General Studies Paper IV (Section A) by Manoj k. Jha

Category
GS -IV
Test Date
27-09-2021 09:54 AM
Evaluated
Yes

To participate in answer writing program, Register yourself for the test. Copies will be evaluated only for the registered students. Registration will be closed before the scheduled date.

6 Days Answer Improvement Cycle

Day 1: Questions will be uploaded on the portal on the scheduled date at 11:00 AM.
Day 2 and 3: You have to write your answers on an A4 size sheet leaving margins on both sides based on UPSC pattern. After writing the answer, Click a picture of the answer sheet (Use CamScanner and ensure good quality images) and upload (in JPEG format) in the comment section of the same question.
Day 4 and 5: After evaluation, copies will be re-uploaded on the same thread on 5th day. Based on these answers and feedback, aspirants can ask their doubts in the comment box and our experts will guide. The model hint will be uploaded on the site on Day 4.
Day 6: Discussion of the question and one to one answer improvement session of evaluated copies will be conducted through Google Meet with concerned faculty.

Instruction:

Attempt One question out of the given two.
The test carries 15 marks.
Write Your answer in 150 words.
Any page left blank in the answer-book must be crossed out clearly.
After Writing the Answer upload your copy in JPEG format in the comment box.
Evaluated Copy will be re-uploaded on the same thread after 2 days of uploading the copy.
Discussion of the question and one to one answer improvement session of evaluated copies will be conducted through Google Meet with concerned faculty. You will be informed via mail or SMS for the discussion.

Question #1. What are the sources of ethical guidance? Write a note on a few of them highlighting how they act as sources of ethical guidance.

Question #2. Explain the difference between attitude and aptitude? According to you, what is more important for a civil servant, attitude or aptitude? Comment

(Examiner will pay special attention to the candidate's grasp of his/her material, its relevance to the subject chosen, and to his/ her ability to think constructively and to present his/her ideas concisely, logically and effectively).

Model Answer

Question #1. What are the sources of ethical guidance? Write a note on few of them highlighting how they act as sources of ethical guidance.

Approach

Define the source of ethical guidance (50 words)
Highlight few sources of ethical guidance (100 words)

Hints:

In a democratic society, no field of human activity can be exempted from the ethical concerns of humanity. It is believed that responsibility in terms of thinking about what someone is doing and consequences of action upon others with establishment of clear line of accountability for redresser of grievances should underline every human activity.

Ethical guidance refers to shared values and experience which enable the agent’s ethical judgements and decisions. It is derived mainly from rules, regulations, conscience and laws. A bureaucratic organization derives its ethics mainly from law and rules, market organizations from regulation and voluntary sector organizations are guided by conscience.

Regulation – it is boarder term that signifies control of human behavior or activity by some sort of moral authority. Regulation in this sense of fundamental process is an intrinsic part of ethical living. However, regulation as a concept is mainly used in the context of relationship between state and society. It connotes those set of instructions or directives that are made and maintained by public authority to control particular set of human activity.

Rules – they are working procedures within an organization to provide effective function of that organization. While all three are external means to control behavior. They are the set of instructions issued for public.

Conscience - Conscience is the inherent intuitive capacity to differentiate between right and wrong. “inner voice” important especially in democracy as it has multiple stakeholders such as citizens, NGOs, corporate to be administered by the politicians who are elected by them only.

Laws – laws are put in place by the legislative branch of government. Violation of law can subject one to punishment. Law is the stronger in its application.

Thus, conscience, rules, regulations and law sanctions some of our behavior rest leaving scope for other behavior unregulated.

Question #2. Explain the difference between attitude and aptitude? According to you, what is more important for a civil servants, attitude or aptitude? Comment

Approach

Differentiate between attitude and aptitude. (75 words)
Discuss the merits and demerits of both. (75 words)

Hints:

Aptitude is a measure of a person’s ability to acquire a new skill. it is the reflection of a person’s intellectual ability to learn via experiences. Attitude, on the other hand, is a result of one’s opinions and beliefs concerning a person or a topic. Moreover, the difference between aptitude and attitude is that Aptitude is a measure of ability and is loosely associated with intelligence, whereas attitude is a characteristic associated with one’s personality. Aptitude is a relatively consistent trait, while attitude is more fluid and is likely to change. An example to illustrate the difference: In “operation Sulaimani” a district collector in Kozhikode has stated initiative to feed poor by collaborating with large restaurants (donating extra food). In this case the attitude of the district collector is towards poor is of compassion and the aptitude is his innovative way to collaborate with restaurants.

As far as civil service aptitude is concerned, it simply means to have the ability to perform one’s duty basing one’s actions on logic and reason, by being within the realms of morality, and by being emotionally sound and not cracking under pressure. It may be broadly classified as: Intellectual, Moral and Emotional. Though aptitude is innate, proficiency in a particular task can still be achieved even if an individual is not born with the aptitude for it. A person may do so by working on one’s personality. Intellectual, emotional and moral aptitude required for being a civil servant may be developed using cognitive strategies like performing problem solving tasks, by developing a value system of one’s own and abiding by it and by making oneself emotionally strong and practicing the same in one’s interpersonal relationships. Additionally, one may practice being honest and sincere in all walks of life and incorporate it gradually into one’s personality.

India is facing several socio-economic challenges. Civil Servants should possess the ability to solve these problems innovatively and efficiently. For this, a civil servant must possess the right aptitude and right attitude. For example, the civil servant may have the right aptitude towards addressing the needs of the poor, but if he does not have the right attitude towards the poor (like having compassion of them), then he would not have tried to find a solution to the problem.

Hence, Aptitude and attitude are often discussed together. The main difference between aptitude and attitude is that aptitude is a measure of competency, while attitude is a set of beliefs and emotions. The former is relatively permanent, while the latter is likely to change frequently.

Procedure of Answer Writing:

To participate in the answer writing program, Register yourself for the test. Copies will be evaluated only for the registered students. Registration will be closed after the scheduled date.

Answer Writing, Copy Evaluation, and Marks Improvement Cycle:

Step 1 (Theme, Details & Its Topics):

Every round of Answer writing initiative will be around a theme related to the Subject/Topic.
Please read the theme and its description, and try to cover the topics given within the theme before writing the answer along with the sources.

Step 2 (Answer Writing):

Questions will be uploaded on the portal on the scheduled date at 7:00 AM.
You have to write your answers on an A4 size sheet leaving margins on both sides based on the UPSC pattern.
Mention your name, email id, location, and phone number on the 1st page in the top right corner and the page number on each page.
After writing the answers, Click pictures of each page of your answer sheet, merge them all in a single PDF and upload them in the upload section of the same question.
Kindly submit your written answers before 7:00 PM. Only the first 100 copies will be considered for evaluation. No request for late submission or evaluation will be entertained once the 100 mark is reached.

Note: Answer sheets without the proper guidelines given above will not be accepted for evaluation.

Step 3 (Copy Evaluation): Copies will be evaluated in the next 72 hours of the test date. After evaluation, copies will be uploaded into your account. During the copy evaluation period, doubt clearing and discussion about the theme or topic of the test with respective mentors of the test will be done in the telegram group.

Step 4 (Mentorship): Evaluated copies will be sent to you via mail and also uploaded into your account on the website. After that a mentorship session for the marks improvement with respective faculty will be conducted on the Google Meet, so that students can get a wider perspective of the topics. Here you can discuss your evaluated copies also with the faculty. Top 5 copies of every test will be shared in the telegram group for reference.

Note: Aspirants who have not written the test can also participate in the mentorship session.

For Updates and Mentorship of the session, you will be notified through SMS or Telegram Group.

For Notification And Update About the Program Join Telegram Group at: https://t.me/gsscoreopendailyanswerwriting

Note: You have to write your answers on an A4 size sheet leaving margins on both sides based on UPSC pattern. Mention Your Name on 1st page and Page Number on each page. After writing the answer, Click pictures of each page of your answer sheet, merge them all in a single PDF and upload in the Your Answer Copy section of the same question.