UPSC CARE Mains Practice 28th November 2025
Mains Practice Questions for the Day
- Gene editing technologies such as CRISPR-Cas9 are transforming modern biotechnology. Discuss their potential applications and advantages. Also highlight the major ethical, biosafety, and security concerns associated with gene editing. (GS-III – Agriculture, Biotechnology)
- The recent fall of the rupee to historic lows against the US dollar reflects both global and domestic vulnerabilities. Discuss the macroeconomic implications of a persistently weak rupee for India and examine the role of the RBI in managing exchange rate volatility.” (GS-III: Indian Economy – External sector) Introduction
1Q. Gene editing technologies such as CRISPR-Cas9 are transforming modern biotechnology. Discuss their potential applications and advantages. Also highlight the major ethical, biosafety, and security concerns associated with gene editing. (GS-III – Agriculture, Biotechnology)
(GS-II (Polity & Governance – Vulnerable sections)
Introduction:
Gene editing refers to technologies that enable precise, targeted modifications in the DNA of living organisms. Tools such as CRISPR-Cas9, TALENs, Zinc Finger Nucleases, and Meganucleases act as programmable “molecular scissors” that cut DNA at specific locations. Among these, CRISPR-Cas9 has emerged as the most efficient, rapid, and cost-effective system, making gene editing accessible to modern science. With applications across medicine, agriculture, and biotechnology, gene editing represents a major leap in human ability to alter biological systems.
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1. Potential Applications and Advantages
(a) Medicine
- Enables correction of disease-causing genetic mutations responsible for disorders like sickle cell anaemia, cystic fibrosis, and muscular dystrophy.
- Opens possibilities for targeted gene therapy and personalized medicine.
- Can potentially provide lifelong resistance to certain infections by installing protective genetic variants.
(b) Agriculture
- Accelerates development of climate-resilient crops (drought, salt, or heat tolerance).
- Improves pest and disease resistance, reducing dependence on pesticides.
- Enhances yield, shelf life, and nutritional value—addressing hunger and malnutrition.
(c) Biotechnology & Other Uses
- Helps create improved GMOs for industry and environmental cleanup.
- Used in de-extinction efforts (e.g., editing elephant DNA to resemble woolly mammoth).
- Allows development of compact, fast-growing plants ideal for urban and indoor farming.
2. Ethical, Biosafety & Security Concerns
(a) Ethical Concerns
- Germline editing introduces heritable and irreversible changes, raising moral and societal dilemmas.
- Possibility of “designer babies,” eugenics, and widening economic and social inequality.
- Concerns over altering human evolution without complete understanding of genome complexity.
(b) Biosafety Risks
- Off-target mutations may inadvertently damage healthy genes.
- Long-term developmental and health impacts remain uncertain.
- Risk of disrupting ecological or genetic balance in plants, animals, or humans.
(c) Security Risks
- Gene editing is recognized by global agencies as a potential biosecurity threat.
- Low-cost tools could be misused to create harmful biological agents or vaccine-resistant pathogens.
- Could aid bioterrorism if regulatory oversight is weak.
Conclusion:
Gene editing holds transformative promise in addressing genetic diseases, enhancing crop resilience, and advancing biotechnology. However, its power demands rigorous ethical oversight, robust biosafety frameworks, and global coordinated governance to prevent misuse. Balancing innovation with responsibility will determine whether gene editing becomes a tool for human progress or a source of new risks.
2Q. The recent fall of the rupee to historic lows against the US dollar reflects both global and domestic vulnerabilities. Discuss the macroeconomic implications of a persistently weak rupee for India and examine the role of the RBI in managing exchange rate volatility.” (GS-III: Indian Economy – External sector) Introduction
Relevance: GS Paper-3(Environment),
Introduction:
The rupee recently breached its historic low (around ₹89–90 per US dollar), reflecting global headwinds (strong dollar, risk-off sentiment) and domestic pressures (record goods trade deficit, FPI outflows, uncertainty over India–US trade deal). A persistently weak rupee has wide-ranging macroeconomic implications for India’s external sector and growth.
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(a) External sector and inflation
- Imported inflation: Costlier crude oil, fertilizers, edible oils and critical intermediates → higher CPI and WPI.
- Widening Current Account Deficit (CAD): Higher import bill (especially oil & gold) with limited export elasticity can push CAD beyond sustainable levels.
(b) Growth and investment
- Corporate balance sheets: Firms with unhedged external commercial borrowings face higher debt-servicing burden.
- Capex & confidence: Volatile rupee raises risk premium, increasing cost of capital for government and private sector.
(c) Distributional impacts
- Winners: Exporters and IT/ITeS firms gain in rupee terms; remittances rise in local currency.
- Losers: Households (fuel, essentials), MSMEs dependent on imported inputs, and sectors like aviation, electronics.
(d) Financial stability
- Sharp depreciation can trigger FPI outflows, stress on EM currencies (“EM currency sell-off”), and pressure on banking system via asset quality in stressed sectors.
Role of RBI in managing rupee volatility
- Managed float regime: RBI does not target a fixed level but aims to smooth volatility.
- Forex intervention:
- Sells dollars from forex reserves (~US$ 690 bn range) in spot and forward markets to curb disorderly moves.
- Uses forwards/NDF intervention to influence offshore expectations.
- Liquidity & rates: Calibrated use of liquidity management, policy corridor and interest-rate signalling to influence capital flows.
- Macro-prudential tools: Encouraging hedging, regulating external commercial borrowings and NRI deposits to reduce currency mismatches.
- Communication: Forward guidance – reiterating that India’s external position is comfortable (reserves, low short-term external debt) helps anchor expectations.
Conclusion:
A weak rupee is not automatically “bad” if depreciation is orderly and improves export competitiveness, but disorderly and sharp falls raise inflation, CAD and financial-stability risks. India needs a mix of prudent macro-fundamentals (manageable CAD, sustainable fiscal path), strong forex buffers and credible RBI intervention, along with structural policies to boost exports and reduce import dependence, to ensure that rupee volatility does not derail growth.
