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8th May 2024
QUIZ - 8th May 2024
5 Questions
5 Minutes
Editorials
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Context
The recent projection of inheritance tax as a tool for wealth redistribution has sparked widespread debates, prompting discussions on the rationale behind addressing high inequality through progressive taxation.
Socioeconomic and Political Implications of Inequality:
- Disproportionate Power Dynamics: High inequality allows a few wealthy individuals to control resources, influencing socioeconomic and political decisions to their advantage.
- Impact on Growth and Rights: Unequal wealth distribution hampers growth, reduces labour income, and diverts resources away from essential rights (education), leading to increased conflict.
- Economic Consequences: Diminished earnings for the poor due to high inequality result in reduced consumption, savings, and increased indebtedness, ultimately limiting production, investments, and future growth rates.
Need for Wealth Redistribution Mechanisms:
- Reducing Wealth Concentration: Implementing inheritance and wealth taxes reduces wealth concentration, encourages productive investments, and ensures that accumulated wealth is not merely inherited without contributing to society.
- Upholding Constitutional Mandate: Progressive taxation helps address disparities arising from accidents of birth and upholds the constitutional mandate of equality of status and opportunity, fostering a more inclusive society.
- Maximizing Revenue: Despite concerns about tax evasion among the wealthy, recent research suggests that investment in improving tax compliance can yield significant returns, making progressive taxes practical and effective.
Mains question:
Examine the rationale behind advocating for progressive taxes as a mechanism to address high inequality.
Editorials
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Context
Recent rhetoric surrounding Pakistan's purportedly lower unemployment rate than India's, coupled with discussions on India's labor market transformation and critiques of economic analyses, has sparked significant debate and scrutiny.
Challenges in Interpreting Unemployment Data:
- Reliability: The debate on India's unemployment stems from data provided by the CMIE Consumer Pyramids Household survey, which has faced scrutiny for methodological inconsistencies and fundamental issues.
- Complexity of Labor Market Dynamics: Assertions regarding the withdrawal of millions from India's labor force overlook nuances in high-wage employment sectors where vacancies remain unfilled despite relaxed hiring standards, challenging the narrative of widespread frustration-driven exits.
- Misconceptions and Comparisons: Comparisons between India and Pakistan's labor markets often overlook nuanced factors and regional variations, neglecting the multifaceted nature of employment dynamics and the inherent complexities in drawing meaningful comparisons.
Assessment of India's Labor Market Transformation:
- Shift in Employment Landscape: India's labor market transformation is ongoing, characterized by a transition from agrarian-based livelihoods to industrial and formal employment, albeit at varying paces across different sectors and regions.
- Diagnosis of Core Issues: While India maintains relatively low unemployment rates, the focus should shift towards addressing wage disparities, informal employment, and enhancing the quality of jobs to ensure sustainable economic growth and equitable opportunities.
- Balancing Economic Policies: Effective policy responses should prioritize addressing structural challenges such as formalization, skill development, and regulatory reforms while maintaining fiscal and monetary stability to foster inclusive growth and mitigate labor market disparities.
Mains question:
Discuss the factors contributing to wage disparities within India's segmented labor market.
Editorials
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Context
Negotiations for the Global Plastics Treaty, aimed at eliminating plastic use, face hurdles due to economic concerns and differing opinions on binding targets and consensus.
Challenges in Global Plastics Treaty Negotiations:
- Economic Hurdles: Oil-producing nations like Saudi Arabia, the United States, and Russia, alongside India and Iran, resist hard deadlines to eliminate plastic production due to economic implications, hindering consensus on binding targets.
- Disagreement on Timeline and Decision-Making: African countries, backed by European nations, advocate for a timeline around 2040 for reducing plastic use, while disagreements persist on whether contentious elements should be decided by vote or consensus.
- India's Perspective and Call for Equity: India, uncomfortable with binding targets, emphasizes the importance of addressing availability, accessibility, and affordability of alternatives, echoing the principle of 'common but differentiated responsibility' seen in climate talks.
Challenges in Implementing Plastic Regulations:
- Incomplete Enforcement of Regulations: Despite India's Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules (2021) banning 19 categories of single-use plastics, enforcement remains inconsistent, with some outlets continuing to sell these items.
- Exclusions in Regulations: The ban does not cover plastic bottles under 200 ml and multi-layered packaging, highlighting gaps in regulatory coverage.
- Global Distribution of Plastic Pollution: Brazil, China, India, and the U.S. account for 60% of plastic waste globally, underscoring the unequal distribution of plastic pollution and the need for comprehensive measures beyond treaties.
Mains question:
What are the challenges faced by India in negotiating the Global Plastics Treaty? Also analyse India's stance on binding targets and equitable responsibilities in addressing plastic pollution.
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