Q1 (a). In the present digital age, social media has revolutionised our way of communication and interaction. However, it has raised several ethical issues and challenges. Describe the key ethical dilemmas in this regard. (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Social media gives voice to millions and widens participation. But the business model—grab attention, harvest data, sell ads—often clashes with ethics.

Ethical issues and challenges due to social media such as 

1. Instant gratification ( PUBG games)
2. Bad influence on society (bad advertisement such as fairness creams etc)
3. Health disorders (sleeping disorder, anxiety)
4. Violence consumption ( stories of crimes such as rape etc) 
5. Against privacy or individual freedom ( deep fake issues)

Ethical dilemmas 

1) Autonomy vs manipulation:
Feeds are tuned for engagement, not truth. Micro-targeted political ads and “people like you” suggestions nudge choices invisibly, shrinking real autonomy.

2) Free speech vs harm:
Platforms must protect expression but also curb hate speech, doxxing and targeted harassment. The Rohingya crisis and abuse of women journalists in India show how online harm spills offline.

3) Truth vs virality:
Rumours, health myths and deepfakes spread faster than fact-checks, damaging election integrity and disaster response.

4) Privacy vs profit:
Large-scale tracking with vague consent means users lose control of profiling and secondary data use.

5) Equality vs exclusion:
Moderation is weaker in low-resource Indian languages, so trolling and disinfo can silence vulnerable groups.

6) Transparency vs opacity:
“Black-box” recommenders, shadow-bans and unclear grievance systems erode trust.

7) Well-being vs engagement:
Doom-scrolling, social comparison and sleep loss—especially for teens—are built into the engagement race.

8) Public office vs propriety:
When officials use personal handles for official work, block critics or post partisan content, neutrality and record-keeping suffer.

Ethics-by-design: way forward

• Platforms: Age-appropriate design; choice of chronological vs algorithmic feed; political-ad libraries; independent audits of algorithms; provenance/watermarks for AI media; forward limits and prompts that slow virality; clear notice–reason–appeal in moderation.
• State: Enforce data-protection law; use transparent, proportionate takedown processes; publish platform transparency stats; avoid over-broad rules that chill speech.
• Citizens/Schools: Digital/media literacy—“pause, verify, then share”; lateral reading; report abuse.
• Elections/Disasters: Pre-bunking campaigns, local-language fact-checks, and trusted information hubs.

Conclusion: The ethical test is simple—minimise harm, protect rights, and keep the information commons trustworthy, not merely “highly engaging.”

Q1 (b). “Constitutional morality is not a natural sentiment but a product of civil education and adherence of the rule of law.” Examine the significance of constitutional morality for public servant highlighting the role in promoting good governance and ensuring accountability in public administration. (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Demand of the Question: Define constitutional morality and show how it guides public servants to deliver good governance and accountability, with practical illustrations.

Constitutional morality means loyalty to the Constitution’s values (liberty, equality, dignity, secularism, justice, fraternity) and procedures (rule of law, due process, federal balance)—learnt through civic education and habitual compliance, not sentiment.

Why it matters 

• Be neutral, protect rights: Treat everyone fairly. During protests, allow peaceful assembly but stop violence. Don’t bend to majoritarian pressure.
• Follow the rule of law: Give reasons in writing (speaking orders), hear both sides (audi alteram partem), and act proportionately.
  Example: Before demolition, serve notice and provide rehabilitation if eligible.
• Be transparent: Share information proactively; keep clear file notes and e-office trails; respect RTI; allow social audits so the public can track decisions.
• Use public money honestly: Buy through e-procurement, check conflicts of interest, and link spending to outcomes. Cooperate with audit/ACB—it’s trust money, not your money.
• Practice ethical dissent: If told to do something illegal, record your disagreement, ask for written orders, and escalate. Your loyalty is to the Constitution, not individuals.
• Ensure inclusion and dignity: Design services for women, persons with disabilities, tribals, minorities—multiple languages, ramps, separate counters, safe spaces. This is Articles 14 & 21 in action.
• Use tech ethically: Collect only the data you need (data minimisation), build privacy-by-design, and do impact checks before using surveillance tools or AI scoring.

These basics make administration fair, lawful, and people-centred—and they’re easy to defend in public.

Value-addition (examples & comparators):

• Indian jurisprudence affirming constitutional values (privacy, equality, dignity) guides administration.
• Right to Service Acts, Citizen’s Charters, and social audits operationalise accountability.
• Global cues: Nolan Principles (UK) for public life; Batho Pele (“People First”, South Africa) foregrounds dignity in delivery.

Conclusion:
Constitutional morality is the north star of administration—turning discretion into justified action, building public trust, and making accountability structural, not episodic.

Q2 (a) Carl von Clausewitz once said, “War is a diplomacy by other means.” Critically analyse the above statement in the present context of contemporary geo-political conflict. (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Idea & Nuance (1–2 lines)
Clausewitz actually said war is the continuation of policy by other means—i.e., force sits on the same continuum as diplomacy and must serve political objectives, not replace them.

Where the dictum still holds (instrumentality of war):
• Russia–Ukraine (2022– ): Coercive force to alter security buffers and influence—clearly political ends via military means.
• Azerbaijan–Armenia (2020, 2023): Short, tech-heavy wars (drones/ISR) to revise territorial status quo—policy achieved through calibrated violence.
• India’s calibrated signalling: 2016 surgical strikes and 2019 Balakot—limited, precise force to deter cross-border terrorism while keeping the diplomatic ladder intact; LAC standoff (since 2020) blends military firmness with sustained talks.

Limits in the contemporary environment (why the dictum is constrained):
• Nuclear deterrence & escalation risks: Major-power war is inhibited; states prefer grey-zone coercion—salami slicing in the South China Sea, proxies, cyber and disinformation.
• Legitimacy & law: UN Charter Art. 2(4), IHL, real-time media and war-crimes accountability make military “victory” without legitimacy self-defeating (Iraq 2003, Afghanistan 2001–21, ongoing Gaza legitimacy debates).
• Non-state actors & proxy war: West Asia/Sahel show violence can outlive policy control, eroding the policy–war linkage.
• Economic interdependence: Energy/food/supply-chain shocks and sanctions blowback can undercut the initiator’s aims; war is a high-cost policy tool.
• Technology’s paradox: Drones/AI/cyber enable deniable coercion but raise miscalculation risks and strategic instability.

India-specific governance lesson:
Prefer diplomacy-first deterrence (credible capability, escalation control), with legal/legitimate and limited use of force to secure politically sustainable outcomes.

Conclusion (1–2 lines)
War remains a political instrument—but today it is blunt, legitimacy-sensitive, and economically costly. Effective statecraft = diplomacy + deterrence + economic & information tools, with force as a lawful last resort.

Q2 (b) Keeping the national security in mind, examine the ethical dilemmas related to controversies over environmental clearance of development projects in ecologically sensitive border areas in the country. (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Demand of the Qn

Identify core ethical dilemmas in clearing strategic projects in fragile border zones and propose a balanced, principled way forward.

Why it matters

Strategic roads/tunnels/ports improve deterrence, mobility, disaster response; yet Himalayas, islands, and coasts are ecologically fragile and host vulnerable communities—so decisions carry moral risk.

Key dilemmas (with ethical lenses)

• National security vs environmental care
  Utilitarianism (aggregate welfare) may favour rapid build; Deontological duty (Kant) and Public Trust Doctrine stress a duty to protect ecosystems (Art. 21).
  Examples: Char Dham widening; Subansiri/Teesta hydro—downstream and landslide risks.
• Speed vs scrutiny
  Precautionary Principle and virtue ethics (prudence) argue for robust EIAs; fast-tracking risks moral hazard.
  Example: Silkyara tunnel (2023) flagged gaps between “build fast” and geotechnical due diligence.
• National interest vs local rights
  Rights-based ethics, Rawlsian justice (maximin) and FRA/PESA imply FPIC for tribals/pastoralists/fishers.
  Example: Great Nicobar project—Shompen habitat, mangroves/coral concerns.
• Secrecy vs accountability
  Procedural justice needs minimum transparency and independent review, even with security constraints (e.g., HPC in Char Dham case).
• Short-term gains vs intergenerational equity
  Sustainable development, intergenerational justice, Mitigation Hierarchy (avoid–minimise–restore–offset).
  Example: Linear intrusions near Kaziranga raise wildlife mortality.

Balanced approach (Theory → Action)

• Necessity–Proportionality–Minimum Harm: Only essential assets; least-damage alignments; tunnels/bridges to avoid hill cuts; wildlife crossings (NH-44 Pench), speed curbs near parks.
• Landscape-level science: Strategic Environmental Assessments and cumulative EIAs for entire basins (Teesta/Subansiri), not siloed appraisals.
• Sensitive zoning: No-Go/Go-with-conditions using carrying capacity; CRZ/ESZ logic for islands and coasts.
• Independent oversight: Security-cleared expert panels, third-party audits, remote-sensing compliance; time-bound yet non-perfunctory clearances.
• Community justice: FPIC, fair R&R, benefit-sharing, local jobs; social licence to operate (eco-tourism around BRO roads where feasible).
• Resilience & restoration: Bio-engineering for slopes, drainage, early-warning (Sendai DRR), no-net-loss/net-gain biodiversity offsets.

Conclusion

Security and sustainability are co-optimisable. Applying precaution, proportionality, intergenerational equity, and procedural justice delivers border infrastructure that is legitimate, durable, and disaster-safe—true to constitutional morality and the common good.

Q3 (a)  “Those who in trouble untroubled are, Will trouble trouble itself.” — Thiruvalluvar

Meaning & administrative relevance
The couplet celebrates equanimity—not passivity but active serenity: a steady mind that sees clearly, chooses proportionately, and acts on time. For public servants, it is the difference between panic and principled, effective action.

Philosophical foundations (why calm is ethical)

• Gita’s sthitaprajña & niṣkāma karma: act without panic or attachment to outcomes; uphold fairness and proportionality.
• Stoicism (dichotomy of control): focus on controllables (plans, logistics, communication), accept the rest without rage—preserves judgment.
• Buddhist upekkhā with karuṇā: equanimity joined to compassion protects the vulnerable while avoiding harms of haste.
• Virtue ethics (phronesis, temperance) curbs overreaction; Deontology secures rule-of-law impartiality; Consequentialism reduces collateral damage.

Science of steadiness
Calm blunts amygdala hijack, keeps the OODA loop (Observe–Orient–Decide–Act) intact, and enables cognitive reappraisal. Checklists and pre-commitments reduce bias under stress.

How it looks in Indian administration

• Disaster response: In a cloudburst, the Collector triggers the Incident Response System, sets life-first priorities, issues verified daily bulletins to kill rumours, restores roads after rescue.
• Learning after failure: Chandrayaan-2 → Chandrayaan-3: cool failure analysis, protocol fixes, disciplined iteration—calm learning beats blame.
• Sensitive policing: During communal tension, the SP orders rapid fact-checks, engages community influencers, deploys firmly but proportionately, avoids incendiary briefings.

Practical toolkit (field-usable)

• Before action: 60-second box-breathing; pre-mortem; apply a reversibility × stakes test (never take irreversible steps in a hot state).
• During: SOPs, unified command, single source of truth dashboard; speak only to verified facts.
• After: After-Action Reviews to fix systems (not scapegoats); weekly red-team a high-risk decision; keep a decision journal.
• Guardrail: equanimity ≠ apathy—set timelines, red lines (life, rights, legality), and escalation protocols.

Conclusion
Master the self, then the situation. Equanimity yields lawful effectiveness, legitimacy, and public trust—so your composure makes “trouble” trouble itself.

Q3 (b)“The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.” — William James

Core meaning & relevance
Attitude is a choice amplifier: it filters what we notice, shapes effort and persistence, and compounds into habits and outcomes. For students and civil servants, changing mindset → different choices → better systems and results.

Why it works (theory → practice)

• Growth Mindset (Dweck): “I can learn this” → more practice, feedback-seeking, resilience.
• Self-Efficacy (Bandura): Belief in capability raises initiation and follow-through.
• Learned Optimism (Seligman): Counters helplessness; improves citizen-facing behaviour.
• Pygmalion Effect: Higher expectations lift performance.

Illustrations (India & world)

• A.P.J. Abdul Kalam: From modest beginnings in Rameswaram—newspaper seller to “Missile Man” to President—reframed failure (SLV-3 setbacks) as data, not defeat; relentless practice + optimism altered his life and India’s space/defence arc.
• Administrative cue: A probationer treats dense revenue files as skill-building; uses if–then plans (“after lunch → 30 minutes drafting”), seeks model orders—output and confidence rise together.
• Public campaigns: Swachh Bharat reframed sanitation as shared responsibility; Pulse Polio shifted from fear to collective pride (“Do Boond Zindagi Ki”).
• Workplace climate: A Collector’s Monday “solution huddles” (“what worked/what next?”) normalize learning over blame.

When attitudes don’t change (warning signs)

• Personal/Political: Hitler’s rigid ideology converted grievance into genocidal policy—catastrophic outcomes of fixed mindsets.
• Historical governance: Episodes of religious orthodoxy (e.g., under Aurangzeb, often cited in debates) show how intolerance hardens conflict and reduces legitimacy.
• Society: Unchanged attitudes sustain child marriage, dowry, gender bias—laws without mindset shift underperform.

Practical toolkit (use today)

• Cognitive: Brief self-talk (“difficult, not impossible”), reframing (“feedback, not failure”), gratitude/learning journal.
• Behavioural: Build habit loops (cue→routine→reward); 25-minute Pomodoro sprints; design the environment (distraction-free desk, phone box in meetings).
• Social: Mentoring chains, peer circles, public commitments; dashboards that track outcomes (e.g., scholarship coverage), not just activities.

Ethical link & conclusion
A growth-and-service attitude aligns effort with public purpose—fairness, dignity, accountability—so improvement benefits citizens, not just careers. Attitudes are choices practiced; align them with ethics and purpose, and both personal trajectory and public outcomes bend upward.

Q3 (c) “The strength of a society is not in its laws, but in the morality of its people.” — Swami Vivekananda. 

Introduction (idea in today’s context)
Good laws are necessary, but societies truly flourish when civic morality—everyday honesty, empathy, public spirit—makes rule-following habitual. Strong norms lower the cost of governance and make justice quicker and fairer.

Why law alone is not sufficient (brief)

• Capacity limits: No state can police every act; external control without inner restraint breeds evasion.
• Legitimacy gap: Fear-based compliance collapses when scrutiny recedes; procedural justice needs moral buy-in.
• Lag & loopholes: Law trails technology and culture; without virtue ethics (character), rules become box-ticking.

Why morality boosts state capacity (with examples)

• Collective action: When littering is socially shamed, cities stay clean—Japan’s post-disaster clean-ups; Indore’s ward-level segregation.
• Trust lowers costs: High trust reduces affidavits/inspections; UPI scaled because traceable digital payments became a norm.
• Unobserved compliance: Helmet/seat-belt use sticks where it’s a social default, not just a fine.
• Commons protected: Odisha community forest groups and village water committees safeguard forests/groundwater better than distant policing.
• Crisis response: Kerala floods—citizen volunteer chains and orderly queues multiplied state logistics.

How administrators can nurture morality (policy to practice)

• Model conduct: Punctual, courteous, transparent leadership; e-office trails and open calendars.
• Civic education + nudges: School drives, neighbourhood pledges, “name-and-praise” boards (Swachh Bharat playbook).
• Make right choices easy: Default digital payments, e-tenders, single-window forms; kiosks that auto-fill.
• Predictable enforcement: Certain, proportionate penalties (repeat littering → community service).
• Participation & transparency: MGNREGA social audits, ward committees, open budgets, RTI dashboards (build social capital).

Conclusion
A society’s real strength is its conscience. When people choose the right without being watched, laws finally work as intended—and development becomes trust-led, resilient, and durable, true to Vivekananda’s ethic of character before code.

Q4 (a) “For any kind of social re-engineering by successfully implementing welfare schemes, a civil servant must use reason and critical thinking in an ethical framework.” Justify this statement with suitable examples. (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Welfare is not just spending money. It is about better health, learning, mobility, and dignity. To get there, an officer should run a loop: find the real problem → design the right fix → deliver well → learn and improve, all within ethical guardrails (respect, inclusion, privacy, proportionality).

1) Find the real problem (Reason)

• Use data + field visits.
  • Vidya Samiksha Kendra / NIPUN Bharat: dashboards + classroom visits to focus on early reading/math.
  • Aspirational Districts/Blocks: track micro-indicators to spot lagging villages.
  • Ethical check: don’t shame schools/teachers—support them.

2) Design for inclusion (Ethics)

• ONORC: ration portability for migrants; keep offline fallback if biometrics fail.
• Ayushman Bharat & ABDM/ABHA: portable care + digital health IDs; ensure informed consent, data minimisation, strong grievance redress.

3) Test, learn, fix (Critical thinking)

• Ujjwala 2.0: not just LPG connections—add refill support and small nudges to keep kitchens smoke-free.
• Jal Jeevan Mission: beyond taps—water-quality test kits, public dashboards, community ownership so water stays safe.

4) Plug leakages, build trust (Ethical delivery)

• MGNREGA NMMS + geo-tagging to curb ghost entries; pair with social audits so tech doesn’t override people.
• PM SVANidhi + UPI QR: clean credit and digital receipts for street vendors; add financial literacy to avoid over-debt.

5) Move fast, with safeguards (Proportionality)

• CoWIN: rapid scale with open APIs and walk-in/assisted registration; protect personal data and support low-digital users.

Way forward (what to do next)

• Outcome focus: Simple outcome dashboards (learning level, safe-water tests, claim turnaround), not just spend.
• Human + digital: Help desks, mitras/BCs, and mobile sahayaks alongside apps.
• Privacy by design: Minimal data, consent logs, audit trails; regular data protection drills.
• Participatory feedback: Monthly jan-sabhas, IVRS/WhatsApp helplines, grievance SLAs; publish fixes.
• Pilot → scale: Quick pilots, course-correct, then scale; use third-party evaluations where useful.
• Convergence & capacity: Joint plans across departments; train front-line staff in ethics, inclusion, and BI nudges.

Conclusion

Reason shows what works, critical thinking fixes weak spots, and ethics protects people while scaling. Together, they make schemes trustworthy, inclusive, and truly transformative—delivering dignity and lasting results, not just targets.

Q4 (b) What are the major teachings of Mahavir? Explain their relevance in the contemporary world. (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Core idea (one line)
Mahavira’s ethic is a discipline of self-restraint and compassion that minimises harm—to self, to others, and to nature.

Cardinal vows & ideas (what they mean today)

• Ahimsa (non-violence): Non-harm in thought, speech, action ⇒ curb hate, cruelty, and excess force.
• Satya (truthfulness): Integrity in words and records ⇒ antidote to fake news and “post-truth”.
• Asteya (non-stealing): Respect for rights—material, digital, intellectual ⇒ clean procurement, IP respect.
• Brahmacharya (right conduct): Self-control over impulses ⇒ prudent, dignified public life.
• Aparigraha (non-possessiveness): Minimalism, sufficiency ⇒ responsible consumption, circular economy.
• Anekantavada & Syadvada: Many-sided truth and qualified judgment ⇒ intellectual humility, dialogue.

Modern relevance (individual → society → state) with illustrations

• Conflict & public discourse: Ahimsa + anekantavada favour restraint, humanitarian corridors and inclusive mediation in wars (e.g., lessons for commentary on the Russia–Ukraine conflict), and encourage non-violent protest and respectful debate at home.
• Truth infrastructure: Satya supports fact-checking cells, transparent data releases, and myth-busting bulletins during disasters/riots; reduces polarisation and rumours online.
• Integrity in governance & markets: Satya + asteya align with e-tenders, social audits, asset disclosures, and zero-gift policies; ethics complements law to deter corruption, not merely punish it.
• Sustainability & consumerism: Aparigraha nudges repair/reuse, lean packaging, and plant-forward diets; cities adopting source segregation and companies cutting single-use plastics embody this restraint.
• Personal mastery under pressure: Brahmacharya helps civil servants resist lobbying or outrage cycles; cooler files, steadier decisions.
• Policing & justice: Ahimsa grounds minimum-force protocols, de-escalation training, and restorative options for juveniles.
• Policy design in plural societies: Anekantavada translates into multi-stakeholder consultations, cumulative EIAs, and accommodative federalism—seeing “many sides” before deciding.

Concrete cues
Gandhi’s satyagraha (Jain influence) as non-violent civic power; community mediation centres easing court loads; village water/forest committees guarding commons; firms adopting cruelty-free products and open-source practices.

Conclusion
Mahavira’s vows are a timeless operating system: reduce harm, tell the truth, own less, listen more. Lived as habits, they upgrade character, social trust, and governance integrity—the three pillars of a resilient modern republic.

Q5 (a) “One who is devoted to one’s duty attains highest perfection in life.” Analyse this statement with reference to sense of responsibility and personal fulfilment as a civil servant. (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Introduction
For a civil servant, devotion to duty means doing the right thing, the right way, every time—with integrity, competence and care—even when unobserved. Ethically, it blends Kantian duty (act from duty), virtue ethics (phronesis, courage, temperance) and constitutional morality (Articles 14 & 21), converting power into fiduciary stewardship and public trust.

How devotion deepens responsibility (ethics → practice)

• Clarity & proportionality: Rank actions by public values—life → dignity → livelihoods → convenience (floods: rescue → relief → restoration).
• Rule of Law & due process: Speaking orders, audi alteram partem, timelines, documentation—authority becomes answerable.
• Outcome orientation (bounded consequentialism): Shift from “files moved” to results—immunisation, FLN scores, water-quality pass rates.
• Probity & courage: Declare conflicts, record dissent, resist undue pressure—loyalty to the Constitution, not individuals (Gandhian talisman: recall the weakest first).

Why it brings fulfilment (eudaimonia at work)
Mastery + service → intrinsic motivation; visible public outcomes create earned satisfaction, not just titles.

Illustrations (grounded, India-focused)

• Selflessness: During COVID-19 (2020), IAS Soumya Pandey (Amethi, UP) cut short maternity leave (14 days) to lead response—duty over comfort.
• Moral courage under pressure: Ashok Khemka, despite 50+ transfers, upheld legality and transparency—probity as habit.
• Innovative public service: “Collector Bro” Prasanth Nair’s Operation Sulaimani (Kozhikode) used community vouchers to ensure zero hunger—compassion + systems thinking.
• Road safety governance: Evidence-based calming, helmets/seat-belt drives reduce black-spot fatalities—care ethics operationalised.

Simple toolkit (value addition)
Weekly After-Action Reviews, 5-Why root-cause analysis, citizen-charter dashboards; two-minute pause before signing critical orders; publish SOPs for repeatability; Mission Karmayogi modules + mentoring chains.

Conclusion
Pursued with excellence and ethics, devotion to duty turns responsibility into habit, improves outcomes, and yields a quiet, durable fulfilment—the practical “perfection” of public service that strengthens democracy and public trust.

Q5 (b) To achieve holistic development goal, a civil servant acts as an enabler and active facilitator of growth rather than a regulator. What specific measures will you suggest to achieve this goal? (Answer in 150 words) — 10 Marks. 

Demand of the Question: Suggest concrete measures by which a civil servant enables balanced economic–social–environmental development, instead of acting only as a controller.

Answer (~250 words):
An enabler mindset reduces friction, builds capacity, and safeguards rights—so growth is faster, fairer, and greener.

1) Cut friction, keep trust

• Single-window + standard timelines; pre-filled digital forms; risk-based inspections and self-certification for low-risk units.
• Decriminalise minor compliances; adopt faceless approvals with randomised audit trails.

2) Build public digital rails

• Use open, interoperable digital systems in payments, logistics, health, skilling to crowd-in private innovation while retaining citizen control of data (consent, minimisation).

3) Catalyse local ecosystems

• Cluster development (ODOP-style), common facility centres, testing/quality labs, and export helpdesks; converge line departments for last-mile utilities.
• Leverage PM GatiShakti-type planning for land, power, and connectivity.

4) Crowd-in finance & markets

• Credit guarantees for MSMEs, vendor development with large buyers, link to GeM/public procurement, and fair payment discipline.
• Street-vendor credit with financial literacy to avoid over-indebtedness.

5) Skill, include, and protect

• District skill plans tied to local demand; apprenticeships; women-centric skilling with creches and safe transport.
• Ensure labour, environment and safety standards with predictable, proportionate enforcement.

6) Use data for outcomes, not control

• Public dashboards; outcome budgeting; quick pilots → scale what works; independent evaluations.
• Jan-Bhagidari: community monitoring, social audits, grievance redress with time limits.

Illustrations

• Logistics park + last-mile road unlocks a food-processing cluster;
• School-to-skill bridge raises youth employability;
• Self-help groups onboarded to digital payments expand women’s enterprises.

Conclusion:
A civil servant who reduces compliance pain, builds ecosystems, ensures safeguards, and measures outcomes becomes a true facilitator of inclusive, sustainable growth.

Q6 (a)  It is said that for an ethical work culture, there must be code of ethics in place in every organisation. To ensure value-based and compliance-based work culture, what suitable measures would you adopt in your work place? (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Why a Code matters (2 lines):
Rules prevent wrongdoing; values reduce the desire to do wrong. A good Code must be clear, learnable, auditable, and safe to follow.

Measures I would adopt (workplace plan):
• One-page Code of Ethics: Integrity, respect, fairness, public service + crisp Do/Don’t on conflict of interest, gifts/hospitality, POSH, social media, data privacy, use of office assets.
• Tone from the top: Leaders publish calendars, recuse on conflicts, issue speaking orders (reasons recorded).
• Make it learnable: Quarterly 15-min scenario drills; pocket red-flags card (single-bid tenders, frequent change orders).
• Safe speak-up: Confidential QR-hotline, anti-retaliation, time-bound inquiries; publish anonymised case digests.
• Controls by design: Maker–checker, rotation of sensitive posts, mandatory leave, role-based IT access, e-office audit trails.
• Clean procurement: 100% e-procurement/GeM, integrity pacts, vendor KYC/blacklists, third-party inspection, post-award monitoring.
• Transparency & citizen focus: Proactive disclosures, RTI SLAs, social audits; privacy-by-design in data systems.
• Measure & improve: Ethics KPIs (COI filing %, training coverage, POSH closure time), culture pulse surveys, annual Ethics Report.

Value-addition (practical implementation boosters):

1. 30–60–90 rollout: Co-create Code (30d) → train + COI register + maker–checker (60d) → e-proc, KPI dashboard, first culture survey (90d).
2. Ethics Champions network: One trained peer in each unit runs micro-drills and is a speak-up first responder.
3. “Ethics moment” in meetings: 3-minute real case at start of every Monday meet—keeps Code alive.
4. Nudge architecture: Default digital payments; auto-prompts for COI on sensitive files; gift-decline stickers on desks.
5. Red-flag dashboard: Heat-map of risks (single-bid %, change-orders %, cash advances) reviewed weekly.
   
6. Recognise role models: Monthly “Integrity in Action” note—specific behaviours celebrated, not platitudes.
   
7. Consequence grid: Pre-agreed proportionate penalties + remediation plans, applied consistently.
   

Outcome: Ethics becomes the default, delivering values and compliance, better decisions, and durable public trust.

Q6 (b) India is an emerging economic power of the world as it has recently secured the status of fourth largest economy of the world as per IMF projection. However, it has been observed that in some sectors, allocated funds remain either under-utilised or misutilised. What specific measures would you recommend for ensuring accountability in this regard to stop leakages and gaining the status of the third largest economy of the world in near future? (Answer in 150 words) —10 Marks.

Idle balances and the year-end March rush on one side; ghosts, over-invoicing and weak assets on the other. These come from four leaks: poor planning, opaque releases, leaky procurement, and soft verification.

The guiding idea:
Fix the whole public-finance chain—from plan → release → buy → build → pay → audit—so money moves when due, to the right entity, for the right work, with proof.

1) Plan and budget right (stop problems at the start)

• Peer-review DPRs, check risks/costs, and publish a capex calendar.
  
• Do GatiShakti-style coordination (land, power, clearances) before sanction to avoid mid-year stalls.
  
• Shift to Outcome Budgeting—track outputs/outcomes, not just outlay.
  

2) Release and track smart (move money just-in-time)

• Use PFMS / Treasury Single Account for milestone-based releases.
  
• Give each work a unique Project ID; use e-bills/e-invoices; auto-create utilisation certificates after verified milestones.
  

3) Buy clean (competition up, discretion down)

• 100% e-procurement/GeM, standard bid docs, Integrity Pact, vendor ratings, reverse auctions/framework agreements.
  
• Watch red flags: single-bid awards, >20% cost bumps, the same L1 winning repeatedly.

4) Execute with evidence (pay for what exists)

• Geo-tagged photos/drones, e-measurement books, IoT meters (water/power), and NMMS/biometric for labour.
  
• Milestone-linked payments, third-party inspections, surprise checks; keep a GIS asset registry to prevent duplicates.
  

5) Pay on time, protect MSMEs

• Route invoices via TReDS/GeM; enforce the 45-day rule; penalise unauthorised variations/delays.
  

6) Audit openly, involve citizens

• Risk-based internal audit, CAG/PAC performance reviews, public dashboards, social audits, grievance portals with SLAs.
  
• Use simple anomaly analytics (Benford tests, z-scores) to spot outliers.
  

7) Target well, include all

• DBT to cut ghosts, with offline fallbacks to avoid wrongful exclusion; privacy-by-design and data minimisation.
  

8) Build capacity and align incentives

• Train teams in PFM/contract management; run mid-year reviews and re-appropriation; sunset dead heads.
  
• Cap quarterly spends to avoid March spikes; reward timely, quality delivery.
  

Examples:
Jal Jeevan dashboards + field test kits improved quality; MGNREGA NMMS curbed ghost attendance; GeM/TReDS lowered prices and improved payment discipline.

Cadence that keeps it honest:
Monthly Cash & Works Committee, quarterly outcome reviews, vendor-day bottleneck clearing, and a public “projects-at-risk” list.

Bottom line:
Plan well, release smart, buy clean, verify on ground, pay on time, audit openly. That is how funds travel from allocation to outcomes—plugging leakages and powering faster, fairer growth.