UPSC Mains Answer Practice GS 1: contribution of Jyotirao Phule and Heat stress | Week 150

QUESTION 2

“Heat stress in India is increasingly shaped by geographical and climatic factors.” Discuss the causes, spatial distribution, and regional vulnerability to heat stress in India.

QUESTION 1: Highlight the contribution of Jyotirao Phule to the development of anti-caste movements in western India.

Relevance: The topic is linked with core GS-1 themes: 19th-century social reform movements and emergence of anti-caste ideologies. It also links static history with social justice discourse seen later in the Constitution and reform movements. Aspirants should also read about other social reform movements.

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

Introduction:

— Jyotirao Govindrao Phule was a social reformer who worked against social evils like untouchability and caste system, and was a strong advocate of women empowerment and education of girl child. He was bestowed with the title of Mahatma on May 11, 1888 by a Maharashtrian social activist Vithalrao Krishnaji Vandekar.

— Phule along with his followers formed Satyashodhak Samaj in 1848 which meant ‘Seekers of Truth’ in order to attain equal social and economic benefits for the lower castes in Maharashtra.

Body:

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

— Phule’s life and thought can be understood as a constitutional project. Even if it did not produce a legal text, it reimagined the foundations of social order on the principles of equality, dignity, and the redistribution of power. Phule began by attacking the ideological roots of caste. He refused to accept that hierarchy was divinely ordained. Instead, he located it in history, conquest, and the systematic subjugation of the majority by a minority that monopolised knowledge and power.

— Phule’s subsequent interventions aimed at promoting the rights of all through institutional and structural efforts: The establishment of schools for women and oppressed castes, the opening of public wells to those deemed “untouchable”, and advocacy for widow remarriage alongside a critique of child marriage.

— His focus on equality and equitable measures is also evident in his submissions to the Education Commission of 1882. Phule argued for compulsory primary education up to the age of 12. He insisted that higher education must be within the reach of all, and proposed targeted government scholarships for those communities “amongst whom education has made no progress”, alongside “more liberal” and proactive measures to advance women’s education.

— Phule’s constitutional imagination extended to the material conditions of labour and agrarian life. In Shetkaryacha Asud (Cultivator’s Whipcord, 1883), he exposed how caste domination operates within the agrarian economy.

Conclusion:

— Phule passed away in 1890, but his ideas continued to inform India’s evolving constitutional imagination. B R Ambedkar drew upon his vision of social transformation and gave it concrete expression in constitutional guarantees. Phule’s bicentenary places upon us a renewed responsibility to confront the continuing challenges of inequality.

(Source: Phule’s life and thought, a constitutional project, Through Phule’s eyes, connecting the inequality dots)

Point to Ponder

How did Phule’s anti-caste approach differ from reform movements like the Brahmo Samaj and Arya Samaj?

Related Previous Year Questions

Since the decade of the 1920s, the national movement acquired various ideological strands and thereby expanded its social base. Discuss. (2020)

The women’s questions arose in modern India as a part of the 19th century social reform movement. What were the major issues and debates concerning women in that period? (2016)

QUESTION 2: “Heat stress in India is increasingly shaped by geographical and climatic factors.” Discuss the causes, spatial distribution, and regional vulnerability to heat stress in India.

Relevance: The question directly aligns with GS-1 climatology and extreme weather phenomena. It tests understanding of spatial distribution, regional vulnerability, and physical factors. It can be an important pick for UPSC due to climate variability and recurring heat wave patterns in India.

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

Introduction:

— The onset of climate change has fundamentally transformed the understanding of heat stress on humans. People in most parts of the world are not only experiencing warmer weather, but the rise in temperatures is also accompanied by changing moisture patterns.

— The wet bulb approach, for instance, attempts to recalibrate temperatures by accounting for heat and humidity. A 35°C wet-bulb temperature is generally considered the theoretical upper limit of human endurance.

Body:

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

Causes

— Heatwave conditions are regionally defined and can vary substantially at sub-national scales due to influences from geography, topography, atmosphere, and other conditions. Here are some causes that are driving the frequent heatwaves.

— Climate change is causing a rise in global temperatures. As the planet heats up, it leads to more extreme weather events, such as heatwaves.

— The years that begin in an El Niño state, experience extreme temperatures, harsh, multiple and extended heatwave spells, and lack of pre-monsoon rainfall. El Nino conditions are exacerbating the extreme heat around the world. Essentially a weather pattern that refers to an abnormal warming of surface waters in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, El Nino is known to “greatly increase the likelihood of breaking temperature records and triggering more extreme heat in many parts of the world and in the ocean,” a World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) report said.

— A heat dome occurs when an area of high-pressure stays over a region for days and weeks. It traps warm air, just like a lid on a pot, for an extended period. The longer that air remains trapped, the more the sun works to heat the air, producing warmer conditions with every passing day. Heat domes, if they last for a long period, may cause deadly heatwaves.

Distribution

— In India Heatwaves typically occur from March to June, and in some rare cases, even extend till July. On average, five-six heatwave events happen every year over the northern parts of the country. Single events can last weeks, occur consecutively, and can impact a large population.

Impact

— According to WMO- “Multiple risks interact with heatwaves such as droughts, fire weather, flash flooding and air pollution which have compounding impacts for people and nature.

— The impact of heatwaves on human health is significant. Heat-related illnesses, such as heat exhaustion and heatstroke, are becoming more common, particularly among vulnerable groups such as the elderly, children, and outdoor workers.

— Heatwaves can have a significant impact on agriculture, potentially compromising food security and farmer incomes.

— Heatwaves can have significant impacts on the energy sector, causing grid stability issues, increased expenses, and power outages.

Conclusion:

— India faces severe and rising heat stress due to accelerated climate change, rapid urbanisation, and deforestation. The new understanding reframes India’s climate challenge. Several cities routinely report heat indices that push human tolerance to its limits, even when wet-bulb temperatures remain below 35°C.

— In recent years, Indian cities have tried to draw up heat action plans. However, these plans are often based on dry-heat thresholds, and not the more dangerous combination of heat and humidity.

(Source: New measure for heat stress reframes climate challenge, UPSC Issue at a Glance | Heatwaves: 5 Key Questions You Must Know for Prelims and Mains)

Point to Ponder

How do factors like continentality, urban heat island effect, and land-use changes intensify heat stress?

Related Previous Year Questions

How are climate change and the sea level rise affecting the very existence of many island nations ? Discuss with examples (2025)

Bring out the causes for the formation of heat islands in the urban habitat of the world. (2013)

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