UPSC 2018 GS-IV · 10 marks · 150 words
What is meant by conflict of interest? Illustrate with examples the difference between the actual and potential conflicts of interest.
What “Illustrate” demands
make the point through specific, concrete examples rather than generalities.
The characteristic failure: asserting the general claim with no example that demonstrates it.
What a top answer must contain
These are the checkable specifics from the marking standard for this question — the actual case, committee, datum or thinker, not an instruction to “give examples”.
- Definition: a situation where a public servant's private interest could improperly influence the discharge of official duty
- Actual: the interest is presently influencing a decision — an officer awarding a contract to a firm owned by a relative
- Potential: the interest could influence a future decision — an officer holding shares in a sector they may soon regulate
- Perceived conflict as the third category worth naming, since credibility turns on appearance too
- Safeguards: declaration of assets and interests, recusal, post-retirement cooling-off, OECD guidelines on managing conflict of interest
The band thresholds and the pre-scored sample answers behind this standard stay private — they are the calibration your copy is placed against.
Now write it, and find out what you actually scored
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