Answer:
Impartiality can be defined as not being biased or favourable towards any person. It requires that all the decisions should be based on merit and merit alone. Compassion, on the other hand, requires a civil servant to be sensitive to the needs of the people and act to alleviate their problems.
Although impartiality seems to be a hindrance in practising compassion, impartiality and compassion are not contradictory values. A civil servant working in a diverse country like India needs to be aware of the difference required in the approach to serve people placed at different footing. Our Constitution itself has provided for affirmative action in terms of reservation in government jobs and has also directed the State to formulate policies to uplift the status of disadvantaged and vulnerable groups such as women, factory workers, scheduled castes and tribes. It also directs the State to provide legal aid to people who can’t afford it.
An instance where impartiality may seem as hindering compassion is the case where a needy person approaches a civil servant for help however he/she does not possess required documents such as Aadhar number not linked to the ration card or other shortcomings. Impartiality in such a case would require the officer to straight away deny the benefits to the person; however it does not require the officer to be indifferent to the needs of that person. A compassionate officer can and should help that person in arranging the documents.
It is for the same reason that public servants are provided with some level of discretion in their jobs to ensure that they do not blindly follow the principle of impartiality when compassion is needed to ensure effective delivery of public service. The need is to strike a balance between the two values and apply them as per the given situation without breaking the law of the land.
Thus, an officer while being impartial may practice compassion to realize the aim of helping the poorest of the poor. It becomes even more important in a country like India which faces many problems such as low level of literacy, developmental imbalances, digital divide, gender and social prejudices etc. The answer to such difficult problems of today lies in greater association and higher level of compassion and understanding in governance. Thus, impartiality does not bar an officer from practising compassion.