India- Governance- Issues (IGI)

Umesh Rashmi Rohtagi 

graduated in Engineering from IIT Kharagpur in 1968 in India, recieved masters degree from University of Michigan in 1982 in USA.

24161 Nilan Drive  Novi MI 48375, USA       

Phone :  (248) 471-5786

In India we give more importance to People, Party and not to Issues. Even in minutes of meeting for an issue you can see what M/s so and so said than what was discussed on issue and what were decided and action like who will do what and time frame. It could be as important meeting of NIC or a thing. People will get few minutes to talk on issue will talks more on anything but issues at hand but will be given the importance as per their position not as per the substance on the issues. That shows we have no respect for the issue and how it will be dealt but who said what. This way issue becomes secondary and never gets solved. And any no. of such useless meeting becomes time wasting ways and baseless. Getting rid of corruption remained the distant dream for public.

Take for instance the recent uproar about Jan Lok Pal Bill and Anti corruption two three or ten people became news and all were talking about the people more for or against but the issue of corruption is in back burner. Why it happen because of the people worshiping or part affiliations etc. etc. And how to tackle the issue of corruption never got any clear cut method to deal with the issue of corruption in all places. Simple solution could be one deal with one corrupt at a time. One fellow or two suggested some concrete plans but those plans never saw alight of the day. Why can Pm say that he will start with removing most corrupt person from each department of Government who has the maximum votes from their pears alone and labeled as most corrupt. This could be the exemplary and a correct step in right direction. Every one become expert on all issues but no resolve to do anything worthwhile, and step by step plan to get rid of corruption from Governance, and public feel relived and assured of good Governance which it deserves. Public is frustrated from present form of Governance which has no robust direction and clear policy. Prime Minister also made one very important declaration that he wishes to stop discriminatory powers of ministers, which many times are reason for the uproar and laws are broken with the help of Administrators. Her it will not be out of place to mention that people who ask for favor of money in exchange of just doing their jobs in time should be charged for corruption not as it is now the bribe taker as well as giver both are stamped as guilty.

Let us make a list of issues which are most important in order to have good Governance. Few which come to my mind are as follows.

1.    

Accountability; All public servants (netas and public servants) comes under this category should be accountable to public first. They all exist because of public for public and by the public only. It is immaterial which party person they are working for or getting direction to do their job or agenda.

We all deserve the best Governance

2.   Police: These are for public safety and security first not for Neta or big Babus only. The Netas and Big Babus all get enough money and rich who can afford to appoint their own private security. Most effective will be if they are under direct control of local public.

We deserve the safety and security every day 24/7

3.   Judges: To serve public and provide the justice to public grievances only. They just do not exist for their own comforts or save their masters who are responsible to appoint them in first place.

Justice delayed is justice denied. Laws were implemented as per rules by administration-right or wrong.

4.   Legislators: The basic responsibility is for public and elected by public for representing public.  They all should always be reflecting public needs and demands and should always in direct communication with public. Not taking bribes to just raise a question in legislative place and ask for bribe. They should not be depending on the administration only. Most bills and laws are to be formulated by these representatives, how to implement once these become law by administration. Hence no MLA or MP or Councilor should be in charge of day to day affairs of running a ministry and just sign hundreds of files each day without reading any by becoming Ministers. All of our representatives should not only be well versed in laws or get training first time but always be minimum Graduate degree holders as they had deal with Administrators who are all educated as per minimum requirement degree holders. This is public hue and cry and there is no dearth of educated people in all walks of life be it a farmer. I know many farmers etc who poses advanced degrees in their own profession. Even ST/SC has educated people. This is also a law in our Next door country Pakistan. Stop Appointing MP/MLA as CEO etc of Public Enterprises, because after that the people who had elected looses the representative and he or she had no time for communicating with public or their wards. These representatives never care about public opinion.

The Legislators are elected to make and uphold the laws not implementing the laws. Hence should not be appointed ministers and given extra perks because the check and balance is lost between legislation and administration.

5.   Administration: we need the experts in various fields to run smooth Governance for public service on demand in Time bound manner.  A good start by Bihar and Delhi Administrations recently, congratulation to both Chief Ministers and guilty public servants will be punished. They just do not exist only for Netas pleasure or BIG Babus (IAS. IPS, etc). These public servants are provided good comfortable houses, free electricity, domestic servants and perks etc to serve the public but at present the public service is last priority. A new trend had emerging that these public servants were stating this fact that we are public servants not Nets or Big Babus’s servants.

Public Demands timely service of their personal requirements.

6.   Decentralization: Power and revenue sharing should be spelled out clearly between central state and local bodies including panchayat. Like MP MLA and Councilor development funds had to go through District Magistrate/Village officer or Thasildar or Commissnor etc. More channel more delay and time consuming. And why we need them now these DM/Commissioner etc we can just by push a botton disperse the funds and only thing we need now the more in place controls and transparency to stop shrinkage of public funds.

We need all NGO and Public limited companies also under the preview of Right to Information (TRI)

7.   Rules and Regulations: Need a preview of pre independence laws and regulation. These all should be discussed with public involvement.  I think we all fought for independence to get rid of the frivolous laws and rules but we continued with them because Netas and Babus can enjoy what English man were enjoying at the expense of public even now. Using discriminatory powers to their advantage against Public.

We need clear and simple robust rules for the encouragement of public not harassing public for the rules. It is said once out of some 3500 rules only less than thousand can be implemented or useful for public all others are obsolete. Like police rules were formulated after 1857 many times a demand for change or in the heart of some minister this thought occurred but died its own death as people who gets power does not wish to lose it.

8.   All corruption cases are done within six months of its start once all dept laws were done with and person should be removed from job without pay even if he or she wins no loss of pay as no work no pay. System is protecting the corrupt and corruption.

9.   All Discriminatory powers be do away with unless there is law passed by or approve by Lok Sbha or State assembly  by all including PM Minister or Administrators.

10.                All bills to be discussed in local town house type meeting and public opinion be sought

And public opinion should be favoring it otherwise it should be amended as per majority public opinion. As we can see clearly that legislative, administrative and judicial representatives are not able to handle the task at hand alone, they still need public input which is not provided in the system  present. Constitution had be two way street not dictating types which can lead to dictatorial system.

11.                All transfer should be immediately stops as it against public interest. There is no justification to do these in public interest. Why we cannot work with each and every body as all public servants are for public benefit not for or against one party or other. If one is dishonest he or she will always be one in this place or other and why other place is suffered at the hand of a dishonest public servant. These mistakes and out of job and no pension. The public servants never develop affinity to local public 

12.                 Why Public distribution system (PDS) or Gazette officer, treasury, rehabilitation, supply and canteen etc many departments are obsolete and should be eliminated as soon as possible. Why Govt should decide about min price for farm products let supply and demand of economics take its course.

13.                Constitution: There are many sections which are useless and some of the issues like recall mechanism for elected representatives is absent from constitution. Public servants were give service Guarantee under constitution hence these public servants become non accountable to public and fearless and less productive and careless in their jobs. It has been changed for 100+ times but many of its changes were not implemented. Mainly Panchayat Raj and women reservation in seat quota were not implemented. Transfer of powers from DM to Local bodies.

There should be a public debate about the constitution in public forums.

All Government Officers should be called Public servants which will reflect their true nature of job descriptions. And as they are know all over the world.

14.                Why we have appointed officers more powerful than elected mayors in local self Governing Bodies like Nagar Nigam etc.  

15.                All departments other than defense, post telegraph, internal security should be with state s not with Central Governance. Especially Police and Education where public immediate interference is required should be with local self Governance. Police should not be Under District magistrate ever it delays and waste very critical time in taking the decisions.

16.                Elections: the majority party should always be enjoying majority of public votes no Governance should be a minority Governance otherwise majority will always be of those who are dissatisfied with Governance as we can see now.

We need a fundamental change in the way election are done now which cannot be called a majority rule but a minority rule over majority, because majority is divided in fragmentation and rule of divide and rule is working well for Netas and Babus but not for Majority Public. In Past 64 years no central Government had a majority of votes but always manage to retain the Majority seats or representatives.

The list is not complete and does not have to be because the public perception could be different for various aspects and should always be as per majority of public not by majority of party candidates.  Anybody who has a any case pending in court for a criminal should not be allowed to run for any elected position as it is not possible to have selected post as well all should require a police clearance.

My wish that we all united for a issue than we will be served no matter which party is running the governance, otherwise we will be ruled as it is now.

 Majority should rule in Democracy but minority should never be discriminated but should always be able live by rules of majority without any repercussions.

India is only country in the world where we take the brightest of our youth and System makes them corrupt. Where teachers don’t teach in class but take class in homes to teach by tuitions. You can open colleges but not primary schools.

Hence we have to change the system which is sheltering the corrupt and corruption instead of serving the public with honesty.

 It should be noted we are not here to talk about people but the System or Issues only. Think the system which were made to collect  more and more because it was started by the company( British India Company ) and main aim of  the company is always to make money for its owners, our system is still doing the same. It takes care of the people who have money power and resources but not the biggest constituent of Governance - public. More over the system which had created the problem cannot solve them for sure.

For solutions we had to think out of the box not within box as we are trying to do. The people who are benefit from the system will never allow this to happen but as public we have to not only demand but everything in our power to talk over this discussed about it and had to find ways to talk this but most important part should be unity for issue than will come implementation later it will be tested and modified as time demand or public wish.

 Hence most important point which is not discussed above so far is VALUE OF PUBLIC OPINION FOR ANY ISSUE and its Validity by Constitution. How it can be done at the time of election few issues be taken by public and public vote for the same and once it voted  by majority  has to be made the law and group who brought the Issue should be involved at all the level. Unless at least 25,00,000 people sign for an issue for memorandum it should not be voted.

 Single one can always have a opinion, but united public opinion will be an Issue.