What kind of systematic planning students must follow to crack competitive exams?
If the students are really determined and have a rational attitude, the examination like UPSC is not difficult and students can have 100% certainty in results with respect to their efforts. Of course, the basic abilities are always required for example ability to gather relevant information, conversion of information into knowledge and conversion of knowledge into wisdom. A sound conceptual base, a stronghold over the basics and a language to express is the basic minimum required. To say that a candidate has to study, practice writing and gather information is the least of the academic trait that will be required. Without a language, it’s simply not possible that a candidate will ever qualify. An absence of expression will force the candidate to memorize and if anyone who intends to memorize can never ever complete even half of the syllabus. That’s why a planned and smart way of study is always recommended to qualify this prestigious examination.
What does Thought Leadership stand for you?
A Thought Leader is a subject-matter expert who has unique insights or perspectives to share in their area of expertise. Their ideas are packaged in an accessible and usually attractive format, and they are distributed to a market that is hungry for their insights in direction and solutions to problems. The ideas that they offer are often powerful enough to shift or contribute to the future direction of an industry, community or even a whole way of thinking. Thought Leaders are prevalent in any existing field of work or thought that you can think of. However, having a thorough knowledge and unique insights into a topic is only the beginning of Thought Leadership. Of equal importance is the Thought Leader’s ability to get their ideas out there into the market and provide solutions.
Many leading entrepreneurs are easily identified as Thought Leaders. These are the business leaders who have identified the need for a product or service and created a business to offer this to others. When an entrepreneur becomes a Thought Leader, they have used their subject-matter expertise to start, grow or sell businesses or to develop single businesses into chains.
Do you think the place of ethics in corporate culture is degrading?
It is indeed degrading with the increasing work pressure and competition. Unsupportive work culture and unethical practices create a negative aura around the office space and overtime decreases the work efficiency. It is the responsibility of the leader to create a healthy work environment and address the issues faced by the employees at top priority. The person who manages to recognize the bad apple in his/her company and rectify the problem wins at the end.
What more actions should the developing nations take to curb global warming?
Avoiding the worst consequences of climate change will require large cuts in global greenhouse gas emissions. Approximately one-fifth of global emissions come from land use, including deforestation. Forests provide natural carbon sinks that help mitigate the effects of carbon dioxide emissions. Thus, initiatives for promotion and preservation of the natural process and ecosystem will be inherent to mitigating the effects of global warming.
The hope for mitigation lies in improvements to energy efficiency and vehicle fuel economy, increases in wind and solar power, hydrogen produced from renewable sources, biofuels, natural gas, and nuclear power. There is also the potential to capture the carbon dioxide emitted from fossil fuels and store it underground—a process called “carbon sequestration.” Afforestation measures will also aid in natural sequestration of carbon.
Renewable and nuclear energy will be critical in diminishing reliance on fossil fuels and developing low-carbon communities. Another effective strategy would be to achieve greater energy efficiency by developing new technologies and modifying daily behavior so each person produces a smaller carbon footprint. Additionally, retrofitting buildings and developing energy-efficient technology greatly help curb greenhouse gas emissions. Other efforts might include drought-tolerant farming.
What is your opinion on India’s foreign policy?
The ultimate purpose of any country’s foreign policy is to promote the security and well-being of its own citizens. After Independence, India adopted the policy of Non- Alignment. With the shift in national interests which led to the adoption of LPG (Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalisation), India’s foreign policy also witnessed changes. India opened the gates for foreign investment in the form of FDI in various infrastructural development projects. Considering the foreign policy of last five year, the two areas that India has leapfrogged are cultural and commercial diplomacy. Well-thought-out policy reforms and emotional engagements with the Indian diaspora have added a force multiplier to our soft power. By tapping into the transitional Hindu and Buddhist civilizational linkages and harnessing them for strategic benefits in our extended neighborhood, India’s image is reiterated as a repository of ancient wisdom that generates global public goods.
What strategic steps do you think India must take to compete with the growing economy of China?
Economic growth cannot be separated from geopolitics since economic growth is intrinsically related to geopolitics. Strategically, India seems to be following a policy of countering China, checkmating them on various issues and strategies. But such an approach comes with, several limitations. The U.S. is a quickly-receding extra-regional power whose long-term commitment to the region is increasingly indeterminate and unsure; India cannot be sure of US support in the region permanently. To think that US- China relations will worsen, is a far-fetched thinking. U.S.-China relations are far more complex than is generally known.
India has a $70 billion-strong trading relationship with China. Instead of boycotting Chinese goods or encouraging the ban on Chinese goods, India can use it as a bargaining chip to check Chinese behavior. Adopting a straightforward balancing strategy, which is what India seems to be doing with China, may prove to be a costly affair. The best strategy in this case is therefore to outsmart the Chinese.
One is by co-binding China in a bilateral/regional security complex: that is, view China as part of the solution to the region’s challenges (including terrorism, climate change, piracy, infrastructural/developmental needs) than as part of the problem; some efforts in this direction are already underway such as India-China joint anti-piracy missions in the Gulf of Aden. This security cooperation should most certainly be enhanced in the Indo-Pacific where India should, even while being part of the Quad. Second, India needs to cooperate with and trust China while at the same time keeping its defence preparedness complete and with all guards, for after all, in the international politics that we are part of, the role of military strength in guaranteeing national security cannot be underestimated. Third, India’s response to China’s refusal to act against Pakistan-based terrorists needn’t be strait-laced. However, while Beijing is unlikely to make Islamabad politically uncomfortable by public terror-shaming, the more China gets involved in Pakistan, the less it can afford to ignore terrorism within Pakistan.
