UPSC Mains 2014 GS Paper 4 Q13: model answer
Rameshwar successfully cleared the prestigious civil services examination and was excited about the opportunity that he would get through the civil services to serve the country. However, soon after joining the services, he realized that things are not as rosy as he had imagined. He found a number of malpractices prevailing in the department assigned to him. For example, funds under various schemes and grants were being misappropriated. The official facilities were frequently being used for personal needs by the officers and staff. After some time, he noticed that the process of recruiting the staff was also not up to the mark. Prospective candidates were required to write an examination in which a lot of cheating was going on. Some candidates were provided external help in the examination. Rameshwar brought these incidents to the notice of his seniors. However, he was advised to keep his eyes, ears and mouth shut and ignore all these things which were taking place with the connivance of the higher-ups. Rameshwar felt highly disillusioned and uncomfortable. He comes to you seeking your advice. Indicate various options that you think are available in this situation. How would you help him to evaluate these options and choose the most appropriate path to be adopted?
What the question wants
List options open to a young officer who finds malpractices tolerated by seniors, and help him choose the most appropriate path.
How to structure it
Options, evaluation method, choice.
- Options
- How to evaluate
- Path
How to think it through
Options: stay silent; quit; leak to media; collect evidence and complain in writing via proper channel/vigilance/CVC/Lokayukta; PIDPI resolution 2004 (CVC can receive whistleblower complaints and protect identity); WBP Act 2014 not operational. Evaluate: legality, impact, sustainability, personal risk, values. Path: start in own sphere (fix what he controls), document, written complaints, vigilance, allies, RTI-friendly transparency, recruitment reform proposal (CCTV, external agency).
Model answer
Stakeholders
- Rameshwar; the public losing scheme funds; honest candidates cheated in recruitment; seniors; the department.
Dilemmas
- Idealism vs career; obedience vs conscience; quick exposure vs effective change.
Options
- Keep quiet; resign; go to the media; act within his sphere and use formal channels.
Rameshwar has learned in a year what some officers learn in ten: the service is a test of character, not a reward for clearing an exam.
Options available
- Stay silent, as advised: safe, but he becomes part of the system he wanted to change, and his discomfort will harden into cynicism.
- Resign: preserves his conscience but removes one honest officer and changes nothing.
- Go to the media at once: fast and loud, but evidence may be weak, it breaches conduct rules, and it may destroy his ability to work from inside.
- Act within his own sphere and use formal channels: slower, but lawful and durable.
Helping him evaluate
I would ask him to test each option on five questions:
- Is it lawful and within the conduct rules?
- Will it actually stop the wrong?
- Can it be sustained?
- What does it cost him and his family?
- Can he defend it before his own conscience in ten years?
Only the fourth option passes all five.
The path I would suggest
- Clean his own desk first: no personal use of official facilities in his section, no fund release without documents.
- Collect evidence quietly: files, utilisation certificates, examination records.
- Complain in writing: to the head of department, then the Chief Vigilance Officer. Under the 2004 PIDPI Resolution, the CVC can receive complaints and protect the complainant's identity.
- Propose reform in recruitment: an outside examining agency, CCTV, randomised seating.
- Find allies: honest colleagues, a mentor, the service association.
- Take care of himself: keep records safe and stay calm.
I would remind him that 'eyes, ears and mouth shut' was the advice of the three monkeys about evil, not about duty.
Draw: Concentric circles: 'my desk' → 'my section' → 'department via CVO' → 'CVC'.
Keywords, cases and data to drop in
disillusionment, institutional channels, CVO, CVC, PIDPI Resolution 2004, whistleblower protection, Whistle Blowers Protection Act 2014 (not operational), evidence, sphere of control, recruitment reform, allies, courage of conviction.
Where most answers lose marks
- Advising resignation or a media leak as the first move.
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Fresh examples from current affairs
Supreme Court: no prior approval under Section 17A needed to probe a bribe demand
In a judgment of 16 October 2026, a Supreme Court Bench of Justices S.V.N. Bhatti and N.V. Anjaria held that investigating a bribe demand by a public servant does not need prior approval under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Asking for a bribe, the court said, is not part of discharging official duties.
UPSC angle: Prelims: Sections 7, 7A, 17A and 19 of the PC Act. · Mains GS-II/GS-IV: honest officers versus accountability.
19 Oct 2026Learn the concept
Question text as printed in the official UPSC Civil Services (Main) question paper. The model answer is original Battle IAS work; use it to learn structure, not to memorise.
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