Mission Mains 2021: GS 4 Ethics Discussion
This is for those of you who are planning to write Mains 2020. Primarily, the agenda of this thread would be
1. Answer Writing Practice
2. Sharing examples - anecdotes from Current affairs relevant for GS4 Answer writing
3. Any doubts wrt. Paper 4!
Feel free to pool in your suggestions!
8. What does this quotation mean to you ?
Where there is righteousness in the heart, there is beauty in the character. When there is beauty in the character, there is harmony in the home. When there is harmony in the home, there is order in the nation. When there is order in the nation, there is peace in the world” – A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (150 words)
The above mentioned quote shows an intricate connection between a morally upright individual, and his/her role in establishing a peaceful world order.
Mere acquisition of knowledge is fatal. It leads to a directionless individual. The process of acquiring knowledge, if augmented by an approach in infusing morally correct education, makes a character whole and complete in itself. This individual in turn creates an ecosystem, which propels a chain reaction of just and humane behaviour. S/he impacts her family's thinking process, which further helps in making a nation which is much more attune in upholding the notions of peace equity and justice. This kind of ecosystem helps in creating an environment which accords highest importance to the virtue of a character, rather than penalising him/her for being an morally upright individual.
In our contemporary world, where there exists a frantic race to superimpose ideologies on one another, the central theme of this quote, to my mind, can help us in accommodating multiplicity of ideas, and can guide us in living a righteous way of life.
Patootie,8. What does this quotation mean to you ?
Where there is righteousness in the heart, there is beauty in the character. When there is beauty in the character, there is harmony in the home. When there is harmony in the home, there is order in the nation. When there is order in the nation, there is peace in the world” – A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (150 words)
It indicates that ethics in private life (family) and ethics in public life (nation) are interconnected. According to it an honest person maintains his honesty at his home as well as in the profession. As per NCRB data most criminals experience troubled family life.
Plato - state is individual writ large. The nature of a nation reflects its citizens. An ethical citizenry chooses ethical leadership. Conduct of inter- state and global politics depends upon values of nations. When all countries commit to mutual peace and tranquility problems like wars, terrorism, poverty, environmental degradation will automatically disappear. Thus terrorism persists because some people believe in violence, practice it, and subsequently it finds a place in state programmes in the form of state sponsored terrorism.
+ Define Righteousness - quality of being morally right and justifiable which forms the basis for any society.
+ Concept of Righteousness - Dharma
The jump from family life to terrorism with Plato in between is a little incoherent. While the main thread looks fine to me, I think it has to be structured better.
Define Righteousness --->How it starts with private life --->ethics in public & private interlinked -->Nation
Eg: Swami Vivekananda/ Mandela
Silentobserver,8. What does this quotation mean to you ?
Where there is righteousness in the heart, there is beauty in the character. When there is beauty in the character, there is harmony in the home. When there is harmony in the home, there is order in the nation. When there is order in the nation, there is peace in the world” – A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (150 words)
The above mentioned quote shows an intricate connection between a morally upright individual, and his/her role in establishing a peaceful world order.
Mere acquisition of knowledge is fatal. It leads to a directionless individual. The process of acquiring knowledge, if augmented by an approach in infusing morally correct education, makes a character whole and complete in itself. This individual in turn creates an ecosystem, which propels a chain reaction of just and humane behaviour. S/he impacts her family's thinking process, which further helps in making a nation which is much more attune in upholding the notions of peace equity and justice. This kind of ecosystem helps in creating an environment which accords highest importance to the virtue of a character, rather than penalising him/her for being an morally upright individual.
In our contemporary world, where there exists a frantic race to superimpose ideologies on one another, the central theme of this quote, to my mind, can help us in accommodating multiplicity of ideas, and can guide us in living a righteous way of life.
Any examples to substantiate?
12432TrivendrumRajdhani,A man is but a product of his thoughts. What he thinks he becomes.” – M.K. Gandhi
The above quote hints towards the interrelation between man's existence and his essence.
The essence of a human is prior to his existence and this essence is moulded by our thought.The law of attraction holds that what we think is what we attract which in turn is an outward manifestation of ourselves
Feminist such as semoine de Beauvoir held that one is not born a women , one becomes a woman,which means that being a woman is merely a state of mind, gender and sex are not the same , one is our existence and other our thought
for someone like Hannah arendt action and thought are aligned, when action and thought part ways thought becomes meaningless and action turns brutal.
therefore what we act is merely an outward practice of our thought,there is no dichotomy between the two.
Gandhiji rightly held that one cannot hope for a rose by planting babool seed. Therefore what we think, we become
Above quote emphasizes upon importance of thoughts and its role in shaping individuals.
+ Mahatma Gandhi in his book “My Experiments with Truth” has shown how his thought process was influenced by his upbringing, experiences and his strong beliefs.
+ Examples - Bhagat Singh driven by thoughts of egalitarianism and inclusive society vs Hitler believing in white supremacy.
+ Society increasingly becoming materialistic and self centered (reflected in increasing consumerism) - need societies to inculcate ethical thinking.
Answer needs examples tosubstantiate the statements made.
Things do not exist in a vacuum. It is called the butterfly effect. A butterfly flapping its wings in one part of the world can cause a tornado in another. Actions of governments are nothing but actions of human individuals, which are fashioned by the society they live in.
Consider global inequality, for example. It is globally understood to be morally wrong. However, at the individual level, the benefactors of this inequality rarely understand that their own actions contribute greatly to said inequality. When a male member of the family is accorded privileges not available to his sister, not a question is asked by him about the moral correctness of this action. When moral correctness of this human behaviour is left unquestioned, it perpetuates a culture within the family where it is normalised for one to be considered superior to another. On a larger scale, this gives rise to a culture of greed within human society. The behaviour of aggrandizing oneself even if it means considerable detriment to others comes to be accepted as the human way of life. This culture permeates every strata of society, including our politicians and governments. It gives way to corruption, and that in turn leads to internal strife within the country. Furthermore, the us v. them ideology dominates international affairs even when it comes to a global problem such as climate change for example, leaving nations unable to unite.
Moral bankruptcy at the individual level has a domino effect. As Theodore Roosevelt said "To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society." Therefore, the answer to global problems may often be found in individual action. To solve them, each individual must question the moral correctness of his actions and act in a manner that seeks to advance the righteous path towards the common goal.
Things do not exist in a vacuum. It is called the butterfly effect. A butterfly flapping its wings in one part of the world can cause a tornado in another. Actions of governments are nothing but actions of human individuals, which are fashioned by the society they live in.
Consider global inequality, for example. It is globally understood to be morally wrong. However, at the individual level, the benefactors of this inequality rarely understand that their own actions contribute greatly to said inequality. When a male member of the family is accorded privileges not available to his sister, not a question is asked by him about the moral correctness of this action. When moral correctness of this human behaviour is left unquestioned, it perpetuates a culture within the family where it is normalised for one to be considered superior to another. On a larger scale, this gives rise to a culture of greed within human society. The behaviour of aggrandizing oneself even if it means considerable detriment to others comes to be accepted as the human way of life. This culture permeates every strata of society, including our politicians and governments. It gives way to corruption, and that in turn leads to internal strife within the country. Furthermore, the us v. them ideology dominates international affairs even when it comes to a global problem such as climate change for example, leaving nations unable to unite.
Moral bankruptcy at the individual level has a domino effect. As Theodore Roosevelt said "To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society." Therefore, the answer to global problems may often be found in individual action. To solve them, each individual must question the moral correctness of his actions and act in a manner that seeks to advance the righteous path towards the common goal.
This is for the Abdul Kalam question. Also, for the actual paper, I might draw some chart showing how its all linked, making the second paragraph shorter.
10. In looking for people to hire, you look for three qualities: integrity, intelligence and energy. And if they do not have the first, the other two will kill you.” – Warren BuffettWhat do you understand by this statement in the present-day scenario? Explain.
Marcus Aurelius believed that mind-body-soul were the three parameters which should form the basis of judgement of an individual. The mind signifies intelligence, the body energy and the soul signifies integrity. The above quote uses the same criteria for judging a prospective employee.
Importance of the three qualities
1. Integrity- in an age of stakeholder capitalism and brand activism, employees must be of high integrity to ensure decision making is ethical and moral. Eg PNB scam of issuance of fake Letter of understanding shows perils of decisions done by employees with low integrity
2. Intelligence- as a public servant, presence of emotional intelligence is key to dispensing duty effectively. Eg Ability to motivate team towards uphill disaster relief operation, showing empathy for the vulnerable in district
3. Energy- The fuel that energy provides our body allows us to devote high focus time to dispense our responsibilities. It also indicates the responsibility the individual gives to ones body and health.
Integrity is the aim of a gun, intelligence the bullet, and energy the trigger. A wrong aim can bring about a rogue ammunition capable of disservice to society. Eg Bernard Madoff who used his intelligence and energy to carry a $60 billion ponzi scheme, destroying thousands of family by siphoning their savings.
Hence the need is to cultivate integrity via relevant ethical education, and simultaneous reward to people of integrity to motivate desirable behaviours.
@Patootie Sir/Ma'am, I was wondering about the time you take to complete your well crafted answers. I mean what should be an ideal time frame. I take ages to complete an answer, within the stipulated words, and respecting the general protocols of Ethics answer writing (Intro, Body, Example/Conclusion).
Hey, I'm no Sir or Ma'am. :)
This particular answer took me about 12-13 minutes to type out. Which is a really long time. I do manage to just about finish answers on time when I do it on paper, but it obviously will not be as well crafted. So, for the given answer, would probably use a flowchart to show how it is all linked. From individual to family to society to country to international affairs. I think the idea that is in your head must be conveyed clearly on paper. That is the defining factor, I think. That said, I have not even given mains so far.
11. 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? (250 words)
The above case brings to light the issue faced by public servant in following Weberian bureaucracy of automated bureaucracy based on rules V/S following new public management approach of citizen centric humane approach.
The stakeholders in the case are
1. Old man- facing hardships due to health issue
2. Old women- concerned over her only companion
3. Doctor and the hospital concerned- decision will impact their monetary compensation
4. Rakesh- being true to the responsibility entrusted on him of diligent implementation of the scheme
Rakesh should approach the situation in the following way
A. Make the old couple feel heard and assure them of help which is possible at the earliest
B. Speak to the concerned hospital and request to minimise the cost as far as possible by reducing their profit margin over fixed cost
C. Speak to the concerned doctor and see if the medicine ideally used can be replaced with Jan Aushadhi generic medicine at affordable price
D. Direct a subordinate to cross check the old couple and their criteria fulfilment for enrolling under Ayushman Bharat. If they do, the cost would be taken care of under the scheme
E. If the criteria isn’t fulfilled, then get the said couple in touch with functioning NGO’s in my district who can either fund the medical care, or start a crowdfunding for garnering fund.
Merits of the above approach
1. Making them feel heard and assuring of help is key in new public management approach to dispensing public service
2. Speaking to hospital and doctor will bring down the cost of treatment via generic medicine and reduced profit margin. Forcing them to do it for free will set a wrong trend and against just monetary compensation principle.
3. Involving civil society allows Rakesh to do his duty empathetically while being honest to the rules of the scheme. Will also kickstart stronger civil society link to residents of the village/district
4. Exploring Ayushman Bharat eligibility will help the couple of not only being aware of the scheme, but will yield long term benefit to them for any healthcare needs of theirs
As a civil servant need is to display leadership skill of quick decision making and setting the right precedent for the office and district. Hence adopting the golden mean approach, of helping the old couple without flouting the norms of the scheme or providing personal contribution will set the most ethical precedent under given circumstances.
A man is but a product of his thoughts. What he thinks he becomes.” – M.K. Gandhi
The above quote hints towards the interrelation between man's existence and his essence.
The essence of a human is prior to his existence and this essence is moulded by our thought.The law of attraction holds that what we think is what we attract which in turn is an outward manifestation of ourselves
Feminist such as semoine de Beauvoir held that one is not born a women , one becomes a woman,which means that being a woman is merely a state of mind, gender and sex are not the same , one is our existence and other our thought
for someone like Hannah arendt action and thought are aligned, when action and thought part ways thought becomes meaningless and action turns brutal.
therefore what we act is merely an outward practice of our thought,there is no dichotomy between the two.
Gandhiji rightly held that one cannot hope for a rose by planting babool seed. Therefore what we think, we become
My take on this answer would a simplistic one
1. Relation between thought and action is nothing but how our beliefs or values guides our behaviour.
2. This also talks about how Integrity where thought and action are combined
i would rather prefer writings on this lines..
@Patootie Sir/Ma'am, I was wondering about the time you take to complete your well crafted answers. I mean what should be an ideal time frame. I take ages to complete an answer, within the stipulated words, and respecting the general protocols of Ethics answer writing (Intro, Body, Example/Conclusion).
Hey, I'm no Sir or Ma'am. :)
This particular answer took me about 12-13 minutes to type out. Which is a really long time. I do manage to just about finish answers on time when I do it on paper, but it obviously will not be as well crafted. So, for the given answer, would probably use a flowchart to show how it is all linked. From individual to family to society to country to international affairs. I think the idea that is in your head must be conveyed clearly on paper. That is the defining factor, I think. That said, I have not even given mains so far.
How would you prefer to be addressed irl?
8. What does this quotation mean to you ?
Where there is righteousness in the heart, there is beauty in the character. When there is beauty in the character, there is harmony in the home. When there is harmony in the home, there is order in the nation. When there is order in the nation, there is peace in the world” – A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (150 words)
It indicates that ethics in private life (family) and ethics in public life (nation) are interconnected. According to it an honest person maintains his honesty at his home as well as in the profession. As per NCRB data most criminals experience troubled family life.
Plato - state is individual writ large. The nature of a nation reflects its citizens. An ethical citizenry chooses ethical leadership. Conduct of inter- state and global politics depends upon values of nations. When all countries commit to mutual peace and tranquility problems like wars, terrorism, poverty, environmental degradation will automatically disappear. Thus terrorism persists because some people believe in violence, practice it, and subsequently it finds a place in state programmes in the form of state sponsored terrorism.
+ Define Righteousness - quality of being morally right and justifiable which forms the basis for any society.
+ Concept of Righteousness - Dharma
The jump from family life to terrorism with Plato in between is a little incoherent. While the main thread looks fine to me, I think it has to be structured better.
Define Righteousness --->How it starts with private life --->ethics in public & private interlinked -->Nation
Eg: Swami Vivekananda/ Mandela
Thank you for the feedback! Will re - attempt again.
upsc2020,11. 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? (250 words)The above case brings to light the issue faced by public servant in following Weberian bureaucracy of automated bureaucracy based on rules V/S following new public management approach of citizen centric humane approach.
The stakeholders in the case are
1. Old man- facing hardships due to health issue
2. Old women- concerned over her only companion
3. Doctor and the hospital concerned- decision will impact their monetary compensation
4. Rakesh- being true to the responsibility entrusted on him of diligent implementation of the scheme
Rakesh should approach the situation in the following way
A. Make the old couple feel heard and assure them of help which is possible at the earliest
B. Speak to the concerned hospital and request to minimise the cost as far as possible by reducing their profit margin over fixed cost
C. Speak to the concerned doctor and see if the medicine ideally used can be replaced with Jan Aushadhi generic medicine at affordable price
D. Direct a subordinate to cross check the old couple and their criteria fulfilment for enrolling under Ayushman Bharat. If they do, the cost would be taken care of under the scheme
E. If the criteria isn’t fulfilled, then get the said couple in touch with functioning NGO’s in my district who can either fund the medical care, or start a crowdfunding for garnering fund.
Merits of the above approach
1. Making them feel heard and assuring of help is key in new public management approach to dispensing public service
2. Speaking to hospital and doctor will bring down the cost of treatment via generic medicine and reduced profit margin. Forcing them to do it for free will set a wrong trend and against just monetary compensation principle.
3. Involving civil society allows Rakesh to do his duty empathetically while being honest to the rules of the scheme. Will also kickstart stronger civil society link to residents of the village/district
4. Exploring Ayushman Bharat eligibility will help the couple of not only being aware of the scheme, but will yield long term benefit to them for any healthcare needs of theirs
As a civil servant need is to display leadership skill of quick decision making and setting the right precedent for the office and district. Hence adopting the golden mean approach, of helping the old couple without flouting the norms of the scheme or providing personal contribution will set the most ethical precedent under given circumstances.
Your structure for case study is really nice.
+ Integrated Programme for Older Persons under Ministry of Social Justice.
+ Can encourage to make it completely a pro bono surgery as it is a rare condition. District Administration can reward/give commendation letter.
+ Encourage civil society to crowd source funds.
+ This case cannot be taken in isolation as there would be many others in need. Taking this case as a base, he can propose to consider insertion of a sub category for economically weaker section of the society as well.
My observation:
- Answer looks Pub-Adish instead of Ethics. New public management approach - makes it technical. That's my opinion, I may be wrong.
rashiv,Chaotic_homo11. 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? (250 words)The above case brings to light the issue faced by public servant in following Weberian bureaucracy of automated bureaucracy based on rules V/S following new public management approach of citizen centric humane approach.
The stakeholders in the case are
1. Old man- facing hardships due to health issue
2. Old women- concerned over her only companion
3. Doctor and the hospital concerned- decision will impact their monetary compensation
4. Rakesh- being true to the responsibility entrusted on him of diligent implementation of the scheme
Rakesh should approach the situation in the following way
A. Make the old couple feel heard and assure them of help which is possible at the earliest
B. Speak to the concerned hospital and request to minimise the cost as far as possible by reducing their profit margin over fixed cost
C. Speak to the concerned doctor and see if the medicine ideally used can be replaced with Jan Aushadhi generic medicine at affordable price
D. Direct a subordinate to cross check the old couple and their criteria fulfilment for enrolling under Ayushman Bharat. If they do, the cost would be taken care of under the scheme
E. If the criteria isn’t fulfilled, then get the said couple in touch with functioning NGO’s in my district who can either fund the medical care, or start a crowdfunding for garnering fund.
Merits of the above approach
1. Making them feel heard and assuring of help is key in new public management approach to dispensing public service
2. Speaking to hospital and doctor will bring down the cost of treatment via generic medicine and reduced profit margin. Forcing them to do it for free will set a wrong trend and against just monetary compensation principle.
3. Involving civil society allows Rakesh to do his duty empathetically while being honest to the rules of the scheme. Will also kickstart stronger civil society link to residents of the village/district
4. Exploring Ayushman Bharat eligibility will help the couple of not only being aware of the scheme, but will yield long term benefit to them for any healthcare needs of theirs
As a civil servant need is to display leadership skill of quick decision making and setting the right precedent for the office and district. Hence adopting the golden mean approach, of helping the old couple without flouting the norms of the scheme or providing personal contribution will set the most ethical precedent under given circumstances.
Your structure for case study is really nice.
+ Integrated Programme for Older Persons under Ministry of Social Justice.
+ Can encourage to make it completely a pro bono surgery as it is a rare condition. District Administration can reward/give commendation letter.
+ Encourage civil society to crowd source funds.
+ This case cannot be taken in isolation as there would be many others in need. Taking this case as a base, he can propose to consider insertion of a sub category for economically weaker section of the society as well.
My observation:
- Answer looks Pub-Adish instead of Ethics. New public management approach - makes it technical. That's my opinion, I may be wrong.
Integrated programme for Older Person is a good addition. Will note it
If you felt it looked like Pub Ad answer, then it must have looked like Pub Ad answer. We don’t get to make representation to our mains paper checker. So just like their view is decisive, I’ll take your view as decisive too.
upsc2020,
upsc2020,
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