UPSC HIGH-YIELD NOTES: Art & Culture (2) | Geography & Environment (4) | Economy & International Relations (2)

➔ Core Principle/Rule: Indian temple architecture is broadly classified into three styles based on geographic evolution. The Commission tests the specific structural terminologies unique to each style.

➔ Deep-Dive Facts:

• Nagara (North India): Characterized by a curving tower called a Shikhara. They do not usually have elaborate boundary walls or massive gateways. The innermost sanctum is the Garbhagriha.
• Dravida (South India): Characterized by a pyramid-shaped, stepped tower called a Vimana. Dravidian temples are strictly enclosed within massive boundary walls, featuring towering, heavily sculptured entrance gateways called Gopurams. Mandatory feature: A large temple water tank within the complex.
• Vesara (Deccan/Central India): A hybrid style (prominent under the Chalukyas and Hoysalas) that combines the Dravida Vimana plan with the Nagara Shikhara shape (e.g., the star-shaped temples of Halebidu).

➔ Core Principle/Rule: Ancient Indian philosophy is divided into Orthodox (Astika - accepts the authority of the Vedas) and Heterodox (Nastika - rejects the Vedas, like Buddhism and Jainism).

➔ Deep-Dive Facts (The 6 Orthodox Schools):

• 1
  Samkhya (Kapila): The oldest school. Dualistic - believes the universe consists of Purusha (consciousness) and Prakriti (matter).
• 2
  Yoga (Patanjali): Practical application of Samkhya through physical and mental discipline.
• 3
  Nyaya (Gautama): The school of Logic and Epistemology. Believes obtaining valid knowledge (through perception, inference, comparison, and testimony) is the only way to release from suffering.
• 4
  Vaisheshika (Kanada): The school of Physics/Atomic Theory. Propounded that all objects in the physical universe are reducible to paramanu (atoms).
• 5
  Mimamsa (Jaimini): Focuses strictly on the philosophical justification of Vedic rituals and sacrifices.
• 6
  Vedanta (Vyasa/Shankara): "The end of the Vedas" (Upanishads). Focuses on the realization of Brahman (ultimate reality) and Atman (the self).

➔ Core Principle/Rule: The WPA is the statutory backbone of Indian wildlife conservation. The 2022 Amendment fundamentally restructured how animals are protected, shrinking the old 6-schedule system.

➔ Deep-Dive Facts (The New 4 Schedules):

• Schedule I: Species with the highest level of protection (e.g., Tigers, Elephants, Great Indian Bustard, Cheetahs). Poaching carries the strictest penalties.
• Schedule II: Species needing a lesser degree of protection.
• Schedule III: Protected Plant species. (Previously, plants were in Schedule VI).
• Schedule IV: Specimens listed under CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species).
• * Note: The "Vermin" schedule (where animals could be culled) has been completely removed. The central government will now simply issue notifications for culling.

➔ Core Principle/Rule: The Asiatic Cheetah went extinct in India in 1952. The recent reintroduction is the world's first intercontinental large wild carnivore translocation project.

➔ Deep-Dive Facts:

• The Subspecies: India imported the African Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus jubatus) from Namibia and South Africa, not the Asiatic Cheetah (which only survives in Iran in tiny numbers).
• The Location: Kuno National Park (Madhya Pradesh). Selected because its dry deciduous forests, open grasslands, and lack of human settlements closely mimic the African savannah.
• Physical Geography of Kuno: The Kuno River (a tributary of the Chambal River) bisects the park, flowing through the Vindhyan hills.

➔ Core Principle/Rule: The slope of the Peninsular plateau is generally from West to East, which dictates the flow of major rivers. Exceptions to this rule are heavily tested.

➔ Deep-Dive Facts:

• East-Flowing Rivers: Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna, Cauvery. They drain into the Bay of Bengal and form massive, fertile Deltas at their mouths because they flow over gentle gradients and carry heavy sediment.
• West-Flowing Rivers (The Rift Valley Exception): Narmada and Tapi. They flow strictly East to West into the Arabian Sea. They do not form deltas. Because they flow rapidly through hard-rock rift valleys (fault lines), they form Estuaries.

➔ Core Principle/Rule: MSP is the guaranteed price at which the government buys crops from farmers, insulating them from market shocks. The Commission strictly tests the accounting formulas used by the CACP.

➔ Deep-Dive Facts:

• A2 Cost: Covers all actual, out-of-pocket cash expenses incurred by the farmer (seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, hired labor, fuel).
• A2 + FL: Includes A2 plus the imputed value of unpaid Family Labor.
• C2 Cost (Comprehensive): Includes A2+FL, plus the rentals and interest forgone on owned land and fixed capital assets. (This is the formula the MS Swaminathan Committee wanted the government to use).

➔ Core Principle/Rule: Launched by the RBI, the e-Rupee is the digital form of India's fiat currency. It is a sovereign currency, not a cryptocurrency.

➔ Deep-Dive Facts:

• Legal Tender: It is a direct liability of the RBI on its balance sheet. One e-Rupee is exactly equal to one physical paper Rupee.
• No Bank Account Needed: In its token-based retail form, it mimics cash. A citizen does not necessarily need a bank account to hold CBDC; they only need a digital wallet issued by an authorized entity.
• Interest: Just like physical cash kept in a physical wallet, e-Rupees kept in a digital wallet do not earn any interest.

➔ Core Principle/Rule: You must rapidly identify the exact membership of geopolitical blocs and the precise numerical target of educational sustainable development goals.

➔ Deep-Dive Facts:

• The Quad (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue): A strategic security dialogue strictly comprising four nations: India, USA, Japan, and Australia. Its explicit geopolitical goal is ensuring a "Free and Open Indo-Pacific" (countering Chinese maritime dominance).
• G7 (Group of Seven): An informal bloc of industrialized democracies. Members: USA, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan. (Note: India is not a member, though often invited as a guest. Russia was expelled in 2014, ending the G8).
• SDG-4 (Quality Education): The 4th goal of the UN's 2030 Agenda. Its mandate is to "Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all."
  • Target 4.1: Universal primary and secondary education.
  • Target 4.2: Early childhood development and universal pre-primary education (Directly maps to NEP 2020's ECCE focus).