QUESTION 17
GS2
15 marks
How far do you agree with the view that the focus on lack of availability of food as the main cause of hunger takes the attention away from ineffective human development policies in India?
WRITE IN
11 min
250 words
What the examiner wants
Judge how far focusing on food availability distracts from weak human development policies as the cause of hunger.
How farAnswer exactly what the question asks.
Demand-wise check
- 1India has food surplus (record production, buffer stocks) yet high malnutrition≈50 words
- 2Real causes: poor sanitation, maternal health and education, women's status, diet diversity, care practices, access and income≈50 words
- 3Sen's entitlement approach≈50 words
- 4Stand and measures≈50 words
Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.
Answer plan
ParadoxHuman development causesSenMeasuresStand
Where marks usually go
- Only food production
- No NFHS-5 stunting (about 35%) set against record foodgrain output
Draw this
- Diagram: food available but hunger persists due to multiple causes
Value addition
- ThinkerAmartya Sen's 'Poverty and Famines' (1981): famines result from entitlement failure, not food shortage.Amartya Sen
- DataFCI held central pool stocks well above buffer norms in 2024 while NFHS-5 showed 35.5% stunting.FCI / NFHS-5
Mapped topper copies
Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 15 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Aditya Srivastava · AIR 1 · Page 5 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 38 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 11 ↗Same syllabus reference
Links open original public sources. MainsBuddy does not host these answer sheets.
Next: plan for one minute, write it in 11 minutes, then get it checked.