Question-cum-Answer-Booklet
Model Solutions
- Define white revolution. Explain the problems and strategies for development of the milk industry in India. (10 marks)
- Social empowerment is both a prerequisite as well as an indicator of a nation's development. Discuss. (15 marks)
Model Structure 1.
Introduction
● The White Revolution in India was the brainchild of Dr Verghese Kurein. Under him many important institutions were established like the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation Ltd and the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).
● The White Revolution was started by the NDDB in the 1970s and the bedrock of the revolution has been the village milk producers' cooperatives
Main Body
● Problems in Milk Industry/Dairy sector
○ Informal Nature of Dairy Sector
○ Lack of Remunerative Pricing: no official and periodical estimate of the cost of production and Minimum Support Price for milk.
○ Production of milk is subject to seasonal fluctuations — animals, particularly buffaloes, produce more during winter-spring and less in the summer.
○ Bulk sale of milk has collapsed during covid (as nearly no marriages and other social functions were taking place).
○ Half Hearted Government Efforts: Less budgetary support
○ Poor Breeding Infrastructure and Genetics: The success of Indian dairy was mostly due to the rising number of animals, not productivity.
○ Of the total milk produced in India, only 18-20% is channelized via the organized sector.
○ Animal Feed and Fodder: There is an acute and ever-growing shortage of green fodder and good quality feed.
○ Lack of Cold Chain Infrastructure
● Strategies for development of the milk industry in India
○ Short-Term Measure
- The government should consider temporary procurement of milk, directly by the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB).
- NDDB may create a buffer stock of processed dairy products like skimmed milk powder (SMP) and butter.
- Also, state governments may consider distributing these dairy products in Mid-May Meal, when schools reopen.
- By this way, the crisis in the dairy sector and nutritional security both can be addressed.
○ Long-Term Measures
- Increasing Productivity: Through better health care and breeding facilities and management of dairy animals.
- Milk production and productivity can be enhanced by ensuring the availability of veterinary services, artificial insemination (AI), feed and farmer education.
- Augmenting Production, Processing and Marketing Infrastructure: which is capable of meeting international quality requirements.
- Comprehensive strategy for producing quality and safe dairy products that should be formulated with suitable legal backup
- Further, to address the infrastructure deficit in rural areas and address the power shortage, there is a need to invest in solar powered dairy processing units.
- Also, there is a need to strengthen dairy cooperatives. In this pursuit, the government should promote farmer producer organisations.
Conclusion
● Given the importance of dairy sectors, for both farmers and consumers, there is a need for governments at various levels to address this crisis and establish a holistic framework for the overall growth of the sector.
Model Structure 2.
Introduction
● Social empowerment means all sections of the society having equal control over their lives and the opportunity to take important decisions. A nation can never have a good growth trajectory without empowering all sections of society equally.
Main Body
● It is understood as the process of developing a sense of autonomy and self-confidence, and acting individually and collectively to change social relationships and the institutions and discourses that exclude poor people and keep them in poverty.
● Perceptions of being empowered vary across time, culture, and domains of a person’s life:
○ A low-caste person feels empowered when he/she is given a fair hearing in a public meeting, which is composed of men and women from the different social and economic groups.
○ A woman from a conservative household feels empowered if she’s allowed to go out alone without being escorted by a male from her house.
○ A transgender feels empowered when she’s given employment.
● The need for Social Empowerment
○ Social empowerment leads one to take the right job and hence reduce the incidence of unemployment and under-employment.
○ Social empowerment leads to a decrease in social violence engineered against the deprived section of the society. If one is empowered socially, they know the rights they enjoy and the duties they serve.
○ Social empowerment is also advantageous in case of corruption as people tend to understand the exploitative class and restrain from giving any bribe which ultimately reduces corruption.
○ Social empowerment is one approach to reduce poverty. When people are empowered, they tend to use the knowledge in the right direction and somehow reduce their poverty which is so important for national growth also.
● The main advantage of empowerment is that there will be an overall and inclusive development of the society. The money that people earn does not only help them and or their family, but it also helps develop society.
● It means the empowerment of all marginalised sections of the population like SC/ST/OBC/Minorities, women and transgenders.
● Empowerment can be done by improving institutions of the social structure i.e. hospitals especially primary care in the rural areas, schools, universities, etc.
● Investment in social structures will not only boost growth (by fiscal stimulus) but will also create a healthy and capable generation to handle future work.