Functions of Government

“Government is created to secure the inalienable rights of all citizens – i.e., the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” – Thomas Jefferson.

Types of Functions: 

The government functions in broadly following categories:

1. Regulatory functions,
2. Service providing functions, and
3. Developmental functions.

Regulatory Functions: 

Need of  regulation: 

• Our constitution grants various freedoms to the citizens of India. However, if everyone is allowed to pursue complete freedom, then it could affect the freedom of other persons.
• This necessitates the regulatory role of government.

The regulatory structure of government: 

• Constitution:  The Indian Constitution provides a regulatory role to the government. The government (Central and State) can make laws on various subjects. Besides, under Article 19 of the Indian Constitution, the government is empowered to impose reasonable restrictions on the exercise of various Rights that are conferred by Article 19.

• Laws: The State has enacted various laws to impose restrictions on citizens’ activities in society’s larger interest.

• Organisations: Then, the State creates a large number of organisations to implement these laws.

Challenges in regulation: 

• • However, obtaining ‘optimal regulation’ (i.e. striking a balance between an individual’s freedom and the interests of society) is difficult. It’s because both too many restrictions and too little regulations can put citizens in a lot of trouble.

• Excessive regulation: It has been suggested that India is overly regulated. This is due to:

• A great number of regulations are in place.
• Old and ineffective regulations that are present in the statute books unnecessarily.
• The proclivity to over-legislate, which leads to legislation becoming an end in itself; and
• Regulating for the sake of regulation.

• Weak regulation: However, insufficient regulatory procedures thwart public interest, owing to a lack of staff in regulatory organisations and inadequate oversight of these entities.
• Poor regulation also leads to corrupt and unethical practices.

Recommendations: 

For attaining ‘optimum regulation’, the Government should follow the following principles.

• Avoid over-regulation (Self-regulation):

• It is often said that the best regulation for taxation is self-regulation.
• In circumstances where a permission/ licence must be renewed on a regular basis, the “principle of voluntary compliance” should be followed.

• Avoid over-regulation (tune them to present times):

• Government should carry out detailed scrutiny of all laws and regulations – it should be at the Union, State and Local levels.
• Then it should repeal unnecessary regulations and update outdated ones.

• Capacity building: 

• Government should give proper attention to the capacity building of regulatory bodies to keep pace with the demand.

• Take steps to reduce corruption: Take the following procedures to guarantee that regulatory measures do not devolve into unscrupulous activities.

• Effective supervision: Effective oversight of the agencies that carry out these regulatory functions is required. Internal supervision by supervisory personnel should be reinforced by a periodic assessment by an outside organisation.

• Simplify regulation: Simplify transactions, make use of technology, increase openness, and eliminate secrecy.
• Involving citizens’ groups, professional organisations in the regulation activities: Associating citizens’ groups and professional organisations to certify compliance and report infractions of the regulations to the appropriate authorities can share the weight of the enforcement apparatus.
• Regulatory mechanisms should be responsive and aim for the speedy disposal of cases.

Service Providing Functions of Government: 

• The government provides a social as well as infrastructural services to citizens:

• Sanitation, education, health, etc. social services.
• Road, power, drinking water, etc. infrastructural services.

• Recommendations:

•  There is a need to guarantee that service providers are more efficient and accountable. Full cost recovery, effective implementation of Citizens’ Charters, citizen feedback mechanisms, and public-private partnerships are some of the methods for achieving these goals.
• The government should also develop a single-window system.

• Single window system to deliver the service:  Adoption of a ‘single window system’ approach has been done by many governments in the world for efficient and effective delivery of services.

• Reasons for it:  

• The basic aim of this approach is to reduce the hassle caused to the citizens while running in many government offices for getting different services.
• Single Window system minimises delay and maximises convenience to citizens.

• Approaches towards a single-window system:  This is achieved in several ways.

• Approach 1: A service providing organisation re-engineer its processes to deliver all its services through a single outlet/unit.
• Approach 2: Create an organisation that will build an infrastructure that will allow diverse government agencies to deliver services to citizens from a single place.
• Approach 3: Some countries have chosen to collaborate rather than create a separate organisation to construct a shared service delivery infrastructure.

• Present status in India:

• National level: The National Portal (http:// india.gov.in) provides web-enabled single window access to information and public services provided by the Union of India’s government.

• State-level (Single Window Agencies): Single Window Agencies have been established by state governments, specifically to give industrial permissions. However, it has been noted that these organisations frequently grant just “in principle approval,” requiring the applicant to seek formal authorization from each agency.

• Recommendations: 

• For Single Window Agencies at the state level: Empower them to enable them to provide relevant services.
• Use of ICT: An essential prerequisite for implementing single-window clearance is thorough business process re-engineering in government organisations, aided by Information and Communications Technology (ICT). ICT has enabled governments to deliver services to citizens in a faster, more efficient and transparent manner.

Government as a developmental functionary: 

Many welfare and development programmes have been created and implemented by the government with the goal of improving the socioeconomic status of its population.

• Recommendations: 

•  To decide the implementation machinery for a programme, it is necessary that the  principle of subsidiarity is followed.
• Citizen participation at all stages of these programmes, including design, execution, and monitoring.
• All programmes should be subjected to a mandated social audit.