UPSC CSE Prelims
Question 3
The fundamental object of Panchayati Raj system is to ensure which among the following?
- People's participation in development
- Political accountability
- Democratic decentralization
- Financial mobilization
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
View correct answer and explanation
Correct answer: C
Correct Option: C
Explanation: Panchayati Raj primarily institutionalises grassroots participation and democratic decentralisation; the keyed formulation emphasises these two core objectives rather than all possible benefits.
Statement/Pair-wise Analysis:
Statement/Item 1: Correct - Elected village institutions promote direct participation in local development.
Statement/Item 2: Incorrect - Political accountability is an important benefit, but is not selected as a defining core objective in this question’s keyed classification.
Statement/Item 3: Correct - Power is decentralised to elected institutions closer to rural communities.
Statement/Item 4: Incorrect - Mobilising finance supports local governance, but is not one of the two stated fundamental objectives.
Option-wise Analysis:
A: Incorrect - includes incorrect statement/item 2.
B: Incorrect - includes incorrect statement/items 2, 4; omits correct statement/items 1, 3.
C: Correct - includes all and only the correct items.
D: Incorrect - includes incorrect statement/items 2, 4.
Review Note: Interpretive question: accountability is widely seen as an aim of local democracy; supplied answer selects 1 and 3 only.