(a) One of the tests of integrity is complete refusal to be compromised. Explain with reference to a real life example. (b) Corporate social responsibility makes companies more profitable and sustainable. Analyse.
Approach · directive: “explain / analyse”
What it asks · (a) Show, with a real example, how refusing to be compromised tests integrity; (b) analyse whether corporate social responsibility makes companies more profitable and sustainable.
The question has 3 parts — answer each
- (a) Explain how complete refusal to be compromised tests integrity
- (a) Illustrate with a real-life example
- (b) Analyse whether corporate social responsibility makes companies more profitable and sustainable
Open with · (a) Integrity means acting on principle when it is costly to do so; (b) CSR asks a company to serve society as well as its shareholders.
Cover
- (a) Meaning: integrity is proved when pressure or temptation to yield is real and the person still refuses to bend.
- (a) Example: NHAI engineer Satyendra Dubey exposed corrupt highway contracts in 2002 and was murdered in 2003; his case sparked debate on protecting whistleblowers.
- (a) Lesson: refusal builds credibility; compromises begin small, so firmness on small matters guards against big ones.
- (b) Profitability: goodwill, brand value, employee morale and access to talent and capital can raise returns over time, and CSR reduces social and regulatory risk.
- (b) Sustainability: care for environment, workers and communities secures a company's social licence to operate and lowers long-term risk.
- (b) Law: Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013 requires larger companies to spend at least 2 per cent of average net profit on CSR.
- (b) Caution: CSR treated as a box-ticking cost adds expense without gain; benefit comes when it fits core business and local needs.
Close with · Integrity is proved under pressure, and CSR pays when it comes from real commitment rather than compliance alone.
Add value (verified)
- PIDPI Resolution: after Satyendra Dubey's murder, the Supreme Court (2004, W.P. (C) No. 539/2003) directed a machinery for whistle-blower complaints; the Government's PIDPI Resolution (No. 89, 21 April 2004) made the Central Vigilance Commission the designated agency. Awareness on PIDPI (Public Interest Disclosure and Protection of Informers) — Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (Government of India enterprise), vigilance document ↗“In 2004, in response to a Writ Petition (Civil) No. 539/2003 filed after the murder of Shri Satyendra Dubey, the Supreme Court directed that a machinery be put in place for acting on complaints from whistle- blowers till a law is enacted.”
- PIDPI Resolution of 21 April 2004: the Central Vigilance Commission is the designated agency to receive whistle-blower complaints. Awareness on PIDPI — Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (Government of India enterprise), vigilance document ↗“Resolution No. 89 dated 21st April, 2004, commonly known as , envisages a mechanism by which a complainant can blow a whistle by lodging a complaint and also seek protection against his victimisation for doing so. The Central Vigilance Commission is the designated agency to receive complaints from whistle blowers under the PIDPI Resolution.”
- Gandhi's theory of trusteeship: wealth beyond an honourable livelihood belongs to the community and must be used for its welfare. M.K. Gandhi, Trusteeship (comp. Ravindra Kelekar, Navajivan, 1960), Ch 2 'Theory of Trusteeship' — mkgandhi.org ↗“what belongs to me is the right to an honourable livelihood, no better than that enjoyed by millions of others. The rest of my wealth belongs to the community and must be used for the welfare of the community.”
- Milton Friedman (New York Times Magazine, 13 September 1970): the one social responsibility of business is to increase its profits while staying within the rules of the game. Milton Friedman, 'The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits' (1970) — University of Pittsburgh course reading ↗“there is one and only one social responsibility of business—to use its resources and engage in activities designed to increase its profits so long as it stays within the rules of the game, which is to say, engages in open and free competition without deception or fraud.”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2017, GS Paper IV — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 374 words (UPSC limit 150) · Minimalist IAS
Integrity is wholeness of character, conduct that follows conviction. Its real test comes not in calm times but when yielding would be easy, profitable or safe.
(a) Why complete refusal tests integrity
- Small first steps: compromise begins with a file cleared under pressure or a gift accepted; refusing the first step makes refusal of the big ones credible.
- Reputation as a shield: an officer known to be unbuyable and unafraid receives fewer offers and threats.
- Lawful, not obstinate: integrity says no to wrong, not to inconvenience; the refusal is reasoned and recorded.
(a) A real-life example
- Satyendra Dubey: an engineer with the National Highways Authority of India, he exposed corruption in highway contracts in 2002 instead of looking away, and was murdered in 2003.
- His legacy: after his murder, the Supreme Court in 2004 ordered a mechanism for whistle-blowers' complaints; the PIDPI Resolution (April 2004) made the Central Vigilance Commission the agency to receive them.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) asks a company to answer for its effect on workers, communities and nature. Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013 requires larger companies to spend at least 2 per cent of average net profit on it.
(b) How CSR can raise profit and sustainability
- Profit: brand trust wins customers, a fair reputation attracts talent and capital, and good neighbours mean fewer protests and lawsuits.
- Sustainability: care for water, waste and workers secures the social licence to operate, so plants keep running.
- Indian root: Gandhi's trusteeship held that wealth beyond an honourable livelihood "belongs to the community and must be used for the welfare of the community".
(b) Where the claim weakens
- The classic objection: Milton Friedman (1970) wrote that there is "one and only one social responsibility of business": to increase profits within the rules of the game.
- Tick-box CSR: spending unrelated to the core business or local need adds cost and invites the charge of greenwashing.
- Long horizon: returns are slow and hard to measure; CSR used to hide misconduct loses more when exposed.
Integrity is proved under pressure and CSR pays when it is genuine; in both, the lasting return comes from doing right before it is rewarded.
Written by Minimalist IAS from facts checked at source (how we verify) — a little fuller than exam length, so every part of the question is covered; in the hall, keep the structure and trim the detail. UPSC publishes no model answers: compare your structure and coverage with this, then write your own.