UPSC Mains 2021 GS2 Q15 — Parliamentary Committees
Do Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committees keep the administration on its toes and inspire reverence for parliamentary control? Evaluate the working of such committees with suitable examples. (Answer in 250 words)
Question Decoded — examiner's intent
- Directive verbs
- Evaluate
- Scope keywords
- Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committeesadministration on its toesreverence for parliamentary controlworking of such committeessuitable examples
- Implicit sub-parts
- How the DRSCs act as a mechanism for day-to-day administrative accountability and legislative oversight.
- The extent to which the bureaucracy 'reveres' or takes committee recommendations seriously (compliance vs. defiance).
- Factors limiting their effectiveness (e.g., non-binding nature, absenteeism, lack of technical expertise).
- Specific recent examples or reports where DRSC intervention led to policy shifts or administrative correction.
- Common pitfalls
- Focusing only on the composition and tenure of committees rather than their 'working' and 'impact' as asked.
- Failing to differentiate between DRSCs and Financial Committees (PAC/Estimates), leading to generic points on accountability.
- Not providing specific examples of recent committee reports (e.g., on Health, IT, or Defense) to ground the evaluation.
- Ignoring the 'reverence' aspect of the question, which requires discussing the prestige and moral authority of the committee's consensus-based reports.
- Dimensions required
- Constitutional/LegislativeAdministrative/BureaucraticProcedural/OperationalEmpirical (Case-study based)
- Marks allocation hint
Allocate 50-60 words to the 'keeping on toes' aspect by explaining the scrutiny of demands for grants and bills. Spend about 100-120 words on the 'evaluation' of their working with specific examples of successes and failures. Devote the final 70-80 words to the 'reverence' and reforms needed to ensure their recommendations carry more weight.
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