Prelims 2012 · archive
MediumWhich of the following can be said to be essentially the parts of ‘Inclusive Governance’?
- 1.Permitting the Non-Banking Financial Companies to do banking.
- 2.Establishing effective District Planning Committees in all the districts.
- 3.Increasing government spending on public health.
- 4.Strengthening the Mid-day Meal Scheme.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
Answer & explanation
Answer: (c) 2, 3 and 4 only
Inclusive governance means decentralised, participatory planning and public spending on basic services, so that the benefits of growth reach the poor and weaker sections. Effective District Planning Committees, higher public health spending and a stronger Mid-day Meal Scheme all fit this. Letting NBFCs do banking is a question of financial-sector regulation, not an essential part of inclusive governance. NBFCs are not banks.
- ✗ 1. NBFCs lend and invest, but they are not banks. They cannot accept demand deposits, are not part of the payment and settlement system, and cannot issue cheques drawn on themselves. Whether to let them do banking is a regulatory matter for the financial sector, not an essential part of inclusive governance.
- ✓ 2. Article 243ZD, inserted by the 74th Constitutional Amendment (1992), provides for a District Planning Committee in every district. Its job is to prepare a draft development plan for the district as a whole. Effective DPCs bring planning down to the local level, which is central to participatory, inclusive governance.
- ✓ 3. Public expenditure on health in India was only about 1.2 per cent of GDP. The Twelfth Plan document records the recommendation to raise it to at least 2.5 per cent of GDP by the end of the Plan. More public health spending widens access to health care for those who cannot afford it.
- ✓ 4. The Twelfth Plan, titled 'Faster, More Inclusive and Sustainable Growth', names Mid Day Meals alongside flagship social programmes such as Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, ICDS and NRHM. Strengthening the scheme supports children's nutrition and schooling, which makes it an inclusive measure.
- • Answer Statements 2, 3 and 4 are essential parts of inclusive governance. Statement 1 is not.
Remember · Inclusive governance covers decentralised planning (DPCs) and public spending on health, nutrition and education. NBFCs cannot accept demand deposits or issue cheques, so they are not banks.
📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 12 Social Change and Development in India, Ch 3 (practise this chapter)
Sources
- NCERT Class 12 · Social Change and Development in India, Chapter 3 “It constituted District Planning Committee to prepare drafts and develop plans for the district as a whole.”
- Reserve Bank of India – Frequently Asked Questions on NBFCs ↗ “NBFCs cannot accept demand deposits; NBFCs do not form part of the payment and settlement system and cannot issue cheques drawn on itself”
- Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012–2017), Vol. I – Faster, More Inclusive and Sustainable Growth (Planning Commission) ↗ “Sarva Siksha Abhiyan (SSA), Mid Day Meals (MDMs), Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), and so on.”
- Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012–2017), Vol. III – Social Sectors, Health chapter (Planning Commission) ↗ “Government should increase public expenditure on health from the current level of 1.2 per cent of GDP to at least 2.5 per cent by the end of the Twelfth Plan”
Question: UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) 2012, General Studies paper. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 25 Oct 2026 (how we verify). ·