(a) What do you understand by the term ‘good governance’? How far recent initiatives in terms of e-Governance steps taken by the State have helped the beneficiaries? Discuss with suitable examples. (b) Online methodology is being used for day-to-day meetings, institutional approvals in the administration and for teaching and learning in education sector to the extent telemedicine in the health sector is getting popular with the approvals of the competent authority. No doubt, it has advantages and disadvantages for both the beneficiaries and the system at large. Describe and discuss the ethical issues involved in the use of online method particularly to the vulnerable section of the society.
Approach · directive: “what / how far / describe and discuss”
What it asks · (a) Define good governance and judge how far recent e-governance initiatives have helped beneficiaries; (b) describe and discuss the ethical issues in online methods, especially for vulnerable sections.
The question has 2 parts — answer each
- (a) Explain what you understand by 'good governance', then discuss with suitable examples how far recent e-governance initiatives of the State have helped beneficiaries
- (b) Describe and discuss the ethical issues involved in using online methods (meetings, approvals, teaching, telemedicine), particularly for the vulnerable sections of society
Open with · Good governance is transparent, accountable, responsive, inclusive, effective and rule-based; e-governance is a means to it and not a substitute.
Cover
- (a) Gains: direct benefit transfer with JAM cut leakages; Aadhaar, DigiLocker, UMANG, online tax and GST filing, e-courts and e-office save time and reduce discretion.
- (a) Limits: the digital divide, authentication failures, poor connectivity and literacy, weak grievance redress, and privacy and cyber risks.
- (b) Benefits of online methods: access, speed and lower cost, telemedicine reaching remote patients, and continuity of learning during COVID-19.
- (b) Ethical issues: exclusion of the poor, disabled, elderly and rural people; unequal access to devices; privacy and consent; data misuse; and accountability when systems fail.
- (b) Also: quality and dignity of care and teaching, learning loss among the poor, remote decisions without human judgement, and online fraud.
- (b) Safeguards: hybrid options, assisted digital access, data protection, inclusive design in local languages and human help desks.
- (a) Specific: the DBT Mission records deletion of 6.36 crore duplicate and fake ration cards, with estimated PDS savings of about ₹3.13 lakh crore up to March 2025.
Close with · Technology widens access only when the weakest can use it; an offline or assisted route and enforced data protection turn e-governance into good governance.
Add value (verified)
- DBT Mission (Estimated Gains, up to March 2025): the PDS alone shows deletion of 6.36 crore duplicate and fake ration cards and estimated savings of ₹3,12,977.81 crore — the concrete gain of JAM-based delivery for genuine beneficiaries. Estimated Gains — Direct Benefit Transfer, Government of India ↗“Department of Food and Public Distribution PDS 2,49,972.53 63,005.28 3,12,977.81 Deletion of 6.36 crore duplicate and fake/ non-existent Ration Cards.”
- UN ESCAP: good governance has eight major characteristics: participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive, and following the rule of law. What is Good Governance? — United Nations ESCAP ↗“Good governance has 8 major characteristics. It is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of law.”
- NSS 75th round (July 2017–June 2018): only 14.9% of rural households had internet, against 42.0% of urban households; 4.4% of rural households had a computer. Key Indicators of Household Social Consumption on Education in India, NSS 75th Round (July 2017–June 2018) — PIB, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, 23 November 2019 ↗“Nearly 4.4% of the rural households and 23.4% of the urban households had computer. Nearly 14.9% of the rural households and 42.0% of the urban households had internet facility.”
- The Department of Food and Public Distribution instructed States/UTs (PIB, 5 February 2021) that no genuine beneficiary be deleted or denied foodgrains for want of Aadhaar or for biometric-authentication failure. Cancellation of ration card due to non-seeding with Aadhaar — PIB, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, 5 February 2021 ↗“no genuine beneficiary/household shall be deleted from the list of eligible households and shall not be denied from their entitled quota of foodgrains under NFSA, on the ground of not possessing an Aadhaar number, failure of biometric authentication due to network/ connectivity/ linking issues or any other technical reasons etc.”
- Since the exam: the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (11 August 2023) balances the individual's right to protect personal data with lawful processing. The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (No. 22 of 2023) — Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology ↗“An Act to provide for the processing of digital personal data in a manner that recognises both the right of individuals to protect their personal data and the need to process such personal data for lawful purposes”
Question: UPSC's CS (Main) 2022, GS Paper IV — paper ↗. Approach: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify) — UPSC publishes no model answers. ·
Model answer · 368 words (UPSC limit 150) · Minimalist IAS
In UN ESCAP's words, good governance "has 8 major characteristics": participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive, and following the rule of law. E-governance is a means to it, not a substitute.
(a) How far e-governance has helped beneficiaries
- Leak-proof delivery: DBT on the JAM base pays benefits straight into accounts; since then, the DBT Mission has recorded, to March 2025, deletion of 6.36 crore duplicate and fake ration cards and estimated PDS gains of about ₹3.13 lakh crore.
- Less discretion, less time: online tax and GST filing, e-courts, e-office, DigiLocker and UMANG cut queues, visits and middlemen.
- Limit, the digital divide: the NSS 75th round (2017-18) found internet in only 14.9% of rural households, against 42.0% of urban ones.
- Limit, exclusion by error: authentication failures can deny rations, so the Centre told States (2021) that no genuine household be denied foodgrains for want of Aadhaar or a biometric failure.
- Verdict: clear gains in speed and transparency for the connected; equity is unfinished, so assisted access and offline options remain the State's duty.
(b) Ethical issues in online methods for vulnerable sections
| Ethical issue | Who is hurt | Safeguard |
|---|---|---|
| Exclusion, unequal access | Poor, elderly, disabled, rural women | Offline route, assisted access |
| Consent and privacy | Patients, children | Plain-language consent, data protection |
| Quality and dignity | Remote patients, poor students | Hybrid care and teaching |
- Benefits are real: speed, lower cost, telemedicine reaching remote patients, and classes that continued in COVID-19.
- Justice: those without a device, data or digital literacy lose access; online schooling widened learning gaps; a virtual public hearing shuts out the very people affected.
- Consent and privacy: health and student data are gathered without meaningful consent; since then, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 has recognised "the right of individuals to protect their personal data".
- Dignity and dependence: diagnosis without examination; an elderly patient relies on an intermediary who may exploit that dependence.
- Accountability: approvals in virtual meetings without proper record or dissent; impersonation and fraud; no clear owner when an automated decision harms someone.
Technology widens access only when the weakest can use it. An offline or assisted route in every scheme, with data protection enforced, is what turns e-governance into good governance.
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.