AIR 27 · CSE 2020 · GS4 · 44 pages

Maithreyi Naidu: GS4 answer copy

18 answers by Maithreyi Naidu, as written in the test. Each question opens a page with how other toppers answered it.

The questions

Q1(a)The seeds of patriarchy and gender inequality are sown at home, which manifest as a weed at the societal level. Elucidate. Suggest an ethical framework to systematically address the issue of patriarchy in the Indian society. (b) What are the factors which drive people to take law in their own hands rather than following the due process of law? Discuss the ways to address the problem of mob justice.
Q1(b)What are the factors which drive people to take law in their own hands rather than following the due process of law? Discuss the ways to address the problem of mob justice.
Q2(a)In a democracy, the purpose of the government should be to make it easy for the people to do good and difficult to do wrong. comment.
Q2(b)In a democracy, the purpose of the government should be to make it easy for the people to do good and difficult to do wrong. Comment. (b) Discuss John Stuart Mill's idea on freedom of thought and expression. Also, give reasons as to why, according to Mill, representative democracy is the best form of government despite its inherent weaknesses.
Q3(a)It is argued by some that nuclear weapons have acted more as a deterrent than leading to war and mass destruction. In this context, discuss whether it is ethically right to possess nuclear weapons to create nuclear deterrence.
Q3(b)It is argued by some that nuclear weapons have acted more as a deterrent than leading to war and mass destruction. In this context, discuss whether it is ethically right to possess nuclear weapons to create nuclear deterrence. (b) Differentiate between administration and leadership. Highlighting the traits which characterise an effective leader, discuss the importance of leadership in ensuring effective public service delivery in a bureaucratic setup.
Q4(a)Apart from functional knowledge and expertise, the efficacy of a civil servant also depends upon his emotional intelligence. How does emotional intelligence contribute to efficacy? How can civil servants enhance their emotional intelligence?
Q4(b)Enumerate the mechanisms that promote accountability of public officials in discharging their functions and responsibilities in India. Also discuss why ensuring accountability for performance is not a simple task in government service.
Q5Given below are two quotations of moral thinkers / philosophers. For each of these bring out what it means to you in the present context. (a) "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated". (b) "Prejudices are what fools use for reason"
Q6Ensuring that government decisions are not influenced by public officials' private interests is a growing concern. Discuss in the context of India. Also enumerate the core principles reflected by OECD guidelines for managing conflict of interest in the public sector.
Q7Discuss, with examples, the significance of principle of public life as recommended by Nolan committee. Why are these principles considered as an essential set of expectations from public servants?
Q8A peculiar inhuman situation exists for the people fleeing from war zones - they cannot go back to their homeland for fear of being persecuted and no country is ready to bear their burden due to various reasons. Citing contemporary examples, discuss the ethical issues involved in such situations.
Q9As the administrator in charge of your area, you are witness to the widespread food wastage in lavish parties as well as in restaurants and eateries, on one hand and people starving due to inability to ensure one square meal a day on the other. Realising that it is not scarcity of resources, but the habit of people that is causing paucity in availability of food you decide that certain measures are needed to be taken in order to deal with the issue of starvation at the grassroot level. Given the situation, answer the following questions: (a) Identify the ethical issues involved in this case. (b) What measures would you take to deal with wastage of food in your area? (c) What explains this co-existence of affluence and hunger in developing countries like in India?
Q10The excluded and marginalised section of society are worst hit by globalisation. Take the case of Particularly vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) like Sentinelese of Andaman and Nicobar islands; their population has reduced drastically and they are facing various other problems as well. In this context answer the following questions: (a) What are the challenges faced by PVTGs due to globalisation (b) If you are posted as a development officer in such an area, what will be your priorities to reduce their vulnerabilities and ensure welfare?
Q11undercover journalism exposes injustices, negligence, corruption and wrong doing and yet going undercover to expose wrong doing remains controversial. But, undercover journalists contend that they are fulfilling a fundamental duty of finding truth through their journalism. They argue that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy and the duty of the journalists is to further those ends by seeking truth and providing a fair and comprehensive account of events and issues. So, there are some supporters of this kind of journalism, which sometimes infringe the privacy of individuals. However, some journalists also urge avoiding surreptitious methods of gathering information except when traditional methods will not yield information vital to the public. In this context, answer the following questions: (a) What are the ethical issues involved in the practice of undercover journalism? (b) Do you support the practice of undercover investigation by journalists? Give reasons in support of your answer.
Q12You are the chief executive of ABC Ltd, an automotive component manufacturing company. Until recently, all of your production plants were located in city X. However, the cost of production has risen, causing profits to decline. A number of factors have led to an increase in the production costs. First, the union representing the workers in your plant waged a successful strike resulting in increased salary and benefits. A second factor has been imposition of stringent environmental regulations. Shareholders are concerned about the declining fortunes of the company. Many of the competitors have moved their operations to less developed cities, where the operating costs are less than city X. ABC Ltd is a major employer in the city where it is located, and you know that a plant closure will cause economic dislocation in the city. Given the situation, answer the following question. (a) What are the ethical issues involved in this case? (b) How can the interests of different stakeholders be reconciled in this case?
Q13You are posted as a District Education Officer (DEO) in a Maoist affected district. You have been specifically given the responsibility to work on the literacy mission. After reading the education reports and doing field visits, you find that the number of out of school children has increased drastically and the motivation amongst students and teachers is also low. While the basic infrastructure is already in place, the main hurdle in attracting students to these schools include the attitude of inhabitants towards education and the security issues involved in sending children to schools. Given the situation, answer the following questions: (a) Analyse the reasons behind such an attitude. (b) As a DEO, what are the steps you would take in order to increase the school attendance and change the prevalent attitude of inhabitants towards education?
Q14Mr Pradeep is a senior civil servant in the central government and is involved in the budgeting department. In the course of performing his duties he comes to know of diversion of funds earmarked for SC/ST sub-plan for other purposes. While he is not directly responsible for this aspect of the budget, he raised his concern to the department concerned. He also learns that the minister responsible as well as senior most civil servant are aware of the practice and have given tacit approval for it. Soon, thereafter Pradeep was summoned to talk on the issue and was told that since the matter is not within his jurisdiction, he should "keep his nose out of it". After much soul searching, Pradeep decided to drop his argument by leaving the matter alone. Based on the information given, answer the following questions: (a) Elaborate the ethical dilemma that Pradeep faces in the given situation. (b) On what basis can the decision of Pradeep be justified? (c) Had you been in Pradeep's place, what would have been the course of action taken by you? Recognise the merits and demerits of any.

The answers

Question 1(a) · 437 words written

The seeds of patriarchy and gender inequality are sown at home, which manifest as a weed at the societal level. Elucidate. Suggest an ethical framework to systematically address the issue of patriarchy in the Indian society. (b) What are the factors which drive people to take law in their own hands rather than following the due process of law? Discuss the ways to address the problem of mob justice.

Opening · a definition

None written.

Body · points

(a) The unequal interactions of gender relations are taught to children within the home itself. Patriarchy, which refers to the set of beliefs, practices and structures that enable men to gain privileges over women, is reproduced through the means of the family.

Within the home, the father is seen as being superior in social stature, wields control over the finances and monopolises decision-making power, while the work of women is trivialized. Young boys are taught to be masculine, to never cry and are encouraged to take up pursuits outside such as sports, leadership and academics while girls are socialized to perform household chores and care work. This manifests in wider social stratification based on gender roles.

To address this problem, we need measures at multiple levels. Within the home, girls and boys must be treated similarly and taught to share responsibility. The recent 'Boys don't make others cry' advertisement campaign is a good step. Further, opportunities for education and jobs for girls should be maximized and women's care work must be compensated through care work wages and social status. Therefore, both attitude change and structural reforms are necessary to tackle patriarchy.

Some of the positive steps by the government in this context are the 'Beti Bachao Beti Padhao' campaign, Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana, improved maternity benefits, reservation for women in local governments etc.

(b) The legal system in India is beset with many problems which have incentivised people to pursue vigilante justice as well as mob justice. Some of these problems are- (i) apathy of the police towards the victims (ii) nexus of criminals, politicians and policemen (iii) lack of investigative capacity of police (iv) delays in the judicial system, sometimes cases stretching even over decades. (v) inadequacy of punishments and low conviction rate (vi) lack of protection of victims from social pressures as well as retaliatory violence.

To address this problem we can consider recommendations of the Committee to Review Indian Criminal Justice System (03) which advocated victim oriented justice. Mob justice is essentially the product of the people not seeing justice being done adequately. To tackle this: (i) trials must be conducted speedily, avoiding inordinate delays (ii) the police must be sensitized to the plights of the victims and must put their opinions first (iii) techniques of investigation must be improved, with latest technology to improve conviction rate (iv) political interference must be eliminated (v) the safety of the victims must be assured (vi) vigilantes and mobs must be prevented and acted against through law.

Close · a way forward

The government must also convey its condemnation of mob justice to create wider change in attitude towards rule of law.