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 ASSIGNMENT SOLUTIONS GUIDE (2017-2018)
M.P.A.-11
State, Society and Public
Administration
Disclaimer/Special Note: These are just the sample of the Answers/Solutions to some of the Questions given in the

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Assignments. These Sample Answers/Solutions are prepared by Private Teacher/Tutors/Authors for the help and guidance
of the student to get an idea of how he/she can answer the Questions in given in the Assignments. We do not claim 100%

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accuracy of these sample answers as these are based on the knowledge and capability of Private Teacher/Tutor. Sample

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answers may be seen as the Guide/Help for the reference to prepare the answers of the Questions given in the Assignment.

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As these Solutions And Answers are prepared by the Private Teacher/Tutor so the chances of error or mistake cannot be

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denied. Any Omission or Error is highly regretted though every care has been taken while preparing these Sample

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Answers/Solutions. Please consult your own Teacher/Tutor before you prepare a Particular Answer and for up-to-date

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and exact information, data and solution. Student should must read and refer the official study material provided by the

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This assignment consists of Sections I and II. There are five questions in each section. You have to
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answer a total of five questions in about 500 words each. It is necessary to attempt at least two questions
from each section. Each question carries 20 marks.

Q. 1. Examine the Gandhian perspective of State. m

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SECTION - I
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Ans. Gandhi and the Modern State: The concept of modern state emerged during the British regime and it

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emphasized democracy in India. The basic structure of this modern state was provided by the rule of law for mainte-
nance of public order and a political arrangement; the real motives were just commercial in nature. A workable basis
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for this state was provided by a taxation method consisting of tax assessment and collection. It also stressed on

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commerce and industry. All these factors favoured the privileged section of the society. The commercial and profes-
sional class felt alienated.
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Gandhiji’s own exposure to law and his study of the functioning of the British state, in England and in the
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colonial territory of South Africa helped him to understand the theoretical framework of the modern state and its

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actual working in different situations. Thus, he developed an understanding of the modern state with a new perspective.

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Critique of the Modern State

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The mode of operation of the modern state violated Gandhiji’s concept of non-violence. He also disagreed to the

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moral dimensions of this state as it weakened the sense of responsibility and personal integrity. He criticized the
modern state on the basis of certain factors, highlighted below:

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Concept of Autonomy: It consisted of two distinct ideas. First, citizens should not be dominated by other
citizens or by the state. Second, individuals should be self-governing, should possess moral standards for a self-
evaluative assessment and accept responsibility for individual choices.
Thus, Gandhian autonomy was based on set of moral principles that acted as a guide to action and necessity on
the part of individuals comprising the state to be self-reflective and responsible for their actions. He suggested self-
rule as an exercise of non-domination for everyone. He believed that modernity was an obstacle to autonomy as it
has introduced and justified new forms of domination based on pre-determined process of economic activity. He
also felt that autonomous person had no link with the modern state and hence, this state could also not achieve the
goals of self-governance.
Gandhiji was also a critique of the modern state as he believed it to be a rigid setup that blindly followed rules
and regulations. Interestingly, he also compared this form of state to an uncontrollable machine. A modern state with

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its uniform rules and bureaucratic management specially came under attack from Gandhiji. He believed that this very
nature of the state would not accept individual differences and diverse opinions and attitudes.
He held the setup of the modern state as being responsible for spreading violence in disguise, concealed behind a
net of rules.
All this made him strongly believe in the ideology of non-violence. The ethics of non-violence illustrated freedom
from moral blame and freedom from all intentions to harm others.
Gandhiji never favoured the concept of a modern state as he felt that it was not compatible with the essential
human moral values. He strongly felt that an alternative model must be developed for organising the society.
Modern State and India
During his days in colonial South Africa, Gandhi ji had been observing the functioning of the modern state and its
institutions. He was wondering over as to how any of its elements could be of any use for his vision of an independent

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India. With voices increasing in favour of replicating the modern state concept for an independent India, Gandhi ji had
to offer an alternative view for the country, keeping in mind the actual nature of the modern state that he had
observed.

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He felt that the modern state concept was inconsistent as a case for a modern India due to the following
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comparison:
Indian Civilization

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Modern State
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Spirituality was the essence of Indian
Civilization
People generally believed in non-violence
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State was the result of Materialist Civilization.

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State’s violent character was a known fact.
l Indian Civilization was rich with diverse l
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It promoted homogeneity and was impersonal

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customs and way of life.
Primarily, India was a rural country.
Stratified Indian society had autonomous
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in nature.

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It was based on urban civilization.
A modern state had uniform system of laws,
self. governing castes, sects and ethics

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groups that needed a variegated system of
governance.
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rules and procedures that removed variations
in the society.

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The society was based on direct, non-

were also valued in principle.

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intervened relations between people that

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l This form of state was an abstract institution.

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l Due to its immense social diversity, an l
independent India would need a reconstruction would require a large degree

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decentralized power structure.
d of state’s power, threatening people’s freedom.
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To have an equitable society, the
decentralized model was considered ideal as
l Here, the society was likely to be dominated
by urban elite classes whose values would be

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political power would vest with its large rural in confrontation with the values of rural
populace. masses. This would lead to further social
exploitation and alienation amongst the

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Thus, the above comparison illustrated that the concept of a modern state was rejected by Gandhiji as an option
for an independent India. What was essentially needed was an alternative model whose essence and characteristics
would keep in mind India’s traditions and history and simultaneously enable the country to face the developed world
at an equal footing.
Q. 2. Discuss the role of State in globalisation context.
Ans. Role of the state in the Globalization Context: Since independence the Indian economy had primarily
been a planned economy with a socialist focus as a large number of its people were poor and dependent on agricul-
ture. It was not really capitalist in nature with a market driven focus. The state controlled several critical areas in the

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economy. This seemed quite relevant for the country for several decades. However, the rapidly changing global
economic scenario during the nineties and the advent of increasing globalization combined with the difficult domestic
economic situation during the early nineties, forced the government to open up its economy too.
Due to globalization, the economies have opened up. With expanding international trade and commerce along
with wider acceptance of technologies, the barriers of distance and time have lost their significance. However, this
global trend has begun affecting the concept of a state in many different ways.
The move of a centrally planned economy to a market-based one has put a doubt on the process of globalization
in terms of relevance and efficiency of a state. A market-based economy encourages the participation and growth of
the private sector in the functioning of a state. Many critics feel that the indulgence of the private sector in the state’s
affairs will favour select sections of the society. There is also a doubt that features like democracy and equality
amongst others will not retain their relevance due to privatization of various functions hitherto done by the government.
Globalization has mainly been brought about by the IT revolution. Now, any developing country or its state
can access any information regarding governance and its various activities with exchange of information and
technology. State plays a vital role to eradicate various problems and promotes the interest of the weaker
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sections of the society.

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On the other hand, developed and strong states are facing negatives of globalization as it has become easy for

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some states to interfere and pressurize on international policies. National decision-making process can be easily
transferred to local levels of government. Thus, strong states can easily affect the policy or decision-making process
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whereas, weaker states have lesser role to play.

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The process of globalization cannot be reversed. It is a global challenge that has broadened the sphere of public
administration. It effects public administration in both positive and negative ways. It is all up to developing nation as to

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how to tackle the impact of globalization and how it can adapt itself to positivity and negativity of the process of
globalization. It is an efficiency of the state to fit into the concept of globalization. It tries to build a healthy partnership
between the state and civil society. Thus, the crux of the concept of globalization is that it should not only develop

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collaboration of state with the private sector but also ensure transparency, empowerment and accountability.
Q. 3. Describe the concept and role of social equity in public administration.

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Ans. Concept of Social Equity: The norm of social equity is relatively new and although it is generally under-

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stood as equality, its meaning now has being specifically understood in the context of social justice. It is also called

nessed a broadening of its scope.

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social engineering in the present context. With changing context, the norm has incorporated newer inputs and wit-
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For instance, earlier social equity usually focused on caste reform and removal of untouchability etc. However, in
the current context, its sphere is much wider as it also includes issues like making the society more equitable in terms
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of social and human resources, gender equality, educational awareness, demographic composition etc. Besides, it also

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includes factors of common good, community services, cultural freedom, human rights etc.
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With the world globalizing rapidly and becoming like one big global village, people are migrating in numbers to

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economically better regions and states. This has led to many countries witnessing a change in their demographics,
having a mix of people from different backgrounds and ethnicity. This new influx of people is also contributing

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economically to their new societies. This has trend has made it vital for countries to further tune their administrative
structures to maintain social harmony and cultural freedom. Similar trend can also be witnessed in India as people
move and settle from their native state to another state for better prospects.
With democracy and human rights finding increasing acceptance amongst the people, social equity would be
difficult to realize if the state and the society does not respect their social diversity and maintain harmony.
Some theorists have also illustrated social equity as a principle that every citizen has the right to equal treatment
by the political system. If a state’s public administration system only focusses on efficiency and economy, then it is
bound to disregard the aspect of social equity.
According to George Frederickson, social equity implies a combination of three types of equalities.
l Individual Equality: Implies one class of equals like one-person one-vote.

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 l Segmented Equality: Stems from categories of work classes in a society. While equality might be there in a
particular segment of a society, there might be differences of treatment amongst different social segments,
e.g. Laws of professional conduct for practicing lawyers may be quite different from that of medical
professionals like doctors.
l Block Equality: It stands for equality within a group like women army officers seeking equal remuneration
as their male counterparts in the army.
He also indicated that each of the above equalities is limited to its domain and cannot be applied outside of it.
Emergence of Social Equity in Public Administrative Studies
Public administration systems usually focus at delivering their services efficiently and economically. It covers
all necessary areas that they need to focus on quick decision-making, analysis, research on operations and management.
Therefore, public administrators have not been focusing on the other important issue of social equality and justice,

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allowing inequalities and injustice to persist. First, it is essential to understand the meaning of social equity in the
context of public administration. Social equity emerged as rival concept to the concepts of efficiency and economy

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as guiding principles of public administration. It took on a much broader meaning with the passage of time. At
present, it incorporates a range of values, organisational design choices and choices of different management styles.

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It focuses on equality in government services, responsibility for decision-making and implementing programmes on

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public officers, a change in the perspective of public administration towards responding to citizen’s needs rather

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than the needs of public bodies amongst others.

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Over time, theorists and thinkers contributed several perspectives to the sphere of social equity.
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(ASPA), later becoming the code of ethics.
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The concept of equity was included in the first adopted principles of the American Society of Public Administration

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Efficiency and economy have been the main theories of management while social equity has been a theory of
government. Bringing these two approaches together brings about the larger approach to public administration. In
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the early years of modern public administration in the United States, these two approaches remained balanced.

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However, during 1950s, the country became dominated by management theories and issues. The issue of equity and

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fairness took a backseat. Although public administration remained accepted as a part of the political process, specifics

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were not developed with respect to the ends where public administration could be applied.

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During the same period, as it was also understood that public administration was neutral and not fully involved

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in formulating policies, it ended up ignoring the issue of social equity. However, in the later years as public

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administration became an integral part of policy process, the concept of social equity also gained in importance as a
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guiding principle for administrative activities, alongside the existing concepts of efficiency and economy.
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It is interesting to note that although ‘equality’ is a simple idea but is also quite abstract i.e. it has no clear

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boundaries. On the other hand, administrative practices are defined and complex. Thus, how ‘equality’ as a norm can

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be incorporated with the concept of public administration and its processes continues to pose challenges.
SECTION - II
Q. 6. Bring out the role of bureaucracy in policy implementation.

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Ans. Policy Implementation and the Role Bureaucrats of: Bureaucrats play a significant role in policy
implementation. It can range from providing critical inputs that may actually nullify a policy to a limited input in

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administering a detailed statute. However, discretion is involved in every situation.
The relationship between the legislature that makes policy and bureaucracy the implements it actually affects
policy implementation.
Policy implementation involves several steps. First, one needs to understand the policy statement and decide
whether to implement it or not. Other related questions that emerge here are the adequacy of resources and staff, any
further resources and information required etc. Bureaucrats not only have a role in providing ‘input’ on policies but
also control the ‘output’ functions like execution, follow-ups and effect analysis.
Public policy is effective only when efficiently implemented by the bureaucrat. It is important to note that the
bureaucrat is expected to implement the policy with the same intention and goodwill of the minister who had framed

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it earlier. He is not supposed to do anything that may hurt the minister. Administrative complexities provide bureaucrats
with discretionary powers to execute policies. As they are the interface between the state and the citizens, lower rung
bureaucrats are in an ideal position to determine and control policy implementation.
Both the entities, ministers and bureaucrats work in close cooperation and partnership in formulating and
implementing policies. Bureaucrat is usually accepted as being the catalyst in implementing policy while the final
decision rests with the minister.
Bureaucrats play a critical role in formulating public policy. They provide important inputs that give final shape
and definition to public policy. Their role can be explained in terms of their position in the bureaucratic hierarchy-
top level and middle level.
The top level of bureaucracy mostly plays an advisory and supervisory role in policy formulation. As they

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directly interact with the minister, it’s their responsibility to ensure that the final policy outcome incorporates all
possible aspects desired by the legislature. They provide vital inputs based on their experience and knowledge in
defining policy details, incorporating legislative inputs, final implementation and policy analysis.

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Top level bureaucrats also have to keep in mind their relationship with the political executive and their views

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that can be incorporated. It is interesting to note here that the relationship between politicians and bureaucrats varies

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across different policy areas, over time and under rule of different political parties.

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Besides information, the bureaucrat also provides factual advice on which policy to follow, by weighing various

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pros and cons. But it finally depends upon the minister to determine the suggestions that they can finally incorporate.
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The middle level bureaucrats are also play an active role in policy formulation as they are involved in drafting
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bills, compiling white papers, and identifying any gaps that exist between details on paper and actual requirements.
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They have an active role in formulating, monitoring and advising on policy details to their superiors in the bureaucracy,
so that correct decisions may be taken.
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Q. 7. Write a note on conflict management at micro and macro levels.
Ans. Conflict Resolution at the Micro Level Conflict Resolution at Intra-organisational Level: There
are three basic types of conflicts within the organisation namely task conflict, inter-group conflict and procedural

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conflict.

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Disagreement about ‘communication’ is known as task conflict. There may be disagreement of group members

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regarding facts or opinions provided by authorities. Orders may lie outside the area of acceptance. There may also be

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a question on interpretation of evidence.
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According to Barnard, people don’t deny the authority of communication because they realize that it is a threat

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to all individuals who benefit from the organisation. On the other hand, if a system results in inadequate, contradictory

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and inept orders then it may create task conflict. In such cases, the leadership needs to ensure that orders are clearly
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understood by all. Various methods of communication can be used to ensure this. Mary Parker Follet has given the
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following three ways to resolve conflicts.
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1. Domination: It means victory of one side over the other.

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2. Compromise: Each side should be ready surrender some part of what it wants in order to reach a settlement.
3. Integration: One has to bring differences into the open instead of suppressing them. Integration always

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requires high intelligence, keep perception, discrimination and good inventiveness.
There is another potential area of conflict-Intra-group conflict. This is related to relationships within the
organisation or group. This conflict is unavoidable and must be managed for optimal group maintenance.
Experts have given a six-step process to describe this, as follows:
1. Recognition and acknowledgement that conflict exists.
2. Analysis of the existing situation.
3. Facilitation of communication.
4. Negotiation.
5. Provision for necessary adjustments, reinforcement and confirmation.
6. Realisation of living with conflicts as all conflicts cannot be resolved.

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Inter-organisational Level Conflict Resolution
At inter-organisational level, conflict resolution has two aspects, namely:
(a) The environment of a particular organisation. Other linked organisations may have conflict over goals.
(b) ‘Institutional pluralism’–in an attempt to reinvent government or effective governance, many service delivery
agencies, both public and private, operate in the same area.
Conflict Management at the Macro Level
Stratified structures that are functionally specified are accompanied with development process. Due to differing
goals of these structures, there may be a conflicting situation.
Policy-making as Conflict Resolution
According to some thinkers, nurturing democracy is the best tool to manage difficult conflicts. Democratic
principles, institutions and rules can easily manage the unavoidable social conflicts in various societies. Hence,

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there is no doubt that democracy as a system of political decision-making is quite helpful in conflict resolution.
Towards Proactive Conflict Resolution

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Sometimes conflict situations are unmanageable and they develop so frequently that it becomes impossible to
resolve them by any peaceful means. Here, an urgent needs arises to create mechanisms for recognizing and resolving

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conflict amongst people, so that the conflict itself does not become so serious that cooperation becomes impossible.

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Mary Parker Follet has highlighted the idea of constructive conflict. She believes that conflicts in groups or

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organisations are inevitable. Conflict is neither good nor bad. It is not like a war but is rather an appearance of
difference. Proactive conflict management aims at preventing conflicts.
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This process requires certain steps that are mentioned below:
Integrated conflict management systems
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This system has five features as follows:
(a) Making available alternatives for preventing, identifying and resolving all types of problems in an organisation.
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(b) Motivating resolution of conflict at the beginning (lowest level) through direct negotiation.

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(c) Multiple access system to help employees locate a trustworthy individual for advice on conflict management.

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(d) Multiple options for new employees to resolve conflicts.
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Strengthening Institutions

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(e) Providing all necessary support and structures to access all options to resolve conflicts.
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Each institution is setup by formal rules, having clearly understood rules and responsibilities to avoid overlapping.

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Policy-makers should not blame weak institutions for any failure of the system as it will compromise the conflict

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management capacities of institutions and give rise to further conflicts.
Central Coordinating Point f
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Every system has its own coordinating points for resolving conflicts. For example, the PMO acts as a coordinating

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point because whenever there is a dispute between ministers, it intervenes to resolve that conflict.

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System Evaluation and Monitoring Mechanisms

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Communication–upward, downward and horizontal-is vital for efficient functioning of an organisation. Feedback
loops ensure that there is a link between conflicts, resolutions, identification of the need for systematic change and

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assessment of trends.
Evaluation is the key to a system’s success as it informs the organisation of the strengths and weaknesses of its
design and thus provides the opportunity for improvement.
Capacity Building
Change in the environment and increasing pressure on organisation’s demand that stakeholders should be capable
to cope with the increased demands of the tasks. To meet the increasing and changing expectations of society, there
is a need for radical changes in attitudes and behaviour in public administration systems. For instance, the Ministry of
Agriculture, before giving a subsidy on an item, needs to be aware of the implications of such subsidy in the World
Trade Organisation (WTO).

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People’s Participation
Another step in proactive conflict management is people’s participation, in the form of decentralization of powers.
It not only deepens democracy but also enables people to include their voice in the policy process as it helps in
identifying and resolving conflicts.
Civil Society Organisations
Several Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) are working throughout the world at various levels. These include
NGOs, trade unions, faith based organisations, self-help groups, indigenous people’s movements and others. They
play a vital role in the policy process that, in turn, not only strengthens them but also encourages community
participation. They also help mobilise people on various issues.
International Organisations
International conflict management is a dynamic, inter-disciplinary field. It has evolved as a response to conflicts

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in international relations. Problems related to international the sphere are not limited to violence only. Socio-economic
and environmental issues are also important and cause concern among the international community. With increasing
globalization, MNCs are increasing their operations across several countries. Interests of a company may come into

have been adopted.

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conflict with the country where it is based. Therefore, to resolve these types of conflicts, three main mechanisms

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(a) Negotiation: It is a deliberate process in which representatives of groups in conflict situation get together to
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solve their differences. They reconcile their differences and reach an agreement through mutual consensus.

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(b) Mediation: A neutral, independent mediator tries to settle a conflict by playing an active role by advising
both groups. Though the advice is not binding upon the groups.
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(c) Arbitrator: An independent individual who acts as a judge is appointed to settle the disputes and both

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parties have to accept the final decision of this adjudicator.

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International organisations such as United Nations (UN), WHO and the International Court of Justice work to
settle various disputes between countries across the world. Even so, the signatory countries are bound by the rules
and regulations of these organisations.

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