important that we should take a neutral ground by writing facts along with our viewpoints. As we know, the word critically comment demands a fair judgment. In this question, we have to write both the pros and the cons about the statement given in the question. This is how you have to approach the question when the directive word is critically comment. Now coming to today's question. The question asks us to critically comment on India's dream of becoming a $5 trillion economy. So we have to mention the steps taken in this record and also the challenges associated with the school. And finally, we have to provide a balanced conclusion. This is how we are going to approach this question. Okay, now let's start with the introduction. We can give a simple and optimistic introduction. India is one of the fastest growing major economies and it is currently ranked as the world's sixth largest economy. Projections of growth by international organizations remain encouraging for India. As expected by our Prime Minister, India is most likely to achieve a $5 trillion economy by 2028. The government has several ongoing initiative across various sectors focused on achieving this goal. This can be a good introduction for this question. Now coming to the body of the answer. In the body part, you should write the steps taken by the government then about the challenges in reaching the goal. Since it is a 10-mark question, some four or five points under each subending is sufficient. Now let us look at the steps taken by the government towards achieving the goal, which is $5 trillion economy by 2028. Firstly, you can write about the demographic dividend. As we know, India has a large and young population that can provide a huge potential workforce for the economy. Without reaping this demographic dividend, we cannot achieve our goal of economic growth. In this regard, our government is implementing various schemes like Prathan Mantri, Kushal Kendra, Sun-Called Program, Deen Dayal Upadaya, Graman Kushal, Yudhana, etc. This can be your first point. Now moving on, the second point you can mention is the steps taken by the government to boost private investment. See, private investment is a key driver of economic growth because it is private investment that will increase productivity, innovation, and competitiveness in the economy. To boost private investment, government has taken several steps. The steps include increasing ease of doing business, reducing corporate tax, providing credit guarantee, and attracting foreign direct investment. Here, production-linked incentive scheme can be mentioned. The production-linked incentive scheme was introduced in various sectors to encourage private investors. Also, the national single-window system was implemented to improve the case of ease of doing business for the investors. This can be your second point. Now, in the third point, you can mention about the steps taken by the government to provide proper infrastructure connectivity. Here, the most recent and the most significant step is the Pradhan Mandri Gatti Shakti National Master Plan. This plan is implemented by the Indian government to enhance infrastructure development and connectivity across the country. It aims to streamline and strengthen various sectors like transportation, energy, water, and technology. And through this, it aims to improve infrastructure and connectivity in our country. In addition to this, you can also mention about the industrial corridor development program, which was introduced by the government to strengthen infrastructure for industrial development. This can be your third point. Now, moving on to the fourth point, here you can mention about the Make in India initiative. The Make in India initiative is aimed to facilitate investment and enhance innovation and boost the manufacturing sector in our country. It aims to attract both domestic and foreign investment in various sectors like automobile, textile, electronics, defense, and infrastructure. These are some of the points you can mention about the steps taken by the government to accelerate the growth of Indian economy. Now, having addressed the first part of the question, now let us look at the challenges. Here, you have to highlight the challenges in achieving the $5 trillion economy. In this first, you can mention about unemployment. See, despite having a large demographic dividend, India still has a high level of unemployment and under-employment. High unemployment rate, mainly among youth, poses significant challenges to the economic growth. This can be your first point. Secondly, you can mention about inadequate infrastructure. Inadequate infrastructure in various sectors like transportation, energy, and healthcare slows down the economic progress of our country. Third, you can mention about income inequality. The growth in India is mainly focused on the top section of the economy. Due to this, there is huge income disparity. Disparities in income distribution hinders the inclusive growth. Without inclusive growth, there can be socio-economic imbalance. These socio-economic imbalance thereby affects the economic growth of our country. This can be your third point. Fourth, you can mention about the issues in the agricultural sector. See, India is a still agricultural country. But still, despite all these years, there are so much of challenges that the agriculture sector in India faces. The most common challenges include low productivity, lack of modernization, and formal distress associated with unpredictable weather. All these affects the rural economy. Since India is still largely a rural country, this affects the economic growth of our country. This can be your fourth point. Finally, you can mention about skill mismatch. Despite a lot of efforts taken by the government, there is still a huge mismatch in skill between the graduates and the needs of the industry. This is the main reason for unemployment and under-employment in our country. This also hinders our march towards $5 trillion economy. You can mention all these points about the challenges faced by India in reaching a $5 trillion economy. Now, having completed the body of the answer, let us see some points from the article which you can use in the editorial. The editorial here talks about the lessons from Japan. After World War II, Japan also worked very hard to become a large economy. But despite being the second largest economy, Japan faces various social issues. The issues include high suicidal rates, social withdrawal, and lonely deaths. This is because the economic growth in Japan did not benefit everyone. And some marginalized sections in Japan were left out in the Japan's economic growth story. It is due to this, Japan faces various social issues. And these social issues actually worsened after the 2008 economic crisis. Japan's economy went downhill and it was surpassed by China. You can mention the example of Japan in your answer and say that if economic growth is not coupled with social development, the issues that Japan faces right now will be faced by India in the future. So, while the Indian government aims to achieve a $5 trillion economy, our government must also ensure that the fruits of the economic development reaches all sections of the Indian population equally. This will help India address the socio-economic problems. This will help India address the socio-economic problems. You can mention all these points while writing about the challenges faced by India in achieving a $5 trillion economy. This is all about the body of the answer, now coming to the conclusion part. In the conclusion part, you can write that even if we achieve $5 trillion economic growth, there is a big question of achieving inclusive growth. As we saw the lessons from Japan's economic growth, we must focus more on inclusive growth of all sections rather than rapid growth of fewer individuals. To ensure continued robust and sustainable growth of Indian economy, a strategic approach must be used by our government. This approach must address the fiscal, monetary, trade, industrial and institutional policies of our country. This could be a balanced conclusion for this question. That's all regarding this discussion. In this discussion, we saw through a mains question about the steps taken by the government to become to make India a $5 trillion economy and we also saw the challenges associated with it. Now let us conclude this and take up the next news article. Look at this editorial article. This article talks about trade deficit in India. So first let us understand what is trade deficit. Then we shall see the points mentioned in the article. So what is trade deficit? It's very simple. A trade deficit occurs when a country's import exceeds its exports during a given period of time. It is also referred to as negative balance of trade. The opposite of trade deficit is trade surplus. With this basics, let us see the important points mentioned in the article. The editorial gives us two reasons for increasing trade deficit in our country. The first reason mentioned in the article is increase in goods import. Last month witnessed a surge in goods import. This surge was mainly due to festival-related demand for items like jewellery and electronics. The other reason is decline in exports. The actual value of exports in October is the lowest in the past 12 months. These two factors had led to increase in trade deficit in our country. To address this issue, government has taken efforts to control imports through measures like import licensing norms. But this has not yielded the effect as expected by the government. So the article suggests that in addition to taking efforts to control imports, government must also take steps to boost exports from our country. This is because increase in export is crucial for job creation and economic growth in our country. These are some of the points mentioned in the article given here. And that's all regarding this discussion. Now moving on to the next discussion. This article is about chromium pollution. The article says that the National Green Tribunal Southern Branch has instructed to speed up the resolution of chromium pollution in Rannipet. The tribunal mentioned that even though authorities were given six months, there has been no progress made in over an year. This is about the news article. In this context, let us cover the basics about chromium, its distribution and also the health impacts. See, chromium is a lustrous brittle and silver grey metal. This metal can be highly polished. This metal is used in a variety of area. So now let us see the applications of chromium. Chromium is an important alloying metal. It is used in the production of alloys with other materials like nickel, cobalt and copper. Chromium compounds are used as industrial catalysts and pigments. Chromium is also an essential trace element for humans because it helps us to digest glucose. Chromium is electroplated into metal objects to make them resistant to corrosion. For example, iron when electroplated with chromium will become resistant to corrosion. These are the major applications of chromium. Moving forward, let us see the distribution of chromium. In India, Odisha has more than 93% of the chromium deposits. Sukinda Valley in Odisha is famous for its chromium resources. Manipur, Nahalan, Karnataka, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh also has minor deposits of chromium. If you look at the global level, Kazakhstan has the world's largest reserve of chromium. But South Africa is the world's largest producer of chromium. This is about the distribution of chromium in India and in the world. Finally, let us see the health impacts of chromium. There are different forms of chromium. For example, chromium-3 is an essential nutrient for humans in small amounts. It is found even in certain food items. However, exposure to high levels of chromium-6 from industrial resources can be harmful and can cause health issues. It can lead to skin irritation and lung problems. When inhaled, chromium compound affects the respiratory tract. Chromium inhalation increases the risk of lung, nasal and sinus cancer. Severe dermatitis and painless skin ulcers can result from contact with chromium-6. Note that chromium is also considered to be a carcinogenic calamity. These are the possible health impacts of chromium. And that's all regarding this discussion. In this discussion, we mainly covered about the application and the potential health impacts of chromium. And with this, we have come to the end of the news article discussion session. Now, let us take up the practice problems questions. We have four practice problems questions today. Let us see them one by one. Look at the first question. Here, four Chalukin kings are given. We have to find during whose reign Hwang Song visited the Chalukin kingdom. From our discussion, we know that the correct answer here is option C. Publication 2. Moving on to the second question. This question asks us to find among which of the four given option the Manganiyar communities related to C. Manganiyars are Muslim communities in the Jaisalmar and Barma district of Rajasthan. They are famous for their classical folk music and the playing of Kartals. Here, Kartals are a traditional percussion instrument that is used in Rajasthani folk music. Manganiyars are patronized by the Bharti Rajputs. They still sing on various auspicious occasions and festivals. So, the correct answer here is option B, musical tradition in northwestern India. Moving on to the third question. Which of the following properties is not associated with chromium? The first option is wrong because we know that chromium is corrosion resistant. The second option is also wrong because when chromium is exposed to air, it forms blue-green oxide layer. The third option is also wrong. We know that chromium has good electrical conductivity. The correct answer here is option C because chromium is not the softest metal at room temperature. Actually, chromium is pretty hard in the room temperature. So, the correct answer here is option D. Moving on to the last question. Here, three statements are given. We have to find how many of the statements given here about trade deficit are correct. Look at the first statement. When money spent on imports exceed the money spent on exports, trade deficit occurs. This statement is correct. This we saw in the discussion itself. When imports exceed exports, trade deficit occurs. Moving on to the second statement. Trade deficit will result in currency depreciation. This statement is correct. During trade deficit, a country imports more. It is using up its foreign exchange reserves. So, when the amount of foreign exchange reserve in a country decreases, the currency of the country starts depreciating. This is why trade deficit results in currency depreciation. So, statement two is also correct. Moving on to the third statement. Trade deficit allows countries to consume less than they produce. This statement is incorrect. Because trade deficit allows countries to consume more than they produce. Because during trade deficit, countries are importing more than they are producing. This means there is increased consumption in the country. So, statement three is incorrect. So, the correct answer for this question is option B only two. And that's all regarding the discussion today. If you like this video, like, comment and share it with your friends. For more updates regarding UPSC preparation, subscribe to Shankara IS Academy's YouTube channel. Thank you for listening.