Pub Ad Optional Daily Brief – 18 – September – 2026

Thinker of the Day | Gunnar Myrdal

Work – Asian Drama – An Inquiry into the Poverty of Nations

Views

• Myrdal described developing countries as “soft states” where laws, policies and plans are often well-designed but weakly implemented because of

• Administrative incapacity

• Corruption and favouritism
• Weak political discipline
• Social inequalities
• Poor enforcement of rules

• Lack of coordination

• Myrdal argued that poverty is sustained through cumulative circular causation

Poverty → Poor education and health → Low productivity → Low income → Continued poverty
– So, development planning must address multiple interconnected sectors rather than focusing only on economic growth.

For example, schemes may have adequate financial allocations but still face weak delivery due to local administrative and institutional constraints.

A development plan is only as effective as the administrative capacity and political commitment behind its implementation.

Keyword of the Day | Administrative Evil

It refers to harmful actions carried out by officials or organisations through routine procedures, rules and role-based obedience, often without personal hatred or malicious intention. It occurs when administrative efficiency becomes detached from morality and human consequences.

Guy Adams & Danny Balfour in Unmasking Administrative Evil explain how ordinary administrative systems can produce extraordinary harm when administration treat citizens as statistics or cases.

Pub Ad PYQ Vault | Day 48 | PYQ (2012)

“Policy judgements comprise reality judgements, value judgements and instrumental judgements.” Geoffrey Vickers. Elucidate.