UPSC Essentials | Mains answer practice — GS 1 : Questions on Montreal Protocol and evolution of the Great Stupa at Sanchi (Week 68)

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.

QUESTION 1: Analyse the evolution of the Great Stupa at Sanchi from its origins during the Ashokan period to its impact on European cultural and architectural developments.

Note: This is not a model answer. It only provides you with thought process which you may incorporate into the answers.

Introduction:

— Sanchi Stupa is one of India’s best-preserved and studied Buddhist sites, located on a mountain-top near the town of Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh.

— There are many stupas, but the Sanchi Stupa, sometimes known as the Great Stupa, is the most prominent. It was built by Ashoka in the third century BCE. It houses sacred relics or the remains of the Buddha and his most devoted disciples.

Body:

You may incorporate some of the following points in the body of your answer:

Evolution of the Great Stupa at Sanchi

— The Great Stupa of Sanchi is the largest and oldest edifice in a Buddhist complex that includes multiple stupas, temples, and monasteries. Sanchi’s most recent structure is from the twelfth century CE or later.

— Its building was directed by Ashoka’s wife Devi, who came from the adjacent commercial town of Vidisha. Patronage from Vidisha’s mercantile sector helped to fund the creation of the Sanchi complex.

— The four toranas, which face the four cardinal directions, were built in the first century BCE, most likely within a few decades of one another during the reign of the Satavahana dynasty.

— During the Shunga period in the mid-second century BC, the original brick construction was doubled in size, and the mound was covered with a sandstone slab.

— These gateways consist of two square pillars that support a superstructure made up of three curved architraves (or beams) with spirally-rolled ends. The pillars and architraves are ornamented with exquisite bas reliefs and sculptures showing scenes from the Buddha’s life, Jataka Tale tales, and other Buddhist imagery.

— The four gateways are arranged chronologically as follows: southern, northern, eastern, and western. All of these entrances were provided by devoted people, and their names are written on the pillars.

— During the Gupta dynasty, Sanchi was expanded much further. These feature a Buddhist temple and a lion pillar.

Impact on European cultural and architectural development

— In Europe, the East Gate is the most famous of the Sanchi toranas.

— In 1818, British officer Henry Taylor “discovered” the Sanchi complex, which was in ruins. Alexander Cunningham, who later formed the ASI, oversaw the first systematic survey and excavations at Sanchi in 1851. ASI director-general John Marshall restored the property to its current state in the 1910s using funds from the begums of adjacent Bhopal.

— Lieutenant Henry Hardy Cole cast the East Gate in plaster for the Victoria and Albert Museum in the late 1860s. Multiple copies of this cast were later produced and displayed throughout Europe. This original cast also serves as the foundation for the most recent Berlin replica.

— According to the website of the Humboldt Forum, “A plaster cast of the original gate, purchased from London, was on display in the entrance hall of the Königliches Museum für Völkerkunde Berlin from 1886. A cast of this preserved copy was made of artificial stone in 1970…”

Conclusion:

— The site is said to have been a thriving religious centre from the 3rd century BC to the 13th century AD.

— Its decline as a prominent religious site coincided with the decline of Buddhism in the Indian subcontinent.

(Source: From Ashokan times to now, Sanchi to Europe, story of the Great Stupa by Arjun Sengupta, indianculture.gov.in)

Points to Ponder

Conservation and preservation of Sanchi

Other Buddhist sites

Maurya, Satavahana and Gupta period architecture

Related Previous Year Questions

Early Buddhist Stupa-art, while depicting folk motifs and narratives successfully expounds Buddhist ideals. Elucidate. (2016)

Pala period is the most significant phase in the history of Buddhism in India. Enumerate. (2020)

QUESTION 2: Discuss the significance of the Montreal Protocol in addressing the ozone hole issue over Antarctica.

Note: This is not a model answer. It only provides you with thought process which you may incorporate into the answers.

Introduction:

— The recovery of the ozone layer has been made possible by the successful elimination of some harmful industrial chemicals, together referred to as Ozone Depleting Substances or ODSs, through the implementation of the 1989 Montreal Protocol.

— Nearly 99 per cent of the substances banned by the Montreal Protocol have now been eliminated from use, resulting in a slow but definite recovery of the ozone layer.

Body:

You may incorporate some of the following points in the body of your answer:

— The depletion of the ozone layer, first noticed in the early 1980s, used to be the biggest environmental threat before climate change came along. Ozone (chemically, a molecule having three Oxygen atoms, or O3) is found mainly in the upper atmosphere, an area called stratosphere, between 10 and 50 km from the Earth’s surface.

— Ozone is critical for planetary life, since it absorbs ultraviolet rays coming from the Sun. UV rays are known to cause skin cancer and many other diseases and deformities in plants and animals.

— The problem is commonly referred to as the emergence of a ‘hole’ in the ozone layer, it is actually just a reduction in concentration of the ozone molecules.

Significance of the Montreal Protocol

— The Montreal Protocol, signed in 1987, led to a ban on a group of chemicals called halocarbons that were blamed for exacerbating the annual ozone hole.

— The ozone hole has been steadily improving since 2000 due to the effective implementation of the Montreal Protocol.

— The latest scientific assessment has said that if current policies continued to be implemented, the ozone layer was expected to recover to 1980 values by 2066 over Antarctica, by 2045 over the Arctic, and by 2040 for the rest of the world.

— The elimination of ozone-depleting substances has an important climate change co-benefit as well. These substances also happen to be powerful greenhouse gases, several of them hundreds or even thousands of times more dangerous than carbon dioxide, the most abundant greenhouse gas and the main driver of global warming.

— The report said that global compliance to the Montreal Protocol would ensure the avoidance of 0.5 to 1 degree Celsius of warming by 2050.

— The Montreal Protocol was amended in 2016 to extend its mandate over hydrofluorocarbons, or HFCs, that have replaced the CFCs in industrial use. HFCs do not cause much damage to the ozone layer — the reason they were not originally banned — but are very powerful greenhouse gases.

— The Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol seeks to eliminate 80-90 per cent of the HFCs currently in use by the year 2050. This is expected to prevent another 0.3 to 0.5 degree Celsius of global warming by the turn of the century.

Conclusion:

— The achievement of the Montreal Protocol in closing the ozone hole is frequently cited as a paradigm for climate action. It is believed that greenhouse gas emissions can also be reduced to slow the rapid rise in global temperatures.

— Every year, World Ozone Day is observed to raise awareness among the general public about the ozone layer’s depletion and the actions being/will be taken to preserve it.

(Source: Ozone hole, filling up now: What this means for climate action by Amitabh Sinha)

Points to Ponder

What are greenhouse gases?

What is global warming?

Paris Agreement

Kigali Agreement

Related Previous Year Questions

Troposphere is a very significant atmosphere layer that determines weather processes. How? (2022)

How do the melting of the Arctic ice and glaciers of the Antarctic differently affect the weather patterns and human activities on the Earth? Explain. (2021)

Previous Mains Answer Practice

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 1 (Week 67)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 1 (Week 66)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 2 (Week 68)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 2 (Week 67)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 3 (Week 67)

UPSC Essentials: Mains answer practice — GS 3 (Week 68)

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