It is argued that the strategy of inclusive growth is intended to meet the objectives of inclusiveness and sustainability together. Comment on this statement.
Approach · directive: “comment”
What it asks · Comment on the claim that inclusive growth is meant to secure inclusiveness and sustainability together: explain both aims, show where they reinforce each other, note the trade-offs, and give a reasoned view.
It asks 3 things — answer each
- Explain the two objectives and how the strategy of inclusive growth is meant to serve both
- Show where inclusiveness and sustainability reinforce each other, and where they pull apart
- Comment: a reasoned view on whether the strategy meets both objectives together
Open with · The Twelfth Plan named its strategy 'Faster, More Inclusive and Sustainable Growth' and the SDGs pledge to leave no one behind: both treat inclusion and sustainability as one agenda.
Cover
- Inclusiveness: jobs, incomes and services for every section; 24.82 crore people left multidimensional poverty between 2013-14 and 2022-23 (NITI Aayog).
- Sustainability: growth within carrying capacity, extraction no faster than regeneration and wastes within assimilating capacity (NCERT).
- Reinforcing: the poor depend most on nature; Ujjwala, Forest Rights Act community forestry and solar cut poverty and ecological stress together.
- Climate justice: the updated NDC (2022) pairs a 45% emissions-intensity cut and about 50% non-fossil power capacity by 2030 with LiFE.
- Tensions: coal for jobs against emissions; mining and dams displacing tribal people; free power and fertiliser depleting aquifers and soils.
- Record: SDG India Index up from 57 (2018) to 71 (2023-24), yet jobs lag growth and degradation persists; neither aim is automatic.
Close with · Both aims are met when carbon and resource limits enter industrial policy, consent and rehabilitation govern resource projects and green jobs go to the poorest: the route from 'leave no one behind' to net-zero by 2070.
Add value (verified)
- NITI Aayog's discussion paper: 24.82 crore people escaped multidimensional poverty between 2013-14 and 2022-23; the headcount ratio fell from 29.17% to 11.28%.PIB (NITI Aayog), 15 Jan 2024 — 24.82 crore Indians escape multidimensional poverty ↗“24.82 crore Indians escape Multidimensional Poverty in last 9 years. Steep decline in Poverty Headcount Ratio from 29.17% in 2013-14 to 11.28% in 2022-23.”
- India's updated NDC (Cabinet, August 2022): 45% cut in emissions intensity of GDP by 2030 from 2005 and about 50% non-fossil installed power capacity by 2030; it also carries the LiFE idea and net-zero by 2070.PIB, 3 Aug 2022 — Cabinet approves India's updated NDC ↗“India now stands committed to reduce Emissions Intensity of its GDP by 45 percent by 2030, from 2005 level and achieve about 50 percent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030.”
- SDG India Index 2023-24: the national score is 71, up from 66 in 2020-21 and 57 in 2018, with notable gains in Goals 1 and 13.PIB (NITI Aayog), 12 Jul 2024 — Release of SDG India Index 2023-24 ↗“Overall SDG score for the country is 71 for 2023-24, significant improvement from 66 in 2020-21 and 57 in 2018 (Baseline report).”
- NCERT's definition of staying within carrying capacity: extraction not above regeneration, wastes within the environment's assimilating capacity.NCERT Class XI, Indian Economic Development, ch. 7 Environment and Sustainable Development ↗“This implies that the resource extraction is not above the rate of regeneration of the resource and the wastes generated are within the assimilating capacity of the environment.”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2019, GS Paper III — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 3 Oct 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer· 366words · Minimalist IAS
The Twelfth Plan (2012–17) named its strategy 'Faster, More Inclusive and Sustainable Growth', and the SDGs pledge to leave no one behind: both treat inclusion and sustainability as one agenda. The statement asks whether a single strategy can truly serve both.
The two objectives that inclusive growth pairs
- Inclusiveness: growth whose jobs, incomes and services reach every section and region; 24.82 crore people left multidimensional poverty between 2013-14 and 2022-23 (NITI Aayog, 2024).
- Sustainability: growth within the environment's carrying capacity, extracting resources no faster than they regenerate and keeping wastes within its assimilating capacity (NCERT).
Where inclusiveness and sustainability reinforce each other
- The poor live closest to nature: they depend on land, water, forests and fisheries and suffer first from polluted air, degraded soils and climate shocks, so conservation protects livelihoods.
- Inclusion that spares nature: Ujjwala's clean cooking cuts indoor smoke and firewood pressure; community forest management under the Forest Rights Act and solar power reduce poverty and ecological stress together.
- Climate justice built in: India's updated NDC (2022) pairs a 45% cut in emissions intensity and about 50% non-fossil power capacity by 2030 with 'LiFE' and protection of the poor from climate impacts.
Where they pull apart
| Domain | Where they reinforce | Where they clash |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | Solar power, clean cooking | Coal for jobs and industry |
| Land and forests | Community forest rights | Mining and dams displacing tribal people |
| Farming | Community water budgeting | Free power and fertiliser that deplete aquifers and soils |
Comment: are both objectives met together?
- In principle, yes: a growth path that excludes the poor or destroys the commons cannot last.
- In practice, only when planned together: the SDG India Index rose from 57 (2018) to 71 (2023-24), with Goal 1 (poverty) and Goal 13 (climate action) among the biggest gains, showing the two can move in step.
- But never automatically: job creation has lagged growth, regional gaps persist and air, water and soil degradation has grown; neither aim follows from growth by itself.
Inclusive growth meets both objectives when carbon and resource limits enter industrial policy, consent and rehabilitation govern resource projects, and green jobs go to the poorest: that is the route from 'leave no one behind' to India's net-zero by 2070 pledge.
Prepared by Minimalist IAS to the answer standard of Shivam Singh (mentor, 7 years) · facts checked against official sources (how we verify) · updated 3 Oct 2026. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.
