UPSC Essentials brings to you its initiative for the practice of Mains answer writing. It covers essential topics of static and dynamic parts of the UPSC Civil Services syllabus covered under various GS papers. This answer-writing practice is designed to help you as a value addition to your UPSC CSE Mains. Attempt today’s answer writing on questions related to topics of GS-1 to check your progress. 🚨 The Indian Express UPSC Essentials brings to you the December issue of its monthly magazine. Click Here to read. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at manas.srivastava@indianexpress.com🚨 QUESTION 1 The 1924 Belgaum Session of the Indian National Congress, presided over by Mahatma Gandhi, was a watershed moment in India's independence campaign. Discuss the session's principal outcomes and their significance on the course of India's independence struggle. QUESTION 2 Discuss the issues that bird strikes provide to aircraft operations, as well as the risk-mitigation techniques that can be implemented. General points on the structure of the answers Introduction — The introduction of the answer is essential and should be restricted to 3-5 lines. Remember, a one-liner is not a standard introduction. — It may consist of basic information by giving some definitions from the trusted source and authentic facts. Body — It is the central part of the answer and one should understand the demand of the question to provide rich content. — The answer must be preferably written as a mix of points and short paragraphs rather than using long paragraphs or just points. — Using facts from authentic government sources makes your answer more comprehensive. Analysis is important based on the demand of the question, but do not over analyse. — Underlining keywords gives you an edge over other candidates and enhances presentation of the answer. — Using flowcharts/tree-diagram in the answers saves much time and boosts your score. However, it should be used logically and only where it is required. Way forward/ conclusion — The ending of the answer should be on a positive note and it should have a forward-looking approach. However, if you feel that an important problem must be highlighted, you may add it in your conclusion. Try not to repeat any point from body or introduction. — You may use the findings of reports or surveys conducted at national and international levels, quotes etc. in your answers. Self Evaluation — It is the most important part of our Mains answer writing practice. UPSC Essentials will provide some guiding points or ideas as a thought process that will help you to evaluate your answers. THOUGHT PROCESS You may enrich your answers by some of the following points QUESTION 1: The 1924 Belgaum Session of the Indian National Congress, presided over by Mahatma Gandhi, was a watershed moment in India's independence campaign. Discuss the session's principal outcomes and their significance on the course of India's independence struggle. Note: This is not a model answer. It only provides you with thought process which you may incorporate into the answers. Introduction: — The 39th session of the Indian National Congress, held at Belgaum (now Belgavi) in 1924, was Mahatma Gandhi's only Congress presidency. — The decision to hold the session at Belgaum provided new fuel to the district's nationalists. Gandhi served as Congress president from December 1924 until April 1925. Body: You may incorporate some of the following points in your answer: — Exactly a century ago, on December 26-27, 1924, the Congress held its 39th session at Belgaum (now Belagavi), the only session presided by Mahatma Gandhi. However, it is notable for two additional reasons: not only is it seen as a watershed moment in India's independence struggle from the British, but it also marks a turning point in the history of the Congress, which was founded in 1885. — As freedom fighter B Pattabhi Sitaramayya says in his 1935 book, History of Indian National Congress, "In the history of non-cooperation, Belgaum is a landmark. The revolt against Gandhism was nearly complete. The Congress stood at the point of separation." — The Belgaum session occurred during a critical period in the freedom movement and Gandhi's life, as he had returned to India from South Africa over a decade earlier in January 1915. — Gandhi's concepts of nonviolence, communal peace, and "swaraj (self-rule)" were established during this session in the former Bombay state. — “At the special session of the Congress at Calcutta in 1920, the boycott of government titles, law courts, educational institutions, legislative bodies and foreign cloth was resolved upon. All the boycotts were more or less taken up by the parties concerned… Though not a single boycott was anywhere near completion, every one of them had undoubtedly the effect of diminishing the prestige of the particular institution boycotted. The most important boycott was the boycott of violence….” Gandhi had said. — On Hindu-Muslim unity and fighting untouchability, Gandhi said untouchability was another hindrance to swaraj. “Its removal is just as essential for Swaraj as the attainment of Hindu-Muslim unity. This is an essentially Hindu question and Hindus cannot claim or take swaraj till they have restored the liberty of the suppressed classes,” he had said in his address. Conclusion: — He also encouraged individuals to become "perfect satyagrahis". "I have repeatedly stated that satyagraha never fails and that a single perfect satyagrahi is sufficient to prove the truth." Let us all try to become flawless Satyagrahis. Satyagraha is a property of the spirit inside, thus striving does not necessitate any quality that is beyond the reach of the most humble of us. It is within all of us. Like swaraj, it is our birthright. "Let us know," he had said. — Several top Congress leaders attended the session, including Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Sarojini Naidu, and Khilafat movement leaders Muhammad Ali Jauhar and Shaukat Ali, among others. — Even though the Belgaum session was set for December, few people wanted Gandhi to preside over it. Jawaharlal Nehru, who had been designated party secretary by Mohammed Ali during the 1923 session, was also named working secretary for the Belgaum meeting. In his memoir, he writes: "For him (Gandhi) to become the Congress president was something in the nature of anti-climax, for he had long been the permanent super president." (Source: 100 years ago in Belgaum: When Mahatma Gandhi chaired a Congress session by Shyamlal Yadav, Decode Politics: 100 years after Mahatma Gandhi event, why Cong is going all out for Belagavi session by Asad Rehman) Points to Ponder Other important sessions of INC Role of Mahatma Gandhi in Independence Movement Related Previous Year Questions What was the difference between Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore in their approach towards education and nationalism? (2023) Bring out the constructive programmes of Mahatma Gandhi during Non-Cooperation Movement and Civil Disobedience Movement. (2021) QUESTION 2: Discuss the issues that bird strikes provide to aircraft operations, as well as the risk-mitigation techniques that can be implemented. Note: This is not a model answer. It only provides you with thought process which you may incorporate into the answers. Introduction: — An aviation accident in South Korea killed all passengers except two crew members when an aircraft went off the runway while landing, collided with a wall, and erupted into flames at Muan International Airport. — With 181 people on board, Jeju Air flight 7C2216 was on its way from Bangkok, Thailand, to Muan, approximately 300 km from Seoul. Body: You may incorporate some of the following points in your answer: What are bird strikes and what can happen as a result of a strike? — Bird strikes are one of the most common dangers to aviation safety, and they usually happen during the takeoff or landing stages of a flight. Every day, dozens of bird strike occurrences occur, some of which are more dangerous. Typically, when birds crash with an aircraft's airframe, the pilots are unlikely to have serious problems. — However, in other circumstances, the aircraft engine consumed birds, causing damage to the power plants. This might result in the engine losing thrust and the crew having difficulty manoeuvring. When a jet engine ingests a bird, pilots are typically instructed to land the plane at the nearest airport. — While most airframe bird impacts are not deemed critical to air safety, if the collision occurs with a window or windscreen, resulting in structural cracking, pilots will attempt to land the plane as soon as feasible. — One of the most well-known recent bird strikes occurred in 2009, when Captain Chelsey Sullenberger informed air controllers that both engines of US Airways flight 1549 had been smashed by a flock of birds less than a minute after the jet left New York's LaGuardia airport for North Carolina. — Bird strikes provide a greater risk to smaller planes than to larger ones. Furthermore, modern jetliners are built with several redundancies, and common passenger aircraft such as the Boeing 737 or Airbus A320 are designed to land successfully with only one engine. — However, considering that bird attacks are most common during takeoffs and landings, these incidents may distract pilots during very essential moments of a flight that require the crew's full concentration. Conclusion: Risk-mitigation techniques — Wildlife strikes, including bird and animal strikes, to aircraft have been identified as a "State Safety Priority" by India's Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and the aviation regulator conducts aerodrome inspections on a regular basis to identify critical areas for wildlife strikes. Aviation authorities collaborate with local agencies to reduce wildlife presence around airports on a regular basis. — According to a recent piece in The Conversation, the two leading makers of passenger aeroplanes, Boeing and Airbus, use turbofan engines. These use a series of fan blades to compress air before adding fuel and flame to generate the thrust required for takeoff. Bird attacks in one of these engines can cause substantial damage to the fan blades, resulting in engine failure. (Source: South Korea Plane Crash leaves 179 people dead: How do bird strikes impact flights?) Points to Ponder Could bird strikes be critical to air safety? Why are smaller planes more susceptible to the dangers of bird strikes? Related Previous Year Question Explain the mechanism and occurrence of cloudburst in the context of the Indian subcontinent. Discuss two recent examples. (2022) Previous Mains Answer Practice UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 1 (Week 83) UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 1 (Week 82) UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 2 (Week 84) UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 2 (Week 83) UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 3 (Week 84) UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 3 (Week 83) Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter and stay updated with the news cues from the past week. Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – IndianExpress UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X.
