Mains Practice Questions

Q. Globalisation has been widely debated as a matter of boon or bane for the world. In this context, discuss the ethical challenges posed by the process of globalization. 

Q. What are the main factors responsible for gender inequality in India? Discuss the contribution of Savitribai Phule in this regard. (UPSC GS-4 Mains 2020)

Q. Migrant workers have always remained at the socio-economic margins of our society, silently serving as the instrumental labour force of urban economics. The pandemic has brought them into national focus.

On announcement of a countrywide lockdown, a very large number of migrant workers decided to move back from their places of employment to their native villages. The non-availability of transport created its own problems. Added to this was the fear of starvation and inconvenience to their families. This caused, the migrant workers to demand wages and transport facilities for returning to their villages. Their mental agony was accentuated by multiple factors such as a sudden loss of livelihood, possibility of lack of food and inability to assist in harvesting their rabi crop due to not being able to reach home in time. Reports of inadequate response of some districts in providing the essential boarding and lodging arrangements along the way multiplied their fears.

You have leant many lessons from this situation when you were tasked to oversee the functioning of the District Disaster Relief Force in your district. In your opinion what ethical issues arose in the current migrant crisis? What do you understand by an ethical care giving state? What assistance can the civil society render to mitigate 2 the sufferings of migrants in similar situations? (UPSC GS-4 Mains 2020)

Q. Distinguish between laws and rules. Discuss the role of ethics in formulating them. (UPSC Mains GS-4 2020)

Q. What teachings of Buddha are most relevant today and why? Discuss. (UPSC GS-4 Mains 2020)

Q. Rampura, a remote district inhabited by a tribal population, is marked by extreme backwardness and abject poverty. Agriculture is the mainstay of the local population, though it is primarily subsistence due to the very small land holdings. There is insignificant industrial or mining activity. Even the targeted welfare programs have inadequately benefited the tribal population. In this restrictive scenario, the youth has begun to migrate to other states to supplement the family income. Plight of minor girls is that their parents are persuaded by labour contractors to send them to work in the Bt Cotton farms of a nearby state. The soft fingers of the minor girls are well suited for plucking the cotton. The inadequate living and working conditions in these farms have caused serious health issues for the minor girls. NGOS in the districts of domicile and the cotton farms appear to be compromised and have not effectively espoused the twin issues of child labour and development of the area.

You are appointed as the District Collector of Rampura. Identify the ethical issues involved. Which specific steps will you initiate to ameliorate the conditions of minor girls of your district and to improve the over-all economic scenario in the district?  (UPSC GS-4 Mains 2020)

Q. What are the main components of emotional intelligence (EI)? Can they be learned? Discuss. (UPSC GS-4 Mains 2020)

Q. Rajesh Kumar is a senior public servant, with a reputation of honesty and forthrightness, currently posted in the Finance Ministry as Head of the Budget Division. His department is presently busy in organising the budgetary support to the states, four of which are due to go to the polls within the financial year.

This year’s annual budget had allotted 78300 crores for National Housing Scheme (NHS), a centrally sponsored social housing scheme for the weaker sections of society. 775 crores have been drawn for NHS till June.

The Ministry of Commerce had long been pursuing a case for setting up a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in a southern state to boost exports. After two years of detailed discussions between the centre and state, the Union Cabinet approved the project in August. Process was initiated to acquire the necessary land.

Eighteen months ago, a leading Public Sector Unit (PSU) had projected the need for setting up a large natural gas processing plant in a northern state for the regional gas grid. The required land is already in possession of the PSU. The gas grid is an essential component of the national energy security strategy. After three rounds of global bidding the project was allotted to an MNC, M/s XYZ Hydrocarbons. The first tranche of payment to the MNC is scheduled to be made in December.

Finance Ministry was asked for a timely allocation of an additional 6000 crores for these two developmental projects. It was decided to recommend re-appropriation of this entire amount from the NHS allocation. The file was forwarded to Budget Department for their comments and further processing. On studying the case file, Rajesh Kumar realized that this re-appropriation may cause inordinate delay in the execution of NHS, a project much publicized in the rallies of senior politicians. Correspondingly, non-availability of finances would cause financial loss in the SEZ and national embarrassment due to delayed payment in an international project.

Rajesh Kumar discussed the matter with his seniors. He was conveyed that this politically sensitive situation needs to be processed immediately. Rajesh Kumar realized that diversion of funds. from NHS could raise difficult questions for the government in the Parliament.

Discuss the following with reference to this case:

a. Ethical issues involved in re-appropriation of funds from a welfare project to the developmental projects.

b. Given the need for proper utilization of public funds, discuss the options available to Rajesh Kumar. Is resigning a worthy option? (250 words) (UPSC GS-4 Mains 2020)

Q. “Education is not an injunction, it is an effective and pervasive tool for all-round development of an individual and social transformation”. Examine the New Education Policy, 2020 (NEP, 2020) in light of the above statement. (UPSC GS-4 Mains 2020)

Q. Discuss the role of ethics and values in enhancing the following three major components of Comprehensive National Power(CNP) viz. human capital, soft power(culture and policies), and social harmony. (150 words) (UPSC GS-4 Mains 2020).

You are part of a football team at an international tournament representing your country. Your team has played really well to reach the final. However, a day before the final match you witness the best forward players who scored the maximum goals in the tournament were injecting something using a syringe in private. When you approach them, they explain that it is a performance enhancing drug which is very common in such competitions and they suggested, you should take the same as well. When you enquire more about it, you get to know that those players have been taking the drug throughout the tournament at the advice of the coach himself. You discuss this issue with the coach but he tells you to ignore all this and concentrate on your own performance and threatens you of dire consequences if you reveal this to anyone.

a. Highlight the stakeholders and their ethical issues in this case

b. Discuss your course of action in such a scenario.

c. What long term measures would you suggest to stop the usage of such unfair means in sports.

Q. Discussing the main challenges in upholding highest ethical standards in civil services, suggest effective measures to overcome such challenges.

Q. “Lack of knowledge confuses the intellect, while education provides the knowledge to the true soul- Rabindranath Tagore” Elaborate this quote in the present context? (150 Words)

Q. “An independent judiciary enjoying public confidence is a basic necessity of the rule of law.” In light of the statement, discuss the need of Code of Conduct to be followed by the judges. (150 words)

Q. “Artificial intelligence (AI) is important for the development of humanity in the near future.” Discuss the ethical implications that arise from the development and implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. (250 words)

Q. “Desire, ignorance, and inequality—this is the trinity of bondage.” What does the given quotation mean to you in the present context? (150 words)

Q. What do you understand by Corporate Governance? Why is it important for the success and sustainability of an organisation? (150 words)

Q. Ethics examines the criteria for judging human actions as right or wrong. What are the various sources of ethical guidance for a civil servant? (150 words)

Q. Public service must evolve to a level where probity becomes a way of life and honesty is a routine expectation. Comment. (150 words)

A coaching centre in an area dominated by migrant workers and daily wage earners, caters to a specific group of women students – those who come from financially poor backgrounds and have dropped out of formal schooling due to familial pressure as well as financial issues. The girls come from such families who will marry them off if they don’t study and pass their exams.

However, the centre has always struggled with poor finances for many years and lacks basic infrastructure and facilities such as laptops or Wi-Fi. Moreover, after a nationwide lockdown in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, teaching has become more difficult. The teachers at the centre continue to teach students even when their salaries stopped coming due to the financial crisis that the centre faces. Not only the centre but the students also do not have laptops/mobile with a proper internet connection. Also, the students as well as the teachers are not very well versed with technology.

You are the manager of the centre, identify the various ethical issues of the given case. Based on your understanding, suggest measures to deal with the crisis. (250 words)

Q. What do you understand by the term ‘Gandhian Ethics’? Discuss with examples the application of the Gandhian ethics in public service. (150 words)

Q. Genuine engagement with media ethics seems to be declining in the present times. Discuss the ethical issues that plague Indian journalism. (250 words)

Q. What do you understand by the theory of utilitarianism? Critically analyse the usefulness of the theory. (150 words)

Q. “It is your attitude, not your aptitude, that determines your altitude.” Do you agree with the statement? Substantiate with examples. (250 words)

Hundreds of people have died in a district of Punjab after consuming spurious liquor. The police have conducted several raids to catch the culprits responsible for this mishap. The raiding teams seized large quantities of "lahan" - the raw material for making liquor - from various villages and dhabas in the region around the district border. The preliminary investigation has confirmed a long-established system of illicit liquor outlets in the whole state.

It is alleged by the media that the hooch tragedy is the direct and natural consequence of the patronage given by the leaders, including ministers and MLAs for turning a blind eye to the rampant illicit liquor trade in the state.

Meanwhile, the state government is under attack from opposition parties for not taking immediate and adequate action. The state government in a hasty response transferred district magistrate and suspended several police officials for negligence of duty.

You are the newly appointed district magistrate of the region.

a. Identify the stakeholders and the ethical issues involved in the case.

b. What best course of action will you adopt to resolve the issues in this case?

c. What long term steps will you take to make sure such incidents do not occur in future.

Q. “Corruption is an important manifestation of the failure of ethics.” In the light of the statement discuss the various reasons for the prevalence of corruption and measures needed to eradicate it. (250 words)

Q. The quality of service delivery in a public organisation can be improved by internal and external appraisal. Discuss (250 words)

Q. What do you understand by code of conduct? Discuss how it differs from code of ethics? (150 words)

Q. Define Work Culture. Discuss its importance in the success of any organisation. (150 words)

According to a report that was published in the major daily newspaper, two school girls who got married after completing their Class X were denied admission in government girls’ higher secondary school.

The reasons cited by the school Headmistress for denial of admission to them in Class XI was that the admission to Class XI was not automatic and that the presence of married girls in the school would distract the other school girls from their studies and adversely affect their academic performance.

You are a newly appointed District Magistrate of that area and come across this information through local newspapers. On investigation it was found that the marriage of the minor girls was a common phenomenon in certain communities of that region and here school going girls often get married immediately after completing Standard X.

The parents of the girls are reluctant to file complaints under the fear of penal action for having solemnised the marriage of minor girls.

a. Identify the stakeholders and ethical dilemmas involved in the case.

b. What would be the best course of action taken by you as a District Magistrate to manage the situation?