Q1. Explain about Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), its significance and challenges. (250 Words)
Paper & Topic: GS III Indian Agriculture
Model Answer:
What Is the Primary Agricultural Credit Society?
The Primary Agricultural Credit Society is the final connection between the primary borrowers, or rural inhabitants, and the higher institutions, such as the Central Cooperative Bank, State Cooperative Bank, and Reserve Bank of India.
As recognised cooperative societies, Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS) have been providing credit and other services to their members.
PACS frequently offer the following services to their clients:
A contribution in cash or kind for input facilities
Agriculture machinery rented
A place to store things
A simple agricultural credit association can be established by ten or more villager participants. An elected body oversees the society’s administration.
The low cost of membership makes it possible for even the poorest farmer to participate.
In the event of the society’s failure, each member would be entirely liable for the entire loss because each had limitless culpability.
The largest credit societies’ working capital is derived from their own funds, deposits, borrowings, and other sources.
Included in the company’s own funds are share capital, membership dues, and reserve money.
Deposits can be made by both members and non-members.
The central cooperative banks are the primary sources of borrowing.
The Value of Agricultural Primary Credit Societies:
The financial institutions known as primary agriculture cooperative credit societies are vital to the grassroots development of local communities.
They are multifunctional enterprises that provide a variety of services, including banking, on-site supplies, marketing crops, and consumer products selling.
Primary agriculture co-operative credit societies must therefore operate efficiently.
The Primary Agricultural Credit Society must play a significant role in the socioeconomic development of rural communities across the country.
They function as counters for consumer products and agricultural supplies as well as little banks for financing.
These cooperatives also provide storage facilities to farmers so they can preserve and store their food grains.
Within the federal structure of the cooperative finance system, higher level institutions like Central Cooperative Bank and State Cooperative Bank are mandated to offer PACs appropriate assistance in the form of subscriptions and grants.
In 1904, the first Primary Agricultural Credit Society (PACS) was established.
Since then, these organisations have played a critical role in providing farmers with short- and medium-term funding.
Up until the early 1970s, this was the only institution-based credit agency that served rural communities.
A project to transform PACS into Multi Service Centers has been initiated in order to allow PACS to provide more services to its members while also earning revenue for itself.
PACS will be able to broaden its activities as a result and provide support services to its members.
Primary Agricultural Credit Societies Restrictions:
Laxity in the internal control system.
The management information system is subpar.
employees that lack motivation or engagement
an unfavourable setting for labour relations.
false borrower identification
Insufficient or excessive funding
Post-disbursement monitoring is not present.
wishing to have a positive relationship with governmental organisations
belief that the bank is a nonprofit institution.
the wait for loan approval.
inadequate payback or gestational times.
Borrower isolation and a lack of understanding of rural clientele.
There isn’t a drive towards rehabilitation.
fraud with the loan.
intentional default
Money being misappropriated.
Deficits in management and technology
Poor maintenance of the assets.
insufficient linkages to the market.
The economic climate has shifted.
Changes in technology.
political interference.
Target approach for government-sponsored programmes.
Geographical factors.
loan forgiveness, write-offs, etc.
Q2. What to do you understand by Carbon Footprint. (250 Words)
Paper & Topic: GS III Environmental Conservation
Model Answer:
Concept of a carbon footprint:
The amount of CO2 released into the atmosphere as a result of burning fossil fuels can be calculated based on the daily operations of a company, business, household, or individual. It can also be calculated based on the daily activities of a person or family, or the transportation of a good or commodity to market.
The total amount of GHG emissions that an entity has produced, whether directly or indirectly through other individuals, organisations, activities, or products, is known as its “Carbon Footprint.”
To express a carbon footprint, tonnes of carbon dioxide (C02) or carbon are typically emitted on an annual basis.
A tonne of carbon dioxide is released, for example, when we travel 5000 miles, drive 2,500 miles in a medium-sized car, or cut down and burn a 40-foot-tall, one-foot-diameter tree.
The direct or primary footprint and the indirect or secondary footprint are the two halves of a carbon footprint.
The primary footprint measures CO2 emissions from sources like domestic energy use and transportation that result directly from burning fossil fuels (e.g. car and Plane).
The secondary footprint calculates the indirect CO2 emissions from the complete lifecycle of the used products. These are linked to both their genesis and demise. The carbon footprint of a country’s people and corporate entities is related to the total amount of CO2 released for that country.
Using carbon offsets and credits as “flexible mechanisms” to cut carbon emissions:
Under the Kyoto Protocol, members of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) are divided into two groups: Non-Annex-l countries, which are developing countries, and Annex 1 countries, which mostly include OECD and eastern European industrialised countries.
Three “flexibility mechanisms” based on emission trading have been implemented in order to lower the overall economic cost of achieving the agreed-upon emission reductions. These are what they are:
the exchange of Assigned Amounts Units (AAU) between the countries included on Annex 1 in global emission trading.
As part of cooperative implementation, project-based activities are carried out between Annex 1 countries (JI).
The United Nations organisation on climate change issues a certificate called Certified Emission Reduction (CER) to the affected industry for each tonne of CO2 that it saves by deploying cleaner technology, improving energy efficiency, or moving to unconventional sources of energy supply.
After that, the surplus might be sold by the entity receiving the CER.
Projects to reduce emissions are included in the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) that are carried out in nations not included on Annex 1.
