Hello Shivani,

Well ethics paper in upsc have been included to test the ethical standards of the aspirants. Ethics paper or the General studies paper 4 of IAS mains is one of the most challenging aspects of the IAS mains exam.Many IAS aspirants underestimate the ethics paper as the syllabus has very generic terms such as happiness, attitude, aptitude, values or morals which are regarded an easy to write by the candidate but the same vagueness of these terms makes this paper highly unpredictable.The contemporary society has witnessed a declining standard of ethical and accountability values among the civil servants. The adverse impact of corruption is felt in every aspect of administration and society. Thus, the introduction of ethics paper has come as an attempt to restore the new generation of civil servants.

Moreover, many candidates think that rather than spending time on an easy paper like ethics, then should spend more time on the tough concepts of general studies paper 1, 2 and 3. But IAS aspirants should remember that all the 4 papers are of 250 marks and the ethics paper is the most scoring of all the 4 as it has a crisp syllabus and can be practised more. IAS aspirants should remember that it is the ethics paper, the Essay Paper and Optional paper that can fetch them more marks apart from the other GS papers (I, II, and III).

Case studies are a classic way to test the candidate’s intrinsic decision making power and what is his/her way through logic in a crisis situation. That is why when a case study is taken; UPSC will always ask your opinion as an officer should do in the same situation. The answer should be based on both the factors that are from the point of view of morality and ethics. The action taken by you as mentioned in your answer should be morally correct for you and ethically to the others as well.

I hope you find it helpful. All the best.