UPSC Mains 2019 GS Paper 4 Q5a: model answer
What do you understand by probity in governance? Based on your understanding of the term, suggest measures for ensuring probity in government.
What the question wants
Explain probity in governance and suggest measures to ensure it in government.
How to structure it
Meaning, measures in layers.
- Meaning
- Personal
- Institutional
- Legal
- Citizen-centred
How to think it through
Probity: integrity, honesty, procedural uprightness; no conflict, fair use of funds. Measures: personal—values, training; institutional—codes, conflict of interest rules, asset declaration, transparent procurement (GeM 2016), e-office, rotation; legal —PCA, Lokpal, whistleblower, Benami Act 2016, PMLA; citizen—RTI, social audit, citizen charters; political—electoral funding (electoral bonds struck down Feb 2024).
Model answer
Probity in governance means that public power and public money are used honestly, fairly and only for public purposes, with procedures that can bear scrutiny. It is integrity built into the system, not just into individuals.
Measures to ensure probity
### Personal
- Ethics training and mentoring in the early years of service.
- Recognition for honest officers, not only for fast ones.
### Institutional
- A code of ethics in addition to conduct rules.
- Conflict-of-interest disclosure and recusal rules.
- Transparent procurement through the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), launched in 2016.
- E-office systems that leave a trail of every file movement.
- Rotation in sensitive posts.
### Legal
- The Prevention of Corruption Act (amended 2018), the Lokpal and Lokayuktas.
- The Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016 and the PMLA against hidden wealth.
- Real protection for whistleblowers.
### Citizen-centred
- RTI, social audits and enforceable citizen's charters.
### Political
- Transparent political funding; in February 2024, the Supreme Court struck down the electoral bonds scheme for violating voters' right to information.
Probity is not one law but a web; each strand alone is weak, together they hold.
Draw: A web with five strands: personal, institutional, legal, citizen, political.
Keywords, cases and data to drop in
probity in governance, honest and fair use of power, ethics training, code of ethics, conflict of interest, GeM 2016, e-office, rotation, PCA 2018, Lokpal, Benami Act 2016, PMLA, whistleblowers, RTI, social audit, citizen's charter, electoral bonds struck down Feb 2024.
Where most answers lose marks
- Suggesting only laws; probity needs systems and culture too.
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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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