Aishwarya Verma: GS4 answer copy

The questions

1. Q1(a)Explain the concept of Sarvodaya with the help of examples from the lives of prominent personalities.10 marks
2. Q1(b)The life and teachings of Guru Nanak presents a template for leading a life within the corridors of ethics and values. Discuss.10 marks
3. Q2(a)There is no 'invisible hand' channeling self-interest into some social optimum. In this context, the State has an integral role to play in making available essential public goods and services, despite the increasing pace of privatization. Do you agree? Justify with examples from India.10 marks
4. Q2(b)Even though the state actors who make rules and implement them have an important role to play in the fight against corruption, the battle is not likely to succeed without the active efforts of various segments of society. Discuss.10 marks
5. Q3(a)What do you understand by Social Intelligence? Discuss its various components and explain how it is different from Emotional Intelligence.10 marks
6. Q3(b)Ethical behaviour is the best not merely in the context of morality, but it is also the best in the context of one's own career prospects. Discuss in the context of civil services in India.10 marks
7. Q4(a)The press is an important agent in ensuring the citizen's right to receive and impart information as a measure of probity in governance. In this context, do you think that the press in India discharges its duty honestly?10 marks
8. Q4(b)The failure to deliver on its promises by Citizen's Charters in the last two decades has shown that there are some complex set of factors underlying this seemingly simple task. What are they? Identify and provide their resolution.10 marks
9. Q5(a)Medical ethics is particularly relevant in decisions regarding involuntary treatment and involuntary commitment. In view of this, highlighting the importance of medical ethics, discuss the issues in its implementation.10 marks
10. Q5(b)The fundamental principle in a democracy is that all public functionaries are trustees of the people and this trusteeship relationship requires that the authority entrusted to the functionaries be exercised in 'public interest'. Discuss.10 marks
11. Q6(a)What do each of the following quotations mean to you? "If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor." - Desmond Tutu10 marks
12. Q6(b)"Disobedience is the true foundation of liberty. The obedient must be slaves." - Henry David Thoreau10 marks
13. Q6(c)"That which isn't good for the hive, isn't good for the bee"- Marcus Aurelius10 marks
14. Q7You are a Superintendent of Police tasked with conducting an internal departmental inquiry into an alleged case of custodial torture and subsequent disappearance of three tribal persons. The case of the police force is that these persons were habitual offenders who had committed theft. The police had nabbed them for interrogation but they escaped from the police custody and are absconding. Family members of these persons, on the other hand, maintain that they were falsely framed in the case and were not in a condition to flee due to custodial torture. They are alleging foul play on the part of the police and suspects that the police is behind their disappearance. Prima facie, you find many lacunae in the police investigation. The policemen did not produce these persons before the Magistrate nor did they get them medically examined, as required by the law. One of your seniors, without referring to the case, informally talks to you about the adverse working conditions of the police force and insinuates that all police personnel should help each other. He also says that all serving officers need to be mindful of the fact that they are part of the police force and should not do anything which may tarnish the reputation of the police department. (a) Identify the stakeholders and various issues involved in the case. (b) How will you conduct a fair and impartial inquiry that ensures that public perception regarding cover-up in such cases does not gain ground? (c) Highlight the reasons for the continuing impunity of custodial deaths in India, and recommend steps that authorities should take to resolve it.20 marks
15. Q9You are working as the Head of Ethics and Compliance in a big mobile manufacturing company that is known for its innovation and quality products. Both the customers and the shareholders are pleased with the performance of the company as they get value for their money and high returns on their investments respectively. Tin is a major component in the products manufactured by your company. It was recently brought to your attention that workers - many of them children - are working in unsafe conditions, digging tin out by hand in mines prone to landslides that could bury them alive. About 70% of the tin used in smartphones manufactured by the company comes from these more dangerous, small-scale mines. The company defends its practices by saying it only has such much control over monitoring and regulating its component sources. The justification advanced of its sourcing practices is that it is a complex process, with tens of thousands of miners selling tin, many of them through middlemen or third-party contractors. Based on the above case, answer the following questions: (a) What are the ethical issues in the above case? (b) Can customers of the company be expected to take into account such practices before buying any product of the company? (c) If the management were to seek your opinion on the matter, what course of action will you suggest?20 marks
16. Q9(a)Stakeholders involved in the case:
17. Q1111. भारत में शिक्षा क्षेत्र एक प्रतिबंधात्मक नियमकीय परिवेश से घिरा हुआ है और इसे एक सार्वजनिक वस्तु (पब्लिक गुड) माना जाता है। यद्यपि, शिक्षा क्षेत्र में निजी क्षेत्र की भागीदारी की अनुमति है, तथापि सभी स्तरों पर इन संस्थानों को गैर-लाभकारी आधार पर कार्य करना होता है। उच्चतम न्यायालय ने यह निर्णय दिया था कि शैक्षणिक संस्थानों को “विस्तार और सुविधाओं में वृद्धि की लागत की पूर्ति के लिए उचित अधिशेष” की अनुमति है, किंतु उन्हें कैपिटेशन शुल्क वसूलने या मुनाफाखोरी से प्रतिबंधित किया गया है। इस संदर्भ में, निम्नलिखित प्रश्नों के उत्तर दीजिए: (a) लाभ से प्रेरित होकर शिक्षण संस्थानों के संचालन की अनुमति देने में कौन-सी नैतिक चिंताएं हैं? (b) क्या शिक्षा की सबसे महत्वपूर्ण भूमिका लोगों की लाभकारी रोजगार के लिए तैयार करना है या शिक्षा और ज्ञान की सराहना उनके अपने महत्व के लिए की जानी चाहिए? (c) उन विभिन्न तरीकों की विवेचना कीजिए जिनके माध्यम से मूल्य-आधारित शिक्षा प्रदान की जा सकती है। (उत्तर 250 शब्दों में दें) भारत के शहरों में ट्रैफिक सिग्नल और पूजा स्थलों पर भिखारियों की मौजूदगी एक आम बात है। ऐसा माना जाता है कि वे उपद्रवी प्रकृति के होते हैं, जो प्राय: यात्रियों और भक्तों को पैसे के लिए लगातार परेशान करते हैं। हाल ही में, उच्चतम न्यायालय के समक्ष राष्ट्रीय राजधानी में भीख मांगने पर प्रतिबंध लगाकर इस प्रथा को समाप्त करने की अपील की गई थी। हालांकि, मानवाधिकार समूहों ने इस बात का समर्थन किया है कि भिक्षावृत्ति पर प्रतिबंध लगाना इसे समाप्त करने का आदर्श तरीका नहीं है, क्योंकि इससे वे अंतर्निहित सामाजिक-आर्थिक मुद्दे जो इस प्रथा के मुख्य कारण हैं, अनसुलझे रह जाएंगे। इस संदर्भ में: (a) भारत में भिक्षावृत्ति से संबंधित नैतिक और नीतिशास्त्रीय मुद्दों का उल्लेख कीजिए। (b) उन कारकों पर चर्चा कीजिए जो किसी व्यक्ति को भीख मांगने के लिए बाध्य करते हैं। (c) यदि आप एक भिखारी के पास से गुजरते हैं, तो आप क्या करेंगे, भिखारी को कुछ पैसे देंगे या भिखारी की उपेक्षा करेंगे और अपने अतिरिक्त पैसे को सर्वाधिक जरूरतमंदों की सहायता करने के लिए दान में देंगे? अपने उत्तर के समर्थन में उपयुक्त तर्क प्रस्तुत कीजिए। (उत्तर 250 शब्दों में दें)20 marks

The answers