Good Governance

What is Good Governance?

• ‘Governance’ is the process of decision-making and the process by which decisions are implemented (or not implemented). Governance can be used in several contexts such as corporate governance, international governance, national governance and local governance.
• In the 1992 report entitled “Governance and Development”, the World Bank set out its definition of Good Governance. It defined Good Governance as “the manner in which power is exercised in the management of a country’s economic and social resources for development”.
• Good governance has 8 major characteristics.‘It is
  • participatory,
  • consensus-oriented,
  • accountable,
  • transparent,
  • responsive,
  • effective and efficient,
  • equitable and inclusive and
  • rule of law.

• It assures that corruption is minimized, the views of minorities are taken into account and that the voices of the most vulnerable in society are heard in decision-making.
• It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society.

8 Principles of Good Governance By United Nations

• Participation:
  • People should be able to voice their own opinions through legitimate immediate organizations or representatives.
  • This includes men and women, vulnerable sections of society, backward classes, minorities, etc.
  • Participation also implies freedom of association and expression.
• Rule of Law:
  • Legal framework should be enforced impartially, especially on human rights laws.
  • Without rule of law, politics will follow the principle of matsya nyaya ie law of fish which means the strong will prevail over the weak.
• Consensus Oriented:
  • Consensus oriented decision-making ensures that even if everyone does not achieve what they want to the fullest, a common minimum can be achieved by everyone which will not be detrimental to anyone.
  • It mediates differing interests to meet the broad consensus on the best interests of a community.
• Equity and Inclusiveness:
  • Good governance assures an equitable society.
  • People should have opportunities to improve or maintain their well-being.
• Effectiveness and Efficiency:
  • Processes and institutions should be able to produce results that meet the needs of their community.
  • Resources of the community should be used effectively for the maximum output.
• Accountability:
  • Good governance aims towards betterment of people, and this can not take place without the government being accountable to the people.
  • Governmental institutions, private sectors, and civil society organizations should be held accountable to the public and institutional stakeholders.
• Transparency:
  • Information should be accessible to the public and should be understandable and monitored.
  • It also means free media and access of information to them.
• Responsiveness:
  • Institutions and processes should serve all stakeholders in a reasonable period of time.

Administrative Responsibility – Reforms

Administrative reforms have been initiated in recent years, both in developed and developing countries , with an objective to promote good governance. However, the term connotes different meanings to different people. Also different approaches and strategies have been advanced, which place emphasis on certain aspects, values and principles.

Initiatives for Good Governance in India

Right to Information

• As a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), India is under an international obligation to effectively guarantee citizens the Right to Information as per Article 19 of the ICCPR.
• RTI Act, 2005 marks a significant shift in Indian democracy. It gives greater access of the citizen to the information which in turn improves the responsiveness of thegovernment to community needs.
• The right to information, promotes openness, transparency and accountability in administration by making the government more open to public scrutiny.

E-Governance

• The National e-Governance Plan envisions to make all government services accessible to the common man in his locality, through common service delivery outlets and ensure efficiency, transparency & reliability of such services at affordable costs.
• E-Governance effectively delivers better programming and services in the era of newly emerging information and communication technologies (ICTs), which herald new opportunities for rapid social and economic transformation worldwide.
• E-Governance has a direct impact on its citizens who derive benefits through direct transactions with the services offered by the government.
  • Programs launched under e-Governance:
    • Pro-Active Governance and Timely Implementation (PRAGATI),
    • Digital India Program, MCA21 (to improve the speed and certainty in the delivery of the services of Ministry of Company Affairs), Passport Seva Kendra (PSK), online Income tax return, etc.
• Focus on ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance’.

Legal Reforms

• The Central Government has scrapped nearly 1,500 obsolete rules and laws with an aim to bring about transparency and improve efficiency.
• Reform criminal justice and procedural laws with focus on pre-institution mediation.

Ease of Doing Business

• Steps were taken by the government to improve business conditions including legislation meant to improve the country’s business environment and policy ecosystems (such as the Bankruptcy Code, the Goods and Services Tax or GST, and the anti-money-laundering law).
• Government has launched the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

Decentralization

• Centralised Planning Commission was abolished, replacing it with the think tank called the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog), which would usher in an era of “cooperative federalism”.
• 14th Finance Commission increased the tax devolution of the divisible pool to states from 32% to 42% for years 2015 to 2020. It provides more freedom to states to initiate schemes based on local factors.

Police Reforms

• Modernizing police forces and implementing the Model Police Act of 2015.
• Reform of the First Information Report (FIR) lodging mechanism, including introducing filing e-FIRs for minor offences.
• Launch a common nation-wide emergency number to attend to emergency security needs of citizens.

Aspirational Districts Programme

• The Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP) was launched in January 2018 to transform the lives of people in the under-developed areas of the county in a time bound manner.
• Anchored in NITI Aayog, the programme is aimed at transforming 115 most backward districts with focused interventions in the field of health and nutrition, education, agriculture and water management, financial inclusion and skill development.

Good Governance Index

• The Good Governance Index Was launched on the occasion of Good Governance Day on 25 December 2019.
• The Good Governance Index is a uniform tool across States to assess the Status of Governance and impact of various interventions taken up by the State Government and Union Territories.
• The objectives of Good Governance Index are to provide quantifiable data to compare the state of governance in all states and Union Territories, enable states and Union Territories to formulate and implement suitable strategies for improving governance and shift to result oriented approaches and administration.