Write Essay on any one of the following topics. 2500 words, 3 hours.

1.

Combination of `Samata` (equality) and `Mamata` (motherly love) would lead

to `Samarasta` (social harmony). (Modi while praising Ayyankali)

2.

Development (Vikaswaad) vs Expansionism (Vistarwaad) [Modi in Japan]

3.

Economic aggression may soon become more dangerous than military

aggression (A Judge on telecom license bribery case)

4.

Those who do not learn from history are bound to repeat it (IAF chief during
a seminar)

5.

Critical reasoning and fearless interrogation are pre-requisites to democracy

(HRD minister in teachers day speech)

6.

Justice hurried is justice buried (SC judge during a seminar.)

7.

The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.
(Gandhi said this. VP quoted during LBSNAA speech)

8.

I want Students to have a sense of responsibilities and show it in a tangible

manner. (Gandhi said this and Pranab recalled during a speech)

9.

Children are the foundation on which a strong, vibrant and dynamic India
shall be built. (Pranab on teachers day).

10.

Education should be imparted with a view to the type of society that we wish
to build. (Dr. Radhakrishans quote, Pranab recalled during teachers day
speech.)

11.

Education should become a force for the nations character building. (Modi
on teachers day)

12.

Religion can never be the basis of a Modern state. (Katju)

13.

Reunification of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. (Katju)

14.

India, the country that threatens no one and is a friend to many. (Aussie PM)

15.

India, the model international citizen.(Aussie PM)

16.

India, the worlds emerging democratic superpower (Aussie PM)

Write Essay on one of the following topics. 2500 words, 3 hours.

1.

Sectarianism, bigotry, and its horrible descendant, fanaticism, have long

possessed this beautiful earth. They have filled the earth with violence,
drenched it often and often with human blood, destroyed civilization and sent
whole nations to despair. (Vivekanand, Parliament of Religions in Chicago in
1893. Modi cited in in 9/11 remembrance tweet)

2.

Had it not been for the horrible demons of violence and fanaticism, human
society would be far more advanced than it is now. (Vivekanand)

3.

There is no greater human virtue to be practiced than the ability to show

compassion. (some column)

4.

Todays victims are tomorrows perpetrators hidden in plain sight. (UNICEFin context that child victims of extreme violence in their early years, end up as
perpetrators themselves.)

5.

Global economy is not utilising women effectively (IMF chief)

6.

Independence of judiciary is non-negotiable (CJI Lodha)

7.

A Justice System for the Resurgent India. (Seminar topic of CJI Lodha)

8.

Spate of conflicts around the globe today are effectively a piecemeal Third
World War. (Pope)

9.

Greed, intolerance, the lust for power- the three motives for War. (Pope)

10.

Benefits of living in a multipolar world (editorial topic)

11.

Indian tradition of tolerance is showing signs of strain. (some column)

12.

Globalization does not only mean the conversion of the world into a common
market. (Harsh Vardhan)

13.

Innovation is a form of forgetting, of erasure in the name of improvement.

(some column)

14.

Smart leadership and smart people are essential pre-requisites for making
cities smart. (Minister in a seminar)

15.

Culture is a device through which all values acquired over generations is

filtered (some seminar)

16.

Colonizing powers used culture as a tool of domination (some seminar)

17.

Only cultural approach will solve the problem of caste system (some seminar)

18.

There are no natural disasters- only inadequately planned human

settlements. (J&K floods related column)

19.

It is not the strongest nor can the most intelligent will that survive but
those that adapt to changes. (Charles Darwin- in context of House sparrow not
becoming extinct but shifting to other areas)

20.

The Age of Loneliness. (Context: one day entire biodiversity will be lost, and
then human race will feel emotional shock.)

21.

Families are the bricks that build society. (Pope)

International relations, Diplomacy

1. International cooperation is not a zero sum game.
2. If worlds factory and worlds back office worked together(President Xi)
3. No genuine Asian century would come without the development of China,
India and other developing countries Xi Jinping in The Hindu.
4. When India and China speak in one voice, the world will pay attention.
(Chinese President Xi Jinping in India)
5. India and China- the twin civilizations with intellectual fire power (Amartya
Sen)
6. China and India- the twin express trains for driving regional development.
7. China and India- the twin anchors of regional peace.
Democracy and governance
1. Democratic government demands not only a parliamentary majority but also
a parliamentary minority- (Ivory Jennings. Current Context- Leader of
opposition issue.)
2. Magnanimity in politics is not seldom the truest wisdom. (Edmund Burke,
Frontline quoted)
3. A great empire and little minds go ill together (Edmund Burke, Frontline
quoted)
4. In a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.
(George Orwell. Current context-CBI whistleblower)

5. Freedom is a celebration; independence is a challenge. Pranab in

Independence day speech.
6. In a democracy, good governance is exercise of power for efficient and
effective management of our economic and social resources for the well-being
of the people.
7. India is a harmonious and stable democracy in spite of its cultural and
linguistic diversities. (Dalai Lama )
8. Media- the strongest pillars of democracy. (Context- TRAI chairman saidpolitical parties should not own TV channels, and same essay asked in RBI
mains 2014).
9. A clean judiciary is a constitutional imperative for any working democracy.
(some column)
Social Issues and Women empowerment
1. When women are safe, nations are safe (President of Liberia, Sir John
Sirleaf)
2. Has Indian Society has become silent to injustices? (Some seminar)
3. Daughter aversion. (Context- deep seated patriarchal mindsets leading to the
preference for sons over daughters.)
4. Can girl-child grow without fear in India?
5. Only sustained and systematic efforts in families, communities and in
society can end violence against women.
6. Not only women but men also need to participate on an equal footing in
gender justice.
7. Healthy mothers and healthy children are crucial for India to realize the
demographic dividend. (Melinda Gates)
8. The promise of women empowerment is hollow without breaking away from
gender stereotypes first.
9. Gender is a matter of culture without which either a man or a woman cannot
lead a harmonious life.
10.We have just enough religion to make us hate, but not enough to make us
love one another (Jonathan Swift. Current context- Love Jihad controversy in
India, ISIS/Shia-Sunni in Middle East.)

Education, Economy, HRD

1. A nation that treats its intellectual capital in a shabby manner is doomed to
remain backward.
2. Libraries- the dilapidated temples of Modern India.
3. Economy is the material part of development. Education is the essential part
of it.
4. The difference between rich and poor people is not their education it is the
assets versus liabilities.(Robert Kiyosaki, the author of Rich dad, Poor dad.)
5. India is going to be the information power of world. (Robert Kiyosaki, the
author of Rich dad, Poor dad.)
6. Through innovation, hard work and cutting edge research, our engineers
have played an anchoring role in the making of our nation. (Modi on 154
birth anniversary of Sir M. Visvesvaraya)

Democracy and Bureaucracy

1. Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind. (Einstein)
2. A Constitution always integrates, it never divides. (Modi during Nepal visit).
3. Welfareist role of the State has diminished in neo-liberal India.
4. Democracy is meant to protect the meekest from the majority.
Bureaucracy, Ethic and accountability
1. Better governance cannot be delivered without de-bureaucratizing the
executive.
2. Modern State- a hierarchy of regressively genuflecting coterie of bureaucracy.
3. There is no crueler tyranny than that which is perpetuated under the shield
of law. (Montesquieu)
4. Power is not revealed by striking hard or often, but by striking true. (Honore
De Balac)
5. Truth, compassion, accountability and transparency- the four pillars of
ethics.

6. Anonymity can be a shield from the tyranny of the majority. (whistleblower

case)
7. Discretion- the better part of valor. (Whistleblower case.)
Economy
1. On a world in search of economic hope, the internet represents the main
motor of growth (Google chief Eric Schmidt )
2. India needs to invest in knowledge-based industry, rather focusing only on
agriculture, manufacturing or service sectors.
3. Ideas, innovation, investments and implementation: four keys to reinventing
the India story.
Rights issue
1. Hidden euthanasia of elderly. (Pope Francis used this term for neglect of old
parents by their younger generation. He blamed it to greed and throwaway
culture. Indian current context- Hema Malinis comments on Vrindavan
Widows).
2. If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at, will change.
(SC on bringing back the prisoners of war from Pakistan. but can applied in
variety of contexts ranging from poverty to security to diplomacy.).
3. The gender equality will bring more true and complete version of human
being. (Emma Watson speech.)
4. All things are difficult before they become easy. (- maxim of Sheikh Saadi,
quoted by Vice President)
5. Education alone has the power to tackle all the worlds problems. (Anand
Kumar, IIT Super-30)
6. Equal opportunity alone would not bring equality. (Modi on Dalit Icon
Ayyankalis anniversary)
7. Indians have spiritual liberty but no social liberty.
Science-tech & environment
1. ISROs MARS mission- landmark progress in humankinds exploration of
outer space

2. The hunger of exploration and the thrill of discovery are not for the fainthearted. (Modi on ISROs MoM)
3. Poverty is a major polluter itself. (Javdekar @UN climate summit.)
Security
1. Terrorism divides, tourism unites (Modi)
2. Security is the first and foremost requirement for development. (home
minister)

Democracy, Extremism
1. Indian Subcontinent benefited more than it lost from the British
Colonization. (Ref This IE column)
2. Entrepreneurship, civil society, education and youth the four antidotes to
violence. (Obama @UNGA)
3. Peace Not merely the absence of war, but the presence of a better life.
(Obama @UNGA)
4. What should todays politicians learn from yesteryear leaders? (Seminar
topic)
5. Can Voluntarism be a supplement to effective governance? (Context: Modi
bashers raising this question to criticize his every move of involving citizens.)
6. Is the Personification of Power eroding democracy? (Context: same as above
+ TN protests over Jayalalitha arrest.)
7. Indian political system will not be beneficial to people unless it is made free
from caste, religion and money.
Society, Rights issues
1. Good conduct cannot be engendered automatically through deterrence and
punishment. [Context: SC guideline on police encounters; senior citizen
protection law, yet family abandon them- hidden euthanasia; gutka-cigar at
public places, traffic rule violation, women dignity on tv and media-Dipika
episode and so on.]
2. Culture determines the boundaries to which a society can progress.

3. In an age of equality, the same law should be applicable to both men and
women. (Katju on need for uniform civil code.)
4. Are Government schemes and monetary incentives viable tools for Social
transformation? (Ref: This IE column- If a Government has to pay society to
stop female infanticide and open defecation- it means the only reason to do
even the right thing= is money.)
5. The true source of political legitimacy is popular will. (Ref: This Hindu
column. But he is fixated over just one argument- J&K flood relief)
Gandhi
1. Only Gandhis philosophy can ensure the betterment of the villages and the
poor.
2. Preserving Mahatma Gandhis teachings and values is the biggest challenge
of Modern India.
3. World needs Mahatmas ideas more than ever today. (Sushma- context rising
tide of fanaticism, ethnic nationalism, terrorism and disease.)
4. Does todays youth have the courage and strength of mind to follow Gandhi?
5. Is Gandhi still relevant today?
Sanitation
1. A lot can be done to further the ideal of cleanliness without wielding the
broom.
2. Quit India was a mass movement. Clean India should be too.(Modi)
3. Is cleaning India the job of sanitation workers only? (Modi)
4. Cleanliness is next to godliness.
Education
1. In the long run, EQ (emotional quotient) trumps IQ (intelligence quotient).
(Satya Nadela)
2. Live every day as if it is your last day, but learn as if you are going to live
forever. (Gandhi)

Corruption and Crime

1. Indian way of life has made all laws and institutions function defectively.
2. Criminalisation of politics is anathema to the sacredness of democracy.
3. Corruption- the formidable enemy of the India.
4. Corruption is the violator of human rights, mother of economic imbalance.
5. Immoral acquisition of wealth destroys the energy of people believing in
honesty.
6. Injustice anywhere, is a threat to justice everywhere. (Martin Luther King Jr.)
7. The basis of Optimism is sheer terror. (Oscar Wilde)
Public Services and Accountability
1. Without re-invention of the civil service, the promise of socio-economic
reforms is hollow.
2. Importance of probity in public life.
3. Accountability is the soul of public service.
Governance
1. Over the years, India has outgrown its institutions. (Rajanbhai)
2. We dont need more state or less state but rather better state intervention.
(Nobel Economist Jene Tirole).
India and World
1. Re-emergence of India on the global stage. (Norway PM)
2. India an amazing country with unlimited potential (Zuckerberg)
3. Todays World needs Universalist, tolerant and rationalist ideals more than
ever before.
Society and Religion
1. Organized religion is the biggest obstacles in the path of God. (Nobel laureate
Kailash Satyarthi-because all religious leaders have become centres of
power, money, corruption, fraudulence.)

2. Child labor perpetuates all forms of social evils. (Nobel laureate Kailash
Satyarthi: child labour=>illiteracy => poverty =>lack of family
planning=>population explosion =>more poverty => more child labour, childabuse, alcoholism.)
3. In place of a rural-urban dichotomy, the phenomenon of rural-urban
continuum is the order of the day. (Pranab)
4. With community resilience and civil defence system, India can sustain any
disaster and disease outbreak.
5. Hindu, Muslims, Indians, Pakistanis all need to join a common struggle for
education and against extremism. (Nobel Committee chairman on selection
of 2014 peace prize winners).
India, Governance
1. India needs hard power economic, military, scientific, political and
diplomatic.
2. Governance requires persistence, not adventurism. (Jaitley- context why not
naming black money account holders.)
3. The blurring lines between State powers and corporate power.
4. State funding of elections- first step towards good governance.
Science/IT/Technology
1. If Science was integrated in national and global decision Making process
(Ban Ki Moon- says if that happens, MDG can be achieved.)
2. Cyberspace: new frontier of knowledge or new frontier of battlefield? (Modis
advice to commanders, to get ready for cyber warfare)
3. The need digital sovereignty. (China creating its own IT companies to combat
facebook, Brazil forcing IT companies to store user data within Brazil, NSA
spying on other countries through cyberspace)
4. When the thirst for knowledge and learning stops.. (Modi)
Literature
1. Does advancement in technology portend the death of literature? (Context:
young generation too busy on social media. Although The new Booker prize
winner disagrees with this statement.)

2. Literature- one of our greatest spiritual, aesthetic and intellectual invention.

(says the new Booker prize winner Richard Flanagan.)
Development vs Environment
1. The consequences of prosperity without sense of morality. Context: 11th(!)
Jinping says this has led to environmental harm. Can also be connected to
hidden euthanasia of elderly as Pope described, the commodification of
women and their wombs for surrogating, commodification of education by
coaching industry and so on.
2. Rational consumption and green consciousness: The Yin and Yang of
sustainable development. (11th Jinping again.)
3. Genocide, culturocide and ecocide- three challenges to human security.
(Vice Prez.)
4. The Silent Diwali. (Dr. Harsh Vardhan context- noise pollution but can be
also looked from poverty, deprivation, and child labour angle.)
History, Culture, Society, religion
1. Without development of knowledge and reason, a civilization cannot
advance. (Vice President)
2. If future remains a continuation of the past, our world risks both implosion
and explosion. (Eric Hobsbawm)
3. All human history was a history of Violence. (The message in new booker
prize winner Narrow road to deep north).
4. Militant atheism is not an answer to religious extremism.
5. Without compassion, Peace cannot be sustained. (Satyarthi. Context- IndiaPakistan, child labour, poverty crime and extremism.)
6. Humans need to become cooperative rather than competitive. (Vice Prez)
7. Passivity in the face of bias: right or wrong? (Satya Nadella while regreting
his remark that Women employees should not ask for pay rise)
8. Exclusion and bias conscious and unconscious hold back a nations
progress. (Satya Nadella)
9. Elderly population is an asset of the nation. (Social justice minister)

IR, Security
1. The end of American century is nigh.
2. Parliament- the very heart of a democracy. (Context: Terrorist attacks on
Canadian parliament and earlier on Indian parliament.)
3. Can India carve out a foreign policy with friendship to all, without sacrificing
its interests?
4. Indias growing power ought to be felt by its adversaries and not flaunted.
5. In 21st Century, the inter-religious understanding is pre-requisite to end the
fanaticism.
Democracy
1. If pluralism is undermined, democracy will be in grave danger.
2. Secularism, pluralism and the right to dissent- the three ethos of Indian
Democracy.
3. A minority government is akin to enjoying power without responsibility. (says
Shivsena)
4. Can intellectuals and think tanks make a difference in a democracy?
5. Country which forgets history, can never create it (Modi)
6. Sardar- the true architect of Modern India.
Ethics, Accountability
1. Accountability of public functionaries is an integral part of any good
governance framework. (Pranab)
2. Activism and restraint are the two sides of the same coin. (Jaitley- why CAG
should not sensationalize scams).
3. Censorship to art, is same as lynching is to justice. (Henry Louis Gates)
4. If Media converted pen into broom
5. A lifetime in prison is a hidden death sentence. (Pope wants all nations to
stop death sentence and lifetime imprisonment).
Indian Economy, Development

1. Can economic growth be rapid, inclusive and sustainable at the same time?
2. Can social inclusion and macroeconomic stability be achieved at the same
time? (Brazilian President succeeded in first but failed in second).
3. Illiteracy and Poverty have bi-directional relationship.
4. Child labour and poverty have bi-directional relationship.
Education, Science, Public health
1. Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind. (Einstein)
2. The scientific explanation of the origin of universe and humans, doesnt
exclude the role of God. (Pope).
3. Clean India is a precursor to a healthy India. (Modi)
4. Can public and private sector play complementary role to each other in
healthcare and education?
5. Philosophy is an ivory-tower exercise with no practical relevance to our dayto-living.

Democracy
1. True character of a democratic country is in its adherence to the due process
of law. (during SC hearing on custodial torture.)
2. Regional chauvinism- the biggest threat to federalism.
3. Majoritarian Populism is as bad as an authoritarian state. Context: this
Hindu column
4. Proactive citizens are nations greatest asset- Modi
5. Terrorism- an evil scourge against whole of mankind. (MEA Spokesperson
Syed Akbaruddin)
6. Can undoing the wrongs of past, cure all the problems of India? (Jaitley says
alone it cant)
7. Non-violence and peaceful coexistence- the key determinants of Indian
philosophy.
8. Universalism and collective security- the final objectives of state policy.

Economy, Development
1. India needs its own growth-model without upscaling western ideas.
2. Second generation of economic reforms in India needs more than just one
big bang idea. (Jaitley).
3. Cleanliness is the greatest service to the poor- Modi
4. Can social intervention alone eradicate inequality & social disparity?
5. Growth strategies cannot succeed without equality of opportunity.
6. Can growth and social inclusion can be pursued together?
7. New urbanism in India.
Science, Religion, society
1. Emotional intelligence A novel psychological vaccine. (seminar topic).
2. science and faith take us to the same place.
3. Scientific temper among Indian citizens. (Context: Modi linking Ganesha and
Mahabharat with scientific innovation)
4. To confine our attention to terrestrial matters would be to limit the human
spirit. (says Stephen Hawking)
5. India needs to spurn western model of feminism. (says Commerce minister
Nirmala Sitharaman. Recall earlier Emma Watson too highlighted faults in
that model.)
6. Society does not go down because of the activities of criminals, but because
of the inactivity of the good people. (Swami vivekanand. Edmund Burke too
made similar quote.)
Environment, Healthcare
1. Climate change cant be reverted without bringing the North-South Divide.
(G20 Sherpa Suresh Prabhu).
2. Non Communicable Diseases (NCD)- the major threat to national
development. [says report of World Economic Forum]
3. Can India move beyond the conflicts between conservation and development?
4. Can development and environment protection go hand in hand?

Common man victim of culture of consumerism.

Advertisement and Mass consumerism.

Energy security and alternative sources of energy.

Increasing privatization of education in the face of globalization.

Women empowerment: Participation in Politics.

Medical Tourism in India.

Corporate social Responsibilities.

Development and Environmental Concerns.

Liberalization and widening urban and rural inequalities.

Changing role of India in International Politics.

Use of social media in politics.

Issues related to child labor and education in India.

Role of Science and Technology in Rural Development in India.

Various steps taken by government for financial inclusion in India.

Rural and Urban Migration problems and remedies.

Commercialization of agriculture and FDI in Retail.

Panchayati Raj and development of rural areas.

How far India is able to implement good governance principles.

Reforms required in public health system.

Social media and psyche of Indian youth.

Disaster Management: Natural Calamities and our preparedness

Science and Technology Is The Panacea For The Growth and Security Of A
Nation.

GDP (Gross Domestic Production) Along with GDH (Gross Domestic

Happiness) Would Be The Right Indices For Judging The Well-being Of A
Country.
Is Colonial Mentality Hindering India's Success?
How to End Violence in the World?