← All questionsGS4 · 2015 · Ethics Case Study ·Rampur School Plot and Vested Interests (Case)
QUESTION 11
GS4
25 marks

You are heading a district administration in a particular department. Your senior officer calls you from the State Headquarters and tells you that a plot in Rampur village is to have a building constructed on it for a school. A visit is scheduled during which he will visit the site along with the chief engineer and the senior architect. He wants you to check out all the papers relating to it and to ensure that the visit is properly arranged. You examine the file which relates to the period before you joined the department. The land was acquired from the local Panchayat at a nominal cost and the papers show that clearance certificates are available from the two of the three authorities who have to certify the site’s suitability. There is no certification by the architect available on file. You decide to visit Rampur to ensure that all is in order as stated on file. When you visit Rampur, you find that the plot under reference is part of Thakurgarh Fort and that the walls, ramparts, etc., are running across it. The fort is well away from the main village, therefore a school here will be a serious inconvenience for the children. However, the area near the village has potential to expand into a larger residential area. The development charges on the existing plot, at the fort, will be very high and the question of heritage site has not been addressed. Moreover, the Sarpanch, at the time of acquisition of the land, was a relative of your predecessor. The whole transaction appears to have been done with some vested interest.1) List the likely vested interests of the concerned parties.

WRITE IN
18 min
300 words

What the examiner wants

Identify vested interests in the school land acquisition and evaluate options before the senior's inspection.

Case studyName the stakeholders and the issues, weigh the options, and say what you would do and why.

Demand-wise check

  1. 1(a) Vested interests: predecessor and Sarpanch (relatives), land/real estate brokers, contractors (higher development cost), architect bypassing certification, officials who approved incomplete clearances≈60 words
  2. 2(b) Options: wait for superior - avoids responsibility, risks wrong approval; seek written/phone advice - safe but passes the buck; consult predecessor - conflict of interest; colleagues - limited; find alternate plot and send full report - proactive, protects children and heritage≈60 words
  3. 3Chosen: document facts, inform superior in writing before visit, propose alternate sites, request inquiry≈60 words
  4. 4Values: integrity, child's interest, heritage protection, objectivity≈60 words

Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.

Answer plan

FactsVested interestsEach option evaluatedChosen courseConclusion

Where marks usually go

  • Not evaluating every listed option
  • Accusing the predecessor without evidence

Draw this

  • Options table: merits, demerits, risk

Value addition

  • LawUnder the AMASR Act (amended 2010), 100 m around a protected monument is prohibited and the next 200 m regulated for construction.AMASR Act, 1958 (amended 2010)
  • LawThe RTE Act 2009 and state rules require a primary school within walking distance (about 1 km) of children's homes.RTE Act, 2009

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