Read the following passage and answer the items that follow. Your answers to these items should be based on the passage only.
For achieving inclusive growth there is-a critical need to rethink the-role of the State. The early debate among economists about the size of the Government can be misleading. The need of the hour is to have an enabling Government. India is too large and complex a nation for the State to be able to deliver all that is needed. Asking the Government to produce all the essential goods, create all the necessary jobs, and keep a curb on the prices of all goods is to lead to a large cumbersome bureaucracy and widespread corruption. The aim must be to stay with the objective of inclusive growth that was laid down by the founding fathers of the nation and also to take a more modern view of what the State can realistically deliver. This is what leads to the idea of an enabling State, that is, a Government that does not try to directly deliver to the citizens everything that they need. Instead, it (1) creates an enabling ethos for the market so that individual enterprise can flourish and citizens can, for the most part, provide for the needs of one another, and (2) steps in to help those who do not manage to do well for themselves, for there will always be individuals, no matter what the system, who need support and help. Hence we need a Government that, when it comes to the market, sets effective, incentive-compatible rules and remains on the sidelines with minimal interference, and, at the same time, plays an important role in directly helping the poor by ensuring that they get basic education and health services and receive adequate nutrition and food.
What is essential message being conveyed by the author of the passage?
The passage explicitly states at its commencement, "For achieving inclusive growth there is a critical need to rethink the role of the State." This opening sentence clearly establishes the central theme and the essential message the author intends to convey throughout the subsequent discussion. The entire passage elaborates on how the State's role needs to be re-evaluated to foster inclusive growth, moving from a direct provider to an enabler and targeted supporter.
The objectives of inclusive growth laid down by the founding fathers of the nation are mentioned in the passage as a foundational principle to be remembered. However, this is presented as a context or a guiding objective within the larger argument for rethinking the State's role, rather than being the essential message itself. The primary focus is on the contemporary re-evaluation of the State's function.
The passage indeed suggests that the Government should play an important role in directly helping the poor by ensuring basic education and health services. However, this is cited as a specific example of the enabling State's function, not the overarching essential message. The core argument is about the nature of the State's intervention, not merely the provision of specific services.
This option contradicts the passage's core argument. The author advocates for an "enabling ethos for the market so that individual enterprise can flourish" and for the Government to "remain on the sidelines with minimal interference" when it comes to the market. The passage explicitly argues against the State trying to "produce all the essential goods" or "create all the necessary jobs," which would lead to a "large cumbersome bureaucracy and widespread corruption." Therefore, the idea of the Government establishing markets and industries is contrary to the author's proposed role for the State.