Concept of Good Governance in India (GS-II)

Good Governance Lesson-5 Presented By ROMAN SAINI

IN THIS LESSON Good Governance Recommendations By Second ARC To Improve Good Governance and Citizen Centric Administration

Good Governance Recommendations To Improve Functions Of Government Government agencies, whether regulatory or developmental, should introduce the Single Window Agency concept within their organisations to minimize delays and maximize convenience to citizens. Government as a whole should draw a roadmap with timelines for expeditious creation of a single window at the local level for provision of all developmental and regulatory services to citizens. .Citizens should be actively involved in all stages of these programmes i.e. planning, implementation and monitoring. .Mandatory social audit should be carried out for all programmes.

Good Governance To Improve Citizen's Participation in Administratiorn It should be mandatory for all government organizations to develop a suitable mechanism for receipt of suggestions from citizens, which could range from the simple 'Suggestion Box' to periodic consultations with citizens' groups Heads of the concerned organizations should ensure rigorous follow up action on the suggestions received so that these become a meaningful exercise. Every government organization must ensure the following: (i) fool-proof system for registration of all complaints, (ii) a prescribed time schedule for response and resolution, and (ii) a monitoring and evaluation mechanism to ensure that the norms, prescribed are complied with.

Good Governance A system of incentives and rewards should be introduced so that suggestions that lead to significant improvement or savings can be acknowledged. .Use of tools of information technology can help to make such a system more accessible for citizens. Heads of all government organizations should be made responsible for ensuring the development of such a system for responding to a time bound resolution of the complaints of citizens. .Regular citizens' feedback, survey and citizens' report cards should be evolved by all government organisations for gauging citizens' responses to their services. There is need to create institutionalized mechanisms for encouraging their participation in governance across public agencies at all levels .

Good Governance To Improve Participation of Women and the Physically Challenged Ensuring the full participation of women should be a specific aim of citizen centric administration and this should be reflected in various policies and programmes, including citizens' charters and grievances redressal mechanisms .Government may constitute an expert committee to identify the areas where special provisions for the physically challenged should be made mandatory. Government should adopt a more proactive approach for detection and registration of the physically challenged persons. Organization of camps at PHC level, attended by the concerned medical personnel, would greatly help in issuing certificates of disability on the spot . Further, steps should be taken to create a database for all the Disabilities Certificate holders with integration at District, State and National levels

Good Governance Evolving an Effective Public Grievances Redressal System .There is need for a strong and effective internal grievance redressal mechanism in each organization The Union and State Governments should issue directions asking all public authorities to designate public grievance officers on the lines of the Public Information Officers under the RTI Act. These officers should be of adequate seniority and should be delegated commensurate authority . All grievance petitions received should be satisfactorily disposed of by these officers within thirty days. Non-adherence to the time limit should invite financial penalties. Each organization should designate an appellate authority and devolve adequate powers upon them including the power to impose fines on the defaulting offi cers.

Good Governance To lmprove Consumer Protection Lok Adalats would be effective in settling many consumer disputes. It should be stipulated by law that cases up to a particular value should first be referred to Lok Adalats. All Ministries/Departments need to examine the procedures regulating grant of licenses, permissions or registration including the underlying Acts, Rules, Notifications, etc. Special Institution Mechanisms A common format for making complaints before various statutory Commissions should be devised in consultation with each other. Each statutory Commission should create an electronic database prospectively and each database should be networked with each other to facilitate comparison of data.

Good Governance . The Human Rights Commission should lay down norms to deal with complaints by the most appropriate Commission. .The basic principle could be that the dominant grievance in a complaint should lead to its handling by the appropriate Commission. Internal mechanisms should be evolved within each statutory Commission to facilitate the handling of such cases in a coordinated manner. The Union and State Governments should take proactive steps in dealing with serious offences like custodial deaths/rapes etc on priority so that their occurrence diminishes over the years. Help of NHRC may be taken to prepare an action plan for this purpose. .

Good Governance In the smaller States, a single 'multi-role' Commission may be constituted which would carry out the specific functions of all the constitutional and statutory Commissions at the State level. A separate Standing Committee of Parliament may be constituted to look into Annual Reports submitted by these statutory Commissions. Simplifying Internal Procedures .All Ministries/Departments should prepare a roadmap for carrying out a process simplification exercise. This should involve changes in Rules, Regulations and Laws wherever necessary The entire exercise should be completed within two years. Similarly, the Ministries/Departments should instruct all organizations under their supervision to carry out this task.

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