QUESTION 2
BRICS is increasingly emerging as a platform for the Global South to articulate its developmental and environmental priorities. Discuss its potential to reshape global environmental governance.
QUESTION 1: The effectiveness of the United Nations depends not merely on the formal structure of its institutions but also on the diplomatic weight and coalition-building capacity of member states. In this context, examine the significance of India’s campaign for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for 2028–29.
Relevance: This topic is relevant to GS Paper 2 – International Relations, particularly India’s role in multilateral institutions and the functioning of the United Nations. It can also be linked to India’s changing role in shaping a more representative and multipolar global order.
Introduction:
— The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is the primary international forum for sustaining global peace and security, although its composition still reflects geopolitical realities from 1945 rather than those of the twenty-first century.
— Against this backdrop, India’s push for a non-permanent seat in 2028-29 is critical not only for its own diplomatic goals, but also for boosting the Global South’s voice within the UN system.
Body:
Significance of India’s campaign
— A UNSC seat would give India a direct voice in discussions about conflicts, terrorism, sanctions, peacekeeping, and international security. India’s previous administrations indicated a readiness to make significant contributions to issues such as peacekeeping, counter-terrorism, and conflict resolution.
— The recent UNSC elections have shown that diplomatic outreach and coalition-building among smaller and developing nations can impact outcomes, sometimes overriding expectations based only on economic or geopolitical power. India’s campaign must therefore go beyond its G20 standing and expanding global impact to garner long-term support across regional and political groups.
— India sees the non-permanent seat as part of a bigger push for comprehensive UNSC reform and permanent membership. India has urged that the Council’s permanent and non-permanent membership should be expanded to properly represent current geopolitical realities.
— India’s presence can help to boost developing-country representation and provide weight to calls for a more representative, inclusive, and credible Security Council. India’s situation is also tied to its contributions to UN peacekeeping and greater participation in multilateral institutions.
— Membership can offer India with more diplomatic freedom to handle issues that directly affect its national interests, such as terrorism, cross-border security difficulties, and regional conflicts. India’s experience during its 2021-22 term demonstrated that UNSC membership can help shape international reactions to changes affecting India’s security environment.
Conclusion:
— India’s bid for the 2028-29 non-permanent seat is thus more than just an electoral exercise. It is an opportunity for India to leverage its rising diplomatic weight into institutional power, bolster its Global South credentials, and make the political case for permanent UNSC membership. At a time when the UN is experiencing a credibility crisis, India’s active participation can help to achieve the greater goal of making global governance more representative and relevant to current realities.
(Sources: Expert Explains: India’s campaign for a UN Security Council seat in 2028-29, Africa, climate, debt sustainability, UNSC reform: 10 key takeaways from the G20 leaders’ declaration, An expert explains: ‘India’s role in remaking the UN, into something that helped prevent world war… is profound, India’s rise demands a seat at the UNSC)
Points to Ponder
How can India use a non-permanent seat to strengthen its case for permanent membership and comprehensive UNSC reforms?
Related Previous Year Question
Terrorism has become a significant threat to global peace and security. Evaluate the effectiveness of the United Nations Security Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) and its associated bodies in addressing and mitigating this threat at the international level. (2024)
QUESTION 2: BRICS is increasingly emerging as a platform for the Global South to articulate its developmental and environmental priorities. Discuss its potential to reshape global environmental governance.
Relevance: This topic is relevant to GS Paper 2 – International Relations, particularly BRICS, Global South diplomacy and reform of multilateral institutions. The topic enables integration of India’s leadership in BRICS with its broader approach towards equitable and inclusive global governance.
Introduction:
— BRICS is gradually emerging as a venue for developing countries to express their concerns about climate change, sustainable development, and environmental governance.
— With its expanding membership and growing economic and demographic weight, the organisation has the ability to make global environmental cooperation more representative and sensitive to the needs of the Global South.
Body:
Potential to reshape global environmental governance
— BRICS can offer developing countries with a unified platform to influence global environmental discussions and stress the importance of balancing climate action with development, energy security, and poverty reduction. The 2025 BRICS declaration, for example, includes a specific statement on climate financing.
— The grouping can help to strengthen the principles of equality, Common but Differentiated Responsibilities, and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC). In August 2026, BRICS environment ministers reaffirmed the need for increased climate finance for developing countries and lambasted measures like the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism for disproportionately hurting emerging economies.
— The BRICS Environment Working Group, chaired by India, focused on sustainable lifestyles, afforestation and forest fire management, catastrophe resilience, the circular economy, and community-based climate adaption. Such collaboration can allow the exchange of technology, scientific knowledge, and best practices.
— The BRICS emphasis on traditional, indigenous, and local knowledge, in addition to modern science, can help to make adaptation more context-specific and increase vulnerable groups’ resilience.
— India’s BRICS strategy aims to demonstrate that environmental stewardship and prosperity do not have to be incompatible goals. Collaboration in green technology, circular economy, disaster risk reduction, and sustainable consumption can lead to inclusive growth and green jobs.
Conclusion:
— BRICS is unlikely to replace current global environmental institutions, but it can shift the balance of power within them by increasing the Global South’s negotiation power and encouraging development-sensitive approaches to climate action. Its long-term importance will be determined by whether its concepts are implemented in tangible ways that increase ecosystems, livelihoods, and climate resilience.
(Sources: BRICS is working for a future that puts people and planet first, BRICS Environment Ministers oppose European Union’s Carbon Border Tax, ‘Weathering global shocks’: Jaishankar lays out India’s BRICS strategy amid dual-tariff pressure from US)
Points to Ponder
How can BRICS provide a stronger collective voice to developing countries on climate justice and equitable global environmental governance?
Can BRICS cooperation in climate finance, technology transfer, adaptation and disaster resilience address the developmental concerns of the Global South?
Related Previous Year Question
Do you think that BIMSTEC is a parallel organisation like the SAARC? What are the similarities and dissimilarities between the two? How are Indian foreign policy objectives realized by forming this new organisation? (2022)
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Are you preparing for Civil Services Mains Exam 2026? Attempt a question on significance of BRICS in shaping global environmental governance in today's answer-writing practice. (File image) 
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