Manmeet of FOSTIIMA Business School shares some of the most trending topics that you must prepare for in order to score well during the Group Discussion, Personal Interview (GDPI) phase of CAT 2019.

1. Abrogation of Article 370

You can start the topic by giving an introduction about Article 370 as it is a temporary provision of the Indian constitution which grants special status to the state of Jammu & Kashmir, under part XXI of the Constitution of India.

For

• According to Article 370, people of other regions cannot buy land or settle in Jammu & Kashmir. This is acting against the development of the region. By abolishing article 370, industries can be set up in the region and hence Jammu & Kashmir can be economically developed and employment opportunities will also increase.
• By abolishing this article, the government can act tough against the terrorism present in the region.

Against

• Citizens of Jammu & Kashmir are facing so much struggle because of the constant presence of troops, unemployment crisis, etc. So, if the special status is also removed, they may feel like their voice is suppressed.
• People of J&K have a feeling that settlers from other regions will change the demography of the region. So, they may protest against the central government.

2. Five years of Modi government

For

• Modi government is active, unlike the previous governments which were lethargic. This government took steps to improve the interaction between the government and the public.
• Modi government has brought the biggest tax reform since independence – Goods & Services Tax (GST) in July 2017. Because of this, inflation was kept under control, which is not an easy task.
• Modi government introduced Insolvency & Bankruptcy Code (IBC) in 2016 to recover Non-Performing Assets (NPAs). This is highly successful as it has helped in recovering Rs 3 lakh crore of NPAs.
• Investment in infrastructure has gone up to almost three folds in the past four years.
• Initiatives such as Make in India, Startup India, and Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana are the bold step to encourage entrepreneurship in India.

 Against

• Intolerance has increased over the past five years. Questioning religious extremism is being termed as anti-nationalistic. People who are in power are imposing their own ideologies on what is nationalism.
• Hate speeches on minorities are now a common thing because of the lenient behavior of government towards those who are opting for religious extremism.
• We witnessed a dangerous phenomenon of mob lynching. Several incidents caused insecurity in Dalits and Muslims.
• Government couldn’t keep the promise of increasing employment opportunities.
• Demonetisation was the biggest threat to the economy.

3. Both ignorance and confidence will lead you to success

For

• Confidence is a strong motivator. It always motivates you to move further. Moreover, it is very important in order to achieve success.
• You may face many situations where you want to ignore things, but it seems impossible. Then, if you have confidence, then you can easily ignore the unwanted things from your life.
• Confidence and ignorance go side by side. You cannot achieve confidence if you do not ignore things and you cannot ignore anything without confidence. Both are important to each other.

Against

• People who are more confident are sometimes more ignorant and such people can never make their life successful.
• Ignoring things is not always good as it can make you lose your confidence in everything. Facing difficulties makes you confident. Taking risks makes you confident. If you always ignore things in order to hide from others, then it can make you unsuccessful in your life.

4. Can India become a $5 trillion economy by 2024?

For

●     Yes, India can become a $5 trillion economy by 2024. As the ease of doing business has improved dramatically in recent years. India was ranked 77 in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Index of 2018. India’s rank was 130 in 2016. This improvement helps in the growth of the economy.

• In Budget 2019, Rs 100 lakh crore was announced for infrastructure over the next five years.
• The Reserve Bank of India has announced interest rate cuts, which means EMI’s will get cheaper.
• New Tax Reforms for industries by FM Nirmala Sitharaman would encourage more manufacturing units in India.

Against

• At present, India is facing an economic slowdown. In the April-June quarter, India’s GDP growth was just 5.7 percent. To become a $5 trillion economy, India’s GDP growth should be at least eight percent and nominal GDP growth should be at least 12 percent.
• Many sectors are reporting slow growth because there is a low demand for goods and services. This is reducing the circulation of money and resulting in more unemployment, which in turn reduces the demand for goods. So, right now India is caught up in this vicious cycle. Working on these things and making India a 5 trillion dollar economy at the same time seems impossible.

5. Impact of technology on jobs: Will automation and artificial Intelligence reduce jobs or not?

For:

• Yes, automation and artificial intelligence reduce jobs as machines can reduce risk and increase effectiveness. This could lead to the elimination of a vast number of semi or unskilled jobs, who make a substantial portion of the workforce in the manufacturing and agriculture sector.
• Automation isn’t just for blue-collar workers anymore. Artificial Intelligence is now taking over tasks performed by professional workers, raising fears of massive unemployment.

Against:

• No, automation and artificial intelligence are not supposed to take jobs of humans rather they would create more employment opportunities and better work efficiency.
• According to the research reports, more jobs will be created than lost by automation.
• With the advent of new technologies, industry experts see the need for skilled workers increasing in the short run and persisting for at least another decade.

6. Should Hindi be the National language of India?

For:

• Yes, Hindi should be the national language of India as Hindi is spoken by more than half of India. As no single language is spoken by entire India, it is much better to make the majoritarian language as the national language.
• India was previously known as “Hindustan”. The word itself implies that India is the land of Hindi speaking people.
• Even before independence, Hindi was considered to be the official language.

Against:

• No, Hindi should not be the national language of India as there are 22 officially recognized regional languages in India. Making majoritarian language as the national language is unconstitutional.
• There are widespread protests against the imposition of Hindi because of the non-Hindi speaking states.
• Several Indian languages already dying because of the increasing usage of English. If Hindi is made compulsory, the importance of the mother tongue will be reduced further.

7. Pollution in Delhi: Causes and Solutions

Causes

• Overpopulation, unplanned development of the city as well as industries and factories.
• Stubble burning in neighbour states.
• No proper technology or methods to treat solid, liquid, wastewater, industrial and hospital wastes in the city.
• It has also been reported that the number of vehicles plying on the roads of Delhi are more than that of the three metropolitan cities of Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai taken together.

         Solutions

• More and more trees must be planted in every locality.
• Every individual should keep a proper check on the pollution level of their vehicles.
• Making more use of CNG powered vehicles.
• One of the best ways to control pollution is to manage wastes of all types in a proper manner.
• More and more people should use buses and metro instead of cars and scooters, as they can carry a lot more people in one journey. Car-pool is also a good option.

8. Ayodhya Verdict

         For

• The Supreme Court said the underlying structure below the disputed site in Ayodhya was not an Islamic structure, the underlying structure found was scientifically tested by the ASI team. After this, it was claimed that there were the remains of an ancient Hindu temple under the disputed structure.
• In its judgment, the Supreme Court relied on centuries-old travelers and their books to provide an account of the faith and belief that the Hindus placed in the Janmasthan. The travelers that the court took note of included the European travelers Joseph Tieffenthaler, William Finch, and Montgomery Martin.

        Against

• Critics of the verdict have argued that the Supreme Court has relied on “faith instead of law and reason” and that the judgment has “sided with majoritarianism”.
• Giving a five-acre plot of land is more of a moral consolation by way of political compromise and less of adjudication.
• The Supreme Court has chosen the path most conducive to social harmony, then adjudication.

9. Crisis in the automobile industry: Causes and solutions

Causes

• In December 2018, the collapse of IL&FS resulted in the crisis in NBFC. On the other hand, banks are also fighting with NPAs and hence both implemented strict lending forms. So, lack of availability of loans discouraging consumers resulted in a low demand for vehicles.
• Floods in 2018 and 2019 are also other reasons for the low demand for cars.
• In October 2018, Supreme Court announced that only BS-VI vehicles should be sold after April 2020 in a move towards using cleaner fuel as a result consumers delayed their purchasing of new cars.
• Before 20 September 2019, GST on motor vehicles was 28 percent and the insurance costs of vehicles, emission-related compliance costs have also gone up. So, by adding all these things, buying and maintaining vehicles has turned costlier.
• In metropolitan cities, Ola, Uber and carpool options are contributing to downfall.

Solutions

• The government should bring scrappage policy by giving incentives to buy new vehicles in exchange for old vehicles.
• The Indian government should take steps to increase the availability of funds for issuing loans to potential buyers.
• The industry should focus more on converting fuel-based vehicles into electric cars.
• The government needs to bring policies to improve the situation of the automobile industry to prevent more job losses.

 10. Is India ready for 5G or not?

For

• In 2017, Indian government has set up Rs. 500 crores fund for Research & Development of 5G Technology and thereby to roll out 5G by 2020, and it is also planning to auction 5G spectrum by January 2020. So, Indian government is ready for this transition.
• Internet users and hence the data consumption is increasing at a rapid rate in India. So, telecom companies can safely invest in 5G technology & can expect good returns.

Against

• Not all telecom companies are ready for 5G yet.
• Some telecom players are not happy with the current prices of 5G spectrum auction. The main reason behind it is that the Indian telecom sector is in a huge debt of approximately 8 lakh crore rupees as of 2019. So, telecom companies do not want to afford to invest in 5G technology.
• They did not get returns on the investment they put on 4G, telecom companies faced this situation with 3G too. They could not reap the benefits of the investment they put on 3G.
• India’s 4G internet speed is very low when compared with other countries. So, launching 5G services will face the same issue. So, we cannot say that India is ready without upgrading the infrastructure first.

About the Author:

Amritsar-based Manmeet Singh is pursuing PGDM with a specialisation in Marketing and Operations from FOSTIIMA Business School, Delhi. Along with his SIP from Finamigo Consultants Pvt Ltd, he has also done two live projects, one each with ITC and another with Shiksha.