UPSCVerse Weekly Summary #10
Important UPSC articles and links of week #10
Welcome to UPSCVerse Weekly Summary #10! This week, we have compiled a collection of important topics from major news sources that will be useful for UPSC preparation. We hope you find this summary and recommendations helpful!
UPSC Gyan
You don’t need more Time, you need more focus
You have around 620+ hours if you read 8 hours every day for UPSC. The problem is not to differentiate between practice and deliberate practice. Writing mocks for marks and not to identify mistakes is one such example.
You spent more time, but the outcome is of no use, every such thing you do is a waste of time, so 8 hours of time and energy spent on most useful things will push you close to the success.
Be ruthless, cut down every thing that takes your time away from UPSC and be very miserly is saying yes to non UPSC things.
Honorable exceptions
15-30 minutes talking to family or siblings.
Talking to that person who is your moral strength or boosts your confidence. [Limited time]
Watching a movie after a long day of study. Walk in the park, hitting gym or yoga and meditation all worth it.
Religious or spiritual activities in reasonable time is also good.
You get the drift right, every thing else should be toned down slowly… more focus leads to more momentum. Momentum leads to confidence. Start removing the distractions.
“Tṛishṇā: Weekend Recommendations for Curious Minds”
Movies: Z 1969 by Costa-Gavras which I think is a masterpiece also shows the importance of a single person making a dent in the system. [Personal opinion I have a hunch that the typewriter scenes in Shankar Nayak movie have some inspiration from this ! ]
Books: 1984 this classic needs no introduction, in case if you are not aware today is the day to know more about George Orwell - born Eric Blair.
Podcast: How can we solve the Refugee crisis reminds me of Sir Humphrey Appleby quotes, "Minister, don't try to be friends with people you don't like. It doesn't work. Don't humanize them. It only makes it more difficult to do what you have to do."
YouTube: How to regain your focus ? STOLEN FOCUS by Johann Hari
Quotes I liked:
Emerson has said that consistency is a virtue of an ass. No thinking human being can be tied down to a view once expressed in the name of consistency. More important than consistency is responsibility. A responsible person must learn to unlearn what he has learned. A responsible person must have the courage to rethink and change his thoughts. Of course there must be good and sufficient reason for unlearning what he has learned and for recasting his thoughts. There can be no finality in rethinking. - Dr B. R. Ambedkar
"Until they become conscious, they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled, they cannot become conscious." George Orwell
"When my information changes, I alter my conclusions. John Maynard Keynes
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Articles for Essay and Ethics value addition
Meeran Chadha Borwankar a former IPS officer She argues that women police officers in India face many challenges and barriers in their career advancement and leadership roles. She cites examples of discrimination, harassment, lack of training and mentoring, and hostile work environment that affect their performance and morale. The author argues that while we celebrate the induction of women in uniform, we cannot allow them to stagnate. [Source]
According to a UN report, Afghanistan is now the most repressive country for women in the world. The report says that women's rights have been severely curtailed under Taliban rule, with limited access to education, health care, work and freedom of movement. The report also warns of a humanitarian crisis, with 11.6 million Afghan women and girls in need of assistance.
Source: Which country is most repressive for women in world? UN mission reveals.
The Indian Air Force has selected Group Captain Shaliza Dhami to take over command of a frontline combat unit in the Western sector. She is the first woman to command any combat unit of IAF. [Source]
Women Army officers have proved their mettle in various operational roles, such as peacekeeping, counter-insurgency, border management and high-altitude warfare.
Captain Shiva Chauhan: She became the first woman officer to be operationally deployed at Siachen Glacier, the world's highest battlefield. She was posted at Kumar post at an altitude of around 15,600 feet for three months after undergoing rigorous training.
Major Suman Gawani: She became the first Indian peacekeeper to receive the UN Military Gender Advocate Award for her service in South Sudan. She mentored over 230 UN military observers on conflict-related sexual violence and ensured gender-sensitive reporting .
Major Anjali Prasad: She was part of an all-women team that conducted a record-breaking expedition to Mount Deotibba in Himachal Pradesh. She scaled the peak at an altitude of 19,688 feet along with five other women officers .
Major Nupur Kulshrestha: She became the first woman officer to be selected as a defence attaché abroad. She was posted as a deputy defence attaché at the Indian Embassy in Madagascar .
Major Anjana Bhaduria: She became one of India's first women paratroopers after completing her probation with Parachute Regiment Training Centre. She also won a gold medal for being adjudged best cadet during her training at Officers Training Academy .
Source: From Siachen to Sudan, women Army officers prove no mission is impossible
Wives and mothers make the biggest living organ donor pool, based on a survey conducted by a Mumbai hospital that analysed 1,000 live organ donations made between 2013 and, 20201. The survey found that:
Seven out of 10 live organ donors were women, mostly wives and mothers.
Women donated kidneys more than men (74% vs 26%)
Compassion or lack of choices ? [Source]
In 2022, $3.9 bn of funding poured into Indian start-ups led by female founders, making up around 11% of the total funds raised.
out of the 11 startups with women-led founders or co-founders that currently have a unicorn valuation ($1 billion or above), 5 become unicorns in 2022 itself. This includes 5ire, LEAD School, Open, LivSpace, and Amagi.
Proportion of funding to women-led start-ups grew in 2022: Report
The Supreme Court ruled that a committee headed by the Prime Minister should appoint ECs in consultation with the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and the Leader of Opposition (LoP), and that their tenure and salaries should be fixed by law.
However, the judgment does not guarantee that the committee will select ECs based on merit and integrity, or that they will be insulated from political interference or removal
Other landmark judgments by the Supreme Court that have not produced the desired results, such as: not to mention CBI
The Vishaka guidelines on sexual harassment at workplace, which have not prevented many cases of abuse and discrimination against women.
The collegium system for appointment of judges, which has been criticised for lack of transparency, accountability and diversity.
The right to information act, which has been hampered by delays, vacancies and attacks on information commissioners.
Source: Judges call it right, but jury’s still out
Whi shri S Y Quraishi, adds some reforms
Giving equal constitutional protection to ECs as CECs against arbitrary removal by the executive
Expanding the EC to include more members from diverse backgrounds and expertise
Regulating political parties and candidates on issues such as internal democracy, campaign finance and criminalisation
Source: Former CEC S Y Quraishi writes
Achyut Chetan's book "The Founding Mothers of the Republic" highlights the role of women in the Constituent Assembly that drafted the Indian Constitution. The book documents the contributions of 11 women who were part of the Constituent Assembly and argues that their contributions were erased from history.
Source: Our founding mothers: How women contributed to Constitution building
The Constituent Assembly of India was elected to frame the Constitution of India and had 389 members, 15 of whom were women. The women who served in the Assembly were:
Ammu Swaminathan
Annie Mascarene
Dakshayani Velayudhan
Begum Aizaz Rasul
Durgabai Deshmukh
Hansa Jivraj Mehta
Kamla Chaudhry
Leela Roy
Malati Choudhury
Purnima Banerjee
Rajkumari Amrit Kaur
Renuka Ray
Sarojini Naidu
Sucheta Kriplani
Vijayalakshmi Pandit
Prelims and mains value addition Role of Women in the Constituent Assembly
With life sentence in Amshipora court-martial, Army’s commitment to rule of law stands reinforced
All suspicious encounters must be investigated while being mindful of the fact that in the “grey zone,” there are manipulations of many kinds. In this respect, the Indian Army’s record is guided by imperative of fairness to the people in the proxy conflict zone and also to its own soldiers. Respecting this fine balance requires leadership skills.
The Indian Army stands firm on its principle of conducting “ethical operations” and has zero tolerance towards human rights violations and cases of misdemeanours.
Syed Ata Hasnain writes: With life sentence in Amshipora court-martial, Army’s commitment to rule of law stands reinforced
INDIA HAS proposed to launch a mega global alliance under its leadership to protect big cats and assured support over five years with guaranteed funding of $100 million (over Rs 800 crore).
The proposed International Big Cat Alliance (IBCA) will work towards the protection and conservation of the seven major big cats — tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, puma, jaguar and cheetah. Membership to the alliance will be open to 97 “range” countries, which contain the natural habitat of these big cats, as well as other interested nations, international organisations, etc. [Source]
The Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) has accumulated over Rs 66,000 crore from various project proponents, but only 15% of this amount has been utilised for afforestation activities. Many CA plantations were monocultures of exotic species that had low survival rates and biodiversity value. Moreover, there was a lack of monitoring and evaluation of CA outcomes. [Source]
Stress breaker ?
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