UPSC Mains 2019 GS4 Q11 — Narcotics & Governance
In one of the districts of a frontier state, narcotics menace has been rampant. This has resulted in money laundering, mushrooming of poppy farming, arms smuggling and near stalling of education. The system is on the verge of collapse. The situation has been further worsened by unconfirmed reports that local politicians as well as some senior police officers are providing surreptitious patronage to the drug mafia. At that point of time a woman police officer, known for her skills in handling such situations is appointed as Superintendent of Police to bring the situation to normalcy. If you are the same police officer, identify the various dimensions of the crisis. Based on your understanding, suggest measures to deal with the crisis. (250 words)
Question Decoded — examiner's intent
- Directive verbs
- identifysuggest
- Scope keywords
- frontier statenarcotics menacemoney launderingsurreptitious patronagenear stalling of educationbring the situation to normalcy
- Implicit sub-parts
- Stakeholder analysis including the drug-addicted youth, the mafia, the colluding state machinery, and the security of the frontier region.
- Ethical dilemmas faced by the SP when dealing with senior colleagues and political superiors involved in the nexus.
- Short-term enforcement measures to break the supply chain versus long-term socio-economic rehabilitation of the district.
- Internal accountability mechanisms to clean up the police department from within.
- Common pitfalls
- Focusing only on law enforcement (police raids) while ignoring the 'stalling of education' and the social rehabilitation aspect.
- Suggesting direct confrontation with senior officers/politicians without gathering evidence, which is pragmatically suicidal for a civil servant.
- Ignoring the 'frontier state' context which implies a national security/cross-border dimension beyond simple local crime.
- Failing to address the money laundering and poppy farming aspects, focusing only on drug consumption.
- Dimensions required
- Security and Law EnforcementAdministrative Ethics and IntegritySocio-Economic (Education and Health)National Security (Geopolitical context)Legal (PMLA and NDPS Act application)
- Marks allocation hint
Devote approximately 75-100 words to identifying the multi-layered dimensions (Security, Ethical, Social, and Economic). Use the remaining 150 words for a structured action plan, balancing 'punitive' measures against the mafia and 'reformative' measures for the community, ensuring specific mention of how to handle the political-police nexus.
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