Mains Practice Questions for the Day
- Q. PM MITRA Parks can strengthen India’s textile manufacturing ecosystem by integrating infrastructure, employment and exports. Discuss.
- Q. The debate on applying the creamy layer principle to SC/ST reservations raises complex questions of equality, historical justice and constitutional limits. Discuss.
Q. PM MITRA Parks can strengthen India’s textile manufacturing ecosystem by integrating infrastructure, employment and exports. Discuss.
(GS Paper III – Industrial Development / Textile Sector)
Introduction:
India has a strong textile base, but the sector often suffers from fragmented production, high logistics cost, limited scale and weak integration across the value chain. The PM MITRA Mega Textile Parks scheme aims to address these gaps by creating seven integrated textile parks with an outlay of ₹4,445 crore.
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How PM MITRA Strengthens Textile Manufacturing
1. Integrated Value Chain
PM MITRA follows the 5F vision — Farm to Fibre to Factory to Fashion to Foreign. This connects raw material, processing, manufacturing, design and exports in one ecosystem.
2. Modern Infrastructure
The parks will provide plug-and-play facilities, developed factory sites, roads, power, water, Common Processing Houses, CETPs, design centres and testing centres. This reduces setup time and improves competitiveness.
3. Employment Generation
Each park is expected to generate around 3 lakh jobs, including direct and indirect employment. This is important for labour-intensive growth and women’s employment in the apparel sector.
4. Investment and Exports
The scheme has already received investment interest worth ₹68,590 crore. Large parks can attract anchor investors and help India compete in global textile markets.
5. Regional Development
Parks in States such as Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra can create new industrial clusters and reduce regional imbalance.
Challenges
Timely execution, environmental compliance, water use, skill gaps, MSME inclusion and global competition remain key concerns.
Way Forward
India should ensure quick infrastructure completion, strong CETP monitoring, skill training, MSME linkages, export promotion and scheme convergence with logistics and industrial policies.
Conclusion:
PM MITRA can transform India’s textile sector from fragmented production to integrated global manufacturing. Its success will depend on converting infrastructure into jobs, exports, sustainable production and inclusive industrial growth.
Q. The debate on applying the creamy layer principle to SC/ST reservations raises complex questions of equality, historical justice and constitutional limits. Discuss.
(GS Paper II – Constitution / Social Justice )
Introduction:
Reservation in India is not merely a poverty-alleviation measure; it is a constitutional tool to correct historical exclusion, social discrimination and inadequate representation. Recently, the Centre opposed pleas before the Supreme Court seeking application of the creamy layer principle to SC/ST reservations, arguing that such exclusion is not applicable to SC/ST categories.
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Creamy Layer and Sub-Categorisation
The creamy layer principle was introduced in the Indra Sawhney judgment, 1992 for OBC reservations, to exclude socially and economically advanced individuals from availing quota benefits.
However, sub-categorisation is different. It divides an existing reserved quota among internal groups to ensure benefits reach the most deprived communities within that category. In the Davinder Singh judgment, 2024, the Supreme Court recognised heterogeneity among SC/ST communities and allowed States to undertake sub-categorisation within SC/ST lists.
Centre’s Position
The Centre argues that SC/ST disadvantage cannot be equated with ordinary economic backwardness. SCs face historical disadvantage rooted in untouchability, while STs face marginalisation due to geographical isolation, distinct cultures and social backwardness. Therefore, income alone cannot capture their continued social discrimination.
Legally, the Centre has relied on Articles 341 and 342, under which SC/ST lists are notified by the President and any inclusion or exclusion can be done only by Parliament. It also argues that courts cannot direct the executive to adopt a particular reservation policy merely because an alternative appears fairer.
Issues Involved
Supporters of creamy layer argue that elite capture within reserved categories must be prevented. However, opponents caution that applying income-based exclusion to SC/STs may dilute constitutional safeguards and ignore continuing caste stigma and structural discrimination.
Way Forward
India needs a holistic empirical study on representation, educational access and socio-economic conditions of reserved category beneficiaries. Sub-categorisation may be used carefully where evidence shows crowding out, but creamy layer exclusion for SC/STs should not be introduced without legislative clarity, social consensus and constitutional safeguards.
Conclusion:
The objective should be to make reservation more equitable, not weaker. India must balance internal equity within reserved categories with the broader constitutional promise of social justice, dignity and substantive equality for historically oppressed communities.
