QUESTION 18
GS1
15 marks
How do you account for the growing fast food industries given that there are increased health concerns in modern society? Illustrate your answer with the Indian experience.
WRITE IN
11 min
250 words
What the examiner wants
Account for the growth of fast food in India even while awareness of its health risks is rising, with Indian evidence.
Account forGive the reasons that explain it.
Demand-wise check
- 1Social drivers: urbanisation, nuclear and dual-income families, long commutes, youth and peer culture, eating out as status≈50 words
- 2Economic and technological drivers: food delivery apps, cloud kitchens, franchising, aggressive marketing, cheap ultra-processed food≈50 words
- 3Health side: obesity, diabetes and NCD burden; why awareness does not change behaviour (convenience, price, taste engineering)≈50 words
- 4Indian responses: FSSAI labelling and trans-fat limits, Eat Right India, school canteen rules≈50 words
Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.
Answer plan
State the paradoxSocial driversMarket and tech driversWhy health concerns don't stop itIndian responsesConclusion
Where marks usually go
- Writing only about health harms and not explaining the growth
- No India-specific data, though the question asks for the Indian experience
Draw this
- Two-sided diagram: forces pushing fast food up vs health concerns pulling back, with the net trend
Value addition
- DataNFHS-5 (2019–21) found about 24% of women and 23% of men overweight or obese, up from NFHS-4.National Family Health Survey-5
- RegulationFSSAI limited industrially produced trans fat to 2% of oils and fats from January 2022.Food Safety and Standards Authority of India
Mapped topper copies
Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.
- Ajay R Raj · AIR 109 · Page 9 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Akansh Dhull · AIR 3 · Page 35 ↗Same syllabus reference
- Akansh Dhull · AIR 3 · Page 15 ↗Same syllabus reference
Links open original public sources. MainsBuddy does not host these answer sheets.
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