MAINS 2015
GS2
12.5 marks
How can the role of NGOs be strengthened in India for development works relating to protection of the environment? Discuss, throwing light on the major constraints.
WRITE IN
9 min
200 words
What the examiner wants
Discuss how NGOs' role in environmental protection can be strengthened, and what constrains them.
DiscussExplain the different sides of the issue, use evidence, and finish with a balanced view.
Demand-wise check
- 1Roles: awareness, research (CSE), litigation (Goa Foundation, M.C. Mehta), grassroots conservation (Chipko, Narmada movements), monitoring≈35 words
- 2Constraints: funding and FCRA limits, trust deficit and 'anti-development' label, weak capacity, poor access to data, fragmentation≈35 words
- 3Strengthening: formal role in EIA public hearings, partnerships in forest and watershed programmes, transparent funding, accreditation, CSR funds≈35 words
- 4Accountability: self-regulation and disclosures≈35 words
Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.
Answer plan
Roles with examplesConstraintsStrengthening measuresConclusion
Where marks usually go
- Discussing NGOs in general, not environment
- Missing the 'constraints' part
Draw this
- Two-column table: constraint (FCRA curbs, trust deficit, data access, capacity) → matching solution
Value addition
- ReportA 2014 Intelligence Bureau report claimed foreign-funded NGOs opposing projects could cut GDP growth by 2-3%, fuelling a trust deficit.IB report, 2014
- PolicyThe National Policy on the Voluntary Sector (2007) called for an enabling environment and partnership between government and NGOs.Planning Commission, 2007
Mapped topper copies
Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.
- Aditya Srivastava · AIR 1 · Page 5 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 11 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 38 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 15 ↗Same syllabus reference
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