You are an honest and responsible civil servant. You often... | UPSC 2017 GS4 Q9

QUESTION 9

GS4

20 marks

You are an honest and responsible civil servant. You often observe the following:1) There is a general perception that adhering to ethical conduct one may face difficulties to oneself and cause problems for the family, whereas unfair practices may help to reach the career goals.2) When the number of people adopting unfair means is large, a small minority having a penchant towards ethical means makes no difference.3) Sticking to ethical means is detrimental to the larger developmental goals4) While one may not involve oneself in large unethical practices, but giving and accepting small gifts makes the system more efficient. Examine the above statements with their merits and demerits.

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14 min

250 words

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What the examiner wants

Examine four common excuses for unethical conduct and respond as an honest civil servant.

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

Demand-wise check

1Ethics causes family difficulty: merit - real costs; demerit - integrity gives long-term respect and peace; seek institutional support≈40 words
2Small ethical minority makes no difference: merit - systemic problem; demerit - change starts small, role-model effect≈40 words
3Ethics hinders development: merit - delays; demerit - unethical means cause leakages, poor quality, illegitimacy; means and ends≈40 words
4Small gifts improve efficiency: merit - speed; demerit - normalises bribery, discriminates against the poor, illegal≈40 words
5Stand: reject all four; reform systems to make ethical conduct easier≈40 words

Open in about 30 words and close in about 30.

Answer plan

Each statementMeritsDemeritsStandSystemic fixesConclusion

Where marks usually go

Agreeing partly with gift-giving
Not giving both merits and demerits

Draw this

Four-row table: statement → merit → demerit → response

Value addition

LawPrevention of Corruption Act (2018 amendment) makes giving a bribe an offence too (Section 8).PC (Amendment) Act, 2018
ThinkerGandhi: 'means are ends in the making'.M.K. Gandhi
QuoteMargaret Mead: 'Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world'.Margaret Mead

Mapped topper copies

Reviewed public-source references related to this PYQ. Same-syllabus references are labelled separately.

Aakash Garg · AIR 5 · Page 33 ↗Same syllabus reference
Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 35 ↗Same syllabus reference
Aakash Garg · AIR 5 · Page 39 ↗Same syllabus reference
Shakti Dubey · AIR 1 · Page 33 ↗Same syllabus reference

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