What are the basic principles of public life? Illustrate any three of these with suitable examples.

Public life is governed by ethical principles that ensure commitment to the goals of public service. The 2nd ARC report on Personnel Administration, as well as the NOLAN committee report highlight various principles of public life. 

1. Integrity: Integrity refers to the incessant commitment to consistency in thought, speech and action. People like Satyendra Dubey, Manjunath Shanmugam, E. Shreedharan have shown integrity in public life

2. Leadership: Leadership refers to the quality of individuals in effectively leading a team. Leaders of the Indian national movement including Gandhi, Nehru and Ambedkar are the finest examples. 

3. Selflessness: Selflessness refers to the ethical ideal of putting the interest of people, particularly the poorest Antyodaya before oneself. It demands sacrifices and compassion. Baba Amte’s compassion for patients, Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi’s efforts for child welfare were for example driven by selflessness. 

The basic principles of public life should thus be reinforced through training of civil servants as well as accountability tools of RTI, Citizen’s Charter, Social Audit etc. The higher the standards of public life, the lower are the chances of moral corruption in any society.