Probity in Governance

Probity in Governance is an essential provision required by the Indian government, which ensures the government’s proper functioning. It is set to execute the governance system properly and ensure the development in the socio and economic aspects of the government.

The term is defined in specific values on morale and ethics, such as honesty, integrity, morality, and uprightness, amongst several other examples. Hence, this probity refers to the presence of procedural integrity paired with a high standard of ethical behaviour.

This topic comes under the subject of Indian Polity and governance in General Studies paper 2 of the UPSC Syllabus.

Components of Probity in Governance

Probity in Governance makes clear that apart from the conventional values of performance, integrity, and patriotism in civil services, civil officers need to indulge in and adapt to the various ethical and integral values, including the likes of respect for human rights, public life morality and the portrayal of compassion for the oppressed and the means to ensure their welfare. Therefore, candidates must note that the topic of probity in Governance UPSC is crucial, and multiple questions are asked.

The Purposes of Probity in Governance

As mentioned earlier, certain duties and purposes of probity in Governance must be fulfilled. These include:

1. Ensuring that the public or the citizens of the country do not lose their confidence in the processes of the government; ensures that public confidence is preserved.
2. It maintains strong moral principles and qualities like honesty in public services.
3. Probity in Governance makes sure that the country’s government is accountable for its actions. Accountability in Governance is a vital part of the government system.
4. It ensures a level of compliance between the different processes of the government.
5. One of the most important functions that the probity in Governance has to ensure is to avoid the potential for misconduct, fraud, and corruption in the various levels of functioning of the government.

These functions and purposes are integral to the UPSC syllabus and must be read thoroughly.

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Measures to Ensure Probity in Governance

To ensure the portrayal of proper probity in Governance, certain steps and measures must be adhered to. These measures are:

1. Both at the state and the central level of the government, the government officials must ensure the establishment of dedicated units assigned the duty to oversee the violation of the code of ethics and the code of conduct by high-ranking officials. Learning about these units is an essential part of the UPSC prelims.
2. Information regarding the various functions of the government and the duties they perform to ensure the fulfillment of these functions must be made available to the general public of the country via the means of websites.
3. It must be made mandatory that Government officials and employees provide their declaration of assets and liabilities, and it must be accompanied by proper auditing.
4. The government must also ensure that a proper and independent anti-corruption agency or unit is established to reduce and eradicate government officials’ high levels of corruption and fraud.
5. The Citizen Advisor Board must pay proper attention to the needs and ideas of the general public and ensure that their needs are met to improve the process of Governance.
6. For smooth functioning, a mandatory Social Audit must be implemented for all government programs, both at the state and the central level. Meghalaya works as a fine example of this as they have passed a law that ensures appropriate social audits for all government programs.
7. Awareness amongst government employees and officials must be raised regarding the problem corruption causes to society. A special unit must be established which will look into the ground of behavioural changes amongst these employees, which will help in increasing the level of empathy between them and the common mass. This will ensure that the common mass is heard and ensure proper Governance.

Candidates can download the probity in governance UPSC PDF for further explanations.

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