Published on 24 Nov 2025
The objective of private institutions is profit maximisation. While many companies grow profits ethically, others maximize profits unethically via deceptive marketing, slashing employee expenses, lowering product quality or impacting the environment negatively.
Monopoly vs. Competition: In order to avoid competition posed by promising companies, big firms try to acquire those companies for hefty prices and indulge in practices that discourage competition in the market.
Example: Facebook acquiring WhatsApp.
Environmental Impact: Adopting environmentally responsible practices and minimizing harm to the planet are ethical imperatives. This includes decisions regarding resource consumption, waste management, pollution, and sustainability practices.
Example: Industrial waste from factories in Madhya Pradesh, is allegedly being dumped into open fields which is poisoning the Ajnar river.
Manufacturing of Harmful Goods: Private Institutions are unconcerned about the health and safety of the general public unlike Govt Institution.
Example: Selling of Cigarettes and alcohol harms the well-being of individuals but this does not deter the production of such goods by the companies.
Unethical Accounting: The private institutions may engage in unethical accounting to appear more profitable than they actually are.
Example: Satyam scam was a huge corporate fraud which indulged in exaggerating sales, earnings, cash balances, and personnel numbers in the company’s books.
Hiring Gig Workers vs. Permanent Employees: Hiring gig workers can reduce the operational costs. But this can lead to exploitation of gig workers due lack of social and legal protection, including rights to minimum wage, health and insurance benefits etc
Example: Recent protest organised by ‘blinkit’ gig workers against the changes in the pay structure.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): Private Companies often see CSR as an additional tax but there should be a balance between profit-making objectives and social and environmental responsibilities.
Example: Tata steel Foundation surpassed the set statutory requirement positions of CSR spending for the betterment of society.
Marketing and Advertising Ethics: Deceptive advertising, manipulation of consumer behaviour are used by the private firms to boost their sales.
Example: Ed-Tech companies misleading parents with fake testimonials of students.
Cartelisation: It is a practice in which group of businesses collude to keep prices high.
Example: OPEC cutting production to keep the price high.
Insider trading: It refers to buying or selling a security, in breach of a fiduciary duty or other relationship of trust and confidence, on the basis of, non-public information about the security.
Example: ZEE entertainment’s insider trading case.
Addressing these ethical concerns requires the private institutions to establish robust ethical frameworks, adherence to relevant laws and regulations, and the cultivation of ethical organizational culture.
Ethics, Integrity and Aptitude
Ethical concerns and dilemmas in Private Institutions
ethical dilemma
Monopoly vs. Competition
Unethical Accounting
Hiring Gig Workers vs. Permanent Employees
Corporate Social Responsibility
Marketing and Advertising Ethics
Cartelisation
Insider trading
General Studies Paper 4
Public Service Values
Related Articles