Chapter 5: Contemporary India: Good Governance
Choose the correct option.
The concept of Lokpal is taken from
- United States
- United Kingdom
- Sweden
- Russia
The concept of ‘citizens charter’ is part of
- POSDCORB
- development administration
- good governance
- NGO activity
State the appropriate concept for the given concept.
The person investigating complaints against government officials -
Solution:
The person investigating complaints against government officials - Ombudsman
Complete the concept map.
Solution:
State whether the following statement is true or false with reason.
Lokayukta can investigate complaints against political executives.
Options:
- True
- False
Solution:
This statement is True.
(i) Lokayuktas were created by the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 to look into allegations of corruption against public functionaries in the States.
(ii) A member of the public can file specific allegations with the Lokayukta for inquiry against any public servant including legislators, political executives, local bodies, public enterprises.
Good Governance aims at the efficient use of natural resources.
Options:
- True
- False
Solution:
This statement is True.
(i) One of the core values of good governance is effectiveness and efficiency.
(ii) It refers to sustainable human development in the context of efficient use of natural resources and the protection of the environment.
Explain the co-relation between the following.
Good Governance and E-Governance.
Solution:
Good Governance aims to replace traditional public administration riddled with corruption and red-tapism and to make it more citizen-centric, responsible, and responsive. The core values of good governance include efficiency, inclusiveness, being consensus-oriented, transparency, accountability, etc. Specific programs aimed at good governance include setting up of Lokpal and Lokayuktas, Creating of Citizen's Charters, Right to Information Act, institutional mechanisms like NHRC, NCW, etc. E-Governance is one of the most important aspects of good governance. It involves the employment of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to facilitate efficient and instant transmission and processing of information as well as storing and retrieval of data. Thus, e-governance helps to implement core values of good governance such as transparency, effectiveness, accountability, and participation of citizens.
Express your opinion.
E-governance speeds up governmental processes.
Solution:
I agree with this statement.
E-governance refers to the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to carry out the varied and complex aspects of governance and of citizens' expectations. E-governance facilitates instantaneous transmission and processing of information as well as efficient storing and retrieval of data. This helps in speeding up governmental processes and taking decisions expeditiously. Large scale digitisation of records enables easy and reliable access over the internet.
E-governance brought administration closer to people.
Solution:
I agree with this statement.
E-governance refers to the use of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) to carry out the varied and complex aspects of governance and of citizens' expectations. Large scale digitization of records enables easy and reliable access over the internet.
E-governance helps in increasing the geographical and demographical reach of the government. Efforts have been made at various levels to improve the delivery of public services and simplify the process of accessing them. The objective of the National e-Governance Plan is to bring public services closer to the people i.e., make them citizen-centric.
Answer the following.
Explain various institutions protecting the rights of different sections in India.
Solution:
The core values of good governance include administration being consensus-oriented based on principles of inclusiveness and equity as well as responsiveness to the needs of citizens.
The benefits of good governance must be available to all the sections of society. The constitution provides for socio-economic and political safeguards to certain disadvantaged sections of the society. Besides the safeguards, provided for them the government has created several commissions to safeguard the rights of different sections of the society.
These include the following:
- (i) National Commission for Scheduled Castes: Deals with matters related to the safeguards provided in the constitution for the Scheduled Castes and inquire into specific complaints relating to deprivation of rights of the Scheduled Castes.
- (ii)National Commission for Scheduled Tribes: Deals with matters related to the safeguards provided in the constitution for the Scheduled Tribes and inquire into specific complaints relating to deprivation of rights of the Scheduled Tribes.
- (iii)National Human Rights Commission: It deals with protection of rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity guaranteed by the constitution.
- (iv) National Commission for Women: This was created to facilitate the redressal of grievances and accelerate the socio-economic development of women.
- (v)National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights: It seeks to protect, promote, and defend child rights in the country. The Commission defines a child as a person in the 0 to 18 years of age group.
- (vi) National Commission for Backward Classes: The focus is on the welfare of socially and economically backward classes.
- (vii) National Commission for Minorities: It monitors the working of the safeguards for minorities provided in the Constitution and by-laws enacted by the Parliament and the State Legislatures. The National Commission for Minorities recognizes the following religious communities as minority communities: Muslim, Sikh, Christian, Buddhist, Parsis, and Jain.
- (viii) National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission: This provides for a consumer disputes redressal mechanism e.g., consumer courts are set up.
Answer the following question in detail with help of a given point.
Explain in detail the following values of Good Governance.
(a) participation
(b) transparency
(c) responsiveness
(d) accountability
Solution:
In development administration, not only the government but also citizens and NGO's play a vital role. The term 'governance' is used to describe this cooperative effort of the government and non-governmental bodies in public administration. Governance is broader than government as
- (i) It includes formal institutions of government e.g., legislature, bureaucracy as well as informal institutions e.g., NGOs.
- (ii) It aims to improve the performance of public institutions with a focus on values like accountability, transparency, citizen feedback, etc.
The Good Governance approach aims at the following -
- (i) To reform the traditional, huge-sized public administration which was riddled with red tape and corruption.
- (ii) To replace the archaic systems with responsible, participative, and equitable systems.
- (iii) To look at interlinkages between government and civil society.
- (iv) To make the administration citizen-centered and not rule-bound.
(a) Participation: This means that all members of society, especially the most vulnerable, should have a voice in decision-making, either directly or through legitimate intermediate institutions that represent their interests. Such broad participation is built on freedom of association and speech, as well as capacities to participate constructively.
(b) Transparency: This means that decisions taken and their enforcement are done in a manner that follows rules and regulations. It also means that information is freely available and directly accessible to those who will be affected by such decisions and their enforcement. It also means that enough information is provided and that it is provided in easily understandable forms and media.
(c) Responsiveness: Good governance requires that institutions and processes try to serve all stakeholders within a reasonable timeframe. This means that the needs of the citizens are considered, and the administration responds to these needs effectively and efficiently.
(d) Accountability: This is a key requirement of good governance. Not only governmental institutions but also the private sector and civil society organizations must be accountable to the public and to their institutional stakeholders. Who is accountable to whom varies depending on whether decisions or actions taken are internal or external to an organization or institution. In general, an organization or an institution is accountable to those who will be affected by its decisions or actions.
Difficult Words and Their Meanings:
- Contemporary: Belonging to or occurring in the present time.
- Governance: The way a country, company, etc., is controlled by the people who run it.
- Lokpal: An anti-corruption authority in India who represents the public interest.
- Ombudsman: An official appointed to investigate complaints made by individuals against public organizations or officials.
- Citizen's Charter: A document that outlines the service standards citizens can expect from a public organization.
- Red-tapism: Excessive bureaucracy or adherence to official rules and formalities, often leading to delays.
- Citizen-centric: Focusing on the needs and convenience of citizens.
- Consensus-oriented: A decision-making process that aims to find a solution acceptable to most people involved.
- Transparency: The quality of being open, honest, and easy to understand; not secretive.
- Accountability: The state of being responsible for your decisions or actions and expected to explain them when you are asked.
- E-Governance: The use of information and communication technologies (ICT) to provide and improve government services, transactions and interactions with citizens, businesses, and other arms of government.
- Lokayukta: An anti-corruption ombudsman organization at the state level in India.
- Public Functionaries: Individuals holding public office or employed by a public body.
- Legislators: People who make laws; members of a legislative body.
- Inclusiveness: The practice of including people of all kinds within an activity or group.
- Equity: Fairness or justice in the way people are treated.
- Safeguards: Measures taken to protect someone or something.
- Deprivation: The lack or denial of something considered to be a necessity.
- Grievances: Complaints about unfair treatment.
- Redressal: The act of correcting something that is unfair or wrong.
- Archaic: Very old or old-fashioned.
- Civil Society: Organizations and institutions that are separate from the government, including non-profits, community groups, and advocacy groups.