Mains Practice Questions

Introduction

Conscience, an individual’s internal sense of right and wrong, is crucial for ethical decision-making, especially in public service.

• It inspires integrity and self-discipline. However, conscience alone can be insufficient due to subjective biases, societal conditioning, and conflicts with established laws and ethical guidelines.

Body

Role of Conscience in Public Service:

• Moral Compass for Integrity: Conscience motivates public servants to make morally sound decisions, even in challenging environments.
  • For instance, whistleblowers like Satyendra Dubey, who exposed corruption in the National Highways Authority of India, acted from a strong sense of conscience, demonstrating courage and integrity.
• Ensuring Public Trust: A well-developed conscience helps officials prioritise public welfare over personal gains, thus strengthening public trust in governance.
  • Civil servants, such as Armstrong Pame, who built a road in Manipur using personal funds and community support, acted out of a conscientious commitment to serve people.

Challenges of Relying Solely on Conscience:

• Subjectivity and Bias: Conscience is influenced by personal experiences, culture, and socialization, leading to variability in ethical judgments.
  • For instance, biases against certain social groups could unconsciously affect a public servant’s decisions, potentially leading to unfair treatment.
• Conflict with Institutional Norms: A conscience-driven decision may sometimes clash with rules or laws, leading to ethical dilemmas.
  • For example, an officer might wish to avoid eviction of slum dwellers out of compassion, but legal mandates may require such action. Here, personal values may conflict with duties to enforce the law.
• Inconsistent Ethical Standards: What one person considers ethical might be deemed inappropriate by another.
  • This lack of consistency can undermine fairness in public service. Without clear institutional frameworks, one officer’s conscience-based decision could contradict another’s, leading to unpredictability.

Institutional Frameworks Complimenting Conscience to Guide Ethical Conduct:

• Codes of Conduct and Regulations: Frameworks like the Civil Services Conduct Rules and Right to Information Act provide uniform ethical guidelines, ensuring that all public officials adhere to consistent standards of transparency and accountability.
• Training and Ethical Frameworks: Formal training on ethics helps public servants align personal conscience with professional standards.
  • The Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, for example, conducts ethics training that instils core values, reducing reliance on subjective conscience alone.
• Institutional Mechanisms for Accountability: Bodies like the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) and Lokpal provide accountability, deterring misuse of power that individual conscience may not address.

Conclusion

While conscience is a vital component of ethical behaviour in public service, relying solely on it is insufficient. A comprehensive approach that combines personal morality with institutional ethical frameworks, training, and accountability mechanisms is essential to uphold fairness, transparency, and public trust.