UPSC 2023 GS-IV · 10 marks · 150 words
What do you understand by 'moral integrity' and 'professional efficiency' in the context of corporate governance in India? Illustrate with suitable examples.
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”.
- Define both: integrity = adherence to moral principle when unobserved; efficiency = competence in delivering shareholder and stakeholder value
- The tension: Satyam (efficient-looking fraud) vs Tata's ethics reputation; IL&FS as efficiency without candour
- Governance instruments: Companies Act 2013 (independent directors, CSR), SEBI LODR, Kotak Committee, whistle-blower mechanisms
- Synthesis: integrity is the precondition that makes efficiency trustworthy — one without the other named explicitly with an example each
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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