The topics in paper IV – ethics, aptitude and integrity are
interrelated. The identification of these interrelated areas makes it easy for
you to grasp the paper.
The topics like ethics in public life, foundational values
of civil service, integrity, impartiality
and non-partisanship, objectivity, dedication to public service etc overlaps
with the topic Probity of governance. The Right to information, fight against
corruption, conflict of interest etc are topics concerned with probity of
governance.
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| probity in governance |
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Importance:
The probity is closely
linked to societal values.
Eg: When a corruption
case is brought against a politician or beaurocrat, then the whole target is
the ‘individual’. Who shapes the individual? The society to an extent shapes
his values. A person who lives in a society which gives social standing/respect
to a person who has more money, in turn will work to gain money by all means. This
is where value education comes in.
The probity of
governance is closely related to “equality before law”.
Eg: Is it wrong if a file before government is
cleared within 2 days? The answer is “no” if all citizens with similar file
status can get it cleared in 2 days. Here the concern is “compliance with
processes”. If an ordinary citizen submits a file, the processes might take lot
of time, which is shortened when some1 powerful submits.
One more concept in probity of governance is that ‘Something
is legally right’ doesn’t always mean it is ‘right’. The law may be interpreted
in ways that are suited. This is especially important when it comes to ‘land
acquisition’, ‘signing contract with certain foreign firms’ etc.
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