Mudit Foujdar: GS4 answer copy

The questions

1. Q1(a)It is often said that politics and ethics belong to different worlds. What is your opinion in this regard? Justify your answer with illustration. Also, highlight the consequences of divergence between politics and ethics.10 marks
2. Q1(b)“Integrity is telling myself the truth and honesty is telling the truth to other people.” Examine the importance of integrity and honesty for a public servant. Also, suggest measures to cultivate these attributes.10 marks
3. Q2(a)"Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom." Discuss the importance of emotional intelligence in self-realisation. Do you think emotional intelligence can be learned?10 marks
4. Q2(b)Differentiate between the following: (10 marks, 150 words) (ii) Attitude and Belief10 marks
5. Q2(ii)Attitude and Belief
6. Q3(a)What does each of the following quotations mean to you? a) "Human behaviour flows from three main sources: desire, emotions, and knowledge"-Plato10 marks
7. Q3(b)"There is a higher court than courts of justice and that is the court of conscience. It supersedes all other courts."-Mahatma Gandhi10 marks
8. Q3(c)"Tolerance implies no lack of commitment to one's own beliefs. Rather it condemns the oppression or persecution of others."- John F. Kennedy10 marks
9. Q4(a)Write short notes on the following in about 30-50 words each: (10 marks, 150 words) (ii) compassion in public life (iv) Crisis of conscience10 marks
10. Q4(b)In tandem with the individual merits of employees, the work culture of an organization also plays an important role in harnessing positive outcomes. Discuss the statement in light of the work culture in government organizations.10 marks
11. Q5(a)What do you understand from conflict of interest? With the help of suitable examples, illustrate how it affects the working of public servants. In what ways can conflict of interest be minimised?10 marks
12. Q5(b)"Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." In the context of this statement, bring out the ethical issues involved with creating a surveillance state for the sake of national security.10 marks
13. Q6(a)If corruption is a disease, transparency and accountability are essentially its antidote. Explaining the statement, evaluate various measures available to ensure transparency and accountability in the governance process.10 marks
14. Q6(b)In your opinion, what qualities make a person a 'good person'? Do you think all good persons share similar traits or do their qualities change with 'stan, kal, patra' (place, time and role)?10 marks
15. Q7Anand Singh is a government bus conductor working with the Nav Pradesh Transport Corporation. Anand has completed 35 years of service and is due for retirement next year. Anand is happy because he is hopeful of getting his daughter, Madhvi, married from the money he will receive as his retirement benefits. However, Anand's wife pesters him to earn more money in one way or the other. Anand likes his job, and all the passengers in his route vouch for his good nature and helpful behaviour. One day, Suresh, Anand's boss, called Anand in his cabin. He told Anand that a complaint has been filed against him by a person for illegally taking the ticket money from him without issuing the receipt for the ticket. Suresh explained to Anand that this act amounted to misappropriation of government money. Suresh always saw Anand as a decent individual and he asked him as to why he indulged in such an act? Anand, visibly disturbed, told Suresh that as the conductor of a government bus he receives a meagre salary, grossly insufficient to meet the needs of his family. He told him that his younger daughter, Sarita, suffers from chronic kidney ailment, and requires dialysis twice a week. A huge chunk of his paltry salary goes towards the cost of Sarita's treatment. Moreover, as a single bread-winner of the family, he has to cater to the needs of his elderly parents. Anand further tells Suresh that since last one year a substantial portion of his income goes towards repaying the loan that he took for his elder daughter's college education. Anand laments that even after working for 35 years long years, he is unable to provide for his family beyond the bare basic necessities. He tells Suresh that he is aware of many incidents of large-scale corruption in the road transport department that go virtually unnoticed. Further, Anand justifies his act of taking money by highlighting that almost every colleague of his indulges in such practices, and in comparison, to them, what he took, just fifty rupees, is ignorable and paltry. Further, he brought to light the fact that at times they, the conductors, were expected to give their immediate superiors a bribe in the name of convenience fees for various official tasks. While listening to Anand, Suresh feels compassion for him. He decides to verify the veracity of Anand's claim with regard to the dire straits of his financial conditions. On enquiry, all the workers in the office attested to the fact that Anand is going through a very bad phase and that he frequently resorts to short term loans in order to meet his financial requirements. Moreover, the office employees requested Suresh to take a lenient view of Anand's case. They were of the view that if a strong action is taken over such a trivial incident, then it would be highly unjust and unfair towards Anand. On reaching his home, Suresh shared the whole occurrence and Anand's story with his wife. To his surprise, his wife too agreed with the employees of the office. She told him that such small incidents are a routine matter. Also, with rising inflation and increasing obligations, this is the only way for people like Anand to make their ends meet. She asks Suresh to not waste his time and energy over such a small matter. Suresh knows Anand as a hard-working individual who has many mouths to feed at home. Suresh shares genuine sympathy with him, however, he also understands that embezzlement of government money, irrespective of amount and circumstances, is wrong. Now he is in a state of dilemma over his course of action. a) Why are the incidents of petty corruption trivialized? According to you, is it justifiable to ignore small incidents of corruption? b) What are various ethical dilemmas in the above case study?
16. Q7(a)a) छोटे-मोटे भ्रष्टाचार की घटनाओं को तुच्छ क्यों समझा जाता है? आपके हिसाब से क्या भ्रष्टाचार की छोटी-छोटी घटनाओं को नज़रअंदाज करना जायज है?
17. Q7(b)b) उपरोक्त केस स्टडी में विभिन्न नैतिक दुविधाएं क्या हैं?
18. Q7(c)Discuss the merits and demerits of various options available to Suresh. Also, what, according to you, will be the ideal course of action and why?20 marks
19. Q8Vimla is a senior IAS officer posted as the secretary in the Ministry of Women and Child Development. On one of her field visits to a government school, Vimla requested the principal to arrange for an interactive session with the students. During the session, a girl, Bindhiya, raised the issue of menstrual hygiene with Vimla. Bindhiya was of the view that menstrual hygiene is of paramount importance for the health and well-being of adolescent girls. She appraised the secretary that most of the students in the school came from socio-economically backward families. Therefore, it was difficult for them to afford high priced sanitary napkins. She suggested that if the government can make the sanitary napkins available at subsidised prices, it will lead to an improvement in overall health of female students. While on one hand it will reduce the economic burden on their parents, it will also have a positive impact on educational/cognitive outcomes of students. Further, Bindhiya suggested that the task of making sanitary napkins can be outsourced to a women SHG, leading to their economic empowerment. While everyone in the session agreed with Bindhiya's suggestion, Vimla's response came as a surprise. Vimla raised her concern over increasing dependence of people on government subsidies and freebies. She retorted at Bindhiya by saying that if the demand for sanitary napkins is conceded, people will next demand the government for providing contraceptives. Vimla's remarks were widely criticised for being in poor taste. Arun and Malti are a married couple living in Delhi. Both are members of IAS, and are posted in the central secretariat. Fitness enthusiasts, Arun and Malti, are also avid pet lovers. They own two dogs. Arun and Malti go for their evening walks in the government stadium located close to their official residence. One evening, the athletes in the government stadium were informed by the stadium in charge that they have to wind-up their practice early. As the athletes were practicing for an upcoming national level meet, they protested the order of vacating the grounds before the official closing time of the stadium. However, the stadium in charge informed them that senior IAS officers, Arun and Malti, were here early for their daily evening walk along with their two pet dogs. The athletes were aghast as the pets of a power couple were getting more priority than hard-working, sincere athletes preparing for a national level event. The incident raised questions over the lack of sensitivity and misuse of authority by public officials. Mahesh is an IPS officer posted as the DIG traffic in a western state of India. Mahesh has an impeccable record of service, and is also a recipient several honours from the government. However, the personal life of Mahesh has been a cause of concern. In the past, Mahesh's wife had made allegations of domestic violence against him. At that time the matter was settled in a family court, where Mahesh had apologised for his behaviour and blamed the stress due to extreme work pressure as a reason for his violent behaviour. More recently, Nandini, a teen-age house maid, working in Mahesh's house was rescued by an anti-child labour NGO. The NGO had received a complaint from a neighbour of Mahesh, who had noticed bruise marks on Nandini's face and on several occasions heard Nandini crying and sobbing. On further enquiry, it was found that Nandini was made to hard physical labour, was denied even basic nutrition, and her condition was worsened by mental and physical trauma that she had to suffer. The incident raised questions over the lack of violation of child rights by a public official who is expected to uphold the rule of law. a) What are various ethical issues in the above case study? b) What explains the bureaucratic apathy as highlighted in the above instances? How can the same be corrected? c) What virtues in a civil servant/public official could have prevented the above incidents?20 marks
20. Q8(a)a) उपरोक्त केस स्टडी में विभिन्न नैतिक मुद्दे क्या हैं?
21. Q8(b)b) उपर्युक्त उदाहरणों में उजागर की गई नौकरशाही की उदासीनता या निष्ठुरता की क्या व्याख्या है? इसे कैसे ठीक किया जा सकता है?
22. Q8(c)c) एक सिविल सेवक / लोक अधिकारी में कौन से गुण उपरोक्त घटनाओं को रोक सकते थे?20 marks
23. Q9Babyplus+ is a multinational corporation engaged in manufacturing products meant for newborns. It is a very popular brand and the market leader for products like baby powder, oils, soaps, cereals etc. It also exports these products to many western countries. The company is known for its ethical conduct and high-quality products and hence, has an impeccable image in the market. In a recent random sampling and testing carried out by an independent firm, it was found that the powder made by Babyplus+ was contaminated by a chemical which is known to cause allergies and skin rashes in babies. When Babyplus+ was informed of this finding, it decided to conduct its own inquiry and formed an internal investigation team. The powder samples were tested in the internal lab of the company and it was realized that the findings of the independent firm were indeed correct. The fault was located in one of the machines which malfunctioned and resulted in contamination of the powder. The maintenance record of the machine showed that the regular maintenance of the machine is overdue for some time and this could have caused the machine to malfunction. To avoid the embarrassment and protect its consumer, Babyplus+ recalled the entire batch of the powder which was suspected to have been contaminated. However, by this time more than 30% of stock has already been sold to consumers. Many children suffered allergic reactions and severe rashes due to the use of this product. The entire story was covered by prominent media houses. The media presented the entire episode in a sensational manner, using pictures of children suffering from unrelated infections and warning parents of possible severe impacts of the use of powder on children. This created an atmosphere of panic and soon news started coming from all over the country blaming Babyplus+ for every discomfort, distress and disease of children. The government has also initiated an investigation in this case. Export orders of Babyplus+ were cancelled and the company lost market share in India for not just the powder but for all other products manufactured by it. No one wanted to risk the health of their newborn by using the products of Babyplus+ and the company suffered huge losses. In this situation, a new CEO is appointed to turn around the fortune of this company and win back the trust of the general public. On the basis of the above case, answer the following questions: a) Who are the different stakeholders involved in this case? Also, identify their interests/concerns. b) What should be the course of action of the new CEO to handle the situation at hand? Which ethical principles should guide his actions? Explain.20 marks
24. Q9(a)इस मामले में शामिल विभिन्न हितधारक कौन हैं? साथ ही, उनके हितों/चिंताओं की पहचान करें।
25. Q9(b)स्थिति को संभालने के लिए नए सीईओ की कार्रवाई का तरीका क्या होना चाहिए? कौन से नैतिक सिद्धांतों को उसके कार्यों का मार्गदर्शन करना चाहिए? व्याख्या कीजिए। (20 अंक, 250 शब्द)20 marks
26. Q10The national capital has been under the grip of an outbreak of dengue fever which has affected many in the city. Unseasonal rainfall, clogged drains, negligent administration and ignorance of the general public have led to water logging in various places in the capital, which has become the breeding grounds for mosquitoes. Comprehensive coverage of the issue in national and international media has become an embarrassment for the ruling dispensation in the capital. To control the outbreak, the administration swung into action and a taskforce was created to control the situation in the city. The Chief Minister visited many areas which were hot spots of the dengue outbreak and announced that all the victims of dengue would be provided free treatment and be paid a government allowance to make up for the wage loss due to dengue. To identify the beneficiaries of the government's plan, Rajesh, a member of the taskforce, was given the responsibility of conducting a survey and recording the names of the victims. Rajesh conducted the survey diligently, working beyond his normal duty hours, to prepare the list of beneficiaries. Based on the survey, Rajesh prepared a draft list and submitted it to the head of the taskforce. Rajesh's list contained thousands of names and it was realized that the number of victims was much larger than originally anticipated. The head of the task force appreciated the hard work of Rajesh, but told him that such a long list of victims was unacceptable. He explained to Rajesh that giving government aid to such a large number of people was beyond the financial capacity of the state and presenting such a long list would only add to the embarrassment of the government. When Rajesh raised the contention that it was the order of the Chief Minister to give aid to every victim, the head of the taskforce further explained that it was the political expediency of the CM, as assembly elections are due in the next six months. He hinted that Rajesh should modify his list and include only those names who form the electorate of the capital and leave out others from the list as they are politically 'irrelevant'. He also indirectly told Rajesh that by giving a shorter list he could gain some political brownie points that could help him advance his career, while if he insisted on giving the complete list, he could land at the cross hairs of the ruling party. Rajesh understood that if he obliged the request of the head of the taskforce, it would mean leaving out the migrant population who are the most vulnerable section. Rajesh's mind tells him to follow what the head of the task force has asked him to do, but his conscience is exhorting him to say no. a) Based on this case study, identify the various ethical dilemmas faced by Rajesh. b) If you were in Rajesh's shoes, what would you have done? Present an assessment and justification of your suggested course of action.20 marks
27. Q10(a)इस केस स्टडी के आधार पर, राकेश के सामने आने वाली विभिन्न दुविधाओं की पहचान करें।
28. Q10(b)यदि आप राकेश के स्थान पर होते, तो क्या करते? अपनी सुझाई गई कार्रवाई का मूल्यांकन और औचित्य प्रस्तुत करें। (20 अंक, 250 शब्द)20 marks
29. Q11Satish is a young IAS officer who has been appointed as the collector of a district in a South Indian state. Satish is known for his empathetic and compassionate attitude towards weaker sections. During his last posting as collector of another district in the same state, his work has earned him the name 'compassionate collector'. As collector, he quickly started taking people-oriented actions. He started 'janta darbar' (open house) on every Friday, so that people can directly approach him with their grievances and concerns. In one such Janta darbar, a distressed couple came to him with the plight of their sick daughter. The couple informed that their daughter was suffering from a rare heart condition and undergoing treatment in a private hospital, however, her survival requires immediate surgery. They further told him that they were able to raise substantial money through crowd funding and donations, but were still short of 2 lakhs. They showed some medical reports from a private hospital and recommendations of doctors from the same hospital prescribing immediate surgery. They begged Satish to help them arrange the remaining amount for the surgery. Moved by the pain of the couple and on the basis of the reports from the private hospital, Satish decided to give 2 lakhs for the Collector's discretionary fund and accordingly 2 lakhs were released to the private hospital. After a few weeks, an investigative journalist busted a scam where a private hospital, XYZ, was generating spurious reports and bills for treatments of fake patients. These bills were being paid by the government under the scheme for reimbursement of medical expenditure for treatment of weaker sections of the society. The name XYZ struck him and he recalled that the couple also gave him medical reports from the same hospital. The report of the journalist further added that the scam was going on for quite some time in connivance with the government officials. The news item reported Satish's name as an accomplice of the hospital and accused him of swindling public resources by giving money to XYZ out of the collector's discretionary fund. Taking note of the report, the state government has sent a show cause notice to Satish and an enquiry has been ordered to investigate the matter. a) Examine various ethical issues involved in the case presented above. b) Do you think the actions of Satish were ethically justified? Justify your opinion. c) What should Satish do in this situation for handling the allegations of corruption levelled against him?20 marks
30. Q11(c)Satish's course of action to handle allegations of corruption :
31. Q12Moonlighting refers to doing a second job, typically at night and secretly, in addition to one's regular employment. With work from home becoming a new feature of many jobs, it has become easy for many people to moonlight. Arvind is a software engineer in Comsoft, an MNC, and he works from home for his firm. Arvind has received only meagre salary hikes in the last two years as the business of Comsoft has suffered due to the pandemic. However, his expenditure has increased substantially as he got married and had a child in these two years. Arvind was finding it difficult to make his ends meet and decided to take up another job, apart from his regular job in Comsoft. He got his second gig at Mocsoft, who happened to be a competitor of Comsoft, and thus, started moonlighting. This side gig was very helpful for Arvind and his financial condition started improving. Arvind found that in Mocsoft, his role and responsibilities were quite similar to that in his regular employment at Comsoft. This meant that he could easily manoeuvre between two jobs without compromising the quality of work in either company. Shift timing of both the jobs were also different. To keep the two jobs separate, he used his official computer to work for Comsoft and his personal computer for Mocsoft. Two jobs gave Arvind financial space to save for buying a house, something the couple had always dreamt of. However, all his plans shattered and his world came crashing down when Arvind received an official mail from Comsoft informing him of his termination with immediate effect citing his second job as the reason for termination. Arvind was clueless as to what to do now and how to tell his wife about his termination. Similar is the story of hundreds of Arvind, who were terminated for moonlighting. a) Analyze the various ethical issues involved in the case of moonlighting. b) Do you think Comsoft's decision to terminate the employment of Arvind is justified? Why or why not? c) Identify various qualities which could help Arvind handle this situation.20 marks
32. Q12(a)a) मूनलाइटिंग के मामले में शामिल विभिन्न नैतिक मुद्दों का विश्लेषण करें।
33. Q12(b)b) क्या आपको लगता है कि कॉमसॉफ्ट का अरविंद के रोजगार को समाप्त करने का निर्णय उचित है? क्यों या क्यों नहीं?
34. Q12(c)c) विभिन्न गुणों की पहचान करें जो अरविंद को इस स्थिति से निपटने में मदद कर सकते हैं।20 marks

The answers