Group Discussion

23/01/2021
Content-
S.3- Is India ready for electric vehicle, S.4- Farm Bills 2020, S.5-
Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, S.6- National Recruitment Agency,
S.7- National Health ID, S.8- Ban on Chinese Apps in India,
S.9- Work from home, S.10- Private trains in India,
S.11- Does Nepotism exist in Bollywood, S.12- Should mother
tongue be the medium of instruction in schools
S.13- Commercialization of health care : Good or Bad ?
Is India ready for electric vehicles?
• Yes I think India is ready for electric vehicle, because everyday our
climate are changing and day by day our society getting polluted. The
pollution has risen to extreme level, so the implementation of electric
vehicle in India should be welcomed.
• As a huge amount of oil requirements are to be imported for automobile,
a sustainable replacement likes electric vehicle work best.
• Various cities have introduced electric buses for public transport, so it
can be observed that the introduction of electric vehicle in public
transport has turned coinvent and effective.
• India is the major lithium producing country and the lithium is used in the
production of batteries of electric vehicle, so it will be cheaper for electric
vehicle manufacture and price will be less, so it will be coinvent for the
people.
Farm Bills 2020
Pass date- On 20th September 2020, Parliament passed three farm bills,
1. ‘Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill‘, 2020 – ‘One Nation-one
market’ concept was introduced to allow farmers to sell the produce anywhere in the country.
2. ‘Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill‘, 2020
– Contract farming empowers farmers to engage with wholesalers, exporters etc. so that they will get
the price assurance before sowing the crop.
3. ‘Essential Commodities (Amendment) Bill‘, 2020 – This bill removed pulses, oilseeds, onions and
some other products from the essential commodities list, and thereby the restrictions on the storage
of these items will be removed.

•The process of passing the bills is not democratic. Agriculture and trade are state subjects, but the states
are not consulted before passing the bills. The main people for whom the bills are made – farmers were also
not given the opportunity to voice their concerns. Even in the parliament, clear voting was not conducted.
They passed the bills on a mere voice voting.
•APMCs are very helpful for small farmers not just to sell the produce but also to know the prices &
production choices. Many states have amended the APMC acts to make it more liberal. The passing of farm
bills 2020 may weaken the APMC system and hence can become a disadvantage to small farmers.
•There is no guarantee that the farmers’ income will be increased by these bills. If we take the example of
Bihar, when the state abolished APMCs in 2006, farmers got lower prices for their produce than the
Minimum Support Price (MSP). So, agricultural economists are suggesting that it is important to strengthen
the APMCs, instead of transferring the responsibility to private entities.
•Contract farming may turn farmers into slaves.
Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan-
Theme:
•In May 2020, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced 20 lakh crore rupees economic
stimulus package named ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan‘, with the slogan ‘Vocal for Local‘
•Cons- it is very similar to ‘Make in India’. Critics argue that a different name is given to the same
scheme.
•Most of these fundings are allotted just like a normal budget. So, including them in a special
package has attracted criticism.
•Many sectors are opened to private players.
•There is no mention of research & development, which is very important to take important
steps in revival of the economy.
•Companies of other countries may perceive this as a protectionist policy.  They may feel
apprehensive to invest in India.
•This package may not be sufficient in reviving the economy.
•Urban employment is ignored
Conclusion:
Due to COVID-19 pandemic, trade of goods and migration of people got disrupted and as a
result, many countries started preparing for the future pandemics by diversifying supply chains
and making themselves self-sufficient. So, Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan is very much needed
for India to transform itself into a self-reliant country. But this may not be sufficient to revive
the economy and to rebuild livelihoods that are affected by the pandemic.
National Recruitment Agency
Theme:
•In August 2020, Union cabinet approved the proposal of the ‘National Recruitment Agency‘ (NRA).
This ‘One Nation – One Exam‘ concept was proposed in the budget speech in February 2020.
•NRA will conduct the Common Entrance Test to select candidates for non-gazetted government
jobs. The recruiting agencies such as SSC, RRB will conduct the next levels to finalize the candidates.
•The test will be conducted twice per year.
Cons-
• Using a recruitment agency can be quite expensive endeavor. In general, recruitment agencies’ fees are
around 20 to 30% of the employee’s annual salary. The cost of using a recruitment agency can
get even higher if you’re looking to make a hire for a hard to fill role. Either way, when using a recruitment
agency, you will have to pay a fixed fee every time you want to make a hire.
•  Recruitment agencies can help you choose the best candidate for your open position, but not for your company
culture and your team. Best recruitment agencies will go out of their way to become familiar with your
company goals, mission, vision and values
• Due to pandemic, the unemployment rate is increasing and hence several youngsters are in the
hope that through the NRA, the government will fill many vacancies. But at present, the number
of government jobs is shrinking. And as private participation in some government sectors is
increasing, the number of government jobs will be further reduced. Creating more government
jobs is a challenge for the center.
National Health ID
Theme:
•On 15th August 2020, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched ‘National Digital Health Mission‘(NDHM),
which is a digital health ecosystem with unique health IDs for every citizen.
•The National Health ID stores all the health-related information such as disease history, diagnosis,
prescription etc. The government of India aimed to digitise the health records of all citizens by the year 2022.
Pros:
•National Health ID program can benefit all the parties involved – patients and healthcare professionals. By
knowing the entire medical history, doctors can provide better treatment for the patients. And there will be
no need to go through all the tests when consulting another doctor. This can save money & effort of patients.
•As everything will be recorded, this program instils fear & responsibility in healthcare professionals and
hence improves accountability. So, this can reduce medical errors.
•This program is voluntary. So, this will not be against the right to privacy.
•With this program, the government will have so much data on the prevalent diseases, and the vulnerable
age groups & regions etc. This data can be utilised using Artificial Intelligence to craft policies to improve the
health of the citizens.
•This can also help insurance companies by reducing the scope of false claims.
•In general, patients are not able to understand the names of the medicines written by doctors due to their
handwriting. With NDHM, prescriptions will be noted online, and hence patients can understand the names
of prescribed medicines.
Ban on Chinese Apps in India
Pros for India
It is early days yet, but by all accounts, the move to ban these Chinese apps seems to be a
well-thought-out move. Here are some positives from the move.
1.Suitable Response to Chinese Border Aggression: Since India will not like to physically
engage China, a bigger and more powerful enemy, this virtual response is a suitable reply.
2.Opportunity for Indian Entrepreneurs: China has protected and promoted its own
entrepreneurs by banning global apps and softwares for decades. A quick glance at the mobile
apps and websites banned in China throws up names such as WhatsApp, Google, Facebook,
Twitter, Instagram, Netflix, YouTube, BBC, The New York Times and even Quora. This ban
provides opportunity to Indian app makers.
3.Signals innovative thinking by Modi Government: The ban is aimed at the local
audience, an audience which is increasingly baying for blood after the Chinese incursion. To
that extent, the ban will help address some of their need for ‘action’ by the government
Work from home
Advantages for Employees:
Yes it is the new world order even post COVID-19 scenario, because

• from home to the office the travelling time will be saved. Average more than one
hour
• Student and employee, They can spend more time with family. This is beneficial
for many especially for parents of young children and vice versa.
•Even in modern times, women are expected to take care of home and children.
With this responsibility, several women are forced to leave their jobs. The rise in
WFH culture is a boon for them. With this more women can join in jobs again.
•The location will not be a barrier. Employees can get a job, even if the office is
located in another city.
•The personal time of students as well as employees get increased.
•If they want to get to know their office and colleagues better, they can attend the
office at regular intervals like once a week.
Private trains in India
Challenges:

•This step can deepen the already existing inequality between rich and poor.
Indian Railways clarified that the fares in the upcoming private trains will be in
the range of flight tickets. So the poor and middle class may feel excluded.
•With the use of modern technologies, many jobs can become redundant. So,
private trains may not provide employment opportunities as many as the
government trains provide.
•If they are not manufactured in India as promised, coaches and other
equipment will be imported. In that case, it will be a loss to India as it can lead
to neo-colonization.
•Even though the announced private trains constitute only 5% for now, there is
no guarantee that it won’t be increased. If it is increased in the coming years,
Indian Railways can suffer like BSNL & Air India, which were pushed to near
bankruptcy due to the competition from private players.
Does Nepotism exist in Bollywood
Yes:-
•Movie stars of Bollywood often launch their children with much ease in the industry. Such acts
serve as the roots of the debate for nepotism. This kind of act has been going on since ages.
Hence, nepotism evidently exists in Bollywood.
•A heated up conversation had taken place on a talk show few months back. Celebrities like Karan
Johar and Kangana Ranaut had participated in the discussion. Being a successful actress herself
with films in her pockets, she openly addressed the issue of favoritism going on. She had declared
Karan Johar, the producer as ‘the flag-bearer of nepotism’ on his own talk show. This incident
sparked up the fact which persisted for so many long years.
•The standards of Indian cinemas fall at times because of nepotism. Producers and directors are
pushing star kids to launch in their movies, failing to judge their acting skills and screen presence.
This leads to flop movies and a loss of quality and standards of the Indian cinemas.
•Some talented, non biased outsiders like Ayushmann Khurrana, Priyanka Chopra, Randeep
Hooda, Richa Chadda and many more had years of continuous struggle. They had spent many
years for recognition of their work, critics and opportunities. This is where nepotism becomes
prominent. Star kids on the other hand, have it all ready for them.
•The reason why a number of stars do not get leveled up after they start acquiring recognition is
favoritism. There are a very few Bollywood stars with international recognition. Bollywood is more
interested in profits and box office hits that comes in with famous faces rather than brushing raw
talents.
Should mother tongue be the medium of instruction in schools

Theme:
•According to the ‘National Education Policy’ 2020, which was launched in July 2020,
the mother tongue or local/regional is to be the medium of instruction for
students till class 5. Compulsory education in mother tongue sparked debates
throughout the country
Against:

•Switching the medium of instruction in the middle of the school or later may put
stress on students.
•As the world is increasingly globalized, children should be taught in the
international language, i.e. English. So that they can grab more opportunities.
•English is an official language of India. And most Indians can speak English. So,
it’s not a totally new language to us.
Commercialization of health care : Good or Bad ?

Disadvantages

Poverty: In India very large number Of the population is poor