UPSC Mains 2025 GS4 Q3a: model answer
“Those who in trouble untroubled are, Will trouble trouble itself.” — Thiruvalluvar
What the question wants
Explain the kural's meaning and its relevance for life and public service today.
How to structure it
Intro: the Tirukkural. Body: (1) Meaning; (2) Present context (disaster response, public life, students and youth); (3) Caution. Conclusion: For a civil servant, equanimity is a working tool.
- 1(1) Meaning
- 2(2) Present context (disaster response, public life, students and youth)
- 3(3) Caution
Model answer
The Tirukkural, Thiruvalluvar's classic on virtue, wealth and love, says that those who stay calm in difficulty defeat difficulty itself.
Meaning
- Trouble is not the problem; panic is. A steady mind sees options that a frightened one misses.
- It is about emotional intelligence and resilience.
Present context
- Disaster response: Odisha's officers stayed composed and evacuated lakhs of people before cyclones Phailin (2013) and Fani (2019), saving many lives.
- Public life: negotiating with an angry crowd calls for a calm head, not force.
- Students and youth: exam failures and job pressure; resilience prevents despair.
- Leaders: during COVID-19, calm and clear communication built trust.
Caution: being untroubled is not indifference. It means feeling the problem but not being ruled by it.
For a civil servant, equanimity is a working tool. Crises will come; the kural tells us who wins in them.
Keywords, cases and data to drop in
Tirukkural equanimity resilience emotional intelligence crisis management
Where most answers lose marks
- Retelling the quote without examples.
Question text as printed in the official UPSC question paper: https://www.upsc.gov.in/sites/default/files/GENERAL-STUDIES-PAPER-IV-QP-CSM-25-010925.pdf The model answer is original Battle IAS work; use it to learn structure, not to memorise.