Case Studies

Question : Rakesh is a responsible district level officer, who enjoys the trust of his higher officials. Knowing his honesty, the government entrusted him with the responsibility of identifying the beneficiaries under a health care scheme meant for senior citizens. The criteria to be a beneficiary are the following:

(a) 60 years of age or above.

(b) Belonging to a reserved community.

(c) Family income of less than 1 Lakh rupees per annum.

(d) Post-treatment prognosis is likely to be high to make a positive difference to the quality of life of the beneficiary.

One day, an old couple visited Rakesh’s office with their application. They have been the residents of a village in his district since their birth. The old man is diagnosed with a rare condition that causes obstruction in the large intestine. As a consequence, he has severe abdominal pain frequently that prevents him from doing any physical labour. The couple has no children to support them. The expert surgeon whom they contacted is willing to do the surgery without charging any fee. However, the couple will have to bear the cost of incidental charges, such as medicines, hospitalization, etc., to the tune of rupees one lakh. The couple fulfils all the criteria except criterion ‘b’. However, any financial aid would certainly make a significant difference in their quality of life. How should Rakesh respond to the situation?

(2018)

Answer : The disbursement of benefits is one of the most challenging aspects of the functions of any civil servant. In this regard, the following stakeholders are involved in the case of Rakesh, the health worker.

Firstly, Rakesh who is a trusted, responsible employee overseeing the disbursement of health benefits to the vulnerable sections of society.
His seniors who trust Rakesh to administer the scheme correctly.
The vulnerable sections of the community, whose welfare funds Rakesh is the guardian of.
The old couple who are not from the reserved community and who came to Rakesh for help.
The doctors and hospital staff who agreed to perform the surgery on the old man.
And, the society at large which has several such cases of sick, old and destitute persons in need of help.

Rakesh now is faced with a dilemma. On one hand, he as a normal kind and compassionate person could feel the need to help the old man who is ill. However, he is constrained by the fact that he is the guardian of a public scheme and in that capacity he is bound by the parameters of the scheme and can disburse funds only to intended beneficiaries.

Therefore, he can respond to the situation in this manner which would be both effective for the couple and within the parameters of Rakesh’s professional duties.

Then, he could, from his side, look for other similar government schemes for other communities and could recommend them to the old couple and help them with formalities.
Otherwise, he could help crowdfund or raise from his colleagues and friends, the required amount of Rs.1 Lakh.
He could also try to contact NGOs and social services organisations who could help out the old couple with their hospitalisation expenses and help them with the paperwork and formalities for the same.

As a government servant, Rakesh is bound by the rules of his organisation and schemes he is administering, and whatever help or assistance he decides to give to the old couple should be from his own time and money. However, as a trusted employee administering a major health scheme, he is sure to have built up a solid network of contacts and goodwill amongst the health professionals of the region and beyond and it is this that he could tap into to help out the old couple.

This way, Rakesh would be doing his professional duty as a public servant while at the same time, keeping alive a humanistic spark in his conscience and helping out those in need.

Question : As a senior officer in the Ministry, you have access to important policy decisions and upcoming big announcements such as road construction projects before they are notified in the public domain. The Ministry is about to announce a mega road project for which the drawings are already in place. Sufficient care was taken by the planners to make use of the government land with the minimum land acquisition from private parties. Compensation rate for private parties was also finalized as per government rules. Care was also taken to minimize deforestation. Once the project is announced, it is expected that there will be a huge spurt in real estate prices in and around that area.

Meanwhile, the Minister concerned insists that you realign the road in such a way that it comes closer to his 20 acres farmhouse. He also suggests that he would facilitate the purchase of a big plot of land in your wife’s name at the prevailing rate which is very nominal, in and around the proposed mega road project. He also tries to convince you by saying that there is no harm in it as he is buying the land legally. He even promises to supplement your savings in case you do not have sufficient funds to buy the land. However, by the act of realignment, a lot of agricultural land has to be acquired, thereby causing a considerable financial burden on the government, and also the displacement of the farmers. As if this is not enough, it will involve cutting down of a large number of trees denuding the area of its green cover. Faced with this situation, what will you do? Critically examine various conflicts of interest and explain what are your responsibilities as a public servant.

(2018)

Answer : As a public servant, conceptualisation, design and implementation of infrastructure projects is often an exciting and important assignment. Such projects often involve multiple stakeholders who in this case are:

You the senior officer in the ministry, privy to the designs of this projects and the power to influence decisions.
The minister who wants to bring the project closer to his land and farmhouse and who is ready to resort to buying land in the name of your wife in order to sweeten the deal for you.
The private parties who have already been paid compensation.
The government who is liable for further financial burden, farmers who could have their lands acquired and public which would lose out from loss of green cover.

In this case, there are several conflicts of interests namely:

Economy vs. Convenience: The first project acquired minimum land and fixed reasonable compensation where as for the convenience, the minister proposed realignment would result in increased expenses for the public exchequer.
Integrity vs. Corruption: You as an officer are having your integrity tested by the offer of the minister to sweeten the deal for realignment by buying land in the name of your wife and also by providing funds for the same.
Private Greed vs. Public Good: Both you and the minister are private individuals and by the offer made by the minister - have exposed you to private greed. However, as an officer, you are also expected to follow up on the public good and reduce public expenditure and increase public convenience.
Development vs. Ecology: Though both projects bring development, the realignment has a greater impact on the ecological wealth of the region and affects a greater swathe of agricultural and forest land.

In such a case fraught with conflicting interests, you should reject the offer the minister has made both to realign the project and the offer of land and/or money in case you did it. This is because you, as an officer have several responsibilities like:

Integrity: as you are a guardian of the public exchequer and a publicly funded project.
Honesty: as a public servant to not be corrupt and to not indulge in questionable practices.
Probity and accountability: to ensure that under you, projects are carried out in a fair and transparent manner.

Therefore, even if it means going up against your political boss, in the interest of public good and personal reputation, you must ensure the execution of the project in the most economical and ecologically sustainable manner which was agreed upon at the outset.

Question : It is a State where prohibition is in force. You are recently appointed as the Superintendent of Police of a district notorious for illicit distillation of liquor. The illicit liquor leads to many deaths, reported and unreported, and causes a major problem for the district authorities.

The approach till now had been to view it as a law and order problem and tackle it accordingly. Raids, arrest, police cases, and criminal trials – all these had only limited impact. The problem remains as serious as ever.

Your inspections show that the parts of the district where the distillation flourishes are economically, industrially and educationally backward. Agriculture is badly affected by poor irrigation facilities. Frequent clashes among communities gave boost to illicit distillation. No major initiatives had taken place in the past either from the government’s side or from social organisations to improve the lot of the people. Which new approach will you adopt to bring the problem under control?

(2018)

Answer : Illicit liquor kills many and destroys families and lives across India. This particular case of illicit liquor too has many stakeholders namely:

You, as a newly appointed SP of the district.
Producers of illicit liquor and consumers of illicit liquor.
Poor people of the district who are also backward socio-economically.
Government and social organisations which are stymied as to how to tackle this issue.

In dealing with such a complex case, you would have to adopt a multi pronged approach to resolve this issue, acting within your parameters of power as a police officer:

Firstly, you would have to make a detailed study of the region. This should include identifying the hotspots of liquor production and consumption, persons involved in the trade, money trail, motivation, why the existing methods of raid and arrests are not working, etc.
Then you would need to cease the existing methods of raids and arrests to some extent and try to reach to prominent members of the communities of these regions. These could be religious leaders, community elders, women, social workers and others.
As a police officer you could use the power of your uniform to bring these persons under one roof with a mandate of ceasing liquor related production and deaths and enforcement of provisions.
Once a satisfactory solution is reached, you should allow for an observation period of one month for the effects of the mutually decided plan to take root.
Meanwhile, you should form another team to keep a silent but perpetual vigil on those elements for whom illicit liquor is not an addiction but a business. And at the end of the month after the creation of the plan, simultaneous actions on these elements along with seizing and arrests of the kingpin elements would serve to cut off the head of the snake.
As a third arm of action, you could also request the district administration consisting of your DM, SDM, zilla level workers, etc. to focus efforts and funds on de-addiction and employment schemes in the district along with focus on women and children from families affected by the liquor menace.

If such a plan is followed, with well thought out additions and in meticulous detail, it could lead to the end of illicit liquor and its related deaths and destruction of families and economies of the region.

Question : A big corporate house is engaged in manufacturing industrial chemicals on a large scale. It proposes to set up an additional unit. Many states rejected its proposal due to the detrimental effect on the environment. But one state government acceded to the request and permitted the unit close to a city, brushing aside all opposition.

The unit was set up 10 years ago and was in full swing till recently. The pollution caused by the industrial effluents was affecting the land, water and crops in the area. It was also causing serious health problems to human beings and animals. This gave rise to a series of agitation demanding the closure of the plant. In a recent agitation thousands of people took part, creating a law and order problem necessitating stern police action. Following the public outcry, the State government ordered the closure of the factory.

The closure of the factory resulted in the unemployment of not only those workers who were engaged in the factory but also those who were working in the ancillary units. It also very badly affected those industries which depended on the chemicals manufactured by it. As a senior officer entrusted with the responsibility of handling this issue, how are you going to address it?

(2018)

Answer : Development and environment have been at loggerheads for many decades now. In this particular case, the closure of the factory has many stakeholders each of which has certain issues and grievances.

You: as a senior officer entrusted with the responsibility of quelling public unrest, your aim would be the normalisation of the situation with the least damage to public life and property.
The factory owners: They would be more worried about the money they stand to lose if the shutdown becomes permanent and the effect it could have on future prospects in the region and the legal aspects of their pollution (example- Class action suits).
The workers and ancillary units of the factories: They would be worried about their employment and the impact that the shutdown would have on their life and that of their families.
The common public: They would be aggrieved at the blatant pollution caused by the factory, the permission granted to it by the state government and the loss of life and ecology due to the effects of pollution.
In such a case, in order to address these issues, you as a senior officer would have to work in a prioritized manner:
Firstly, you would have to ensure that the law and order situation in the region stays safe and no one oversteps the boundaries of civility.
Next step would be to assuage the affected unemployed. This could be done in a two pronged manner, by first arranging for the district administration to show to these unemployed the ravaging effects of this industry and to maximise effect, show it on social media as well. Second step would be to arrange skill fairs, emergency employment exchanges, job melas and other government interventions for alternate employment opportunities.
Tandem to that you would need to deal with the cleanup effects of pollution, both using government funds and also from the polluter pays principle. Organisations like TERI, CSIR can be roped in to find innovative solutions to this issue.
The district administration as well as nodal hospitals could be instructed to open up special wards for pollution patients to be treated on a priority basis.
And finally comes the turn of the factory owners. They should be prosecuted in court for their flouting of various environmental laws and if they want to keep their base in that particular city, it could be after they pay a fine and also convert itself to non-polluting business (such as the generation of clean energy, production of non-polluting materials, etc.).

Development should be used to bring about a positive change in society and not as a way to create an uninhabitable and inequitable atmosphere. Therefore, as a senior officer responsible for this situation, you would need to act swiftly, effectively and with sensitivity to reach a mutually agreeable solution.

Question : Dr X is a leading medical practitioner in a city. He has set up a charitable trust through which he plans to establish a super-speciality hospital in the city to cater to the medical needs of all sections of the society. Incidentally, that part of the State had been neglected over the years. The proposed hospital would be a boon for the region.

You are heading the tax investigation agency of that region. During an inspection of the doctor’s clinic, your officers have found out some major irregularities. A few of them are substantial which had resulted in considerable withholding of tax that should be paid by him now. The doctor is cooperative. He undertakes to pay the tax immediately.

However, there are certain other deficiencies in his tax compliance which are purely technical in nature. If these technical defaults are pursued by the agency, considerable time and energy of the doctor will be diverted to issues which are not so serious, urgent or even helpful to the tax collection process. Further, in all probability, it will hamper the prospects of the hospital coming up.

There are two options before you:

(i) Taking a broader view, ensure substantial tax compliance and ignore defaults that are merely technical in nature.

(ii) Pursue the matter strictly and proceed on all fronts, whether substantial or merely technical. As the head of the tax agency, which course of action will you opt for and why?

(2018)

Answer : Tax collection is one of the most important functions of a public servant. In this case, the issue of tax collection is fraught with several complications and has many stakeholders which include:

Dr X whose taxes are under scrutiny and who wants to build a hospital in the backward area.
You as head of the tax investigation agency of the region whose job it is to ensure compliance and proper filing of taxes.
The people of the backward region who are in dire need of basic facilities and who stand to benefit from the construction of the hospital.
And, the public at large who are ultimate beneficiaries of good tax collection.

In such a situation, there are both merits and demerits of both the above provided options. If you were to ensure compliance and ignore the minor technical defaults it would result in the recovery of tax money, construction of the hospital and overall benefit to the people of a very backward region at little inconvenience to the exchequer. However, it could also be seen as a slippage of tax collection discipline and could serve a stepping stone for such cases in the future.

However, if you were to pursue the case strictly, both on substantial and technical fronts, it would reaffirm the discipline of the taxation department as well as your reputation as a rule following administrator. It would however affect the construction of the hospital and could also lead to harassment of the doctor in question.

There has to be a multi pinged approach to the problem in question and it has to involve both suggestive and preventive steps. As the tax has been withheld, it has to be paid immediately and without delay along with applicable fines. Further, the minor compliance issues too are not something which can be overlooked in their entirety. However, as their utility both to the taxpayer and the government is limited, it should not become a source of harassment and/or trouble to either party. To this end, you should instruct a team to provide minimum time possible per week to cooperate with the taxpayer to sort of technical issues over a period of time as they are not urgent issues. Also, in order to ensure that such technical issues do not occur in the future for this or any other taxpayer, you could institute necessary corrections from your end and also institute a technical vigilance committee to gather further information.

If followed, these steps could lead to a peaceful tax settlement which benefits not only the taxpayers, but also the district administration and the people who would benefit from the construction of the hospital in the backward area, which in other words is a win-win situation and the best a public servant could hope for.

Question : Edward Snowden, a computer expert and former CIA system administrator, released confidential Government documents to the press about the existence of Government surveillance programmes.

According to many legal experts and the US Government, his action violated the Espionage Act of 1917, which identified the leak of State secret as an act of treason. Yet, despite the fact that he broke the law, Snowden argued that he had a moral obligation to act. He gave a justification for his “whistle blowing” by stating that he had a duty “to inform the public as to that which is done in their name and that which is done against them.” According to Snowden, the Government’s violation of privacy had to be exposed regardless of legality since more substantive issues of social action and public morality were involved here. Many agreed with Snowden. Few argued that he broke the law and compromised national security, for which he should be held accountable.

Do you agree that Snowden’s actions were ethically justified even if legally prohibited? Why or why not? Make an argument by weighing the competing values in this case.

(2018)

Answer : Snowden’s case was that of a whistleblower extraordinaire as he leaked into the public sphere 1000s of ultra-classified documents which threw open to scrutiny activities of the American and other governments which they never thought would see the light of day. In his case, there are several stakeholders each with competing values:

Snowden himself is driven by values of freedom and truth being out in the public sphere for the judgement of the public.
The government of the USA has the values of the rule of law and of a rules-based democracy to protect.
The people of the USA have the right to know about the actions of their government taken in their name as they are the ultimate protectors and patrons of democracy.
Other governments of the world-over who have a stake in the leaked documents of Snowden and who have their own self interests to protect.
And, other people of the world who are keenly following the Snowden case and the battle of government vs. people across the world.

There is definitely a case for Snowden’s actions being ethically justified. This is because he did not indulge in leaking documents for his self interests or monetary gain, not in the face of danger. He chose to put himself at considerable risk for telling the truth to people.

But, even then, legally, Snowden is not entirely scot-free. By leaking state secrets and those of other states he has put himself in contravention of several laws both in the USA and elsewhere which is why he has had to live a life of a fugitive since then.

Question : You are an honest and responsible civil servant. You often observe the following: (a)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.

(b)When the number of people adopting unfair means is large, a small minority having a penchant towards ethical means makes no difference.

(c)Sticking to ethical means is detrimental to the larger developmental goals.

(d)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.

(2017)

Answer : Ethicality can never be measured on the basis of number of people adhering to it or not. Even if single person is ethical among thousands of people, it cannot diminish the importance of ethics. Rather importance of ethics increases in such situation because only few are there to protect ethical practices.

Ethical high standards are must and an expected quality and trait in Civil Servants.
Another important point is that in short term, happiness cannot be equated with real happiness of being ethical.

Merits and demerits of the statements

(a) Merits -Will avoid short term difficulties for self and family.
May bring temporary happiness.

Demerits- Ultimately pain and difficulty will be faced by an individual.Imprisonment may also occur.
If wrongdoing is exposed then good deeds will also come under suspicion.

(b) Merits -Civil servant will find himself comfortable among the group.
No issue of facing pressure and taunts of majority.

Demerits -Unethical practice may cause guilt to the person.
Can increase further tendencies on unethicality.

(c) Merits -Faster development in short duration.
Easy approvals for development.

Demerits -Development is a long process.
Short term development of such unethical nature has potential to derail the total development of project itself.

(d) Merits- Gift exchange will increase harmony.
Small gifts should not be considered illegal.

Demerits -Makes the civil servant prone to accept gifts.
Initially gifts may be small but in future, may not work without gifts or starts demanding valuable gifts.
Unethical means even if followed by majority remains unethical and small gifts cannot be considered ethical. Every big crime starts as small, so the small gifts are equally unethical.

Question : You are aspiring to become an IAS officer and you have cleared various stages and now you have been selected for the personal interview. On the day of the interview, on the way to the venue you saw an accident where a mother and child who happen to be your relatives were badly injured. They needed immediate help. What would you have done in such a situation? Justify your action.

(2017)

Answer : The case is about that, I am going for a very important interview of my life and found injured relative of mine on the way who require immediate help. But before taking any action, I will focus on some aspect in this case:

A human life is of utmost importance, it should get primacy over everything.
Success is important but not at the cost of anyone’s life. If I leave the injured relatives then out of guilt, I may not be able to focus on the interview and might fail.
As I am preparing for the Civil Services, so I should not only be preparing for the exam but should also aspire to have the traits of the public services. The traits should include empathy, compassion, kindness and sympathy. Also, as I am going for the interview, I must be being going before scheduled time. Thus, time should not be a big constraint.
Leaving the interview is not a colossal step. I have some answerability towards myself. If I will not be accountable towards myself, it’s less likely for me to become a responsible person for others.
Interview board for IAS is manned by rational and empathetic people. They might understand if any delay occurs.
Life is all about facing difficult situation with reason, presence of mind, while maintaining ethical standards. An IAS has to face such situation every now and then.

After taking into account of all the above factors, my course of action will be that I will definitely help those injured relatives. I will go to them and provide whatever immediate help they require. Then I will make a call to other relatives for further help. In the meantime, I will call taxi or auto or ambulance, whichever arrives first and take them to the hospital.

At the hospital, I will take them to the emergency room and remain with them till they are attended. In the meantime I will call UPSC and explain my circumstances and persuade them explaining the delay and to give me another date for interview. If I am satisfied that they are properly tended and would not require my further assistance, then I will take leave and proceed for my interview. However, if they require my further assistance, I will remain beside them and wait till my relatives arrives. If I am not able to go for the interview, then I will formally write to UPSC and would explain the circumstances and will request them to give me another date for the interview.

A man should always set his priorities right. Saving a life and showing compassion towards others should always come before any self interest.

Question : You are the head of the Human Resources department of an organisation. One day one of the workers died on duty. His family was demanding compensation. However, the company denied compensation because it was revealed in investigation that he was drunk at the time of the accident. The workers of the company went on to strike demanding compensation for the family of the deceased. The Chairman of the management board has asked for your recommendation.

What recommendation would you provide to the management?

Discuss the merits and demerits of each of the recommendation.

(2017)

Answer : The value of life cannot be calculated. Furthermore, fault of a single day drinking should not cost loss of compensation of whole life. It was no fault of family. Also, the family have lost the breadwinner of the family, so, why punish the family by denying compensation?

Another important aspect is that company and workers both are complementary to each other and company should be sensitive to their worker. Being HR of the company, I have obligations & duty to both the company & the workers. My recommendations in this situation are:

1.According to Empolyees Compensation Act, 1938, a man who is drunk is not eligible for compensation. But on humanitarian grounds, I will recommend giving full compensation and give an offer for the family of deceased. If company refuses then a trust fund could be setup where every worker and manager could contribute. I will recommend that if any eligible and interested member wants to join as worker, they can join.

Merits(a)It shows company’s sensitivity towards worker.

(b)It recognises workers’ long contribution and gives message to other workers that company is with them and sensitive to their difficult problems and situations.

Demerits(a)Workers may consider this as an impact of strike and in future they may further be influenced to conduct repeated strikes.

2.I will recommend calling immediate meeting of workers and management of the company. A formal channel of communication be established to ensure effective communication between workers and company. Further strict warning should be given against drinking during work and other forms of indiscipline.

Merits(a)Will create a communication between workers and company.

(b)Can prevent strikes in future.

(c)Will correct any indiscipline.

(d)Will also correct the demerit of perception created by earlier recommendation. Workers will understand that announced compensation was not out of fear of strike rather a sensitive decision of company. This will generate immense faith among workers.

Demerits:Presently no demerit is visible.

3.Recommend checking for alcohol and drugs consumptions during duty with breath analyzer for alcohol and drugs tests respectively.

Merit:Will prevent any such incident in future and loss of life and company’s working hour.

Demerit:Will increase the cost of operation of company on instrument and manpower to execute the recommendation.

Workers, labourers, managers, owner and company itself, all are stakeholders of the company. All depends on the efficiency of the company. They should be sensitive to each other for better future of company and themselves.

Question : You are the manager of a spare parts company ‘A’ and you have to negotiate a deal with the manager of a large manufacturing company ‘B’. The deal is highly competitive and sealing the deal is critical for your company. The deal is being worked out over a dinner. After dinner, the manager of manufacturing company ‘B’ offered to drop you to the hotel in his car. On the way to the hotel he happens to hit a motorcycle injuring the motorcyclist badly. You know the manager was driving fast and thus lost control. The law enforcement officer comes to investigate the issue and you are the sole eyewitness to it. Knowing the strict laws pertaining to road accidents you are aware that your honest account of the incident would lead to the prosecution of the manager and as a consequence the deal is likely to be jeopardized, which is of immense importance to your company. What are the dilemmas you face? What will be your response to the situation?

(2017)

Answer : Adoption of wrong means never brings ultimate right end. Wrong means can bring desired ends sometimes for a short time. But in long run the ultimate end result is never good, if means were not acceptable. This ethical lesson of life is relevant here. The dilemmas faced by me are

To save the manager by giving false statement or give true account and let manager suffer.
Dilemma between the obligation to my company A and obligation to law of the land & fellow citizen, the motorcyclist.
To take responsibility of jeopardizing the crucial deal or suffering guilty of giving false statement.

Every company and person works under the obligation of law of the land. And as I understand the concept of ’means’ and ‘ends’, I will give a true account of the incident.
It is very important for me to choose correct means. If I will give a false statement then many consequences might develop. Like the manager of B, company will consider me and my company as a compromising entity and may cancel the deal or may force me in future for compromising standards in spare parts and indulge in corruption.
Another consequence of false statement will be the continuous suffering of guilt and decline in my performance. Declining performance has potential to bring losses to the company even after securing the deal.
On the other hand giving true statement will give me the joy and confidence of being on the side of truth. As a responsible citizen of this country, it is my duty to follow the righteous path.
Being ethical is also being rational. So, I will consult the manager of company B and convince him of accepting his fault. If he accepts the fault then all the dilemma will be resolved.
But, if he doesn’t accept his fault in this incident. Then, can I expect honest commitment in business? Ultimately business with such person or company may attract huge losses in future. He may behave irresponsibly in business operations without admitting the mistake.
Hence, even if he denies his mistake and make false statements, I will firmly but with total politeness tell him that I will give true account of the accident. Maybe he will comprehend his actions as wrong and will realize the importance of an honest person and bona-fide company. So, deal may also be saved.

Question : A building permitted for three floors, while being extended illegally to 6 floors by a builder, collapses. As a consequence, a number of innocent labourers including women and children died. These labourers are migrants of different places. The government immediately announced cash relief to the aggrieved families and arrested the builder. Give reasons for such incidents taking place across the country. Suggest measures to prevent their occurrence.

(2017)

Answer : Giving cash relief cannot bring back any life or cannot even compensate for loss of life. This should always be kept in mind while analysing reasons for such incidents or giving measures to prevent their occurrence.

Reasons for such incidences are:

The most basic reason is greed for more profit. People flout the regulations and quality of standards to increase their profit.
Little sensitivity towards misfortune of others by loss of life or otherwise. People involved in construction are experienced in their jobs and very well understand the consequences but don’t care about others.
Corruption in regulatory bodies who turn a blind eye to such projects.
Lack of manpower in regulatory bodies specially in municipalities. Vigilance and regulation have become ineffective.
No clarity in law to fix objective accountability in different cases like breaking regulations or substandard building material.
Less awareness among labourers’ and local population about building norms and condition of approval.

Measures to prevent their occurrence:

Integrated comprehensive measures can only prevent such incidents.

The most important point is to fix objective accountability and responsibility in such cases. Many agencies pass the buck on owner of the project in cases of negligence. Like in flouting norms or using substandard material. Strict penal punishment should be there and such conditions of law should be displayed regularly in media, so that accountable person or agency himself becomes a bulwark against any irregularity.
Conditions of approval should be made mandatory to be displayed on clearly visible boards at building sites. Non-display should automatically attract fine and penalty. This will create automatic vigilance through aware citizenry and labourers.
Satellite monitoring of building construction with the digital feed of conditions of approval.
If accident happens and negligence is proved then heavy penalty should be imposed over builder along with cancellation of his building license.
The under-staff regulatory body should be properly staffed.

Cash compensation should be given but it cannot restore the damage due to loss of life. Intensive efforts should be done to prevent any such incident.

Question : You are a Public Information Officer (PIO) in a government department. You are aware that the RTI Act, 2005 envisages transparency and accountability in administration. The act has functioned as a check on the supposedly arbitrarily administrative behaviour and actions. However, as a PIO you have observed that there are citizens who filed RTI applications not for themselves but on behalf of such stakeholders who purportedly want to have access to information to further their own interests. At the same time, there are those RTI activists who routinely file RTI applications and attempt to extort money from the decision makers. This type of RTI activism has affected the functioning of the administration adversely and also possibly jeopardizes the genuineness of the applications which are essentially aimed at getting justice. What measures would you suggest to separate genuine and non-genuine applications? Give merits and demerits of your suggestions.

(2017)

Answer : Before giving suggestion, one aspect I must clarify that, RTI Act, 2005 was enacted to provide all the information to the public. Public is the actual owner of all the information in democracy. They should possess the knowledge except which can harm the owner. Such exceptions are already mentioned elaborately in Section 8 of RTI Act.

Further clarification is that among the exceptions, no such non-genuine applications are included. It is perfectly legal to ask information about others except the information should not be of personal-private in nature or of the nature of trade secret. Information belongs to the real owner - the public and it should be provided and should be kept in open domain. Keeping in mind the above arguments I will recommend:

Implementing proactive disclosure as mentioned in Section 4 of the RTI Act, 2005. Through this, all the information which can be given legally is proactively disclosed. So, there will be perfect transparency and no one will need to apply for any information. It will also correct any malpractice to which extortive RTIs are filled.
I will suggest identifying those applications which are filed for first time and not filed by the regular RTI filers. This is not to block the RTI activists but to prevent any delay in providing information to genuine RTI application.
Regarding non-genuine RTI application, I will not block any information or any application. RTI based extortion are happening not because RTI provides for extortion, rather it is mishandled by officials and the fear of disclosure makes extortion possible.

Being a PIO, I have a public duty and it is not to conceal any wrongdoing. Thus, I will suggest disclosing every information even if they are filed by non-genuine RTI applicant provided that information is not exempted under Section 8 of RTI Act 2005.

Question : A fresh engineering graduate gets a job in a prestigious chemical industry. She likes the work. The salary is also good. However, after a few months she accidentally discovers that a highly toxic waste is being secretly discharged into a river nearby. This is causing health problems to the villagers downstream who depend on the river for their water needs. She is perturbed and mentions her concern to her colleagues who have been with the company for longer periods. They advise her to keep quite as anyone who mentions the topic is summarily dismissed. She cannot risk losingher job as she is the sole bread-winner for her family and has to support her ailing parents and siblings. At first, she thinks that if her seniors are keeping quiet, why should she stick out her neck. But her conscience pricks her to do something to save the river and the people who depend upon it. At heart she feels that the advice of silence given by her frinds is not correct though she cannot give reasons for it. She thinks you are a wise person and seeks your advice.

(a) What arguments can you advance to show her that keeping quiet is not morally right?

(2017)

Answer : The above stated case study involves the dilemma between individual well-being and well being of society at large.

Here, the person is in dilemma to whether take the side of villager who depends on the river for their livelihood and getting affected due to pollution or to keep quiet and serve her job.

(a)Keeping quiet is not morally right because decision of giving a blind eye to the situation is not justifiable. She can get another job but thosewhose life is at stake may not be able to sustain it.

Further for the engineer it is just a matter of bread earning but for poor villagers, life is at risk.
It the pollution to the water body is continued, villagers will remain trapped in vicious cycle of poverty due to high medical expenditure and poor health status.
Also, there may be a possibility that company management is not aware about the incidence and her senior is lying to her to suppress the issue.
Thus, she should inform the management about the entire issue and must raise her voice. Keeping quiet for own wellbeing is a selfish act and immoral too. It will disturb the peace of mind in long run.

(b) What course of action would you advise her to adopt and why?

The course of action can be:

Collect data about type, amount and impact of water pollution.
Inform the management about the consequence of negligence and long term cost involve together with remedial measures.
Pursue company to install water purification plant immediately in the effected village.
Aware villagers about the water pollution and involve local NGOs in remedial action.
If company denies their responsibility, file a complaint to the government authority and assist in entire investigation procedure.

Every individual bears a responsibility towards his/her society. Here, life of the village personnel are at stake and it cannot be ignored in any circumstances.

Question : Land needed for mining, dams and other large-scale projects is acquired mostly from Adivasis, hill dwellers and rural communities. The displaced persons are paid monetary compensation as per the legal provisions. However, the payment is often tardy. In any case, it cannot sustain the displaced families for long. These people do not possess marketable skills to engage in some other occupation. They end up as low paid migrant laborers. Moreover, their traditional ways of community living are destroyed. Thus, the benefits of development go to industries, industrialists and urban communities whereas the costs are passed on to these poor helpless people. This unjust distribution of costs and benefits is unethical. Suppose you have been entrusted with the task of drafting a better compensation-cum-rehabilitation policy for such displaced persons, how would you approach the problem and what would be the main elements of your suggested policy?

(2016)

Answer : Tribal people, hill dwellers and rural community solely depends on forest for their livelihood. Also, the entire social structures of these people are so interrelated that they cannot sustain their life in isolated patches. Further, these communities are mostly unaware about the complexities of monetary market.

Thus any compensation cum rehabilitation policy should consider these issued comprehensively. In this scenario, the compensation cum rehabilitation policy should inculcate:

Keeping in mind the Samtha judgment of Supreme Court, government should establish tribal co-operative. It will mate the concerned villagers a stakeholder in the development project.
Any compensation policy should consider short term cost and long term arrangement of livelihood. It must include:

Proper monetary compensation for shifting their house including cost of land and other.
Ensure employment of people by providing job in project and mandatory training and skill development programme to ensure their vertical mobility. They should not be remain a laborer.
Training programme should be arranged for women in handicraft and other activities to ensure their positive participation in household income generation.
Monthly pension to the vulnerable sections like destitute women, disabled, old age person etc.

Rehabilitation policy should include:

It should be on productive land nearby urban area. Also people should not be rehabilitated on isolated patches of land.
Proper amenities facilities should be made available and government should ensure the long term maintenance.
Hospital, schools, market, transportation facilitative should be adequate.
Security arrangement should be appropriate to ensure well being of women and children.

All these efforts should be ensured before rehabilitation. It will bring them in mainstream of development and eliminate the fear of exclusion. Also the goal of inclusive development will be ensured.

Question : Suppose you are an officer in-charge of implementing a social service scheme to provide support to old and destitute women. An old and illiterate woman comes to you to avail the benefits of the scheme. However, she has no documents to show that she fulfils the eligibility criteria. But after meeting her and listening to her you feel that she certainly needs support. Your enquiries also show that she is really destitute and living in a pitiable condition. You are in a dilemma as to what to do. Putting her under the scheme without necessary documents would clearly be violation of rules. But denying her the support would be cruel and inhuman.

(a) Can you think of a rational way to resolve this dilemma?

(b) Give your reasons for it.

(2016)

Answer : (a) Public servants are provided with the responsibility and authority to serve the society at large. During the job sometimes he faces dilemma between rules, act, regulations and larger goal of inclusion.

a.Here, I am office in charge of implementing a social service scheme, and it is My duty to benefit every citizen within norm.

The old women lacks any document needed to avail the benefit but during inquiry it has been established that she is really destitute and living in a pitiable condition.

The way to resolve this dilemma includes:

Allow the benefits of scheme for a limited time period to her. And I will ask her to submit any possible document of identity within limited time period.
I will ask her to get a declaration from his panchayat head (Mukhiya) about his identityand residence. It will act as a proof.
to avoid such situation in future, I will intensify the beneficiaries identification programme. Together, awareness programme about getting Aadhar card will be initiated.

(b) The motive of any government schools includes provider relief to the deprived section. Also, the ultimate motive lies in inclusion and not exclusion.

It has been proved by the enquiry that the old women are really destitute and living in a pitiable condition. Thus, the public servant needs to focus on getting a way to benefit them. Complex official procedure and non-availability of required documents should not be a hurdle.
Also, allowing benefits for a limited time period will encourage her to get the documents and increase her confidence in public servants.

Question : You are a young, aspiring and sincere employee in a Government office working as an assistant to the director of your department. Since you have joined recently, you need to learn and progress. Luckily your superior is very kind and ready to train you for your job. He is a very intelligent and well-informed person having knowledge of various departments. In short, you respect your boss and are looking forward to learn a lot from him.

Since you have good tuning with the boss, he started depending on you. One day due to ill health he invited you at his place for finishing some urgent work. You reached his house and before you could ring the bell you heard shouting noises. You waited for a while. After entering the house the boss greeted you and explained the work. But you were constantly disturbed by the crying of a woman. At last, you inquired with the boss but his answer did not satisfy you.

Next day, you were compelled to inquire further in the office and found out that his behaviour is very bad at home with his wife. He also beats up his wife. His wife is not well educated and is a simple woman in comparison to her husband. You see that though your boss is a nice person in the office, he is engaged in domestic violence at home. In such a situation, you are left with the following options. Analyse each option with its consequences.

(a) Just ignore thinking about it because it is their personal matter.

(b) Repost the case to the appropriate authority.

(c) Your own innovative approach towards situation.

(2016)

Answer : The above case study is related to the incidence of domestic violence. Here a public servant is involved in such heinous act, who is supposed to be moral and ethical in his conduct.

(a) Just ignore thinking about it because it is their personal matters.

Positive: Personal relations with the officers will not be jeopardized. Also, productivity at the workplace will remain high and unimpacted.

Negative: Ignoring incidences of domestic violence is immoral and unethical. Also, domestic violence is a crime and this it should be reported to the police.

(b) Positive:

It shows the commitments to help the individual in need. Also there is a possibility that the senior will change his attitude and done away with his act in future.

Negative:

Deteriorating relationships at workplace.
Interference in personal sphere
Reporting without proper evidence may not be fruitful.

(c) My initiative:

Here, the victim is in pain and she is unable to make a complain about her husbands. Thus, my initiative includes:

Raise the issue with the senior during informal takes and persuade him to be humane in his act.
1. Also. I will make him aware about the consequences if somebody initiates a legal procedure.
I will ask the support of employee of offices especially female. It will pressurize him to reform the conduct.
I will ask female employee for informal visit at regular interval to ensure well being of his wife.
If the officer remains unchanged together with other employee, I will ask his wife to make a formal complain to the authority.

Question : ABC Ltd. is a large transnational company having diversified business activities with a huge shareholder base. The company is continuously expanding and generating employment. The company, in its expansion and diversification programme, decides to establish a new plant at Vikaspuri, an area which is underdeveloped. The new plant is designed to use energy efficient technology that will help the company to save production cost by 20%. The company’s decision goes well with the Government policy of attracting investment to develop such underdeveloped regions. The government has also announced tax holiday for five years for the companies that invest in underdeveloped areas. However, the new plant may bring chaos for the inhabitants of Vikaspuri region, which is otherwise tranquil. The new plant may result in increased cost of living, aliens migrating to the region, disturbing the social and economic order. The company sensing the possible protest tried to educate the people of Vikaspuri region and public in general that how its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policy would help overcome the likely difficulties of the residents of Vikaspuri region. In spite of this the protests begin and some of the residents decided to approach the judiciary as their plea before the Government did not yield any result.

(a) Identify the issues involved in the case.

(b) What can be suggested to satisfy the company’s goal and to address the residents’ concerns?

(2016)

Answer : Any particular investment initiative should consider the local atmosphere and it must reflect the social responsibility. In this case study, issues involved are:

Fear of social chaos among locals due to migration of people from diversified regions and different cultures.
Lack of trust between people and company over intention of goals of the company.
Increased living cost may deteriorate the condition of locals.
Precedence of misuse and diversion of CSR fund by other company.
Locals are not involved in decision making process like how CSR will be utilized.

(b) Continued protest and approach to Judiciary will delay and ruin the investment process. It will cost more to the company. In such scenario, company should try to convince and aware people about the benefits of the project. It can be done by following ways:

A properly defined with clear aims and objective CSR policy should be published by the company. It will eliminate the fear of diversion or misuse of CSR fund from the mind of the local people.
Establishment of schools, hospitals, transportation facility, power and proper water and sewage line should be in priority list of the company.
Provision of training and skill development of local people to encourage their vertical social mobility. Also, it should be ensured by the company that local will not remain manual laborer in the project in long run.
Committee of local people can be established to ensure transparency and accountability in functioning of CSR fund.

Thus, to ensure proper implementation of the project, company should try to focus on capacity building of locals and integrity them in decision nastily process.

Question : Saraswati was a successful IT professional in USA. Moved by the patriotic sense of doing something for the country she returned to India. Together with some other like-minded friends, she formed an NGO to build a school for a poor rural community.

The objective of the school was to provide the best quality modern education at a nominal cost. She soon discovered that she has to seek permission from a number of Government agencies. The rules and procedures were quite confusing and cumbersome. What frustrated her most was delays, callous attitude of officials and constant demand for bribes. Her experience and the experience of many others like her has deterred people from taking up social service projects.

A measure of Government control over voluntary social work is necessary. But it should not be exercised in a coercive or corrupt manner. What measures can you suggest to ensure that due control is exercised but well meaning, honest NGO efforts are not thwarted?

(2016)

Answer : Recently, various NGOs has been found involved in malpractices and it has resulted in increased scrutinization from the government sides. But on the other hand, NGOs has also filled up the gap in various policy implementations. Thus there is a need of enabling environment for well-intention NGOs and adequate safeguards for those who tries to derail the development process. It includes following measures:

Single window clearance mechanism with time bound approval process to prevent delay and harassment.
Self-certification wherever possible.
Clear objectives, work areas and organizational structure should be provided at the time of registration.
Funding above a threshold should be in cashless form like cheques, online transactions etc. Together with it, NGOs should be transparent in its funding pattern. It will prevent harassment from government official.
Disclosure of all foreign funding.
Provision of third party Audit to differentiate between genuine efforts from malpractices.

All above mentioned steps will ensure an enabling environment for NGOs and personal like Saraswati will get proper opportunity to serve her nation.

Question : A private company is known for its efficiency, transparency and employee welfare. The company though owned by a private individual has a cooperative character where employees feel a sense of ownership. The company employs nearly 700 personnel and they have voluntarily decided not to form union. One day suddenly in the morning, about 40 men belonging to political party gatecrashed into the factory demanding jobs in the factory. They threatened the management and employees, and also used foul language. The employees feel demoralized. It was clear that those people who gatecrashed wanted to be on the payroll of the company as well as continue as the volunteers / members of the party. The company maintains high standards in integrity and does not extend favours to civil administration that also includes law enforcement agency. Such incidents occur in public sector also.

a. Assume you are the CEO of the company. What would you do to diffuse the volatile situation on the date of gatecrashing with the violent mob sitting inside the company premises?

b. What can be the long-term solution to the issue discussed in the case?

c.Every solution / action that you suggest will have a negative and a positive impact on you (as CEO), the employees and the performance of the employees. Analyze the consequences of each of your suggested actions.

(2015)

Answer : a. The situation is that these men have forcibly entered the company’s premises and demanded jobs and also threatened management along with using foul language. To diffuse such a grave situation, first of all, I will immediately call up the police and register complaint and request them to drive these men out of the company as soon as possible, as the way they have adopted to seek jobs is illegal and undemocratic. Secondly, the security of the company would be immediately strengthened. Through these actions, the morale of the employees will get a boost and they can get back to their work.

b. The long-term solution to this problem can be approached by analyzing the situation and adopting multi-pronged strategy. Being CEO of the company, it’s my prime duty to restore work culture to normalcy and boost the morale of already frightened employees of the company. The situation is such that this group of 40 men is violent and may not be inclined towards talks, and also this group seems to enjoy political patronage as they belong to a political party.

In addition to this, company’s image is also at stake, because these men have forcibly entered into the company premises by breaching the security arrangements, so this also signals considerable security lapse and sends a negative message in the market about the inefficiency of the company in protecting its assets both physical and human. Further, as the company has a cooperative character and the 700 odd employees have voluntarily decided not to form the union, this asserts their loyalty towards the company and its management and trust as far as their protection of rights and welfares are concerned. So, protection of the interests of the existing employees also falls on the company’s shoulders.Even if the company does not extend favor to the civil administration including the law enforcement agencies, it is the responsibility of these authorities to help company deal with such a grave situation and to protect the life and property of the people. It is a part of their duty and professional ethics. This means that long term solution to this problem has to be reached from the company’s end with involvement of local administration.
After having understood the situation in its length and breadth, its long term solution can be approached from two sides: the company side and the government side.
From the companies side, I being a CEO, will strengthen all the security measures to avoid such embarrassing situation at first instance in future, management needs to factor in the employees interest at every stage of decision making, so that their loyalty and trust remains intact and the cooperative character of the company is retained. Secondly, I will also apprise the concerned political party about the behavior of their affiliates. I believe, concerned political party will also take action against her affiliates and may direct them to act thically and democratically. The government also has a major role to play here; it should urgently take cognizance of the situation as it is frequent in public sector as well. The government should take necessary steps ranging from creating more employment to strict labour rules, so that such corrupt practices as prevalent in the public sector can be checked and therefore do not spread to private sector. Therefore right ambience for work can be created to foster socio-economic development of the country.

c. Suggested Actions and their Consequences

i.Call police and register a complaint against these men and requests them to drive these men out and do not concede to their demand (or do not accept their demand).

Consequence: The positive side of this action will be that you as a CEO will get established in the organization and get more recognition. The employees will feels protected as you have, by not accepting the demand, sent a strong message that ethical principles are still the guiding spirit of the functioning of this organization and there will be no compromise on this front. And this organization is strong enough to safeguard the interests of self as well as its employees. This will encourage workers to work whole heartedly for the organization which will definitely increase their performance.
Whereas the fallout of this action could be, these men can inflict violence unto you or the employees for not bending to their demands. Thus directly risking yours’ as well as the employee’s life.

ii.Accept their demand.

Consequence: By accepting their demand, you, as a CEO, may immediately succeed in addressing the situation, but in the longer term, you will find yourself in troubles as now you have shown your soft stand towards such tough situation and there is every possibility that in future these demands may keep popping up. So by accepting the demand you have set a bad precedent. Secondly the employees will find it inconvenient to work with such miscreants who can go up to any extent to get their work done.

Question : You are the Sarpanch of a Panchayat. There is a primary school run by the government in your area. Mid-day meals are provided to children attending the school. The headmaster has now appointed a new cook in the school to prepare the meals. However, when it is found that cook is from Dalit community, almost half of the children belonging to higher castes are not allowed to take meals by their parents. Consequently the attendance in the school falls sharply. This could result in the possibility of discontinuation of mid-day meal scheme, thereafter of teaching staff and subsequent closing down the school.

a. Discuss some feasible strategies to overcome the conflict and to create right ambience.

b. What should be the responsibility of different social segments and agencies to create positive social ambience for accepting such changes?

(2015)

Answer : (a) Considering such a socio-religious beliefs prevalent in the society, following strategy to overcome the conflict can be considered on two fronts viz. moral and legal. First of all, immediate instruction should be given to all those who are boycotting the dalit cook, that the legal action will be initiated amongst them, if they continue with their protest. Police may be asked to take legal action against them. Such as invoking provisions under the SC/ST (prevention of atrocities) Act, and in fact, these people are going against the provisions of the Constitution by abrogating dalit cook’s fundamental right of equality. Therefore judicial intervention can be sought in this matter.

Secondly, the district administration should issue notices that those students withdrawing from the school on this pretext will not be given admission in any school, and also strict disciplinary action will be initiated against the teaching staff thinking to discontinue for the same reason. Such a firm handed response is warranted under this pathetic situation.
Thirdly, the issue requires official intervention as well. That is the district level officers as well the state level officers along with me (Sarpanch) and the Headmaster must try to convince the parents, who are actually persuading their children not to have a meal cooked by a dalit. Apart from these actions, it is also necessary to upkeep purpose of this scheme i.e. securing social equity besides raising nutritional standards of the children. This can be done by spreading awareness regarding the provisions and purpose of the scheme and establishing it as the government’s noble intention of raising the standards of its people.
On ethics and morality front, the issue reflects deeply ingrained belief that certain castes are polluting thus inherently promoting inequality and inhumanity as well. It is required to change this attitude of the people, as this practice is socially acceptable and pertains to socio-religious norms.
So, changing this attitude is not going to be an easy task. It would require sustained long-term concerted efforts that will encompass all the sections of the society. This may involve developing compassion along with discussions, debates and deliberations on the teaching of the social reformers of India, who advocated equality of men and considered untouchability and discrimination as the greatest sin. One such reformer was Gandhiji, who extensively worked for the equality of untouchables throughout his life. When such great thoughts are already present in the society, what we are supposed to do is, just reignite discussions on these views, let people know what great personalities think on such social practices, with these steps, surely sooner or later attitudes will tend to change.
Thus legal action will work to resolve crisis immediately and the moral attitudinal change will do good in the longer term. Both these initiatives will contribute to create a right ambience so that this blot is permanently eroded from the fabric of the society.

(b) Various social segments can be clubbed under two heads viz. administrative and government and civil society. Under the administrative and government head comes the village polity including Sarpanch, and the district administration. These together, as well as independently, through their own way should convince the parents in particular and society in large, so that these problems do not surface in the first instance. It is not only their moral responsibility, but in fact it is their duty to enforce the provisions of the Constitution of India that explicitly calls to promote equality and fraternity. Secondly, even if after their concerted efforts to root out this social evil of discrimination, it is practiced then it shall be their responsibility to bring the perpetrators to the book, so that justice can be ensured.

Under the category of the civil society comes the school administration including the principal and the teaching staff, children and their parents and the socio-religious leaders who often act as the upkeepers of the societal norms. The school administration should abide by its decision, as this temple of learning is supposed to bridge man-made differences by inculcating reasoning habit through value based education in their students. It is the prime responsibility of the parents to inculcate best values in their child. Because, it is the family that teaches first lesson to any child. The values adhered to in the family serves as the guiding spirit to the action of any child.
Lastly, the socio-religious leaders, who are assumed to be entrusted with the responsibility of codifying and sanctifying societal norms, have a role to play too. They should promote the feeling of equality, humanity, compassion. As they often command special respect in the society, they owe special responsibility too. They can organize inter-caste dine, inter-caste marriages, and other societal functions that can promote social cohesiveness and repair the cracks developed in the heart. All these concerted efforts will one day definitely bring change to create a positive social ambience.

Question : There is a disaster prone state having frequent landslides, forest fires, cloudbursts, flash floods and earthquakes, etc. Some of these are seasonal and often unpredictable. The magnitude of the disaster is always unanticipated. During one of the seasons a cloudburst caused a devastating floods and landslides leading to high casualties. There was major damage to infrastructure like roads, bridges and power generating units. This led to more than 100000 pilgrims, tourists and other locals trapped across different routes and locations. The people trapped in your area of responsibility includes senior citizens, patients in hospitals, women and children, hikers, tourists, ruling party’s, regional president along with his family, additional chief secretary of the neighboring state and prisoners in jail.

(2015)

Answer : As a civil services officer of the state, what would be the order in which you would rescue these people and why? Give justifications.

Suggested order is: patients, senior citizens, women and children, ruling party’s regional president along with his family, additional chief secretary of the neighboring state, prisoners in jail, tourists and hiker.

Patients will be rescued first as because of flood all the medical facilities might have been came to a halt thus endangering their lives. Second comes senior citizens, who are dependent on others for help and as they may not be competent enough to help themselves. Women and Children come next, as they become most vulnerable under such unfavorable situations and may be subject to exploitation. Because regional presidents are staying with their family so they should be given next preference in the order of rescue. Ruling parties need to be rescued for availing required reinforcements and all the necessary help. Additional chief secretary is a state guest, so he/she need to be rescued now. Prisoners in jail are the responsibility of the state and leaving them may create a law and order problem so they need to be rescued now. Tourists are the sponsoring states’ responsibility, so now comes their turn to be rescued. Hikers, are supposed to be the most fit persons, so they can help themselves as well as others, therefore they can be preferred last in order of rescue.

Question : 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 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 for the local Panchayat at a nominal cost and the papers showed that clearance certificates are available for 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 the order as stated on file. When you visit Rampur, you find that the plot under reference is a 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 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.

a. List the likely vested interest of the concerned parties.

b. Some of the options available to you are listed below. Discuss the merits and demerits of each of the options:

(2015)

Answer : (a) Sarpanch is the main party. His interest lies in the land at the heritage site. Also, it appears that he has deliberately chosen land away from the village so that prices of intervening land between school site and village shot up. This is because more and more families would want to purchase a land nearby school. Therefore the prices of intervening land will increase as a result of increased demand of a piece of land to build home for convenience of children and family. Another identifiable vested interest is, being part of the heritage site this land will be of higher value and thus after construction of school may fetch even more price. Another concerned party appears to be the predecessor. As is highlighted in the case, the predecessor has intentionally approved this acquisition, otherwise illegal. So this person might have been promised his share or already bribed.

(b)

1. You can await the visit of the superior officer and let him take a decision.

Merit: Your action will get authenticity by your senior. Also the expertise and experience of your senior will help you in taking appropriate action.
Demerit: It will take some time and in fact your senior may have his share as well. So, your senior may turn a blind eye and in fact he may persuade or lure you as well to become partner in this illegal deal.

2. You can seek his advice in writing or on phone

Merit: It will be an expeditious way to deal with this situation.
Demerit: Senior may not have the view of real picture and thus the tendered advice may be inappropriate.

3. You can consult your predecessor/ colleagues, etc, and then decide what to do.

Merit: You may get the real idea about the deal. It will help you in taking the appropriate action.
Demerit: Predecessor (if he/she happens to be the person who gave permission for land acquisition) may try to lure you and in fact may threaten you of dire consequences, in case you took unfavorable action.

4. You can find out if any alternate plot can be got in exchange and then send a comprehensive written report.

Merit: It will save the heritage site.
Demerit: Searching for alternate plot may be a time consuming task and building of school for children may be an immediate demand.

Can you suggest any other option with proper justifications?

5. Cancel the acquisition of plot and recommend for the commissioning of inquiry against irregularities

Merit: Thakurgarh fort, a hertiage site will be saved, irregularities will be investigated and the guilty would be brought to the book.
Demerit: Students may have to face inconvenience for going to school which may be farther as compared to the proposed school to be built on stipulated site.

Question : You are recently posted as district development officer of a district. Shortly thereafter you found that there is considerable tension in the rural areas of your district on the issue of sending girls to schools. The elders of the village feel that many problems have come up because girls are being educated and they are stepping out of the safe environment of the household. They are the view that the girls should be quickly married off with minimum education. The girls are also competing for jobs after education, which have traditionally remained in boys’ exclusive domain, adding to unemployment amongst male population. The younger generation feels that in the present era, girls should have equal opportunities for education and employment, and other means of livelihood. The entire locality is divided between sexes in both generations. You come to know that in Panchayat or in other local bodies or even in busy crossroads, the issue is being acrimoniously debated. One day you are informed that an unpleasant incident has taken place. Some girls were molested, when they were en route to schools. The incident led to clashes between several groups and a law and order problem has arisen. The elders after heated discussion have taken a joint decision not to allow girls to go to school and to socially boycott all such families, which do not follow their dictate.

a. What steps would you take to ensure girls’ safety without disrupting their education?

b. How would you manage and mould patriarchic attitude of the village elders to ensure harmony in the inter-generational relations?

(2015)

Answer : Suggested action would be to immediately request the police to takeaction against the molesters and provide complete police security throughout entire route to school. Secondly, parents may be asked to form groups of girl child who will be accompanied to school under the supervision of any one parent. This will restore confidence amongst the girl child as well as their parents.

Considering the rigid socio-cultural scenario, a legal action would be appropriate and warranted here, that is a warning to initiate legal action, can be issued to all those village-men who have decided not to allow their daughters to go to school. This can be done as they are infringing on the girls’ fundamental right to education and also promoting discrimination, which is strictly prohibited under the provisions of the Constitution of India.

The suggested approach can be adoption of both the persuasive as well as coercive measures to change the patriarchic mindset. Under the persuasive measures elderly and the young should both become receptive and attentive to the thoughts of each other. Both these sections must exhibit respect towards the feeling of each other. There should not be any assumptions and judgments at either’s disposal as these acts as constraints and do not contribute to positive attitude change. With these conditions both these sections must engage in dialogues and the young generation should try to convince the elderly. This can be done by explaining that educated girls do not take away employment but the real cause of unemployment is something different, it may be economic slowdown or inappropriate government policies. Also, they can be explained about how gender equity can contribute to overall socio-economic development. Here the government also plays a role of being a proactive facilitator for this attitude change through consistent policy intervention such as “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” schemes etc. These concerted efforts will bring gradual transformation in the attitude and therefore will create an environment free from gender prejudices.

Question : Now-a-days, there is an increasing thrust on economic development all around the globe. At the same time, there is also an increasing concern about environmental degradation caused by development. Many a time, we face a direct conflict between developmental activity and environmental quality. It is neither feasible to stop or curtail the development process, nor it is advisable to keep degrading the environment, as it threatens our very survival. Discuss some feasible strategies which could be adopted to eliminate this conflict and which could lead to sustainable development.

(2014)

Answer : Development over the past thirty years has been unprecedented. Life expectancy in developing countries has risen by more than 20 years; infant mortality rates have been halved and primary school enrolment rates have doubled.

Food production and consumption have increased around 20% faster than population growth. The pace of improvements in income levels, as well as in health and education, has exceeded that in industrialised countries. Notwithstanding this remarkable progress, there remain many complex and urgent challenges for sustainable development. These challenges must be faced by local, national and global institutional systems.

Following are the some strategies:

Decentralisation can foster development policies and strategies suited to local social, economic and environmental conditions. It can potentially promote good governance structures which are responsive to citizens ‘demands and that allow the downsizing and streamlining of central government institutions.
The need for structural changes -Achieving sustainable development will require deep structural changes and new ways of working in all areas of economic, social and political life. This will include promoting pro-poor economic growth and reforming fiscal policies which negatively affect the poor or promote environmental damage.
Facilitating participation and co-operation of local people, civil society non-government organizations for sustainable development especially in Environment Impact Assessment.
Mobilising technical inputs in promoting the green growth. Using the relevant institutions and expertise in the field of green technology for various purposes.

Question : Suppose one of your close friends, who is also aspiring for civil services, comes to you for discussing some of the issues related to ethical conduct in public service. He raises the following points:

i. In the present times, when unethical environment is quite prevalent, individual attempts to stick to ethical principles may cause a lot of problems in one’s career. It may also cause hardship to the family members as well as risk to one’s life. Why should we not be pragmatic and follow the path of least resistance, and be happy with doing whatever good we can?

ii. When so many people are adopting wrong means and are grossly harming the system, what difference would it make if only a small minority tries to be ethical? They are going to be rather ineffective and are bound to get frustrated.

iii. If we become fussy about ethical considerations, will it not hamper the economic progress of our country? After all, in the present age of high competition, we cannot afford to be left behind in the race of development.

iv. It is understandable that we should not get involved in grossly unethical practices, but giving and accepting small gratifications and doing small favors increases everybody’s motivation. It also makes the system more efficient. What is wrong in adopting such practices?

Critically analyze the above viewpoints. On the basis of this analysis, what will be your advice to your friend?

(2014)

Answer : i.This view point represents the traditional thinking that one should swim with the flow of water and does not believe in firm strength of ethical behaviour. Caving into short-term desires is taking the path of least resistance. Having the mental toughness to say no is harder, but will give a person an eternal happiness. This requires strength.Unethical environment cannot discourage the ethical person because ethics is all about a person’s character. Hence a person should stand by ethical conduct in unethical environment.

ii.Since individual is the basic unit of every system like organization, society one should not compromise with his/her ethical values in any circumstances.Every reforms or change in society was initiated by the small minority of people like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Vivekananda, Mahatma Gandhi, etc. In this context contribution of every individual is very valuable and even an individual can bring the larger change.

iii.In the country of Mahatma Gandhi ends cannot justify the means adopted by the state for the process of development. Unethical behavior is harmful for the economic development of the country this can be understand by the example of black money which has created a parallel economy in our country and it is affecting the overall development of the country. Gandhiji advocated that means are as important as the end. In this context unethical means cannot be adopted for the development. Sustainable development can only be achieved by adopting the sustainable methods like grass root level development, peoples participation, environment conservation etc.

iv.This view point argues that if society is incapable of effectively preventing unethical conduct, for whatever reason, we might as well stop regarding that conduct as wrong. It encourages moral cowardice and ethics complacency.

Civil servants have special obligations because they are responsible for managing resources entrusted to them by the community, because they provide and deliver services to the community and because they take important decisions that affect all aspects of a community’s life. In this unethical behavior on the part of civil servants is not advisable/accepted.

Question : You are a no-nonsense, honest officer. You have been transferred to a remote district to head a department that is notorious for its inefficiency and callousness. You find that the main cause of the poor state of affairs is the indiscipline of a section of employees. They do not work themselves and also disrupt the working of others. You first warned the troublemakers to mend their ways or else face disciplinary action. When the warning had little effect, you issued a show cause notice to the ringleaders. As a retaliatory measure, these troublemakers instigated a woman employee amongst them to file a complaint of sexual harassment against you with the Women’s Commission. The Commission promptly seeks your explanation. The matter is also publicized in the media to embarrass you further. Some of the options to handle this situation could be as follows:

i. Give your explanation to the Commission and go soft on the disciplinary action.

ii. Ignore the Commission and proceed firmly with the disciplinary action.

iii. Brief your higher-ups seek directions from them and act accordingly.

Suggest any other possible option(s). Evaluate all of them and suggest the best course of action, giving your reasons for it.

(2014)

Answer : i.By giving an explanation to the commission you will be able to provide the true nature of story. But softening your stance on disciplinary action may send a wrong signal about for commitment.

ii. Ignoring the Commission is not a good idea; every civil servant must respect the authority of legal institutions. It may create a problem to you if further highlighted by media. Firm disciplinary action will sent a strong signal to every employee that you will not going to tolerate any such indiscipline.

iii. Briefing your higher-ups and seeking directions from them will help you in handling the situation more carefully. It will also bring matter to knowledge of you higher-up.

Best course of action will be that first you explain the whole matter to women commission and proceed firmly with disciplinary action against the indiscipline employees.

Question : Suppose you are the CEO of a company that manufactures specialized electronic equipment used by a government department. You have submitted your bid for the supply of this equipment to the department. Both the quality and cost of your offer are better than those of the competitors. Yet the concerned officer is demanding a hefty bribe for approving the tender. Getting the order is important both for you and for your company. Not getting the order would mean closing a production line. It may also affect your own career. However, as a value-conscious person, you do not want to give bribe. Valid arguments can be advanced both for giving the bribe and getting the order, and for refusing to pay the bribe and risking the loss of the order. What those arguments could be? Could there be any better way to get out of this dilemma? If so outline the main elements of this third way, pointing out its merits.

(2014)

Answer : It represents an ethical dilemma faced by the CEO. As a head of organization it is his prime responsibility to have good number of orders to run the company.

i.The argument in favour of bribe could be that it will help the company to get the order and do business and ultimately survive in competitive environment. Consequently it will provide economic security to the families of employees.

ii.Argument against the bribe is based on the fact that ethical and value-conscious person should not indulge in corrupt practices and must stick to his principles and values. In the short term it may provide a relief to the company but in long run it may set wrong precedent.

The best way to deal with the situation would be that you should not give bribe and you should ring the bell about such activities. It will help in changing the environment of such government offices. You should also have faith in your abilities and must work hard to get another order on the basis of quality and standard of your products. You must also address the employee and boost their confidence so that they also work hard in this situation.

Question : Rameshwar successfully cleared the prestigious civil services examination and was excited about the opportunity that he would get through the civil services to serve the country. However, soon after joining the services, he realized that things are not as rosy as he had imagined. He found a number of malpractices prevailing in the department assigned to him. For example, funds under various schemes and grants were being misappropriated. The official facilities were frequently being used for personal needs by the officers and staff. After some time, he noticed that the process of recruiting the staff was also not up to the mark. Prospective candidates were required to write an examination in which a lot of cheating was going on. Some candidates were provided external help in the examination. Rameshwar brought these incidents to the notice of his seniors. However, he was advised to keep his eyes, ears and mouth shut and ignores all these things which were taking place with the connivance of the higher-ups. Rameshwar felt highly disillusioned and uncomfortable. He comes to you seeking your advice. Indicate various options that you think are available in this situation. How would you help him to evaluate these options and choose the most appropriate path to be adopted?

(2014)

As a man of conscience Rameshwar should uphold his ethical and moral values. Corruption is serious problem in government offices. In this context he must complain about the prevalent malpractices. Anti-corruption wing of the department may make an inquiry. One of the major issues in this is that he may become enemy of the people involved in such practices.
Other option available to him is that he can apply for his transfer and bring out himself from such an environment. In this way he may get some mental relief. But as a civil servant he must work for the betterment of his work culture and should not turn his back when there such a situation exists.
Rameshwar can report cheating in examination to the police because such incidents are criminal offence. It is also the duty of every civil servant to work for establishing the highest standards of integrity and honesty. Police action may deter such employees to not to involve in such types of activities.

Most appropriate path to be adopted would be that Rameshwar should make a complain to anti-corruption wing. He may also collect some evidence related to the cheating in exam and can hand over to the police. He should never bow down to pressure from higher-up and must listen to his conscience and the purpose with which he has joined the civil services.

Question : In our country, the migration of rural people to towns and cities is increasing drastically. This is causing serious problems both in the rural as well as in the urban areas. In fact, things are becoming really unmanageable. Can you analyze this problem in detail and indicate not only the socio-economic but also the emotional and attitudinal factors responsible for this problem? Also, distinctly bring out why— i. Educated rural youth are trying to shift to urban areas;

ii. Landless poor people are migrating to urban slums;

iii. Even some farmers are selling off their land and trying to settle in urban areas taking up petty jobs.

What feasible steps can you suggest which will be effective in controlling this serious problem of our country?

(2014)

Answer : In our country, the migration of rural people to towns and cities is increasing drastically. This is causing serious problems both in the rural as well as in the urban areas. In fact, things are becoming really unmanageable. Can you analyze this problem in detail and indicate not only the socio-economic but also the emotional and attitudinal factors responsible for this problem? Also, distinctly bring out why—

Educated rural youth are trying to shift to urban areas;
Landless poor people are migrating to urban slums;
Even some farmers are selling off their land and trying to settle in urban areas taking up petty jobs.

What feasible steps can you suggest which will be effective in controlling this serious problem of our country?

Question : A Public Information Officer has received an application under RTI Act. Having gathered the information, the PIO discovers that the information pertains to some of the decisions taken by him, which were found to be not altogether right. There were other employees also who party to these decisions was. Disclosure of the information is likely to lead to disciplinary action with possibility of punishment against him as well as some of his colleagues. Non-disclosure or part disclosure or camouflaged disclosure of information will result into lesser punishment or no punishment.

The PIO is otherwise an honest and conscientious person but this particular decision, on which the RTI application has been filed, turned out to be wrong. He comes to you for advice.

The following are some suggested options. Please evaluate the merits and demerits of each of the options:

(2013)

Answer : The options are:

1.The PIO could refer the matter to his superior officer and seek his advice and act strictly in accordance with the advice, even though he is not completely in agreement with the advice of the superior.

According to the service rules, every Government servant shall at all times have to maintain absolute integrity; maintain devotion to duty; and do nothing which is unbecoming of a Government servant. Further it is important to disclose the matter to the seniors. Thus the above option is correct. He should disclose the matter to the senior and seek his advice and act according to it.

2.The PIO could proceed on leave and leave the matter to be dealt by his successor in office or request for transfer of the application to another PIO.

This is an incorrect and inappropriate way of handling the situation. The person can’t run from the problems. This will show his inefficiency and will be against his principles also.
Further transferring the matter may be a correct option as this will help in transparent handling of the case and principle of natural justice will be followed.

3.The PIO could weigh the consequences of disclosing the information truthfully, including the effect on his career, and reply in a manner that would not place him or his career in jeopardy, but at the same time a little compromise can be made on the contents of the information.

The PIO can reply in a manner that would not place him or his career in jeopardy but he can’t compromise with the contents of the matter. Doing this will be a serious crime, as official documents cannot be tampered.
He can reply the letter by seeking the advice of the senior without compromising his honesty.

4.The PIO could consult his other colleagues who are party to the decision and take action as per their advice.

As the official decision had been taken by a group of members, thus consulting them before taking any step is very just. Thus PIO could consult his other colleagues who are party to the decision.
But the decision may or may not be as per the office norms.
Also please indicate (without necessarily restricting to the above options) what you would like to advise, giving proper reasons.
The PIO should consult his senior and colleagues for advice in the particular matter. He should take moral responsibility of the act and send an apology letter to the senior and should leave the matter to his discretion.
This decision will help PIO in maintaining his integrity. Further he will act as a cover for the other team members.
But he should disclose the matter to the information seeker as he is compelled to do so according to the RTI Act.

Question : You are working as an Executive Engineer in the construction cell of a Municipal Corporation and are presently in-charge of the construction of a flyover. There are two Junior Engineers under you who have the responsibility of day-to-day inspection of the site and are reporting to you, while you are finally reporting to the Chief Engineer who heads the cell. While the construction is heading towards completion, the Junior Engineers have been regularly reporting that all construction is taking place as per design specifications. However, in one of your surprise inspections, you have noticed some serious deviations and lacunae which, in your opinion, are likely to affect the safety of the flyover. Rectification of these lacunae at this stage would require a substantial amount of demolition and rework which will cause a tangible loss to the contractor and will also delay completion. There is a lot of public pressure on the Corporation to get this construction completed because of heavy traffic congestion in the area. When you brought this matter to the notice of the Chief Engineer, he advised you that in his opinion it is not a very serious lapse and may be ignored. He advised for further expediting the project for completion in time. However, you are convinced that this was a serious matter which might affect public safety and should not be left unaddressed. What will you do in such a situation? Some of the options are given below. Evaluate the merits and demerits of each of these options and finally suggest what course of action you would like to take, giving reasons.

(2013)

Answer : The options are:

1.Follow the advice of the Chief Engineer and go ahead.

According to service rules, this option is correct as a subordinate has to move according to the orders of the senior, but only if it is in written form. If not a person can work on his discretion. And as in this case the safety of the public is at stake so avoiding the lacunaes is not the solution.

2.Make an exhaustive report of the situation bringing out all facts and analysis along with your own viewpoints stated clearly and seek for written orders from the Chief Engineer.

This option is correct as by making an exhaustive report the Executive Engineer will be able to come across all the facts and figures related to projects. He may also reach to an alternative for correcting the flaws in construction. Further all the official acts need written order for its fulfillment, thus asking for written orders from Chief Engineer is a must. This will make him accountable for the future unforeseen circumstances.

3.Call for explanation from the Junior Engineers and issue orders to the contractor for necessary correction within targeted time.

This will be a right step as Junior Engineers should be answerable for their deeds and contractors should be made liable to complete the necessary corrections in time. Further the Executive Engineer can also blacklist the contractor if he is found guilty and ask for fresh tender to make the project complete on time without lacunaes.

4.Highlight the issue so that it reaches superiors above the Chief Engineer.

This will be an informal method of action.

5.Considering the rigid attitude of the Chief Engineer, seek transfer from the project or report sick.

This is absolutely a wrong action. This will show the incompetency of Executive Engineer in handling the situation.

Correct course of action: The Executive Engineer should make an exhaustive report related to the construction lacunaes with further course of action defined. Further junior engineers should be made liable for their acts and official proceedings should be launched against them. Further steps should be taken to decrease the cost of reconstruction and timely completion of the project.

Question : Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu is known for its manufacturing clusters on firecrackers and matches. The local economy of the area is largely dependent on firecrackers industry. It has led to tangible economic development and improved standard of living in the area.

So far as child labour norms for hazardous industries like firecrackers industry are concerned, International Labour Organization (ILO) has set the minimum age as 18 years. In India, however, this age is 14 years.

The units in industrial clusters of firecrackers can be classified into registered and non-registered entities. One typical unit is household-based work. Though the law is clear on the use of child labour employment norms in registered/non-registered units, it does not include household-based works. Household-based work means children working under the supervision of their parents/relatives. To evade child labour norms, several units project themselves as household-based works but employ children from outside. Needless to say that employing children saves the costs for these units leading to higher profits to the owners.

On your visit to one of the units at Sivakasi, the owner takes you around the unit which has about 10-15 children below 14 years of age. The owner tells you that in his household-based unit, the children are all his relatives. You notice that several children smirk, when the owner tells you this. On deeper enquiry, you figure out that neither the owner nor the children are able to satisfactorily establish their relationship with each other.

1.Bring out and discuss the ethical issues involved in the above case.

2. What would be your reaction after your above visit?

(2013)

Answer : 1. According to the above case study children are involved in making firecrackers. This leads to the violation of national and international child labour laws.

The children are forced to work that is mentally, physical, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to them. This can also affect their schooling; this is due to the fact that they are deprived of the opportunities to attend school. Children have to face very difficult circumstances:

Full time work at a young age.
Excessive working hour’s subjection to psychological, verbal, physical and sexual abuse.
Limited or no pay.
They have no chance to escape from the poverty cycle- this is due to the fact of having no access to education.
Unhealthy working situations.

2. The steps need to be taken as:

If children are involved in making firecrackers swift action should be taken to protect the interests of the children and secure their urgent transition from work into good quality education.
Search teams should be sent to the area to check for violation of law of land.
Strict actions should be taken against the culprits, license should be cancelled.
Employment options for parents should be opened so that they do not send children for working in factories.
Welfare schemes should be implemented in full swing to identify the correct beneficiaries and allot them their rights.
Shelter homes should be provided to the orphanage children.

Question : You are heading a leading technical institute of the country. The institute is planning to convene an interview panel shortly under your chairmanship for selection of the post of professors. A few days before the interview, you get a call from the Personal Secretary (PS) of a senior government functionary seeking your intervention in favour of the selection of a close relative of the functionary for this post. The PS also informs you that he is aware of the long pending and urgent proposals of your institute for grant of funds for modernization, which are awaiting the functionary’s approval. He assures you that he would get these proposals cleared.

1. What are the options available to you?

2. Evaluate each of these options and choose the option which you would adopt, giving reasons.

(2013)

Answer : The options are:

Option 1: Accept the Personal Secretary’s request, but this will be an unethical and unconstitutional step as the person will be discriminating between the candidates.
Option 2: Politely explain to the Personal Secretary that Interview will be taken by the panel, thus he can’t help him.
Option 3: He should directly say no to the Personal secretary as this is against the official norms. He should tell PS that the procedure of interview is transparent and if his relative is eligible for the post of professor, he will definitely be selected for it, even without favour. Further the grant of funds for institution is an official act and legal course of action should be taken to avail it.

Question : As a senior officer in the Finance Ministry, you have access to some confidential and crucial information about policy decisions that the Government is about to announce. These decisions are likely to have far-reaching impact on the housing and construction industry. If the builders have access to this information beforehand, they can make huge profits. One of the builders has done a lot of quality work for the Government and is known to be close to your immediate superior, who asks you to disclose this information to the said builder.

1. What are the options available to you?

2. Evaluate each of these options and choose the option which you would adopt, giving reasons.

(2013)

Answer : The options are:

Option 1: The officer will disclose the information to the builder. But this will be an unethical and unofficial act. Government reports and files are confidential and their confidentiality has to be maintained according to the service rules. Nepotism and favouritism are strictly prohibited in official acts.
Option 2: The officer may ask for a written permission from the senior for disclosing the information to the builder. As according to the service rules, the direction of the official superior shall ordinarily be in writing. Oral direction to subordinates shall be avoided, as far as possible. Where the issue of oral direction becomes unavoidable, the official superior shall confirm it in writing immediately thereafter.
Option 3: The officer should straight-forwardly reject the request of the superior to disclose the information to the said builder, stating it is against the norms of an organisation.

Correct course of action: The officer should not disclose the information to the builder as this will have an effect on the exchequer of the government. He should respectfully say no to the superior.

Question : You are the Executive Director of an upcoming InfoTech Company which is making a name for itself in the market.

Mr. A, who is a star performer, is heading the marketing team. In a short period of one year, he has helped in doubling the revenues as well as creating high brand equity for the Company so much so that you are thinking of promoting him. However, you have been receiving information from many corners about his attitude towards the female colleagues; particularly his habit of making loose comments on women. In addition, he regularly sends indecent SMS’s to all the team members including his female colleagues.

One day, late in the evening, Mrs. X, who is one of Mr. A’s team members, comes to you visibly disturbed. She complains against the continued misconduct of Mr. A, who has been making undesirable advances towards her and has even tried to touch her inappropriately in his cabin. She tenders her resignation and leaves your office.

1. What are the options available to you?

2. Evaluate each of these options and choose the option you would adopt, giving reasons.

(2013)

Answer : The options are:

Option 1: After receiving the complaint, Executive Director should take prompt action against Mr. A. He should appoint a three member committee as per the Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act, if not in place. The members should be independent and inquiry should be done neutrally. Both the sides should be given chance for explanation. Decision should be taken after analysing all the evidences.
Option 2: Executive Director may ask for resignation from Mr. A. But reasonable opportunity of being heard should be given to Mr. A.

Correct course of action: A committee should be set to inquire about the complaint independently. Further steps should be taken to avoid similar situation in future.

General Studies Paper IV

1 Ethics, Integrity & Aptitude