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INTRODUCTION
ARC Report analyzes Government of India's structure and proposes reforms for a proactive, efficient, and flexible organizational framework.
Reorganization of Ministries and Departments: Redefining their roles for greater collaboration in evolving governance.
Manpower planning and Process re-engineering: Focusing on administrative services in the context of global integration and liberalization.
Assessing suitability of present governance system: Suggesting areas for regulation and reduction, strengthening administrative machinery.
Current structures based on Weberian model: More suited to command and control, less effective for developmental and facilitative functions.
Unsatisfactory position in human development and economic parameters linked to governmental structure and functioning.
Redesigning governmental organizations to serve the people and achieve national social and economic development objectives.
Reorganizing Government - International Experiences
Background: Public administration in India faces significant challenges, including maintaining peace, reducing poverty, promoting inclusive economic growth, ensuring social justice, and achieving ethical, transparent, and participative governance. India's rankings on HDI and the Global Corruption Perception Index reflect the magnitude of these challenges.
Administrative Design: One-size-fits-all administrative approaches may not address all issues effectively. Innovative and specialized instrumentalities may be required, even if seemingly inconsistent with each other. Deregulation may be needed for economic growth, but certain sectors might require stronger regulations to fight corruption.
Steps Taken Since Independence: India has implemented various initiatives to improve governance, such as empowering local bodies, limiting the size of the Council of Ministers, introducing VAT, and implementing the Right to Information Act.
Current Challenges: Lawlessness and violence in some areas, perceived inefficiency in the state apparatus, bureaucratic tardiness and unresponsiveness, pervasive corruption, criminalization of politics, and poor implementation of laws and public services are significant challenges.
Objectives of Reorganizing Government: The main objectives of public administration are to fulfill human potential and achieve rapid growth. The non-negotiable roles of the state include maintaining public order, justice, rule of law, human development through education and healthcare, infrastructure development, and social security for the unorganized sector workers.
Link between Governance and Growth: Successful governance should facilitate both high economic growth and improved quality of life with equity. This requires liberalization, democratization, a strong private sector, effective poverty alleviation, and good governance.
World Bank's Recommendations: The World Bank suggests narrowing the gap between state demands and capabilities through prioritization. The state should focus on core functions and delegate non-core tasks to civil society and the private sector. Additionally, the state should improve its capacity to manage collective actions.
Global Lessons: Lessons from other countries' experiences in governance reform include political commitment, focusing on core government functions, promoting competition in public service delivery, agencification, decentralization, public-private partnerships, process simplification through deregulation, strengthening accountability, implementing e-governance, performance management systems, empowering citizens, promoting good governance practices, policy evaluation, regulatory impact assessment, benchmarking for improvement, and using governance indices.
Existing Structure of Government of India
Strengths of the Existing Structure:
Time-tested system with established rules and procedures for stable governance.
Commitment to the Constitution and political neutrality of civil services.
Link between policymaking and implementation, promoting cooperative federalism.
Development of a national outlook among public servants, contributing to national integration.
Weaknesses of the Existing Structure:
Undue emphasis on routine functions, hampering policy analysis and prioritization of national issues.
Proliferation of Ministries/Departments, leading to weak integration and coordination.
Extended hierarchy with too many levels, causing delays in decision-making and lack of accountability.
Risk avoidance and excessive reliance on consultations, leading to inefficiency.
Absence of teamwork and interdisciplinary approach in decision-making.
Fragmentation of functions, making service delivery inefficient.
Weakening of autonomy in certain committees and boards.
The existing structure of the Government of India has evolved over time, and while it has strengths like stability and adherence to rules, it also suffers from weaknesses such as bureaucratic inefficiency, lack of coordination, and excessive hierarchy. Addressing these weaknesses can help improve governance and responsiveness to the needs of the nation.
Core Principles of Reforming the Structure of Government
The core principles for reforming the structure of the Government of India are as follows:
Core Areas of Focus: The Union Government should prioritize key areas such as defense, international relations, national security, justice, human development (education and healthcare), infrastructure, sustainable resource development, social security, and macro-economic management.
Subsidiarity: Decentralization of functions to State and Local Governments should be promoted. Restructuring may involve decentralization, delegation, or hiving off certain activities to lower levels of governance.
Integration of Related Subjects: Government functions should be analyzed and grouped into key categories linked to Ministries to ensure an integrated approach without sacrificing functional specialization.
Separation of Policy-Making and Execution: Policy-making functions should be concentrated at higher levels, while implementation functions should be delegated to operational units or independent organizations/agencies.
Coordinated Implementation: Coordination is crucial for effective implementation. Creation of empowered commissions, statutory bodies, and autonomous societies in key sectors can improve coordination.
Flatter Structures and Teamwork: Organizations, including government bodies, should adopt flatter structures and encourage teamwork to suit their specific objectives, moving away from conventional vertical hierarchies.
Well-Defined Accountability: Clearer demarcation of organizational responsibilities and a reduction in on-file consultations can promote greater accountability and facilitate the development of a performance management system.
Appropriate Delegation: Avoiding excessive centralization and empowering subordinate functionaries or units is necessary to prevent delays, inefficiency, and demoralization of staff.
Criticality of Operational Units: Rationalizing the Government staff pattern to ensure adequate authority, manpower, and resources at the operational level will directly benefit citizens' lives.
Implementing these core principles can lead to a more efficient, responsive, and accountable structure of the Government of India, better equipped to address the nation's needs and challenges.
2ND ARC RECOMMENDATIONS
The Second Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC) made several recommendations to reform the structure of the Government of India. Some of the important recommendations are:
Optimum Size of Government Workforce: The Commission emphasized the importance of maintaining an optimum size of government workforce to ensure effective functioning. An oversized government can be burdensome and inefficient, while an understaffed one may fail to deliver. Achieving the right balance is crucial for efficient governance.
Reorganizing Ministries and Departments: The Commission recommended the creation of new departments only when necessary, considering both advantages and disadvantages. While creating new departments may focus attention and resources on specific subjects, it may also lead to a lack of coordination and integrated approach to national priorities and problems. Rationalization of ministries and departments is essential to strike a balance between functional specialization and holistic approaches to key issues.
Creation of Effective Executive Agencies: To separate policy-making from implementation, the Commission proposed restructuring implementation bodies as autonomous organizations like executive agencies. These agencies would have greater operational autonomy and flexibility, while being responsible and accountable for their actions.
Internal Structure of Ministries: The Commission called for restructuring the design of ministries to create flatter structures with team-based orientations. The current hierarchical and centralized approach impedes efficiency, accountability, and creativity. A shift towards team-based working is necessary for effective policy formulation and problem-solving.
Simplification of Governmental Processes: The Commission highlighted the bureaucratic nature of government organizations and the need for rationalizing rules and procedures. It recommended reducing hierarchical layers, delegating authority, and promoting a proactive approach towards departmental priorities. The focus should shift from file management to outcomes and results.
Ensure Proper Coordination Among Different Levels: The Commission stressed the importance of extensive horizontal coordination between policies spread over various departments. It suggested using selective Group of Ministers (GoMs) to ensure effective coordination, empowered to make decisions on behalf of the Cabinet within prescribed time limits. The Cabinet Secretariat should play a significant role in inter-ministerial coordination.
Coordination Mechanism: The Commission recognized the need for re-grouping government functions into inter-related categories, to be assigned to a Coordinating Minister to improve coordination. It also suggested establishing formal coordination mechanisms, including inter-ministerial committees and working groups, to address specific issues and oversee the implementation of government schemes.
Inter-Ministerial Coordination on State-Union Relations: The Commission recommended having a formal coordination mechanism to address issues between the States and the Union Government, especially in sectors like power, transport, and water. This mechanism would facilitate timely resolution of stalemates and promote cooperation between the Center and the States.
Overall, the Second ARC recommendations aimed to streamline the government structure, enhance efficiency, promote teamwork, and improve coordination at various levels, leading to a more effective and responsive governance system in India.
World Bank's Recommendations for Improving Governance Capacity
The World Bank's recommendations for improving governance capacity in States, especially those facing developmental challenges, focus on narrowing the gap between the State's demands and its capabilities, as well as enhancing the State's ability to manage collective actions efficiently.
The key elements of the World Bank's prescriptions are as follows:
Redefining State Priorities: The State should concentrate on five main tasks that form the core of its mission. These tasks include establishing the rule of law, maintaining macroeconomic stability, investing in basic social services and infrastructure, protecting vulnerable segments of society, and safeguarding the environment.
Creation of Alternative Providers: The World Bank suggests involving civil society, the private sector, and community groups in sharing the burden of providing infrastructure and social services. Outsourcing and privatization can also be utilized to increase competition, innovation, and efficiency. Transparent privatization processes and broad-based ownership are important considerations in privatization efforts.
Self-Restricting Rules and Consensus Building: In countries with weak institutions, self-restricting rules can be implemented to specify the boundaries of policies, making them more difficult to reverse arbitrarily. Additionally, the State can collaborate with the corporate sector and organized forces to pursue policies based on consensus rather than administrative fiat.
Strengthening Institutional Capability: To enhance governance capacity, the World Bank recommends providing incentives to public officials for better performance, separating the powers of the legislature, executive, and judiciary, and establishing an independent judiciary. Reducing discretionary authority, promoting meritocracy in recruitment and promotion, and implementing stringent punishment for wrongdoing are also crucial.
Increased Competition and Autonomy: Subject the State's services to increased competition from both internal and external agencies. Create focused, performance-based public agencies with autonomy and greater managerial accountability.
Empowering Citizens: Involve citizens in the affairs and activities of the State through electoral processes and by co-opting them on various advisory councils. Engage beneficiaries of government programs in the planning and implementation of these programs.
Devolution of Authority: Devolve authority from the central government to regional and local governments, but implement mechanisms to monitor devolution, prevent capture by vested interests, and check profligacy by these governments.
Public Discussion and Access to Information: Ensure broad-based public discussion of key policies and priorities and provide greater access to public information. Create various consultative forums to engage citizens in decision-making processes.
By following these recommendations, governments can enhance their governance capacity, effectively meet their priorities, and deliver sustainable, shared, poverty-reducing development.
It emphasizes a shift towards more inclusive and transparent governance practices, empowering citizens, and creating institutions that are capable of efficiently delivering services and managing collective actions.
CONCLUSION
Structural reforms alone are insufficient to enhance governance in the Government of India. They must be complemented with other reform measures and implemented in sync to achieve better governance.
Recommendations are provided as broad principles, and individual Ministries/Departments should use them to substantially reorganize themselves. Generic changes to the functioning rules of the government are suggested, which Ministries can adopt to increase effectiveness.
Political will at the highest level is crucial for driving the reorganization, with regular monitoring by the Cabinet Secretariat. Some suggestions may appear radical, but they are essential for achieving transparent, coherent, and efficient governance.
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