1. Disaster preparedness wrt nuclear disasters NDMA has suggested measures for prevention, detection and early response to raditation emergencies Min of helath has been identified as nodal agency to come out with road map covering Assessment of capcities Action plan for enhanced medical preparedness to deal with nuclear and radiological emergencies Positioning medical reposne teams in areas likely t be exposed to radiations 57% of country is prone to disasters 10 battalions of NDRF
2. Earthquake disaster management building codes violated retrofitting of old buildings required earthquake zoning undertaken delhi between dehradun and moradabad fault delhi in zone IV Indian plate pushing into eurasian plate Himalayas capable of producing high magnitude EQ Kangra himachal pressure building up Quick response post EQ is most crucial 10 battalions of NDRF NDRF NDRF is special force created by government of India for the purpose of special and quick response in case a disaster happens in any part of the country .
3.NDRF works under the policies and guidelines prepared by National Disaster Management Authority(NDMA) . NDRF contains eight battalions , 2 each from ITBP , CISF ,BSF and CRPF positioned at 8 important locations across the country.In addition to these, 16 regional response centers being setup across country for quick and immediate response .
4. NDMA to stregthen building norms Given that over 58.6% of land in India is vulnerable to tremors, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has identified quakes as a major issue of concern. As many as 38 of India’s cities, including Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, Pune and Ahmedabad, fall within moderate-to-high risk seismic zones. Put simply, an earthquake on the scale that Japan experienced would lay waste whole cities here. It is well known that quakes do not kill people, buildings do. Safety essentially lies in ensuring quake-resistant construction of buildings. There already exists a host of safety regulations on paper. The NDMA has mandated all new constructions to be earthquake-resistant, especially in seismic zone cities. Earthquake engineering codes and quake-safe construction guidelines have been laid down by government bodies. But the real worry is about their enforcement. Illegal and poor quality constructions continue to be the bane of urban India, coupled with a crippling lack of awareness regarding safety norms. Structural engineers have criticised city authorities for flouting regulations and risking lives. Behind the shoddy construction is murky collusion between real estate and municipal authorities, mired in corruption and rule bending. India needs to draw lessons from Japan, which has stringently enforced strict building codes, put into effect a functional warning system and conducted regular drills among people. The Himalayan quake is a reminder to get our act together. Besides enforcing building codes, important infrastructure such as arterial roads and airports needs to be fortified. Community-level preparedness could drastically reduce the loss of lives and property. Education and information are two vital conduits for spreading awareness. The government’s resource material on quakes should be widely disseminated and discussed at every forum, starting with schools. Disaster management is already part of the social sciences school syllabus. Regular drills can help prepare children to deal with sudden situations. It is the extent of disaster preparedness which will help India protect itself from quake devastation.
5. Lessons from sikkim EQ our ability to cope up with natural disasters is still very nascent and limited. We have not developed any formal institutions in this regard the robust system of community-based, voluntary management of natural calamities which remained the most pre-dominant phenomenon for centuries together is also fast vanishing. disaster management task has become government centric whereas traditionally it used to be essentially community centric. Many of the States including Sikkim still do not have proper disaster management plans scientific studies and research on issues like seismology, hydrology, geo-morphology and the very nature and dimensions of natural disasters and their impact on the hills and mountain areas need to be strengthened and disseminated to the people at the grass roots. This has to be blended with traditional wisdom and belief about the impending disasters so that the communities are involved in disaster forewarning and management. Massive concrete-based development works that go in the mountain areas pose a serious threat to the carrying capacity of these roads a five-year guarantee is ensured by these road agencies with strong punitive measures Key agencies like the Border Roads Organisation have to rethink both the techniques and technology of road building in the mountain areas basics of disasters and their management have to be taught at the village and community levels Disasters only shake us and do not wake us up. the casualness with which the environmental impact assessment is conducted and clearances are given and the way project developers are selected.
P1 chptr 8 Development Dynamics
P1 chptr 8 Development Dynamics
1. National rural livelihood mission its design is aimed at making the poor financially secure in a more sustained and comprehensive manner than the existing employment scheme. It makes use of SHGs to implement the schemes NRLM stems from the instances of success in some states that have been able to use village community groups to further government entitlements to the poor.For example,in Bihar,self-help groups in Sekhwara and Purnia had applied for licences and took over the running of Public Distribution System (PDS) in the respective villages. Villages with self-help groups have been able to reduce leakages in PDS by average 5-10 % over the last 2-3 years. Moreover,community groups in states have got roads built under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojna,housing benefits under Indira Awaz Yojna,
P1 chapter 5 accountability and control
Civil society
1. Civil society activism in India WB defn of civil society is It is a wide array of non government and non profit organisations that have a presence in public life and express interests and values of their members or others, based on ethical, moral, political, scientific , religious or philanthropic considerations Civil society in India is dominated by human right lawyers and activists, NGO leaders, celebrities and not the common man Civil society can act as advisory groups. But now the likes of anna hazare and ramdev are seeking to dictate terms to government and legislature which is unconstitutional
2. RTI progress In 2009, PM, cabinet ministers agreed to discolse assets on an annual absis In 2009 SC judges made their assets public In 2010 assets of CICs were made public ECs have made theirs assets public June 2011, IAS, IPS, IFS officers assets made public CIC has advised president to make his/her assets public
3. Land acquisition suggestions Currently draft bill proposes If an enetity whicha cquired land resells it, profit must be shared with original owners Compnstn should be 6 times the registered values 100% compulsory acquisition only for defence, infra and social service projects Loopholes Registered value is not avaialble for msot of the lands Suggestions Compulsory acstn only when there is a direct benefit for general public No real estate shall be allowed in acquired area For the acquired alnd details abt intended use, duration for development , costs etc must be made avaialbe before hand Setup a land acquisition and compensation regulatory authority
4. Parliament management Question hour in rajya sabha shifted from 11 am to 2 pm Speaker aims to have atleast 100 days sitting a year Parliament has 37 parties representing people of diverse cultures and backgrounds
5. Social audit CAG felt social audit is one of the tools available to channelize the public criticism into effective administrative corrections. This can also solve practical problems of implementing socio-economic development scheme in rural India.
CAG said the government should go for social audit of its people-friendly flagship programmes such as MNREGA, NRHM, SSA, etc
RTI new rules proposed Word limit of 250 Expenditure on hiring machines to supply information will be charged on applicant Proceedings will be stalled on death of appellant These rules seek to introduce complicated procedures which may discourage people from using it
7. problems with regulating social media Facebook and accountability Civil society and accountability perpetrators are masses of people responding to instinct of moment and not popular media persons media by the few like TV and written can be regulated but not media by many like social media it is undesirable and impossible violates privacy and freedom of speech way ahead users of social media must adopt for themselves a code of ethics recent decision of Hyderabad traffic police to open a Facebook page was meant to establish a communication channel with motorists, but it turned out to be something else now. there is no stopping of a relentless and unforgiving scrutiny of the traffic violations by fellow road users, actions of traffic police and other civil departments by the netizens of Hyderabad. Nothing seems to escape the attention of the self-appointed traffic vigilantes, who put the electronic eyes on their mobile phones, to the maximum use. With irrefutable evidences of violations being posted on Facebook, traffic police began sending echallans to violators. Facebook has provided us an opportunity to identify the issues people are most concerned.
Civil society moves to improve maternal healthcare in Orissa
http://www.thehindu.com/todays
Rogi Kalyan Samiti (RKS), as mandated under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM), has taken up several initiatives to provide better facilities to patients, particularly pregnant women untied funds provided to the RKS under the NRHM tools for creating accountability at various levels public hearings checklist for elected representatives and civil society organisations to enable systematic tracking of the implementation of national policies and programmes verbal autopsy', in which the root cause of the death is reached by interviewing respondents about signs and symptoms exhibited by the deceased before death. Problem areas
the lack of adequate health providers, quality of care in service provision, irregularities in Janani Suraksha Yojana benefits. practice of Caesarean-section being recommended so as to charge more money an apathetic attitude on the part of service providers across all levels Maternal death is not a result of medical causes alone. Socio-cultural factors have determining impacts,
10. Community-led social audit
We need a new audit system that can facilitate open governance
WHY DO WE NEED?
CAG looks into only account related matters Social audit examines the impact of government’s actions on People lives Verifies situation on ground. But social audit is in most caases undertaken by gram sabha
Gram sabhas are constitutes in accordance with state government panchayat raj laws. Most of state laws empower sarpanch as head of gram panchayat . It is unlikely that a sarpanch will convene a gram sahba that will scrutinise and interrogate and fix responsibility for things not right.
RIGHT BASED LAWS
Present trend is a shift from welfare schemes to right based laws
In a rights-based law, not only outcomes but the processes of exercise of rights are central concerns as they determine the nature of outcomes and determine accountability for decisions taken.
Hence a sample check of records can’t guarantee rights of people
HOW TO GUARANTEE RIGHTS OF PEOPLE?
Through an audit that assesses the processes at the grass root level
Such an audit can be done by only a local community as it is equipped with local knowledge and historical memory which is much better than the government records But neither CAG nor social audit is able to do this at the moment.
SOLUTION
Section 24 of NREGA directs the government to evolve an audit process in consulation with CAG This enables combining CAG and social audit
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
It means CAG will formulate audit rules for social audit with help of local community This will make CAG audit a living audit which takes into account views of people and community will become the auditor.
STEPS REQUIRED
Most of local people reluctant to give feedback as they are confined by hierarchical structures.There is a need to bring them out through training to instill confidence in them and ability to perform audit.
THE IMPACT
Audit will then critique not just the quality of the use of money, but the quality of decision-making, and whether it promotes equity and distributive justice, becoming an audit of the ethics of governance, not just its economics, and by empowering the poor.It will give agency to the gram sabha as people’s parliament, dissolving dichotomies
between implementers and auditors, aiming at the highest dialectical synthesis of selfgovernance.
Shimla conclave CAG
At a time when it has been accused of overstepping its brief, the Comptroller and Auditor General has secured endorsement from 10 secretaries of Union ministries, including the expenditure secretary in the finance ministry and the secretary of the department of personnel and training - which comes under the Prime Minister's Office - for its 'mandate' to analyze implementation of government policies.
A closed door, two-day meeting in Shimla which ended on Sunday - attended by CAG Vinod Rai,Central Vigilance Commissioner Pradeep Kumar and rural development minister Jairam Ramesh - decided to "analyze public expenditure in all forms and at all levels as per stated government goals, objectives and policy and procedures".
"All present were of the opinion that CAG had the mandate to do performance audit analyzing government's policy implementation and comment on any irregularities arising from them," sources said.
The endorsement of CAG's mandate from the steel frame of India comes at a time when the government had questioned the apex auditor's powers to comment on policy issues.
The Shimla conclave decided to thoroughly examine the government's social sector expenditure where at least 37% of the Plan expenditure or more than Rs 1,60,000 crore has been allocated this year alone. The agenda was laid down: Very soon, the rural development ministry and the CAG would enter into an agreement to audit all development schemes as per a jointly agreed format "to ensure public accountability".
Questioning the auditor's jurisdiction to review policy matters, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had recently advised the CAG to "limit its office to the role defined" and had reminded it that "never in the past had the CAG decided to comment on a policy issue."
A closed door, two-day meeting in Shimla which ended on Sunday - attended by CAG Vinod Rai,Central Vigilance Commissioner Pradeep Kumar and rural development minister Jairam Ramesh - decided to "analyze public expenditure in all forms and at all levels as per stated government goals, objectives and policy and procedures".
"All present were of the opinion that CAG had the mandate to do performance audit analyzing government's policy implementation and comment on any irregularities arising from them," sources said.
The endorsement of CAG's mandate from the steel frame of India comes at a time when the government had questioned the apex auditor's powers to comment on policy issues.
The Shimla conclave decided to thoroughly examine the government's social sector expenditure where at least 37% of the Plan expenditure or more than Rs 1,60,000 crore has been allocated this year alone. The agenda was laid down: Very soon, the rural development ministry and the CAG would enter into an agreement to audit all development schemes as per a jointly agreed format "to ensure public accountability".
Questioning the auditor's jurisdiction to review policy matters, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had recently advised the CAG to "limit its office to the role defined" and had reminded it that "never in the past had the CAG decided to comment on a policy issue."
P1 chapter 9 pesonnel management
1. New Performane appraisal for indian bureaucrats It focuses on integrity, specialisation and capacity to perform If integrity of officer is doubted, his reporting officer needs tos end in a report on his moral and intellectual integrity thorugh a secret note to be acted upon It will also judge attitude of officer towards weaker section of society Quantifiable target for a yer would be given according to job and will be reviweed twice a year Judgement will be absed on specific tasks like disaster releif, arrangin kumbh mela etc It also seeks expertise in 12 core areas like Agri Environment Trade Urban affairs S&T Social development It will identify domain expertise of officer and try to plan the career path accordingly
2. Minister –IAS officer relation IAS officers are required to give independent advice to ministers and ensure compliance with existing laws,policies and decisions of the government. A secretary can refuse to implement a ministers directive by laying out clear reasons.Unless the directive is unlawful,a ministers diktat prevails eventually As per civil servants conduct rules,all directions from superiors must be in writing.When a verbal order is unavoidable,officials must seek a written confirmation from the superior immediately after action Reforming IAS One of the few institutions created by the British, which has survived the test of time in more ways than one, and yet had some notable failures is the Indian Administrative Service (IAS). The classic Westminster model, on which the IAS is founded, postulated that while politicians would debate and legislate policy, the civil service would execute it. IAS urgently needs reform if it is not to become increasingly irrelevant to development or be co-opted by the corrupt. Appraisal
IAS must not be a lifetime appointment. Initial appointment should be for 15 years. every officer's performance should be evaluated by a constitutional authority such as the UPSC evaluation should be based on a 360-degree kind of appraisal Inputs should be sought from everyone — superiors, peers, subordinates and clients. The World Bank and the UK's bureaucracy successfully follow this system. Those who do not make the grade could stay on at the same level, pay and position for three years, after which the commission would evaluate them again. Else they can take their VRS and leave If the officer does make the grade, he can be hired through a competitive process on seven year contracts, with specific performance targets. The terms of the contract should incentivize performance. Their accountability should be to the result, not just to the process.
DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS
there must be quick and visible punishment for deviant officers They must be punished and removed from the service after a fair and speedy trial. Recently, Himachal Pradesh removed two officers ; Tamil Nadu did so too a few years ago after they were convicted of corruption.
there must be quick and visible punishment for deviant officers They must be punished and removed from the service after a fair and speedy trial. Recently, Himachal Pradesh removed two officers ; Tamil Nadu did so too a few years ago after they were convicted of corruption.
PROMOTIONS
Promotions in the IAS continue to be based on a mix of seniority and merit and the latter is evaluated in a very subjective way. RULES
Natural incentive for an honest officer is to shun initiative and try not to make decisions, to sign every file only after 20 others have signed it. E Sreedharan broke with procedure to give Delhi a world-class Metro. There are several CAG reports on his violations but had he not taken the initiative to violate procedure, the Metro would not have been completed in time and under budget. unless the all-India conduct rules and their implementation become more nuanced and less mechanical, initiative will be stifled and officers will be prevented from leaving the system to learn modern tools, gather rich global experience and return. Officers will become frogs in the well rather than eagles in the sky. The IAS is merely one subsect of Indian society and reflects both the bright sparks and its problems.
Self help group
Natural incentive for an honest officer is to shun initiative and try not to make decisions, to sign every file only after 20 others have signed it. E Sreedharan broke with procedure to give Delhi a world-class Metro. There are several CAG reports on his violations but had he not taken the initiative to violate procedure, the Metro would not have been completed in time and under budget. unless the all-India conduct rules and their implementation become more nuanced and less mechanical, initiative will be stifled and officers will be prevented from leaving the system to learn modern tools, gather rich global experience and return. Officers will become frogs in the well rather than eagles in the sky. The IAS is merely one subsect of Indian society and reflects both the bright sparks and its problems.
Self help group
4. PUB ADD: SHG SHGs called gram laxmi in vermin composting This helps improve productivity, provide livelihood options for women SHGs and cleanse environment.
Financial management:
1. Government plans to shift towards accrual accounting 12th, 13th FC and 2nd ARC recommended for the shift Presnt cash absed accounting lacks framework for accounting assets and laibilities and India epicting consumption of resources It is not possible to track assets created out of public money and hence hampers transaprency What is accrual system? Under this, transactions will be recorded at time when economic value is created , exchanged , transferred or impaired irrespective of whether cash is actually exchanged or not Accruals system will capture full cost of services provided by government and hence supports in effective decision making It will help capture both explicit and implicit subsidies Such a move will improve effectiveness of planning, policymaking and budgeting process of public resources
2. Government reluctant to empower CAG CAG is a consicence keeper and watch dog which though cant bite but can bark and warn itz citizens that something is amiss in state of affairs Cags bofors report in 1989 had major political consequences CAGs work clearly contributs to public good but many a times our political leaders don’t give the respect it deserves CAG has demanding for amendments in 1971 audit act in order for it to perform better audits These amendments are Allow CAG to audit new forms of government eco actvy ie PPPs, jt stock cos New ways of expenditure ie thru pacnhaayts and through bodies created under NRHM, SSA Put a time frame in which CAG requests are to be responded by government departments like inc ase of RTI The finalised CAG audit report must be tabled in parliament/legislature immediately if ins ession or within 1 week of next session
3. CAG Performs audit of revenue and expenses of government Since independence annual budget has grown from 250 cr to 12 lakh crore CAG performs following Regulatory audit: check if revenus and expenditure are according to mandate of parlmnt 2G was of this type Performance audit: focuses on Economy, effeiciency and effectiveness of public expenditure CAG to conduct –physical verification of stocks at FCI from 2011-12 as recommended by parlmnt committee on PSUs Audit by CAG is last link in fiscal chain after budget, accounts and internal audit Audit takes place with hindsight,when vision is perfect and knowledge far more complete than during actual execution. Every audit is predisposed to find fault
4. Ranga panel favours cut in planning commission role The panel has sought abolition of the present system of classifying government expenditure into Plan and non-Plan,saying allocations should be the primary domain of the finance ministry. The panel,headed by C Rangarajan, was set up to suggest measures for efficient management of public expenditure. It called for a shift in the approach of public expenditure management from a segmented view of Plan and non-Plan to a holistic view of expenditure by doing away with plan/non plan expenditure the commission will have to re-orient itself and focus on long-term strategic policy this will require changes in organizational structure and processes PROPOSED SYSTEM finance ministry will prepare the allocations for ministries with broad schemewise funds and committed items, The commissions mandate will be reduced to scrutinizing the allocations based on the overall development priorities,outcome targets Current scheme the Planning Commission initiates the budget process and decides on the primary allocations,which then go to the finance ministry for clearance. PC had itself suggested doing away with the illogical and dysfunctional distinction of Plan and non-Plan expenditure. PLAN vs non PLAN Plan expenditure is spent on productive asset creation through central government-sponsored programmes and flagship schemes, while non-Plan refers to all other expenditures,such as those on defence,subsidies and interest payments,including expenditure on establishment and maintenance activities,such as salaries. REASONS FOR FAILURE OF PLANNING disjunction between planning and budgeting, lack of synchronisation between the plans/policies and implementation and monitoring,
5. CAG is not only a fault finding body CAG job also encompassed partnering the government in locating weak links in the
delivery channels.
C&AG seeks to fix them by suggesting measures to strengthen and thereby ensures mid course corrections in upgrading governance, he said. CAG as an institution is an ally of the government in conceptualising, designing and implementing the social sector projects.
Such cooperation extends into diverse fields including primary education, primary health and rural employment
delivery channels.
C&AG seeks to fix them by suggesting measures to strengthen and thereby ensures mid course corrections in upgrading governance, he said. CAG as an institution is an ally of the government in conceptualising, designing and implementing the social sector projects.
Such cooperation extends into diverse fields including primary education, primary health and rural employment
6. Debt management office proposed to resolve conflict interest of rbi Debt mgt office 1st proposed in 2007‐08 budget
Government plans to setup this year
States relectant to join in as they fear erosion of fiscal autonomy
Currently RBI is responsible for
o Monetary policy
o Banker to government
o Banking regulator
As banker to government it needs to ensure that debt burden on government is minimal
ie to keep interest rates low for government. This is in conflict with monetary policy
Hence an independent debt mgt office under finance ministry can relieve RBI
The debt mgt office charts out borrowing schedule of government
Currently government debt is 43.5% and plans are to reduce to 41% by 2014‐15
RBI has 21 debt mgt offices
Presently middle office is working in finance ministry
7. Centre state issues: cluster approach Centre has adopted in certain schemes like NFSM, cluster approach Certains tates are earmarked to focus on pulses , another on wheat etc This lowers rôle of state in determining whats best for them to grow there needs to be a proper balance between priorities of centre and flexibility of state
2. Performance Budgeting
Performance budgeting consists of classifying government transactions into functions and programmes in relation to the government’s policy goals and objectives; establishing performance indicators for each programme or activity; measuring the costs of these activities and the outputs delivered. The terms “performance budgeting” and “programme budgeting” are often used interchangeably, but programme budgeting can also be defined as a form of performance budgeting giving greater emphasis to the classification of programmes according to the government’s policy objectives and the needs of efficient resource allocation.
A full system of performance budgeting is difficult to realise, in large part because of the high information requirements and complex management systems that are needed.
Performance budgeting consists of classifying government transactions into functions and programmes in relation to the government’s policy goals and objectives; establishing performance indicators for each programme or activity; measuring the costs of these activities and the outputs delivered. The terms “performance budgeting” and “programme budgeting” are often used interchangeably, but programme budgeting can also be defined as a form of performance budgeting giving greater emphasis to the classification of programmes according to the government’s policy objectives and the needs of efficient resource allocation.
A full system of performance budgeting is difficult to realise, in large part because of the high information requirements and complex management systems that are needed.
3. Zero-based budgeting
Zero-based budgeting is a technique of planning and decision-making which reverses the working process of traditional budgeting. In traditional incremental budgeting, departmental managers justify only increases over the previous year budget and what has been already spent is automatically sanctioned. No reference is made to the previous level of expenditure. By contrast, in zero-based budgeting, every department function is reviewed comprehensively and all expenditures must be approved, rather than only increases. Zero-based budgeting requires the budget request be justified in complete detail by each division manager starting from the zero-base. The zero-base is indifferent to whether the total budget is increasing or decreasing. 4. Outcome budgeting
Presenting the 2005-06 budget, the finance minister Chidambaram introduced the phrase 'outcome budgeting' into the financial lexicon. It is supposed to be a progress card on what various ministries and departments have done with the outlay announced in the annual budget. It is a performance measurement tool that helps in better service delivery; decisionmaking; evaluating programme performance and results; communicating programme goals; and improving programme effectiveness. The Outcome Budget is likely to comprise scheme- or project-wise outlays for all central ministries, departments and organisations listed against corresponding outcomes (measurable physical targets) to be achieved during the year. It measures the development outcomes of all government programmes. Which means that if you want to find out whether some money allocated for, say, the building of a school or a health centre has actually been given, you might be able to. It will also tell you if the money has been spent for the purpose it was sanctioned and the outcome of the fundusage. The Outcome Budget, however, will not necessarily include information of targets already achieved. This method of monitoring flow of funds, implementation of schemes and the actual results of the usage of the money is followed by many countries. Corporate governance, PSUs
1. Drawbacks in indian oil sector "The lack of transparency,policy inconsistency and disregard for global practices are some of the biggest challenges for investors in Indias oil sector 2. SCOPE to evaluate PSUs SCOPE , an apex organisation of PSEs is laying down an evaluation system for PSUs on basis of performance OECD countries have such a systemt o grade government owned companies This will help make informed investment decisions It will also measure degree of professionalism in boards of PSUs and their functioning There are 249 PSUs. 300 independent director and 69 top positions in them are vacant Judicial activism
1. Recent examples In the hasan ali case , SC setup a SIT not only to look into the specific case but the netire issue of balck money and asked to prepare a comprehensive action plan to tackle the black money issue In 2G case, the probe is being done under supervision of SC In chattisgarh salwa judum case, SC was dictating to governments on how to deal with naxalism Similarly courts have taken up issues like pollution, water pipeline leaks which have no explicit law and order issue Courts need to concentrate on reducing its backlog and not enter into domains of executive
2. Suggestions for SC on judicial activism SC now acts as a national legal and policy clearing house enjoys more public trust than dysfunctional legislature and politically cautious executive defacto legislature/ super-administrator ex: euthnasia guidelines way ahead selective in choosing cases that it seeks to address rely on insttns like EC reform appointment process courts must take up economic and regulatory issues regulatory capture rent seeking SC must curb its use of contempt powers as it reduces free of expression CAG activism CAG SAID We find it difficult to derive assurance that the huge expenditure incurred on fertiliser subsidy... actually result in availability of fertilisers at subsidised prices to farmers.
THE PROBLEM
Questions basis of government fertiliser policy.Many say the CAGs job is only to audit,not question policy CAG SAID The decision to appoint Shri Kalmadi as the OC chairman,based on the PMO recommendation,facilitated conversion into a body outside govt control,without accountability... THE PROBLEM Should CAG question official appointments that are within the domain of the government CAG SAID Presumptive losses from spectrum scam estimated to be 1,76,000 cr THE PROBLEM Loss was based on revenues from 3G auctions.Critics charge that these revenues cant be applied to income from 2G auctions as the two are different
Questions basis of government fertiliser policy.Many say the CAGs job is only to audit,not question policy CAG SAID The decision to appoint Shri Kalmadi as the OC chairman,based on the PMO recommendation,facilitated conversion into a body outside govt control,without accountability... THE PROBLEM Should CAG question official appointments that are within the domain of the government CAG SAID Presumptive losses from spectrum scam estimated to be 1,76,000 cr THE PROBLEM Loss was based on revenues from 3G auctions.Critics charge that these revenues cant be applied to income from 2G auctions as the two are different
4. Legislative activism
The executive is vested with the power to make policy decisions and implement laws. The legislature is empowered to issue enactments. The judiciary is responsible for adjudicating disputes Different agencies impose checks and balances upon each other but may not transgress upon each other’s functions. judiciary exercises judicial review over executive and legislative action, and the legislature reviews the functioning of the executive.
Examples of judicial acttivism
the Vishakha case where guidelines on sexual harassment were issued by the Supreme Court, the order of the Court directing the Centre to distribute food grains (2010) and the appointment of the Special Investigation Team to replace the High Level Committee established by the Centre for investigating black money deposits in Swiss Banks. 1983 Justice Bhagwati introduced public interest litigations in India, Justice Pathak warned against the “temptation of crossing into territory which properly pertains to the Legislature or to the Executive Government Legislature activism
instances of the legislature using its law making powers to reverse the outcome of some judgements. Custom duty
Supreme Court struck down the levy of duties since these were imposed by unauthorised officials. By passing the Customs Bill, 2011 the Parliament circumvented the judgement and amended the Act to authorize certain officials to levy duties retrospectively, even those that had been held to be illegal by the SC. Sugar pricing
Supreme Court had ruled that the price at which the Centre shall buy sugar from the mill shall include the statutory minimum price (SMP) and an additional amount of profits that the mills share with farmers. Amendment allowed the Centre to pay a fair and remunerative price (FRP) instead of the SMP. It also did away with the requirement to pay the additional amount. The amendment applied to all transactions for purchase of sugar by the Centre since 1974. In effect, the amendment overruled the Court decision. These examples highlight some instances where the legislature has acted to reverse judicial pronouncement The doctrine of separation of powers is not codified in the Indian constitution. Indeed, it may be difficult to draw a strict line demarcating the separation. However, it may be necessary for each pillar of the State to evolve a healthy convention that respects the domain of the others
When a government is confronted with an inconvenient court judgment, there are three common ways in which it tries to dodge the blow first is to ignore the order Another stratagem is to invoke legal technicalities by filing a review petition When the government’s stakes are very high, it resorts to legislative powers TN text books latest instance was the political row over the Tamil Nadu textbooks legal issue involving the “uniform system of education Madras High Court and the Supreme Court had approved the old law. new government passed an amendment to undo the judgment court stated that “a judicial pronouncement of a competent court cannot be annulled by the legislature in exercise of its legislative powers for any reason whatsoever bringing legislation in order to nullify the court’s judgment would amount to trenching on judicial power
The executive is vested with the power to make policy decisions and implement laws. The legislature is empowered to issue enactments. The judiciary is responsible for adjudicating disputes Different agencies impose checks and balances upon each other but may not transgress upon each other’s functions. judiciary exercises judicial review over executive and legislative action, and the legislature reviews the functioning of the executive.
Examples of judicial acttivism
the Vishakha case where guidelines on sexual harassment were issued by the Supreme Court, the order of the Court directing the Centre to distribute food grains (2010) and the appointment of the Special Investigation Team to replace the High Level Committee established by the Centre for investigating black money deposits in Swiss Banks. 1983 Justice Bhagwati introduced public interest litigations in India, Justice Pathak warned against the “temptation of crossing into territory which properly pertains to the Legislature or to the Executive Government Legislature activism
instances of the legislature using its law making powers to reverse the outcome of some judgements. Custom duty
Supreme Court struck down the levy of duties since these were imposed by unauthorised officials. By passing the Customs Bill, 2011 the Parliament circumvented the judgement and amended the Act to authorize certain officials to levy duties retrospectively, even those that had been held to be illegal by the SC. Sugar pricing
Supreme Court had ruled that the price at which the Centre shall buy sugar from the mill shall include the statutory minimum price (SMP) and an additional amount of profits that the mills share with farmers. Amendment allowed the Centre to pay a fair and remunerative price (FRP) instead of the SMP. It also did away with the requirement to pay the additional amount. The amendment applied to all transactions for purchase of sugar by the Centre since 1974. In effect, the amendment overruled the Court decision. These examples highlight some instances where the legislature has acted to reverse judicial pronouncement The doctrine of separation of powers is not codified in the Indian constitution. Indeed, it may be difficult to draw a strict line demarcating the separation. However, it may be necessary for each pillar of the State to evolve a healthy convention that respects the domain of the others
When a government is confronted with an inconvenient court judgment, there are three common ways in which it tries to dodge the blow first is to ignore the order Another stratagem is to invoke legal technicalities by filing a review petition When the government’s stakes are very high, it resorts to legislative powers TN text books latest instance was the political row over the Tamil Nadu textbooks legal issue involving the “uniform system of education Madras High Court and the Supreme Court had approved the old law. new government passed an amendment to undo the judgment court stated that “a judicial pronouncement of a competent court cannot be annulled by the legislature in exercise of its legislative powers for any reason whatsoever bringing legislation in order to nullify the court’s judgment would amount to trenching on judicial power
Aquaculture farms
aquaculture farms were being set up along the eastern coast, violating coastal-zone regulations. Writ petitions were moved alleging violation of the rules and destruction of ecological balance Supreme Court ruled that “industrial” activity could not be carried on along the coast. government then brought a law declaring that aquafarming units were not industries, but “agricultural enterprises”
Values in Admn
aquaculture farms were being set up along the eastern coast, violating coastal-zone regulations. Writ petitions were moved alleging violation of the rules and destruction of ecological balance Supreme Court ruled that “industrial” activity could not be carried on along the coast. government then brought a law declaring that aquafarming units were not industries, but “agricultural enterprises”
Values in Admn
Corruption in admn :
1. 2nd ARC recommendation It propsoed for making dishonest public servants compenste nation for the losses Currently corruption in public services is considered a criminal offence under PoCA 1988 , but there is no civil liability ARC also recommendedd that non govt organisations that receive over 50% of its annual operating costs or more than 1 crore from govt in preceding 3 years should be covered under PoCA EgoM has proposed amendments to incorporate contemporary realities where pblic services ar ebeing replaced by pvt agencies ARC recommended for effective enforcement of corporate governance regulations instead of bringin enture private sector under anti corruption laws
2. Government proposes moves on corrupt officials The Government is considering a set of proposals to cut the time taken to penalise delinquent Government officials including sacking of officials found to be involved in corruption. appointed a three member Committee of Experts the Committee has recommended : Creation of panels of Inquiry Officers from amongst both serving and retired government servants time limit of 2 mnths for minor and 12 for major inquiries Dispensing with second stage consultation with CVC; Dispensing with consultation with UPSC in minor penalty disciplinary cases Vigilance Commissions with statutory status in the States penalty of compulsory retirement to include cut in pension/gratuity Amendment of Article 311 of the Constitution to provide for dismissal from service on charges of corrupt practices after beginning of trial in a competent court;
3. Tackling corruption · Corruption is a symptom of a dysfunctional interface between the government and society.. · reduce discretionary power of the government In India, the discretionary power of the executive has, over time, become too great. Encourage greater competition or contestability. If the services that people need are provided in a contestable way, corruption will decline. This has been proved in the case of telecommunications. · greater transparency is needed wherever major financial resources are involved. Procurement, licensing and other major public transactions are all areas in need of greater public scrutiny and transparency. incentives against corruption. Singapore had one of the most corrupt customs services in the world. It realised that to be a trade and service centre for the region, it would have to root out corruption. It now pays its civil servants the equivalent of private sector wages.
Public sector wages have risen over the years in India as well and while not equivalent to private sector levels, they are nevertheless competitive. But the public sector requires more merit-based hiring to dispense with the system of paying bribes to get stable public sector jobs. election financing The US faced the same problem around 150 years ago. Meaningful election financing reform could be enacted only in the 1970s, which has been further strengthened over the last 40 years. Two areas to start reforms on would be r aising funds for electioneering alleged vote-buying schemes. judicial reform to ease the backlog of cases. bribe-giver must share as much blame as the bribe-taker. · If Kautilya in the Arthshastra could lay down the methods of dealing with corruption, surely modern India, with ambitions of becoming a global power, can take on the scourge of corruption. All developed countries had to tackle corruption systematically at some point. India now has a historic opportunity to do the same. government to tackle corruption laws on electoral reforms, public procurement, service delivery to citizens, public disclosures, and accountability of judges soon Ministers are set to lose their discretionary powers on allotment of land, telephones and petrol pumps Except Defence minister for war widows and home for victims of naxalism setting up of 71 special CBI courts to fast-track the roughly 10,000 pending cases limit of three months to grant sanction for prosecution strengthening the vigilance administration. Committee, headed by a Supreme Court judge, would be set up to study cases that were pending trial for more than 10 years and make recommendations for their speedy disposal or withdrawal. Departments to use its serving officers for enquiring cases. For minor offence, an officer's pension will be cut by 10%, for maximum five years. For major offence, the officer will be forced to retire with a 20% cut in pension Government to bring public procurement act in winter session of parliament. 5. Bureacrats without merit Art 311
Art 311 provided protection to bureaucrat by way of a multi layered process for dismissal of a Bureaucrat This was to ensure that bureaucrat doesn’t come under influence of his/her political masters
But now that judicial review is available for these officers, there is no need for such protection
Any malafide dismissal fo an IAS officer will be immediately taken note of by court and corrective measures can be taken
Art 311 has made ensured that our bureacrats have the resposibility but arent accountable
4th report of ARC : Protection under art 311 has created a climate of excessive security without fear of penalty for incompetence or wrong doing
This is one of the reasons why india’s famed steels tructure has corroded and is considered one of the worst in world
WAY AHEAD
Ensure that bureaucrats under investigation aren’t promoted Dilute the provisions under art 311
Union government
1. Is parliament supreme? According to constitution parliament is the supreme law making body. It is a factory of laws But in recent histroy parliament has wilfully frittered away its supremacy Here are some of the ways in which this has happened After a bill is introduced in parliament, it is usually sent to parliament standing committee the recommendatiosn of standing committee are recommendatory in nature government has no obligation to give reasons for rejecting the recommendations it is a basic courtey if not a right of Mps to know why their recommendations were rejected. Yet no one has bothered to ask for it so far most of bills are passed with little or no discussions the power to convene the parliament is in hands of government . hence government convenes it according to its requirements. For instance in 2008, when India US nuclear agreement was a hotly debated issue. Government convened parliament for only 46 days which is the lowest in independent Indian history Anti defection law 1985: MPs have traded of their right to act independently Despite such glaring lacunaes, our ministers and MPs assert that parliament is supreme in law making It is because of this lackadaisical approach of our MPs towards their duties that we are seeing a growing trent of judicial activism and civil society activism It is time our parliamentarians step up to the occasion and assert their right To demand reason from government for rejecting their recommendations To act independently To discuss bills on important issues thoroughly To ensure that enough time is provided by government to discuss all issues\ 2. Tenets of cabinet system Cabinet is a single unit They stand and fall together Cabinet is collectively responsible to legislature Minister is individually responsible for the actions of departments under him/her Although all members of cabinet are considered equal, PM is 1st among equals Accountability of civil servants
A decision by civil servant is taken on behalf of minister A minister can’t blame a civil servant for any fault indecision making Minister has to take inidvidual resposibility This is to ensure nuetrality and impartiality of civil servant If minister can blame a civil servant then civil servant should also have right to blame Minister
CAPART story
CAPART is council for advancement of peoples action and rural technology
It is a unique example of an institutiona meeting place for government and civil
society
Its chairperson is Union minister for rural devpt
It is an autonomous society under ministry of rural devpt
OBJECTIVE
o To facilitate and support voluntary action to create people led models for rural
devpt
o To foster and encourage grass root action
It has been in operation for 3 decades
It has contributed innovative grass roots works acroos india
For reforming it national standing committees are in place comprising of
independent experts and civil society
NSC are empowered to review CAPART’s actions
CAPART is also periodically reviewed by parliament
Depsite these measures, it is dogged by controversies, corruption , lack of accountability and inability to move fast enough to innovate
The reason for the downfall are
o High turnover at the top. In its 25 years of existence, it has seen 24 director generals. It is seen as a waiting post for burcrts before moving on to better postings.
There is aneed to open up the top post and put up a search and screen
committee to get best people available in country to head CAPART
o It should adopt a consortium model to instill mutual accountabilityy, peer review and partnership
o There should be performance absed evaluation of personnel
Civil society action can help in reconnecting the government with people
Without reform of governance, inclusive devpt will be an empty slogan
P 1 Organisation
1. Roads to bebuilt through BoT more than EPC Last year 65% through BoT, 20% through annuity and 15% through EPC What is EPC? EPC=Engineering, procurement, contract Under this a contractor builds a road for government and after that s not responsible for maintenance As a result contractors are using poor quality stuff Government plants to make it mandatory to use BoT 95% and 5% EPC EPC to be rpeferred only in naxal affected areas Regulating regulators India has countless regulators and still multiplying There is no explicit mention of accountability in the laws governing these regulators However there is an element of oversight by lawmakers through the standing committee on finance and through annual reports Other nations
US Federal Reserve submits a detailed report to the US Congress or its lawmakers on the economy and monetary policy In the UK, the banks annual report is debated in Parliament and is also mandated to explain to the Chancellor of the Exchequer if inflation exceeds the threshold set by the government India does not have a formal system of review of the activities of regulators in exchange for independence,central banks must meet their responsibilities for transparency and accountability. Problem areas, those heading some of the ministries that deal with regulators have sought to treat them as subordinate offices. challenge when it comes to enacting a law to monitor regulators and ensuring accountability is in terms of insulating them from pressures,political et al ensure that the selection process of regulators is insulated from the influence of the parent ministries and comprises of eminent public policy personalities
STATE GOVERNMENT
Governor activism In GJ, governor kamala beniwal appointed lok ayukta without consulting government
Governor vs CM The post of governor has been transformed from a retreat for elderly into a
political stage for undermining state governments of rival parties
GOVERNOR AND CM
Goverenor is expected to act on the aid and advice of cabinet but he can also
Take an independent decision based on facts before him
Note: this discretion is not there for president as 42nd amendment made it
amndatory for president to abide by the advise of cabinet(Art 74)
Law and order
1. Police reforms In the case of the police, the list of ills is long — ranging from issues like organisational structure, infrastructure, including training and equipment, work culture, political interference as well as corruption and brutality. we are still governed by the Police Act of 1861. Some changes might have been made, but the basic framework remains the operative principles of a colonial law meant to control and regulate subjects, not serve citizens. To implement wide-ranging reforms, thus, is a pressing need. One aspect of those reforms is community policing. This also means a closer interface between citizens and force personnel. It is clear that a lack of that facet means a failure exists at the micro level to generate intelligence. That aspect dovetails with a sorry and alarming fact: the abysmally low representation in key intelligence services of members of minorities, specifically Muslims, as pointed out by the Sachar report. Random arrests of members of the community, instances of fabricated evidence and charges and a general sense of alienation from the police all add up to a worrying scenario. Setting up the National Investigation Agency was deemed necessary after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. Now, apart from ensuring greater coordination between intelligence outfits, wider police reforms must be implemented. The gaps in the set-up are too glaring. 2. Moradabad riots 2011 Despite growing tensions, police allowed majority community to hold meetings and take out processions in sensitive areas Police failed to contain the tensions on the pretext of poor light and inability to distinguish between agreesor and victim 3. Crime mapping ONE of the major challenges of public administration in current times is enhancing community confidence in the ability of the criminal justice system to promote a feeling of security among all sections of citizenry. India is one supreme example of a place where the law enforcement and judicial machinery at the grass-roots level moves far too slowly for anyone's satisfaction. Disconcertingly, questions of integrity of these segments of governance have also been raised in the recent past. These facts will have to be reckoned against a rising graph of violence and the fast expanding contours of criminal behaviour. Police resources are at present too stretched to cope with the ever enlarging demands of public safety. It is not surprising that in this ambience, law enforcement agencies hardly deliver service in a manner that makes some sense to the common man. Wherever police leaders understand the value of an active link with consumers and focus attention on their essential security needs, the quality of service receives high praise. Where, however, a police chief believes that he is the repository of all wisdom and looks upon interaction with the community as a sheer waste of time – there are quite a few who belong to this category – policing evokes negative responses. There are unwelcome consequences of this situation, such as a distorted media portrayal and a lack of public enthusiasm to assist the state, even in times of crises such as widespread riots and natural calamities, both of which strain police resources enormously. Intelligent policemen understand this symbiotic relationship between themselves and the community and place emphasis on transparent policing. It is this class that wins public support, while the other group, which is insular and secretive and believes in masking all it does towards better policing, is often berated.
Research has established that the police are woefully short on transparency, especially in the matter of sharing crime trends within the community. This reluctance to be open arises from a false notion that disseminating too much information on crime promotes widespread fear among law-abiding citizens and a lack of trust in the police capacity to protect the community.
While this may be the right attitude when a sensational crime, such as a murder or a rape is reported, letting the public know the general trend of crime in a particular locality and educating it on what precautions it should take will greatly enhance the police's image. In this context, crime maps, which pinpoint areas of high crime (‘hot spots') in a whole city or town and carry a wealth of information, assume great importance. The police in the United Kingdom have recently stolen a march over most other forces in the world by facilitating access to crime maps on the Internet. This is very much an index of their anxiety to carry the community with them and draw on its support to hunt for antisocial elements. Crime maps are not unknown to Indian policemen. Even during the pre-Independence days, police stations used to prepare and display simple and easily readable maps of their jurisdiction from which one could identify territories that reported more crime than the others within a police station limits. These were invariably put up before an inspecting officer, namely, the Superintendent of Police or a Deputy Inspector General, who would thereafter put down his directions on how the station manpower should be distributed in a manner that would help control crime.
The idea has come a long way since its modest beginning decades ago, and has become a sophisticated modern tool in fighting crime through intelligent analysis and application of police manpower and technology.
Computerised maps are very much in vogue and are a great asset to station house officers and the supervisory ranks.
They are an important aid to the much-celebrated COMPSTAT (computer statistics) system of analysis of crime of the New York Police Department (NYPD).
The sanctity of COMPSTAT as a supervisory aid has grown so much at weekly meetings of the NYPD Commissioner that field officers demand a variety of maps (each of which give crime information on the basis of location, modus operandus, time of occurrence, and so on) to be produced by a centralised unit within the force that is computer-savvy.
The COMPSTAT method of analysing crime exists in a nominal manner in many State police forces. The feeling, however, is that this tool is yet to gain acceptance among many policemen in the country.
What the U.K. has done recently is to make crime maps available online to members of the public. This is a near revolutionary change because maps were hitherto used only for internal study and consumption. The move points to a new way of the police trying to carry the public with them. The website www.police.uk now carries street-level maps, which citizens can download for an intensive study. These maps became so popular in the days immediately after their uploading that the website got clogged and many netizens had to wait for long spells of time to get access. There is a general belief that crime maps will enhance police accountability. This is particularly in the context of growing public scepticism over official figures released annually by the police themselves. Also, instantaneous mapping of a reported crime works against any temptation on the part of the police to suppress a crime out of sheer indolence or to downplay the incidence of crime.
On the flip side, some privacy concerns have been raised by victim support organisations. It is said that not many who have been vandalised would like to admit the negative experience, however trivial it may be. The only way to take care of this legitimate fear is probably not to pinpoint the actual premises where a crime took place but merely provide the name of the street. There is also the misgiving of some realtorsthat property prices in a locality where crime is a relatively frequent phenomenon can go down greatly.
Perhaps, this is a signal for property builders and the police to work hand in hand even before construction begins, so that high security features are built into the infrastructure. Whatever be the limitations of crime maps, there is no doubt that they could form an important part of crime fighting by the police and the community. The partnership may invoke the services of private security agencies as well to make the whole exercise an integrated approach.
investigation in India have not acquired the sophistication that one would like to see in modern times, in times when technology has reached spectacular heights.
Crime mapping, when taken up seriously with the aid of information technology (IT), can greatly help dilute the current image of the police as a crude fighter of crime. Perhaps, IT companies in the country could lend a helping hand
PM address to DGPs Policing infra-human intelli, beat constable, cutting edge reorient Our human intelligence capabilities need to be improved. The grassroots information and intelligence collection systems that have traditionally been a part of policing have languished or fallen into disuse in some places. The role of a vigilant and effective beat constable can be vital in checking the activities of networks, which otherwise operate under the radar. Some reorientation in the functioning at these cutting edge levels is necessary and the role of community policing should also be emphasised.
Crowd control-JK good; min non lethal Crowd control techniques in a democracy where people often vigorously vent their opinions and sometimes their frustrations, have to strike a fine balance between the requirement to maintain law and order and the imperative of using absolutely minimum, non-lethal force.
Constable welfare constabulary is the mainstay of our police forces, constituting about 87% of their total strength. Improving the image of the constabulary is therefore critical to building public trust in our police forces. Need to provide them good working and living conditions
Police training Police personnel must also be adequately trained to upgrade their professional skills and inculcate the right attitude towards the public. Promotions could be linked with training, as is done in the Army.
NEW challenges-rapid urbanisation Our social fabric continues to be targeted by organised terrorism, abetted by misguided zeal and false propaganda among the youth and the marginalised sections of society. We have to contend with left wing militancy, parochial and chauvinistic movements, and tensions caused by socio-economic imbalances and iniquities and alos by rapid urbanisation. Policing the metropolitan areas, the control of organised crime and the protection of women and the elderly require special attention.
the police must function within the bounds of a democratic framework, in which human rights of our people are scrupulously respected and upheld. 4. tripura insurgency causes socio economic backwardness vis a vis mainland governance deficit demographic changes - bangla immigration corruption alienation of tribal land demands of insurgents independence from india deportation of immigrants restore land to tribals response psychological brainstorming tribals abt efforts of state through media, art etc developmental governance reforms basic services rural connectivity civic action programmes security forces repaired buildings provided basic services imaprted vocation training confidence building measures recruitment of tribals in government jobs rehab packages to insurgents modulated and humane combat oprtns CM and Gov close monitoring of secrty forces to prevent human right violations conclusion need a well crafted multi dimesional strategy right vision and direction modulated and humane combat oprtns
ISSUES
3. Corruption and ethics, human rights corruption is not merely a law enforcement issue that can be addressed through better laws or more stringent enforcement, but a phenomenon that violates the constitutional foundation of our democracy corruption has human rights implication and needs a rights based approach to fight it emphasizes transparency in governance and ensuring accountability of the government as the key weapons to empowering citizens to address corruption corruption is essentially a governance issue while consttn has prescribe equality, liberty, justice and laid down institutional framework for achieving them. It is the people that populate the institutions that determine the working of insttns hence there is a need to relook into efficacy with which the people of India and their political formations have operated there is an increased citizen awareness emanating from experience and a deepening of their understanding of norms their demand for, better governance is quantitatively and qualitatively greater governance deficit impinges on human rights guaranteed to citizens by national laws and international covenants subscribed to by us as a nation. Political parties are needed for exercise of political power and for conducting governance Negativity of mind and soul cannot but result in diminishing the public spirit needed to deliver public good. Hence there is a need for ethics in administration
2. Steps to tackle corruption
INTRODUCE STATE-FUNDING AS PART OF ELECTION REFORMS A REASONABLE AND TRANSPARENT TAX STRUCTURE, BACKED BY CLEAN AND CLEAR ENFORCEMENT LIBERAL AND CONTEMPORARY LAWS THAT CITIZENS CAN UNDERSTAND AND RESPECT REDUCE THE ROLE OF THE STATE IN PEOPLE’S LIVES TO THE ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL GENUINE AUTONOMY FOR THE PUBLIC/GOVERNMENT SECTOR MINIMIZE DISCRETIONARY POWERS OF MINISTERS AND BUREAUCRATS PAY GOVERNMENT AND PSU OFFICERS, JUDGES AND POLICEMEN MARKET-INDEXED SALARIES COMMENSURATE WITH THEIR RESPONSIBILITY INTRODUCE SWEEPING POLICE REFORMS AND STRONGER JUDICIAL ACCOUNTABILITY BLACKLIST CORRUPT BUSINESSMEN TRANSPARENCY AND STRICTER SCRUTINY OF GOVERNMENT TENDERS/ORDERS, INCLUDING AUCTION/SALE OF PUBLIC-OWNED ASSETS
Tackling corruption in administration RFD and training Key officials in all government ministries and departments will now get lessons on what they need to do to run a corruption-free administration
The performance management division under the cabinet secretariat wants to rope in government agencies dealing corruption as well as international experts to train officials to prepare an effective framework
India ranked 87 on the corruption index,which has 178 countries,in 2010.
Result framework document provides a summary of the most important results that departments and ministries are expected to achieve and is a record of understanding between a ministry representing peoples mandate and secretary of a department responsible to implement this mandate.
2. Mininstry to get funds based on performance In april 2010, Cabinet secretrait formulated a result framework document for each
dept to set targets to achieve
Since then their performance is being evaluated based on RFD targets
Performance on RFD target will form a key factor for fund allocation to ministries
in budget 2011
3. Civil servants to get incentives on performance Govt to launch result framework document(initiated by cabinet secretrait) from
next fiscal
It will allow for incentives based on performance for civil servants at central
ministries and departments
The RFD's objective is to improve governance, increase efficiency, transparency
and accountability.
However not all departments have agreed to it yet
PMO, home, finance, dfence and several others have opted out of it
WORKING
Every dept or ministry will have tos et annual goals
At end of year the progress is evaluated through a weighted system evolved by
respective departments
The secretary of dept will have to justify the eval in front of panel of experts
Bonus
Incentives for officers who score above 70%
Toppers may get a hike of about 40%!!
The extra money would be doled out from ministry’s savings
Action on corruption
Performance mgmnt division has asked departments to identify 3 areas of
corruption in schemes they implement and the discretionary powers enjoyed by
minister and secretary
TECHNIQUES OF ADMINISTRATION IMPROVEMENT
Improving public service delivery quality of public service delivery is a major problem and challenge with most, if not all public services, and it will continue to be so. More so in developing countries. Any Government process has to meet the twin test of being standardized lowest possible transaction time and cost. any attempt to dilute one will have serious repurcussions on the other. If we try to make the procedures more rigorous, so as to eliminate all attempts at distortion and corruption, we will end up increasing the transaction times and costs. On the other hand, if we give a go by to procedures and established norms so as to expedite quicker service delivery, it will only open up the system to more rent seeking and malfeasance.
There are a number of areas where even simple productivity improvements can have very large and visible/felt impact on the quality of service delivery. Improvements are possible both in the processes and the functionaries operating the process at each level. apart from small tinkering, the established process and protocols for the delivery of these services are fairly efficient and effective. But with the functionaries, there are serious problems.
functionaries are the public face of the Government. Their behaviour and attitude is taken to represent the repsonsiveness of Government itself to issues concerning its citizens. in most instances of accessing services they are dealing with individual Government functionaries. This experience can vary from inefficiency and lethargy, to rampant corruption. As is evident, all these welfare and civic services delivered by Government and its agencies are labor intensive. The quality of these services are critically determinant on the personal initiative and ability of the field functionaries. In many ways, the most important functionaries of the Government, with respect to delivery of civic services, are those at the cutting edge of executing works or delivering them. Unfortunately, it is this category of officials who are the least motivated and the most inefficient. Even simple productivity improvements will have a dramatic impact on their work output. For example, all of them invariably have very poor work and time management skills, and there is limited emphasis on work quality. Their exposure to the latest and more efficient work organisation techniques and methods is limited, and this results in considerable duplication and easily avoidable time wastage. Very few officials at the field level are conversant with the use of the computers and the latest communication and other technologies, which can substantially improve their work output.
We therefore have a serious problem with the quality of service delivered by these field functionaries. Bureaucratic supervision and monitoring, coupled with use of technology through computerization etc, can improve efficiency and control lethargy and corruption only to an extent. The rest depends on the individual at the cutting edge of service delivery. we need to develop more effective incentive-penalty structure for Government functionaries. And more importantly, we need to inculcate a sense of civic responsibility and duty, among our citizens. The civil society has to become more responsive and robust, so that its members who become Government functionaries, exhibit a sense of civic duty in their workplace. Sevottam A Quality Management System (QMS) ‘Sevottam’ framework has been developed for bringing improvements in the quality of public service delivery. This is a citizen centric initiative for institutionalizing an assessment-improvement framework for improving the quality of service delivery on a continuous basis through the involvement of Ministries / Departments and citizens. Sevottam includes three dimensions of a public service organization as follows: (a) Citizen’s / Client’s Charter that specifies the service delivery standards (b) Grievance Redress Mechanism that gets activated if the service delivery is not as per standards in the charter (c) Service Delivery Capability of the organization to delivery service as per standards in the charter. Public policy
Rajiv Awas Yojana: Mixed-scanning model for slums-free cities - The Economic Times
http://economictimes.indiatime
household surveys are used to prepare project reports supported by "disempowering techniques of participation". Involves trying to do too much too early and often are compelled to adjust plans after initiation, the scaling down makes the revised plans bear little resemblance to the original and the a posteriori consensus building delays the programme. Bottom up approach
Alternatively, the completely bottom-up approach with exclusive focus on processes, as opposed to outcomes, does less than necessary and later than necessary; MIXED SCANNING MODEL
Etzioni's mixed-scanning strategy used by the GHMC to create the slum-free plan integrated the two approaches and the practice framework consisted of three parts a procedure for information collection a strategy to allocate resources guidelines that relate the two, information collection procedure consisted of a livelihood survey Slum information showed diverse types of land ownership (e.g., rented, government and private land), home location (e.g., low and high value, slums on hazardous land), disparate housing mix (e.g., pucca, semi-pucca, katcha), different levels of available infrastructure and distinct socioeconomic characteristics. Based on the slum information, comprehensive guidelines were prepared. five broad contextualised strategies. for slums having all pucca houses, only deficiencies in infrastructure were addressed in slums having katcha and pucca houses, the gap-filling strategy consisted of conversion of katcha houses to pucca and making up the deficient infrastructure remodelling was planned for slums having great number of katchahouses and the purpose was to develop anew layout; combination of remodelling and gap-filling for slums having joint characteristics of slums in strategies two and three. policy implication arising from the framework based on Etzioni's approach is that the central government may prescribe the analytical framework and a reliable and valid instrument to collect information that articulates the needs and priorities of slum households, leaving other components of the mixed-scanning process consisting of guidelines creation and strategy design to the cities. the slum strategy is expected to connect to earlier slum development initiatives, bring about the convergence of all human and financial resources to meet the RAY goals and provide stable land titles to slum households. the empowerment of slum people occurs through the mediation of area sabhas that give them the autonomy to act on their behalf and slum upgradation is not an offline, stand-alone activity, but part of a comprehensive ward development plan.
Techniques of administration improvement
How IT can help in mitigating corruption Information technology-enabled system of openness and fairness in administration covering a range of issues — from transparency in bidding for government projects to checking abuse of power and authority by officials at every level can immensely help in mitigating corruption.
Greater credibility of IT enabled bidding :
Under the conventional, manual mode of bidding transaction, malpractices are difficult to detect and stop. Now, with IT enabled bidding there will be:
Increase in bid participation, including from a wider geographical area. greater credibility in judging the qualification of the bids due to the openness of the online bidding process. self-evident fairness because of standardisation of procedures through an electronic, pre-set model that leaves no scope for manually setting unfair competition terms. An intelligent bid evaluation subsystem involves modules such as automatic selection of bid evaluation experts, and audio and video monitoring of the bid evaluation site and provides for sufficiently early warning of any attempt at bid rigging. It will prevent collusive tendering, exclusion of genuine bidders, and unfair evaluation of bids. Also, an electronic performance assessment system can be introduced to improve governance through a performance index, real-time assessment and misconduct rectification.
Under the misconduct rectification system, warnings and alarms are sounded when a department is behind schedule. The platform keeps track of tasks assigned by the government and handling of requests from the general public. Employees with low work efficiency will receive warnings, which will be recorded into the electronic performance assessment system. time limits can be set for administrative acts, requiring public functionaries to deal with applications and appeals and provide responses to applicants within a stipulated time. Public feedbacks on administrative efficiency should be stored and analysed to provide a framework for assessing and evaluating the performance of government departments. video monitoring stations can be set up in public service centres to monitor the discipline of the staff, the quality of service at the counters or windows, and the operation of bidding markets. to ensure transparency of village-level financial affairs, village affairs supervision committee and citizen service centres can be set up in all administrative villages. In urban communities, the transparency of community, financial and service affairs can be institutionalised. a hotline can be opened to receive complaints about misconduct by officials. Planning
1. rôle and relevance of planning comission After Independence, the government undertook the responsibility for economic development. The concept of welfare state instead of merely a law and order state took hold. As the one-year horizon of the annual government budget was considered too small as tool for long-term development, five-year plans were drawn up.
The Planning Commission is a separate organisation in the Central Government with a whole-time Deputy Chairman and the Prime Minister as the part-time Chairman. Its budget for the current year is Rs.92.98 crore. The Ministry of Planning has a budget of Rs.1,676 crore with a staff of 1,833 (1,184 in 2009-10).
This is the time to examine the role of the Planning Commission in the light of developments since the era of planning began in 1950 and its current relevance.
The significant feature is the evolution of mixed economy with both government and private sector participation. The latest venture is public-private participation in major projects such as infrastructure development.
Fiscal management
The role of Planning Commission in Financial Management is limited by two aspects in current scenarios:
1. Evolution of FRBMA and Mid Term Fiscal Policy: The one-year span of the annual budget was found to be inadequate to reflect reforms in government revenue and expenditure which take longer time to devise and execute. Bringing budget deficits to acceptable level and achieving fiscal stability needed a longer time span. Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2003, was enacted by the Government which mandated a Medium Term Fiscal Policy statement to be submitted with the annual budget. While the one-year budget is approved, the projections for two following years are shown in the statement. After 2003, five-year plans are not the only long-term projections.
2. Distinguishing between Plan and Non Plan Expenditure:
The current scenario of uncertainly in world economy and steps like Fiscal Stimulus and its withdrawal does require planning beyond the annual budget but the Five- Year plans is not the right tool. There are many factors raising doubts on the efficacy and relevance of the five-year plans as the instrument. The division of expenditure between Plan and non-Plan is artificial and creates problems.
Plan expenditure tends to get priority especially when austerity and expenditure reduction has to be done periodically for fiscal consolidation. Non-Plan expenditure gets the cut even if it is vitally needed for economic development. An example is budget provision for maintenance of assets such as hospitals, schools and irrigation dams already created under Plan but whose maintenance is treated as non-Plan.
The dichotomy results in dual and confusing responsibility of the Ministry of Finance and the Planning Commission and adversely affects the whole budget process, formulation and implementation. The Ministry of Finance is responsible for fiscal consolidation. But in formulating the budget its role in Plan expenditure budgeting is diluted by the discussions which the ministries have with the Planning Commission. The finalisation of Plan allocations for the State budgets also suffers from this weakness. Ultimately, the Central Government has to fix the market borrowing by the State governments taking the overall sustainable borrowing limits, including the needs of the Central Government. The Planning Commission tends to have a more optimistic estimate of resources likely to be available for financing the Plan expenditure as fiscal deficit management and control is not its direct responsibility.
Review of schemes
Review and implementation of schemes is another area of direct responsibility for the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation but its role is diluted by the Planning commission which serves as the focal point for plan allocations.Output and outcome budgeting was introduced by the Central Government from the budget for 2005-06. Non-Plan expenditure seems to be out of its purview. This means the outcome of expenditure on running schools and hospitals will not be evaluated. This again is another fallout of the artificial division into Plan and non-Plan.
Conclusion
The distinction should be between development and non-development expenditure. The ultimate responsibility for achieving and maintaining fiscal health and implementing the FRBM Act, 2003, is with the Finance Ministry which has to ensure compatibility of fiscal policy with monetary policy of Reserve Bank of India to generate investor and consumer confidence. It should, therefore, be the nodal ministry for the budget formulation and implementation covering development and non-development expenditure. The discussions and finalisation of State government Plan allocations have to be in consultation with the Finance Ministry. It has Budget, Plan Finance and Economic divisions. It can also have inputs from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. The rationale for continuing the Planning Commission as a separate organisation outside the Finance Ministry is doubtful. If considered necessary, technical inputs can be transferred to the Finance Ministry where needed. The Medium Term Fiscal Policy Statement under the FRBM Act, 2003, can serve as the perspective beyond the annual budget. Its formulation suffers from many weaknesses which can be set right Effectiveness of DPCs
The 73rd and 74th Constitutional amend. acts were a landmark as they gave constitutional legitimacy to the concept of decentralization which was much needed in the Indian scenario. The DPC was also provided for in these amendments so as to enable decentralized planning. However, in practice, there has been wide gap from what is prescribed. Reasons being:
Financial dependence on state governments Lack of trained personnel at local level Discretion of SPC to alter the plan of DPC/MPC without discussions and most importantly, a tendency for centralisation inherent in the planning setup Owing to these factors, the true essence of decentralization in planning is far from being a reality and therefore demands reforms like:
New Localism to be used so as to curb local/parochial influences and also to fill the gap of trained personnel. Financial autonomy to be ensured Plans should be made iterative/circular with relay re-relay approach so as to provide the lower institutions (DPC/MPC) with a chance for discussion. These along with a general change in the centralized nature of our economic planning is needed to enable 'true decentralization' at the grassroot level. Similar attitudinal change is also needed at the centre-state level which can then be transmitted to state-local level.
THEORIES
Simon’s decision-making theory:Example's to quote:
Recently in Turkey, interest rate reduction had reduced inflation. This was against the rational thinking.
Bureaucratic evils
Chattisgarh has a well run PDS covering over 80% of rural population The dept of food and civil supplies decided to conduct a verification drive to remove bogus cards It led to cancellation of 3 lakh cards 1. 62% were cancelled coz card holders ddidn’t submit verification form in time 2. Only 6% were cancelled coz they were inelligible to be BPL Hence a number of beneficiaries lost their entitlements simply because they were stumped by bureaucratic procedure. 2. Stopping power Viswanath anand doctrait cancelled coz of citizenship issue Secy @ Human resource ministry questioned nationality Even prez request didn’t help
Source: IAS our Dream in Facebook: Bharath Vaishnov
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