Good Governance

What is Good Governance?

 ‘Governance’ is the process of decision-making and the process by which
decisions are implemented (or not implemented).

o 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”.

o Good governance has 8 major characteristics.‘It is participatory,

consensus-oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective
and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the rule of law.
o 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.
o It is also responsive to the present and future needs of society.
FOUR PILLARS OF GOOD GOVERNANCE: The 4 pillars on which
the edifice of good governance rests in essence are:
 Ethos (of service to the citizen),
 Ethic (honesty, integrity and transparency),
 Equity (treating all citizens alike with empathy for the weaker sections)
and
 Efficiency (speedy and effective delivery of service without
harassment and using ICT increasingly).
Governance needs some parameters to make it good. From the above
definitions, it can be said that good governance has some
Characteristics or indicators for the establishment of sound economic
management and ensuring the relationship between the state and civil
society. From the study of World Bank documents and several studies,
there are 8 major characteristics of good governance. These are
mentioned below-
1. Participation
2. Rule of Law
3. Transparency
4. Responsiveness
5. Consensus Oriented
6. Equity and Inclusiveness
7. Effectiveness and Efficiency
8. Accountability

Eight Principles of Good Governance By United Nations

 Participation:

o People should be able to voice their own opinions through legitimate

immediate organizations or representatives.
o This includes men and women, vulnerable sections of society, backward
classes, minorities, etc.
 o Participation also implies freedom of association and expression.
 Rule of Law:

o Legal framework should be enforced impartially, especially on human

rights laws.
o 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:

o 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.
o It mediates differing interests to meet the broad consensus on the best
interests of a community.
 Equity and Inclusiveness:

o Good governance assures an equitable society.

o People should have opportunities to improve or maintain their well-being.
 Effectiveness and Efficiency:

o Processes and institutions should be able to produce results that meet the
needs of their community.
o Resources of the community should be used effectively for the maximum
output.
 Accountability:

o Good governance aims towards betterment of people, and this can not
take place without the government being accountable to the people.
o Governmental institutions, private sectors, and civil society organizations
should be held accountable to the public and institutional stakeholders.
 Transparency:
 o Information should be accessible to the public and should be
understandable and monitored.
o It also means free media and access of information to them.
 Responsiveness:

o Institutions and processes should serve all stakeholders in a reasonable

period of time.
References of Good Governance

 Bhagavad Gita provides numerous cues for good governance, leadership,

dutifulness and self-realization which are re-interpreted in the modern context.
 In Kautilya’s Arthashastra (2nd-3rd century BC), the welfare of people was
considered paramount in the role of King. Mahatma Gandhi emphasized “su-
raj'' which essentially means good governance.
 Importance of governance is clearly inscribed in Indian Constitution which is
built on-premise of Sovereign, Socialist, Secular and Democratic Republic
committing itself to democracy, rule of law and welfare of people.
 Under Sustainable Development Goals, Goal 16 can be considered to be
directly linked as it is dedicated to improvement in governance, inclusion,
participation, rights, and security.
 According to former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, "Good
governance is ensuring respect for human rights and the rule of law;
strengthening democracy; promoting transparency and capacity in public
administration." He also said that “Good Governance is perhaps the single
most important factor in eradicating poverty and promoting development”.
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 the government 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.

o 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.
Challenges to Good Governance
Criminalization of Politics

 According to the Association of Democratic Reforms, 43% of Members of

Parliaments of Lok Sabha 2019 are facing criminal charges. It is a 26%
increase as compared to 2014.
 The criminalisation of the political process and the unholy nexus between
politicians, civil servants, and business houses are having a baneful influence
on public policy formulation and governance.
 The political class as such is losing respect. Therefore, it is necessary to
amend Section 8 of the Representation of the People’s Act 1951 to
disqualify a person against whom the criminal charges that relate to grave and
heinous offenses and corruption are pending.
Corruption

 Corruption is a major obstacle in improving the quality of governance. While

human greed is obviously a driver of corruption, it is the structural incentives
and poor enforcement system to punish the corrupt that have contributed to the
rising curve of graft in India.
 According to the Corruption Perception Index - 2019 (released by
Transparency International, India's ranking has slipped from 78 to 80.
Gender Disparity

 According to Swami Vivekananda, “it is impossible to think about the

welfare of the world unless the condition of women is improved. It is
impossible for a bird to fly on only one wing”.
 One way to assess the state of the nation is to study the status of its women.
As women comprise almost 50% of the population it is unfair that they are not
adequately represented in government institutions and other allied sectors.
 Therefore, in order to ensure good governance it is essential to ensure the
empowerment of women.
Growing incidence of violence
 Resorting to illegal force is considered to be a law and order problem. But
when one looks at it from the point of view of the principles of Good
Governance, it becomes clear that peace and order is the first step to
development.
Delay in Justice

 A citizen has the right to avail timely justice, but there are several factors,
because of that a common man doesn't get timely justice.
Centralisation of Administrative System

 Governments at lower levels can only function efficiently if they are

empowered to do so. This is particularly relevant for the Panchayati Raj
Institutions (PRIs), which currently suffer from inadequate devolution of
funds as well as functionaries to carry out the functions constitutionally
assigned to them.
Marginalization of Socially and Economically Backward People

 The socially and economically backward sections of the society have always
been marginalised in the process of development. Although there are
constitutional provisions for their upliftment but in practice, they are lagging
behind in so many areas like education, economic well being etc.
Conclusion
 The effective functioning of governance is the prime concern of every citizen
of the country. The citizens are ready to pay the price for good services
offered by the state, but what is required is a transparent, accountable and
intelligible governance system absolutely free from bias and prejudices.
 There is a need to reformulate our national strategy to accord primacy to the
Gandhian principle of ‘Antyodaya” to restore good governance in the country.
 India should also focus on developing probity in governance, which will make
the governance more ethical.
 The government should continue to work on the ideals of Sabka Saath, Sabka
Vikas and Sabka Vishwas which will lead to inclusive and sustainable
development.
Probity in Governance
 Probity is a quality of having strong moral principles. It includes having
integrity, uprightness, and honesty. It is not just being incorruptible and honest
but also includes strict adherence to a code of ethics. For an effective system
of governance and for socio-economic development, probity is essential.
 Philosophical basis of governance and probity:

o The ethical concern of governance has been given in both eastern and
western literature like Bhagavad Gita, Arthashastra, by Confucius, Plato,
Mill, etc.
o Administrators are the guardians of the Administrative State so they
should honor public trust.
o Max Weber: He said that it rationality that members of administrative
staff should not own means of production.
 Objective of probity in governance:

o To ensure accountability in governance

o To maintain integrity in Public Service
o To ensure compliance with the process
o To preserve public confidence in Govt process
o To avoid the potential for misconduct, fraud, and corruption

INITIATIVES OF GOOD GOVERNANCE IN INDIA:

The Tenth Plan document identified good governance as the single most important
factor in ensuring that the plan objective are achieved. Among other things,
decentralization of power and citizens’ empowerment, effective people’s
participation through state and non-state mechanisms, greater synergy and
consolidation among various agencies and programs of government, civil service
reform and strengthening of land administration and harnessing the power of
technology for governance have been identified as the key priorities. A number of
steps were taken in the Tenth Plan period aimed at improving the quality of
governance:
 The RTI Act, 2005 was brought into force. This applies to union and local
agencies, local governments and societies which receive public funds, and
empowers citizens.
 The All-India Service Rules were amended, providing a certain fixed tenure for
specified posts to be notified by the State Central Government. It will help promote
accountability.
 A new Value Added Tax regime was introduced which simplifies the tax
systems and has enormous positive implications for major reforms in the tax
structure.
 Electoral funding reform were introduced, promoting transparency and fairness
and creating tax incentives to donors and disclosure of antecedents of candidates
contesting for public office.
 An e-Governance Plan for 27 major areas was adopted designed to assist,
improve delivery of services and digitization of information.
 Initiatives on participatory governance were introduced under NREGA, NRHM
and other measures.
 A policy for VOs was announced by the central Government, reflecting the
importance of the voluntary sector in promoting participatory system.
 A NDMA was established to bring more focused attention to this important area
and to initiate preparatory work to make responses to disasters more effective.

CONCLUSION:
Governance has many dimensions and no single solution can eliminate all forms of
bad governance or misgovernance. The good governance agenda advocates
freedom of information, a strong legal system and efficient administration to help
the underprivileged claim equality, but these have been most successful when
backed up by strong political mobilization through social movement or political
parties with a clear-cut vision.
In the present context, good governance is a reform strategy and also an initiative
to strengthen the institutions with the objective of making the government more
accountable, more open, more transparent and more democratic. To talk of good
governance means bringing about goodness in all the three sectors: government,
civil society and corporate world, including transnational corporations. Good
governance has been observed to be a tryst with trust, a commitment of the people
for the people, a social contract for the greatest good and the collective conscience
of the community. The success of any administrative system depends on the
vigilance of citizens. The interface of administration and citizens has put the
administration into a very dominant position. Without effective public
accountability, the governance strategies could have very serious consequence.
How to increase public accountability and make the administration responsive is
the main challenge of good governance. If we really want to see good governance
operational on the ground, we have to avoid the following seven social sins which
Mahatma Gandhi advocated before independence: Politics without principles
Wealth without work Pleasure without conscience Knowledge without character
Commerce without morality Science without humanity Worship without sacrifice