In-News

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant  Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Disagreements between Judiciary and Government in appointment of judges in the Supreme Court.
  • Obstacles in attracting professional talent towards joining the judiciary.
  • Need for transparency and evaluation in the appointment process without compromising its integrity.
  • Internal reforms within the judiciary and the criminal justice system as a whole to address the problems of pendency of cases and vacancies in judicial posts.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Central Premise of the judgement : Economic deprivation with its attendant consequences to be addressed by Government’s affirmative action policies for the empowerment of the poor not covered by caste based reservation.
  • Reservation considered as an exception to the equality principle and hence not a part of the basic structure of the constitution.
  • The court rejected the tying of substantive equality to a fixed category of backwardness.
  • The majority view builds upon the ‘Living Tree Constitutionalism’ and unfolds an expansive judicial gaze upon the constitution to ensure its continuing relevance in the advancement of national goals. At the same time, it affirms that in a parliamentary democracy, policy choices representing harmonisation of conflicting interests through pragmatic adjustments is purely a legislative function.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Regulatory Authorities
  • Digital era governance
• Relevance:
  • Role of regulatory bodies in making various stakeholders accountable
  • Ensuring transparency in democracy.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Political Culture
  • Urban Local Government
  • Citizen-administration interface
• Relevance:
  • Role of elections connecting the government and the governed.
  • Note: Can avoid the politics involved, note the urban governance aspects involved.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Accountability and Control
• Relevance:
  • Need for higher judiciary’s intervention in granting bail,
  • Prison Statistics India, 2021
  • Requirement of more prisons vs Innovative solutions of relieving the pressure off prisons.
  • Pertinent role of both – judiciary and legislature
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• In Syllabus:
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Shortcomings of Juvenile Justice(Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.
  • Goal of reformation being subserved as leniency in dealing with children in conflict with law is emboldening them to indulge in heinous crime.
  • Blanket immunity from criminal process for a juvenile offender vs case-by-case assessment by a competent court(and not JJ Board) as to whether or not such juvenile had attained sufficient maturity of understanding to judge the nature and consequence of his/her action.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • State Government and Administration
  • Urban Local Government
  • Significant  Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Efficient use of excess water in the Ganga during monsoon flooding season
  • Case study for Urban water supply and preventing natural disasters
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• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Significant  Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Recommendation for conversion of subsidy burden in agriculture to direct income support
  • Limitation of DBT Schemes, zero/low interest loans, crop insurance, disaster compensation and other agri-related schemes in reaching the tenant farmers.
  • Underestimation of tenant farmers due to farm tenancy agreements being largely oral, unwritten contracts, seldom recorded leases.
  • Win-Win situation on leasing of lands for tenants and the owners.
  • Urgent need for subsuming agri-subsidies and tenant payments of DBT under the present income support schemes.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Rationale of appointment of CEC based on promotions of ECs.
  • Independent and Neutral mechanism for appointments of CEC and ECs.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Law and Order
• Relevance:
  • Border disputes due to overlooking the needs and demands of local communities.
  • Ensuing law and order problems
  • Rise of Tribal factions
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• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Provisions of draft Indian Telecommunication Bill, 2022
  • Distinguishing between domain of carriage(Telecom services) and domain of applications comprising value added communication services(OTT platforms).
  • Arguments for keeping OTT communication services out ofthe ambit of Telecom law which regulates terrestrial carriage.
  • Including OTT communication services in the Telecom bill shall influence the energy, innovation and funding that characterises India’s startup ecosystem today.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Significant Issues in Indian administration
  • Public Policy
  • Organisations
  • Personnel Administration
  • Civil Service
• Relevance:
  • Role of institutions in guarding transparency in administration.
  • Citizen administration interface
  • Accountability of administration
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• In Syllabus
  • Philosophical and constitutional framework
  • Union administration, Political culture
• Relevance
  • Role of independent institutions in guarding the tenets of the constitution
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• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Role and functioning of the Right to Information Act, 2005 and the Central Information Commission.
  • Impact of RTI(Amendment) Act, 2019.
  • Changing behaviour of bureaucrats with increasing discretion.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Neolocalism
  • District Government
  • Rural Development
  • Public Policy
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Disaster Management
• Relevance:
  • Role of local level governance overcoming challenges like climate change
  • Use of technological advancements in governance
  • Handling disasters: Role of local communities
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Financial Management
  • Plan and Priorities
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Accountability and Control
• Relevance:
  • Need of fiscal consolidation
  • Financial accountability of the government
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• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and constitutional framework
  • Public Policy
  • Accountability and Control
• Relevance:
  • Ensuring the values of equality and justice through vibrant policy making and implementation.
  • Role of judiciary in making administration accountable
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Plans and Priorities
  • Public Policy
  • Development Dynamics
• Relevance:
  • Balancing economic growth and resilience of social sector services.
  • Challenges and solutions on the journey from developing to developed country.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Revision in the provisions of the bill
  • Hefty increase in penalty amounts up to ₹500 crore,
  • Easing rules on Cross-border data flows, in a big relief for large tech firms.
  • Narrows down the scope of the data protection regime to personal data protection, leaving out non personal data from its ambit
  • The Bill proposes to impose a penalty of ₹10,000 on individuals providing unverifiable or false information while applying for any document, service, proof of identity or address, or registering a false or frivolous complaint with a Data Fiduciary (who collects and processes the data) or with the Board.
  • Introduced the concept of ‘Consent Managers’ in the Bill.
  • Data Fiduciaries collecting personal data from individuals will need to provide “itemised notice” in clear and plain language containing a description of personal data sought and the purpose of processing of such personal data.
  • The Bill requires the consent of the individual to be the basis for processing of their personal data, except in certain circumstances where seeking the consent of the Data Principal is “impracticable or inadvisable due to pressing concerns
  • Every request for consent will need to be presented to the Data Principal in clear and plain language, and an option to access such a request for consent in English or any language specified in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of India.
  • The Data Principal shall have the right to withdraw her consent at any time,
  • The Bill also gives the power to the government to offer exemption from its provisions “in the interests of sovereignty and integrity of India” and to maintain public order.
  • The revised Bill has proposed a Data Protection Board of India, which will be notified by the Central government.
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• In Syllabus: 
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Accountability and Control
• Relevance:
  • Need for reconsideration of its 2015 judgement striking down the Constitution amendment and the law creating a National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC).
  • Delays in accepting recommendations of the collegium by the executive.
  • Need to overcome the lacunae of the collegium system – opaqueness and lack of accountability.
  • Restriction on attracting best legal talents.
  • The Government may work towards an alternative mechanism, one that does not have the perceived infirmities that led to the invalidation of the earlier law as the NJAC mechanism enabled the outnumbering of judicial members by executive nominees.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Techniques of Administrative Improvement
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Plans and Priorities
  • Rural Development
  • Urban Local Government
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Technology in India as a force of equality and empowerment rather than inequality and exclusion.
  • Case Studies: Ayushman Bharat, CoWIN, Svamitva Scheme, Credit disbursement, DBT etc. 
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• In Syllabus:
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Core issue : Whether appointment of VCs should be made as per the UGC Regulations or the provisions of the State University Act.
  • Provisions of Article 254 : If provisions of the State law are repugnant to the provisions of the Union law, the State law will become void.
  • Balance between an Act passed by a legislature and regulations made by a subordinate body such as the UGC(subordinate law/delegated legislation).
  • The regulations made by a subordinate authority of the Union overriding a law made by a State legislature will amount to a violation of federal principles and a negation of the concurrent legislative power granted to the State by the Constitution.
  • Need for re-examining the regulation making jurisdiction of the UGC on the matters relating to the appointment of the VCs of State Universities.
  • The Supreme Court held in S. Satyapal Reddy vs Govt. Of A.P. (1994) that “the court has to make every attempt to reconcile the provisions of the apparently conflicting laws and the court would endeavour to give harmonious construction…The proper test would be whether effect can be given to the provisions of both the laws or whether both the laws can stand together”. When this is done in most of the cases, there would be no need to strike down a State law on the ground of repugnancy.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Need for transparency and greater scrutiny of the Free Trade Agreements(FTA) process both during and after the negotiations.
  • Requirement of institutional apparatuses that enable the scrutiny of the actions of the executive, during and after the signing of the FTA.
  • Case study of UK in developing robust mechanisms to foster transparency in FTA negotiations.
  • Even though the executive’s constitutional prerogative of entering into an FTA or international treaties, in general, is indisputable, this power should be exercised in a manner that makes the executive answerable.
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• In Syllabus: 
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The observation that the share of “unknown sources of income” has increased following the introduction of electoral bonds, achieving the opposite of what it was intended to do.
  • Share of such unknown sources of income for national parties increased from 66% between FY15 and FY17 to 71% between FY19 and FY21 whereas share of unknown sources of income increased from 55% to 68% for regional parties.
  • The electoral bonds’ share formed 57% and 64% of the national and regional parties’ total incomes in the FY19-FY21 Period, respectively
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus: 
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Importance of Monetary Policy in controlling inflation
  • Mandates for RBI in case of elevated levels of inflation(above inflation target range i.e. 2%-6%) for more than 3 quarters.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Code of Conduct for political leaders in making public statements.
  • Individual conduct should not be used to collectively denounce  the State.
  • Ethics in Administration
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Plans and Priorities
  • Financial Management
• Relevance:
  • Instruments of fostering Cooperative Federalism.
  • Central Government’s policies undermining the spirit of cooperative federalism.
  • Issues with acceptance of the recommendations of the Finance Commission.
  • Shortcomings in the implementation of the FRBM Act and use of off-budget borrowings.
  • Effect on state finances due to the levying of cesses and surcharges.
  • Burdening the states with increased share of expenditure in CSS and appropriation of State’s autonomy by the Union.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Public Policy
  • Development Administration
  • Urban Local Government
  • Rural Development
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Downsides of isolated nature of policy making
  • Inability to address the core problem identified in environmental legislation – public health.
  • Inappropriate composition of regulators to fulfil their legal obligations. Need for multidisciplinarity in the regulatory bodies.
  • Need for transparency in defining the criterion of standards. For instance, opaqueness in the definition of NAAQS which needs to consider both- local conditions and impact on health due to  the exposure of vulnerable populations.
  • Positive externalities of scientific and deliberative policy making.
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• In Syllabus:
  • Urban Local Government
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Public Policy
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Need for greater private and commercial investments to meet financial gaps in urbanisation.
  • Sources of finances for urban development- 48% is derived from State governments, 24% from the Central government and 15% from urban local bodies’ own surplus, Public-private partnership (3%), commercial debt (2%) and loans from Housing and Urban Development Corporation, or HUDCO (8%).
  • Reasons undermining financial sustainability and viability
  • The revenue sharing designs between the Public and Private entities is not particularly viable for private investors and does not fully account for risksharing
  • or risktransfer mechanisms for project risks
  • Solutions to increase cities’ fiscal base and creditworthiness.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
• Relevance:
  • Ease of doing business for capital  vs Ease of earning and living for citizens
  • Issues of Monetarism vs Welfarism
  • Changing nature of post-industrial economy leading to a  disadvantaged position of the employees.
  • Need of balancing historical social and new economic discrimination by reforming institutions and economic ideology.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Rural Development
  • Urban Local Government
• Relevance:
  • Lack of effective framework to recruit good teachers and establish teacher development institutions.
  • Role of Community Collectives and Panchayats in ensuring accountability of schools and teachers in delivering learning outcomes.
  • Use of technology to overcome teacher incompetency.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Accountability and Control
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Rural Development
  • State Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Union Government widening its influence over State subjects.
  • Administrative constraints in fulfilling the amended criteria for setting up of Eklavya Model Residential Schools.
  • Effectiveness of Standing Committees in evaluating Government schemes and programmes.
  • Read More…

• In syllabus:
  • Disaster Management
  • District administration
  • Public Policy
  • Centre-State Administrative coordination
  • Development Dynamics
• Relevance:
• • Policy vacuum
  • Policy implementation issues at ground level
  • Challenges for developing countries – climate change, huge population to sustain.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Accountability and Control
  • Personnel Administration
• Relevance: 
  • Corruption and money laundering issues in governance.
  • Political influence over administration, and misuse of independent agencies.
  • Ensuring accountability and control in administrative functioning.
  • Criminal justice system- matters of prosecution and conviction.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration
  • Good Governance
  • Accountability and Control- Role of media
  • Regulatory Bodies
• Relevance: 
  • Public awareness and participation in governance through the media.
  • Role of regulatory authorities like TRAI, in ascertaining accountable private media channels.
  • Utilising technology for good governance.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Financial Management
  • Centre-State Relations
  • Plan and Priorities
  • Good Governance
  • Public Policy
  • New Public Management
• Relevance: 
  • Fiscal status of states, and role of bodies like RBI, Finance commission in supporting the same.
  • Impact of prudent fiscal management on good governance parameters and outcomes.
  • Role of the private sector in capital formation in the country
  • Cooperative federalism.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Centre-State Relations
  • State Government and administration- Governor
  • Administrative Reforms since independence
  • Evolution of Indian Administration
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration- administration in coalition regime
• Relevance: 
  • Accountability, role and responsibilities of the office of the governor.
  • Legacy of British rule in Indian Administration
  • Recommendations of various committees and commissions on appointment of Governors.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Development Dynamics
  • Personnel Administration and Civil Services
• Relevance:
  • Ensuring equity and justice through public policy formulation.
  • Development model dynamics depending on social-economic context.
  • Equal representation of all sections of the society in the administration.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Union-State Relations
  • Civil Services
  • Administrative Behaviour
• Relevance:
  • Cooperative and collaborative policing in developing societies.
  • Developing a vibrant training and technology arena for an efficient criminal justice system as well as law and order machinery of the country.
  • Addressing the corruption and criminalisation in Indian administrative bodies.
  • Coordination of centre and state, integrational national interests with local requirements.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Union-State Relations
  • State Government and Administration
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • Establishing mutual respect and understanding between the institution of governor and state government.
  • Role of governor as a constitutional head of the state government.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Union-State Relations
  • State Government and Administration
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • Role of governor as a constitutional head of the state government.
  • Political precedents vs contemporary issues in governance.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Civil Services
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • Need for modernisation of the police, role of technology and adequate funding for the same.
  • Development of administrative machinery at local level to ensure implementation of the policies.
  • Reforms- in-house training, strengthening communication channels, interoperability of the criminal justice system.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Urban Local Government
  • Plans and Priorities
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Accountability and Control
  • Development Dynamics
  • Good Governance
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Citizen-administration collaboration in policy implementation at ground.
  • Role of urban local bodies and agencies in tackling urban challenges like pollution.
  • Need for ensuring accountability and monitoring for continuous feedback on policy outcomes.
  • Adoption of system based approach by administration in congruence with the need of current development issues.
  • Multistakeholder, networked governance for planning and execution.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Personnel Administration
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Morale and Motivation
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Role of feedback and mid-course corrections in public policy formulation.
  • Training of the personnels in various governance units.
  • Lateral entry in Armed forces, at centre and state levels.
  • Aspects of morale, motivation, cooperation in government organisations.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Regulatory Institutions
  • Law and Order Administration
• Relevance:
  • Grievance redressal mechanism to resolve emerging issues in public-government interface.
  • Role of social media in influencing the narrative in the country impacting governance outcomes.
  • Accountability of social media platforms in ensuring democratic public participation.
  • Co-regulatory mechanisms to allow states to outsource content regulation to platforms, which are better equipped to tackle modern content moderation challenges and technology.
  • Security of state- impact of technology and social media.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration(Disaster Management)
  • State Government and Administration
  • Techniques of Administrative improvement
• Relevance:
  • Data management and utilisation for proactive disaster handling.
  • Coordination between national, state and local agencies in administration of disaster prone areas.
  • Use of technology in administrative decision making.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Public Policy
  • Significant issues in Indian administration
• Relevance:
  • Constitutional validity of quotas based on economic criteria
  • Non-Discriminatory nature of exclusion of SC/ST and SEBC from the quota 
  • Quota for EWS as distinct and separate from the 50% ceiling for reservations for backward classes.
  • Validity of EWS quota for private educational institutions.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Rural Development
  • Significant issues in Indian administration(Citizen-Administration Interface)
  • Development Dynamics
  • Techniques of Administrative improvement
• Relevance:
  • Role of Anganwadi Workers, Auxiliary Nursing Midwife and Accredited Social Health Activists(ASHA) workers in delivering last mile interventions.
  • Need for regular skilling, supportive supervision and motivation of frontline workers to deliver contextualised, focused and quality nutrition and health services.
  • Case Studies 
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• In Syllabus:
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Effect of a single tax rate on the benefits accrued to the economy – to prevent differentiation, subjective interpretation and litigation.
  • Removing distinctions between corporate and personal income tax.
  • Cooperative federalism
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Personnel Administration
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Administrative Reforms 
  • Techniques of Administrative improvement
  • Development Dynamics
• Relevance:
  • Realisation of meagre pension despite 10% contribution of their wages every month in NPS vis-a-vis the OPS.
  • Fiscal burden due to reinstating OPS.
  • Nature and premise of NPS.
  • Effect of social security net in developing countries like India.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Urban Local Government
  • Development Dynamics
  • E-Governance
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Urbanisation and development in India.
  • Transport plays a critical role in the economy of the country as well as citizen welfare, management of which requires comprehensive policy planning.
  • Utilisation of technology in the logistics and transport sector enabling essential city planning.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and constitutional framework
  • Public Policy
  • Union-State relations
• Relevance:
  • Implementation issues faced in fulfilling the precepts of the constitution like Justice, Secularism and Equality.
  • Development challenges faced by the administration in policy formulation integrating interests of various sections of the society.
  • Role of Supreme Court in policy domain.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus: 
  • Public Policy- formulation and implementation
  • Techniques of administrative improvement- e governance
  • Indian Administration- Role of constitutional bodies.
• Relevance: 
  • Utilizing technology for ensuring citizen participation in governance
  • Role of constitutional bodies like Election Commission of India in making political interface accessible.
  • Public policy implementation with changing dynamics of the society.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Administrative Reforms
  • Development Dynamics
• Relevance:
  • Appointment of CWPOs to deal with children, either as victims or perpetrators under Juvenile Justice(Care and protection of children) Act, 2015
  • Setting up of a Special Juvenile Police Unit in every district.
  • Best Practices in Justice delivery and upholding rights of vulnerable sections of society.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • e-Governance
  • Techniques of Administrative Improvement
• Relevance:
  • Creating a national infrastructure to live stream proceedings from subordinate courts to the Supreme Court.
  • Live streaming proceedings being a part of the right to access justice under Article 21 (Protection of Life and Personal Liberty) of the Constitution
  • De-congestion of courts and improved physical access to courts for litigants who have to otherwise travel long distances to come to the SC were cited by the Attorney general (AG) to propose for live streaming of cases.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Evolution of Indian Administration
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • State Government and Administration
  • Union Government and Administration(Role of Governor in Centre-State Relations)
• Relevance:
  • Downsides of the office of Governor
  • Doctrine of Pleasure
  • Discretionary Powers of Governor
  • Constitutional debates over the role of Governor
  • Politicization of the Governor’s office
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Organizations
  • Public Policy
  • State Government and Administration
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • Role of Regulatory Institutions (Mandates of CPCB, SPCB and PCC)
  • Structure and functioning of the SPCBs
  • Institutional Constraints of Regulatory Institutions
  • Reforms needed to enhance the capacity, capability and expertise of Regulators
  • Evolution of policy formulation in environmental governance
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus: 
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Accountability and Control
  • Administrative Reforms
  • Techniques of Administrative Improvement
  • Good Governance
• Relevance: 
  • Reforms in internal accountability mechanisms
  • Minimum Government Maximum Governance
  • Improving public service delivery 
  • Improving administrative techniques and highlighting best practices
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Public Sector Undertakings
  • NPM
  • Financial Management
  • Techniques of Administrative Improvement
• Relevance:
  • Revamping sick PSUs
  • Mobilization of resources for utilizing existing capacity
  • Possible reasons/consequences of transfer of ownership of a PSU to a state government from the Central Government.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Rural development,  Urban Local Government, Development Dynamics, Public Policy
• Relevance: 
  • Need for flexibility at ground for effective implementation of the schemes.
  • Greater devolution of functions and authority thereby enhancing accountability.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Public Policy, Techniques of Administrative Improvement, Significant issues in Indian Administration, Introduction- challenges of LPG, Governance.
• Relevance: 
  • Role of wider consultation and public participation in public policy.
  • Governance with changing dynamics, i.e. advent of technology and issues related to it, like privacy.
  • Effectiveness of Grievance redressal mechanism and online dispute resolution to make justice more accessible and efficient.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Behaviour- Leadership, State government and administration.
• Relevance:
  • Role of Governor from various perspectives i.e. as an agent of the center, as a leader of the state governance.
  • Relationship between center and state.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration, Law and Order administration- Criminalisation, Comparative public administration- political culture.
• Relevance:
• • Functionality and significance of RPA, 1951 act.
  • Muscle and money power in politics, corrupting the administration.
  • Tainted political leadership due to deterioration of political culture.
  • Read More…

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control, Significant issues in Indian administration(Disaster Management), State Government and Administration, Urban Local Government, Law and Order Administration
• Relevance:
  • Liability of the State under the Rule of Law
  • Role of regulatory bodies in maintenance of public goods/property of State.
  • Political and Executive Accountability 
  • Read More…

Courts should step up to clear long-pending cases by Independence Day: CJI

• In Syllabus:
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Law and Order
  • Accountability and Control
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • Digitization of justice delivery – Reducing pendency of cases, increasing disposal of cases/appeals, reducing burden on prisons and upholding personal liberties
  • Evaluation of performance of judges based on the conviction rates shall be done away with as they are not a measure in the dispensation of justice in any manner. Rather, these practices create a sense of bias for the district judiciary and create a culture of fear psychosis. Both of which are undesirable outcomes.
  • Read More…

Remote EVM ready to help migrants vote outside States: EC

• In Syllabus:
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Accountability and Control 
  • Development Dynamics 
  • Administrative Reforms 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Development of a prototype of a multi constituency remote electronic voting machine (RVM) to enable remote voting by migrant voters.
  • The voter turnout in General Elections of 2019 was 67.4% and the Election Commission is concerned about the issue of over 30 crore electors not exercising their franchise and also differential voter turnout in various States/Union Territories.
  • The inability to vote due to internal migration is one of the prominent reasons to be addressed to improve voter turnout and ensure participative elections.
  • Concept note
  • The EC had circulated among the political parties a concept note highlighting the challenges of defining domestic migrants, implementation of the Model Code of Conduct, ensuring secrecy of voting, facility of polling agents for identification of voters, process and method of remote voting and counting of votes and other issues.
  • The definition of migrant voter will also need to be reworked with respect to retaining registration at the original place in the context of the legal construct of “ordinary residence” and “temporary absence”. Also, the territorial constituency concept of remote voting and defining remoteness itself, that is an outside constituency, outside district or outside State will need to be dealt with.
  •  This modified form of EVM can handle up to 72 multiple constituencies from a single remote polling booth.
  • The initiative, if implemented, can lead to a social transformation for the migrants and connect with their roots as many times they are reluctant to get themselves enrolled at their place of work for various reasons such as frequently changing residences, not enough social and emotional connect with the issues of an area of migration, and unwillingness to get their name deleted in the electoral roll of their home/native constituencies as they have permanent residence/property,
  • Read More…

Study shows T.N. is worst performing in RTI responsiveness

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Comparative Public Administration
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • The State Information Commission of Tamil Nadu has been the worst performing in responsiveness under the Right to Information Act, furnishing only 14% of the information sought, according to a report card on the performance of Information Commissions (ICs) in India for 2021-­22 by the Satark Nagrik Sangathan.
  • The SIC of Tamil Nadu was the worst performing as it denied most of the information sought, including regarding the number of appeals and complaints dealt with by the IC, details of penalty imposed and compensation awarded stating that the information could be provided only ‘after getting the approval of State Legislative Assembly’, though no such provision exists in the RTI Act. 
  • The SIC of Chhattisgarh denied information on several points stating that under the prevailing State rules, in one application, information on only one topic could be sought.
  • The report card further said that a large number of ICs across the country were returning cases without passing orders. Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh returned around 40% of the appeals or complaints received by them.
  • It also found that several ICs have an extremely low rate of disposal per commissioner. Of all the 29 ICs, only the CIC has adopted a norm on the number of appeals or complaints to be disposed of by each commissioner in one year.
  • Read More…

Laboured wages

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Theories
  • Public Policy
  • Financial Management and Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Rural Development
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • Withholding of funds for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in West Bengal laid bare a key implementation issue — wage delays.
  • The delay in the payment, which is contrary to what is stated in Section 3 of the NREG Act, has resulted in a drop in the number of households working under the scheme in the State — from 77 lakh during the pandemic years to 16 lakh in the current financial year.
  • Wage delays have been a chronic problem with MGNREGS, which, beyond being a form of insurance for the poorest rural households, was a boon during the pandemic years.
  • While an emphasis on reducing misuse is necessary — in particular, ensuring that the scheme is put into use by actually undertaking public works — the misplaced reliance on technocratic approaches has stymied its implementation.
  • Read More…

A failed attempt at decriminalisation

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Development Administration
  • Evolution of Indian Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • The Jan Vishwas Bill, 2022, (Bill) was tabled in the Parliament with the objective of “decriminalising” 183 offences across 42 legislations and enhancing the ease of living and doing business in India. It is a welcome move and can be viewed as an attempt to reverse the trend of overcriminalization.
  • However, the Bill either omits penal provisions or replaces them with fines in legislations such as the Air Act, Environment Protection Act, Forest Act, Drugs and Cosmetics Acts, Cinematograph Act, Patents Act among others.
  • An examination of the provisions of the Bill reveals that stress has been on the replacement of imprisonment clauses with fines. This can hardly be termed as ‘decriminalisation’.
  • This can hardly be termed as ‘decriminalisation’. There is much that is required for the efforts aimed at decriminalisation to fructify in any meaningful way. (Shortcomings of The Jan Vishwas Bill, 2022)
  • Read More…

Delegated law should not travel beyond purview of parent Act: SC

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Law
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Delegated legislation, including rules and regulations formed by the State and Central authorities, should not supplant but supplement the parliamentary statute from which it draws power, the Supreme Court held in a judgement.
  • A delegated power to legislate by making rules or regulations cannot be exercised so as to bring into existence substantive rights, obligations or disabilities not contemplated by the provisions of the parent statute.
  • Read More…

Norms to rank cities based on financial Governance launched

• In Syllabus:
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The Union government launched guidelines for a new finance-based ranking of cities, which would evaluate urban units on 15 key parameters, including resource mobilisation, expenditure performance and fiscal governance.
  • The rankings are aimed at motivating city and State officials to implement municipal financial reforms.
  • A ‘City Beauty Competition’ initiative was also launched to rank cities on accessibility and aesthetics.
  • Read More…

A Suitable Officer

• In Syllabus:
  • Personnel Administration and Civil Services
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Need to revamp implementation capabilities to attain intended results of considered policy intentions in the manufacturing sector.
  • Reasons for failure of implementation machinery – Inadequate knowledge and skills, lack of motivation, environmental constraints, weak supervision and monitoring etc.
  • IAS officers need to be equipped with specialised domain knowledge and experience in the manufacturing sector to evaluate the impact of laws, regulations etc. on competitiveness of the industry.
  • Dominant pervasive problem of distrust between the public and private sector leading to cost and time overruns and loss of competitiveness.
  • Need to reform the system of Human Resource Development and bring it in line with best global practices. For instance, setting up a wing in DoPT and in its counterparts in the states to be manned by professionals in Human Resource Development whose function would be to select officers on the basis of aptitude from the bureaucracy and provide them domain competence in framing policies in manufacturing and industrial development. 
  • Issues in promotions and postings have prevented skilling of officers and appointment of the ‘right person for the right job.” This has led to the perception that the IAS officers have failed in the area of economic development.
  • Need to assign job roles based on expertise and experience which may be delinked from salary and incentives to create a harmonious organisational culture.(Position Classification)
  • Read More…

What is the CAG audit report on Assam’s NRC?

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Financial Management and Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance: 
  • In its report, the CAG stated that there was a fivefold increase in the originally planned budget of ₹288.18 crore resulting out of time delays and changes to software for updating the National Register of Citizens(NRC) for Assam under the directions of the SC.
  • Flagged serious irregularities, including “haphazard development” of software for the exercise, making it prone to data tampering, and flagged undue profits worth crores amassed by the system integrator (SI) by violating the Minimum Wages Act.
  • The report also found that the amount of wages paid to the outsourced staff was 45.59%-64.27% less than what was approved by the NRC coordination committee.
  • The CAG noted that secure and reliable software was required for the SC directed exercise, but as many as 215 software utilities were added to the core software.
  • The CAG stated that the intended objective of preparing a valid and error-free NRC was not met despite incurring excess expenditure.
  • Read More…

Parliamentary panel pulls up govt. for failure to create Tourism Council

• In Syllabus:
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Accountability and Control
• Relevance:
  • Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture has suggested fast tracking the creation of a National Tourism Council on the lines of the GST Council to directly make recommendations to the Union and the State governments.
  • Inclusion of tourism on the Concurrent List will help in simplifying the issues of the pandemic hitIndian tourism sector since tourism is a multisectoral activity.
  • States yet to accord industry status to hospitality projects.
  • Projects taking longer than five years may incur high cost and schedule or time overruns, which will put extra financial burden and resource crunch on the implementing agencies involved.
  • Read More…

Constitutional silences, unconstitutional inaction

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Deliberate gaps in the Constitution to enable a future Parliament to modify and amend the Constitution that was in accordance with the aspirations and the will of the people.
  • One of the silences in the Constitution is in Article 200 which does not prescribe a timeline for the Governor to provide assent to Bills sent by the Legislative Assembly. This has been used to advantage by the Governors of various Opposition-ruled States to obfuscate the mandate of democratically elected governments.
  • When a Governor, a central Government appointee, withholds assent to a law validly passed by the Legislature, he is undoing the will of the Legislature through unconstitutional devices, thereby directly attacking the federal edifice of the Constitution.
  • There is no timeline prescribed for even the President, under Article 201 of the Constitution, to decide on the outcome of the Bill. Even as there is no timeline for the President to grant assent, there is a timeline of six months applicable to the State Assembly to reconsider the Bill if the President decides to refer it back to the House.
  • In the realm of administrative law, unreasonable delay in granting administrative sanction would be violative of the rule of law. Therefore, it implies that the Governor will have to grant assent or decline the same within a ‘reasonable time’.
  • The Governor’s duty is only to ensure that an elected government is working within the parameters of the Constitution. It does not mean that the Governor can sit on the Bills indefinitely, merely because there is no time limit prescribed for the Governor to decide on the bills. 
  • The Constitution should be read contextually to provide a meaning that the Governor must act on the Bills within a reasonable time, say three months. The constitutional silences should not give way for unconstitutional inaction, leaving space for anarchy in the rule of law.
  • Read More…

Upholding the autonomy of the Election Commission

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Issues with far-reaching ramifications for Indian democracy: is complete executive control over appointments to the ECI constitutional? And if not, what manner of appointment is sufficient to preserve the independence of the ECI, and the fairness of elections?
  • Healthy constitutional democracies need what are known as “fourth branch institutions” (or, alternatively, “integrity institutions”). These ensure that  many of the basic rights and guarantees that we enjoy can be effective only with an infrastructure of implementation.
  • These ‘fourth branch institutions’ need to be functionally independent from the political executive as they are the vehicles for implementing rights against the executive.
  • The South African and Kenyan Constitutions have dedicated constitutional provisions for “fourth branch institutions” such as Human Rights Commissions, Election Commissions, and so on, calling these “integrity institutions”, and requiring them to be “independent.” The appointments process for such bodies normally involves multiple stakeholders from different wings of the state.
  • Issue in the Indian context : The government decides who gets to be in charge of running fourth branch institutions.
  • Although Indian constitutional history is no stranger to the perils of executive power over appointments to independent bodies, and the fashioning of remedies against that.
  • Appointment processes shall involve the government, the Opposition, independent experts, and judicial experts, in a manner that no one centre of power has dominance, or a veto.
  • The Court shall put into place certain interim guidelines, and leave a more permanent, structural solution up to the legislature. The guiding principles, at all times, must be functional and effective independence from the executive, from the moment of appointment to the retirement, and then beyond.
  • Read More…

Fluid boundaries

• In Syllabus:
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • The boundary conflict between Maharashtra and Karnataka.
  • The border dispute has its origins in the States’ reorganisation in 1956 and has flared up every now and then since the 1960s.
  • Carving out political units that neatly correspond with various linguistic groups is impossible in India. 
  • In 1957, Maharashtra claimed 814 villages and the three urban settlements of Belagavi, Karwar and Nippani in Karnataka; Karnataka not only rebuffed Maharashtra’s claims but also began to claim areas in Kolhapur, Sholapur and Sangli districts in Maharashtra.
  • Fluid political and cultural boundaries criss-crossing the landscape of India are conducive to new fires being lit through divisive politics for which the judiciary can do very little.
  • Sensibility prevails in accepting Court’s decision on any dispute, but harmony can be achieved only through embracing and promoting a political culture that is respectful of diversity that cannot be neatly demarcated.
  • Read More…

The minimum tax on big businesses

• In Syllabus:
  • Financial Management and Administration 
  • Public Policy 
• Relevance:
  • 136 countries have agreed on a plan to redistribute tax rights across jurisdictions and enforce a minimum tax rate of 15% on large multinational corporations. It is estimated that the minimum tax rate would boost global tax revenues by $150 billion annually.
  • EU members have agreed to implement a minimum tax rate on big businesses in accordance with Pillar 2 of the global tax agreement framed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) last year.
  • This shall ensure that big businesses with global operations do not benefit by domiciling themselves in tax havens in order to save on taxes.
  • Corporate tax rates across the world have been dropping over the last few decades as a result of competition between governments to spur economic growth through greater private investments. 
  • Global corporate tax rates have fallen from over 40% in the 1980s to under 25% in 2020, thanks to global tax competition that was kick­started by former U.S. President Ronald Reagan and former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s. The OECD’s tax plan tries to put an end to this “race to the bottom” which has made it harder for governments to shore up the revenues required to fund their rising spending budgets. 
  • The minimum tax proposal is particularly relevant at a time when the fiscal state of governments across the world has deteriorated as seen in the worsening of public debt metrics.
  • Some governments, particularly those of traditional tax havens, are likely to disagree and stall the implementation of the OECD’s tax plan.
  • Read More…

Contextualising Ambedkar’s idea of a moral democracy

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Development Administration
  • Comparative Public Administration
  • Evolution of Indian Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Conceptualisation of democracy by viewing political, social and economic philosophies through the moral lens.
  • Democracy as a concept that affected every aspect of human life.
  • Importance of rationality and critical reasoning to analyze the maintainability of  any subject matter.
  • Ambedkar’s attempt to divide morality into social morality (equality among human beings and a recognition of respect) and constitutional morality (pre-requisite to maintaining a system of democracy in a country based on the imbibed constitutional values). In this attempt, he rejected the caste system as being antithetical to moral democracy.
  • Analysis of Indian society on the basis of Particularism and Universality.  
  • According to Ambedkar, the roots of democracy lie within the realm of religion, without which associated living was not possible. Thus, instead of removing aspects of religion completely, he attempts to reconstruct a new version of democracy that accepts the democratic aspects of religions like Buddhism. 
  • Ambedkar envisioned democracy as a moral project, where there was a harmonious amalgamation of the concepts of equality, liberty and fraternity.
  • Read More…

Good governance beyond motherhood and apple pie

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Reforms 
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • Financial Management and Administration 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration 
• Relevance:
  • Going beyond  cliches and platitudes of good governance
  • Instances of India’s experience with administrative reforms to realise good governance.
  • Good governance is also the responsibility of enlightened citizens who should give some thought to complex trade­offs and not just only demand good governance but also contribute to it.
  • Read More…

A wasted chance and Decriminalisation of offences under GST

• In Syllabus:
  • Financial Management and Administration
  • Public Policy 
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Need to make indirect tax regime more effective.  
  • GST Council side­stepped the broader solution to deal with rising GST disputes — the long­pending move to set up appellate tribunals.
  • A ‘pathbreaking’ move to decriminalise certain offences by taxpayers under Section 132 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017, with a higher  ₹2 crore threshold for initiating prosecutions, except in cases involving fake invoices. 
  • Imposing penal provisions in an ambiguous ecosystem significantly alters how businesses perceive risk and uncertainty, directly impacting their ability to conduct business. The law already contains sufficient penalties that serve as a deterrent against tax evasion. Investors may be discouraged by the fear of criminal sanctions in small, trivial, and petty matters, even before their engagement in any business activity or investment.
  • The 48th GST Council meeting has recommended various measures to decriminalise the GST offences such as
    • raising the minimum threshold of tax amount for launching prosecution under GST from one crore to two crore, except for the offence of issuance of invoices without supply of goods or services or both, reducing
    • the compounding amount from the present range of 50 to 150% of the tax amount to the range of 25 to 100%, and 
    • decriminalising certain offences specified under Section 132 of the CGST Act, 2017, such as obstructing or preventing any officer from doing his duties, deliberate tempering of material evidence and failure to supply information.
  • If decriminalisation of GST offences are implemented with adequate checks, then prosecution, arrest and imprisonment in GST cases would only be in the rarest of rare cases of hard, habitual, deliberate defaulters and blatant specific fraudulent practices. Other minor grievances may be dealt with in other resolution mechanisms such as Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism, private ruling and mediation, faceless adjudication and appeals, etc.
  • Read More…

India’s crushing court backlogs, out-of-the box reform

• In Syllabus:
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Administrative Reforms since independence 
• Relevance :
  • According to the CJI the top court has to hear every little cry for personal liberty and safeguarding rights.
  • Pendency as a perennial drawback that affects the court’s role as the timely protector of citizens’ rights.
  • The government’s zeroing in on bail applications as one of the reasons for slow justice comes at a time when 10 bail pleas are heard every day by all 13 Benches of the Supreme Court. 
  • The CJI has made it clear that bail petitions deal with the question of personal liberty and should not be delayed.
  • Overburdening if the judiciary because of the widened access to the SC and the system as a whole.
  • Increase in population of the country and rise in awareness regarding their rights,vacancies of judges, frequent adjournments and lack of adequate arrangements to monitor, track and bunch cases for hearing are also factors which lead to pendency.
  • Conventional reform prescribes more of the same — more judges, more courts, more staff, more infrastructure. But we know that we do not have the resources of either money or men and women. Need out-of-the box reforms to release the clogging courts.
  • Read More…

Constitution is a moral education document: CJI

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance :
  • The CJI views Constitution as a moral education document which was aimed at creating a moral code of conduct in society.
  • Constitutional morality focuses on the rights of individuals and protects it from popular morality notions of the society.
  • The influence of Morals on laws.
  • Read More…

Old is not Gold

• In Syllabus:
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Allows government servants to avert their contribution of 10% of their basic pay and dearness allowance towards the employee pension funds, as envisaged in the National Pension Scheme (NPS) since inception in 2004.
  • States reverting to OPS can achieve some short term gains as they need not put up the matching contribution of 10% towards employee pension funds
  • Reverting to OPS will tax the State’s exchequer as pension payments form nearly 25.6% of States’ own tax revenue.
  • Breaking a consensus on pension reforms and reverting to OPS amounts to an imprudent option as it will only benefit organised government sector employees, increase the fiscal burden of carrying these payments and take up a significant portion of the State’s budget, thereby curtailing its outlays on general welfare as a whole.
  • Read More…

Is the RTI Act fulfilling its purpose?

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Comparative Public Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Administrative Reforms 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Vital reform to help activists and individuals ensure transparency and accountability in governance. 
  • Holds high offices to account by acknowledging the rights of the people to know the utilisation of taxpayers’ money. This has enabled them to expose scams such as the Adarsh, Commonwealth Games and Vyapam scams along with human rights violations, and then force accountability in those cases as well.
  • Public Information Officers diluting the original provisions of the act by refraining from diverting the application to the appropriate department.
  •  Problems pertaining to sharing information and subsequent impact.
  • The impact on the RTI Act by the updated  Data Protection Bill with undermining of the proactive disclosure under the provisions of the bill.
  • Read More…

Public servants can be found guilty of graft on circumstantial proof: Supreme Court

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Development Dynamics
  • Personnel Administration
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Civil Services
  • Administrative Reforms
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The Supreme Court held that the demand and acceptance of bribe or illegal gratification by a public servant can be inferred by a court on circumstantial proof in the absence of direct evidence.
  • Addressing whether public servants could be convicted for corruption under Section 7 (public servant taking gratification other than legal remuneration in respect of an official act) and 13 (1)(d)(i) and (ii) (criminal misconduct by a public servant) in the absence of direct oral or documentary evidence due to unavailability of the complainant owing to his death or for any other reasons.
  • A court of law could use its discretion to make a “presumption of fact” of the offer made and bribe demanded or accepted by an accused official based on the material on record.
  • Read More…

Himachal: Fiscal challenge in Cong Old Pension Scheme(OPS) promise

• In Syllabus:
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Personnel Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Development Administration
• Relevance:
  • Mounting committed expenditure shrinking scope of spending on development – 67.2% of revenue receipts.
  • 18.2% of revenue expenditure of the state is spent on pension bills.
  • Own Tax revenues form only a small share(25%) of the state’s total revenues compared to all-state average ratio of states’ own taxes to total receipts at 38%
  • With cumulative pension bills jumping 100 times in the last 3 decades, increasing life spans and a large chunk of OTRs being taken away by pensions, OPS shall exert more pressure on the exchequer in the future.
  • Read More…

A corrosive strike at court

• In Syllabus:
• • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Personnel Administration
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Contradictions within the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC).
  • Issues:
    • Lack of clear majority of of judges(sitting/retired)
    • Even number of members in the NJAC as per Article 124A.
    • No casting vote with CJI, being the chairperson of the commission.
    • No domain expertise mentioned for the eminent members of NJAC.
    • Section 5(1), NJAC Act, 2014 required NJAC to recommend the senior most judge as the CJI if considered fit to hold office. But, it did not mention the criteria of fitness.
    • Veto power with any 2 members of NJAC etc.
  • Need for independence of judiciary for the functioning of constitutional democracy.
  • Read More…

All’s in the Name:

• In Syllabus:
  • District Administration
  • Local Governance
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
• Relevance:
  • Need to re-examine the role of district administration with constitutionally mandated establishment of PRIs and Municipal bodies.
  • Importance of various functions performed by the District Collector
  • Transformation to the role of District Commissioner from District Collector/magistrate.
  • Promotion of Collector Raj by state governments to further its vested interest by limiting devolution of powers and responsibilities to the local governing bodies.
  • Relationship of District Administration with elected local bodies.
  • Standardisation and unification of functions of DCs/DMs.
  • Read More…

The impasse over appointment of judges.

• In Syllabus:
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration
  • Union government and administration
  • Constitutionalism
• Relevance:
  • Politicisation of justice
  • Idea of basic structure and constitutionalism in Indian polity.
  • Independence of judiciary in a democracy.
  • Read More…

Money laundering probe: no HC relief to Raghav Bahl

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Role of Media
  • Judicial accountability
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Role of media in bringing efficiency in administration by holding it accountable to the citizens.
  • Judicial system in upholding the values of the constitution in a democracy.
  • Maintaining transparency for tackling the issue of corruption in administration.
  • Read More…

Redevelopment of Dharavi:

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Administration
  • Urban Local Government
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Redevelopment of one of the densest urban habitations in Asia.
  • Brownest of Brown field projects.
  • Drawing out of a Master Plan on the basis of survey and mapping to incorporate eligible and ineligible beneficiaries.
  • Read More…

As MPC meets to decide interest Rate, snapshots of Inflation and Growth

• In Syllabus:
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Accountability and Control
• Relevance:
  • Role of Monetary Policy Committee(MPC) in containing Inflation
  • Impact of inflation on economic growth
  • Components of aggregate demand driving the GDP momentum.
  • Read More…

A Question of Politics

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Thinkers – W.Wilson
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Accountability and Control
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant  Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Pivotal contribution of Institutional leadership in maintaining institutional integrity.
  • Role of institutions being limited to enforcement and political consensus being relegated to the background.
  • Institutional independence as a function of the dynamic space of changing balance of power between competing political factions.
  • Manifestation of political power in multiple ways and not only dependent on the process of appointments.
  • Repeated public commentary on about the misgivings of these institutions can pave the way for institutional dilution, undermining their credibility and legitimacy in public opinion.
  • Need for targeted and specific institutional criticism to prevent erosion of institutional trust.
  • Read More…

Small is Beautiful

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Development Administration
  • Comparative Public Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Local Governance(Rural and Urban Development)
• Relevance:
  • Conflictual tensions between economic development and ecological sustainability.
  • Need for decentralised interventions based on Gandhian principles that leverage local talents, crafts, and environment to create livelihood opportunities without disturbing natural ecology.
  • Promoting local initiatives and gaining momentum, scale and market access through support of government and collaborative linkages with corporates, NGOs and specialists.
  • Read More…

Democracy Interrupted

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Development Administration
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Personnel Administration
  • Law and Order
  • Significant  Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Criminalisation of Politics abetting corruption.
  • Increasing trend of criminalisation of politics being linked to political control of state machinery, corruption, vote-bank politics and loopholes in legal systems.
  • Undermining good governance in the light of criminals becoming  political bosses of bureaucrats and subvert the system to serve their interests.
  • Weakening of the three pillars of democracy subverting the fundamental concept of the democratic system. 
  • Recommendations of various committees and judicial observations in the regard of Criminalisation of Politics.
  • Need for time-bound justice delivery system, firmer constitutional institutions like Election Commission and proper strengthening of relevant laws for cleansing of this evil.
  • Checking nexus between crime, money and muscle power and growing dependence of political parties on the electability of criminals must be addressed.
  • Read More…

Laying the ground to delegitimise the Supreme Court

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Accountability and control
• Relevance:
  • Interface between Executive and judiciary
  • Judicial control in upholding constitutional values in a democracy.
  • Read More…

Towards a robust triumvirate

• In Syllabus
  • Significant  Issues in Indian Administration
  • Accountability and Control
• Relevance:
  • Role of independent institutions in ensuring democratic values.
  • Checks and balances in Indian polity
  • Read More…

The costs of GST

• In Syllabus:
  • FInancial Administration and Management
  • Public Policy
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Need to examine the social, administrative and political costs of GST after 5 years of experience with the new tax regime.
  • Positive outcomes and shortcomings in the application of GST.
  • Missing social and political costs having financial and administrative snowballing effects which are not incorporated in quantifiable parameters of GST.
  • Issues between states and centre, putting Indian federalism in a tight spot.
  • Increasing cesses and surcharges by the centre to guard its revenue.
  • Need for inclusion of gasoline,diesel, jet fuel, real estate and electricity.
  • Reforms in the GST Council.
  • Issues related to real estate and intermediaries.
  • Delays in establishment of an appellate tribunal related to GST is increasing the burden on the judiciary.
  • Read More…

Big Tech and the need in India for ex-ante regulation

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Regulatory Bodies
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • Need to rethink the market power of Big Tech companies.
  • There is an urgent need for ex-ante legislation to prevent market failures and mitigate possible anticompetitive conduct.
  • Use of data, issue of consumer protection
  • Market distortion can also lead to poorer quality of services, data monopoly, and stifle innovation.
  • For a consumer, there is a need to establish harmony of the Competition law with the new Consumer Protection Act 2020 and Ecommerce rules.
  • The Competition Act of 2000, was largely constituted to deal with the physical marketplace. There is an urgent need to contextualise the law to the digital marketplace and devise new provisions with adequate exante legislation.
  • Read More…

City could get its Mayor on January 6

• In Syllabus:
  • District Administration
  • Urban Local Government
  • Development Dynamics
• Relevance: 
  • Mayoral system in Delhi
  • Method of election and Electorate for Mayoral Election
  • Provision of reservation for the office of Mayor
  • Read More…

Building climate resilience collectively

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Administration
  • Public Policy
  • Financial Management and Administration
  • Urban Local Government
  • Significant issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The document titled ‘LongTerm-Low Carbon Development Strategy (LTLCDS)’ has Multisectoral measures to reach a net-zero emissions status, climate resilient urbanisation forms a cornerstone of the Government of India’s strategy under the Paris Agreement.
  • The three pronged and long-term plan for urban areas focuses on adaptation and resource efficiency in urban planning, climate-responsive and climate-resilient buildings, and municipal service delivery.
  • Demonstrating urban planning strategies aimed at climate resilience through specific actions and interventions (backed by sound data) and linking them to various finance streams accessible to the urban local bodies is important.
  • Case Studies on Bhopal and Jaipur for climate change adaptation.
  • Active involvement by government,Nongovernmental, Community based Organisations, and academic institutions will help build a Sustainability profile and arrive at specific interventions
  • Read More…

A Battle- Fit Police

• In Syllabus:
  • Law and Order Administration 
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government 
  • Administrative Reforms 
• Relevance:
  • Police Reforms: 
    • Technological solutions for better policing and tackling Internal security challenges – Terrorism, drug trafficking, cybercrimes, cryptocurrency etc.
    • Repealing obsolete laws
    • Prison Reforms
    • Enhanced cooperation and operational synergy among all the state/UT police forces.
    • Police Sensitivity and Training
  • Addressing Structural Issues:
    • Need for enactment of Model Police Act as drafted by Soli Sorabjee in 2006.
    • Strengthening the Police Infrastructure and filing up of vacancies.
    • Revamping and improving the housing facilities of the police personnel.
    • Redesigning and monitoring in-service training.
    • Accepting the concept of ‘federal crimes’ as recommended by the Second Administrative Reforms Commission.to deal with offences having inter-state and  national ramifications.These shall be investigated by a federal law enforcement agency
  • Read More…

This is an ‘address’ of great constitutional importance

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government 
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration 
• Relevance:
  • Article 176 of the Constitution requires the Governor to mandatorily address the Members of legislature at the commencement of the first session of each year and to inform them of the causes of its summons.    It says that the legislature will discuss the matters referred to in such an address. The “address” here means the complete address and not a truncated version.
  • Here, the Constitution gives a specific direction to the House to find time to discuss the contents of the Governor’s address. This underscores the importance the Constitution attaches to such an address by the Governor. The address under Article 176 contains the policies and programmes of the elected government of the State. Executive accountability to the elected representatives of the people is the essence of parliamentary democracy.
  • Skipping paragraphs of the address would simply mean that the Governor does not approve or agree with those ideas. The address by the Governor under Article 176 is the address prepared by the government. It does not contain any of the personal views of the Governor.The Governor cannot change a word on his own. So, by wilfully not reading certain portions of the address the Governor has gone against the mandate of Article 176.
  • Other Issues : 
    • They are sitting on the Bill passed by the Assembly without exercising any of the options given by the Constitution. It is clearly against the mandate of the Constitution.
    • Governors have suddenly become proactive. They have begun to openly challenge and criticise Chief Ministers and State governments. Some Governors are even holding press conferences to attack Chief Ministers.
  • Different viewpoints about the position of Governor:
    • • From Shamsher Singh (1974) to Nabam Rebia (2016), the Supreme Court has consistently held that Governors can act only on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers. He cannot exercise any executive powers independently ignoring the elected government.
      • The Supreme Court had in Shamsher Singh said, “The Constitution does not aim at providing a parallel administration within the State by allowing the Governor to go against the advice of the Council of Ministers.
      • B.R. Ambedkar said in the Constituent Assembly: “If the Constitution remains in principle the same, then the Governor should be a purely constitutional Governor. It should not have power of interference in the administration of the province.”
  • Read More…

In NREGA reforms, prioritise the worker and her dues

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration
  • Rural Development
  • Financial Administration and Management
• Relevance:
  • The most recent concern of the central government is over the programme’s “regressive” spending pattern, where poorer States spend less NREGA funds than better-off ones. A committee to suggest reforms has been constituted instead of listening to the longstanding demands of workers and their collectives.
  • The zeal with which reforms are introduced often outpaces the capacity to adapt. Every time the administrative system gets back on its feet after a reform move, it is hit by another. Poorer States struggle more to adapt when compared to those that are better off because of weaker administrative capacity
  • NREGA is underperforming because its most basic design principles have been forgotten or wilfully ignored. These include:
  • Need to address delays in wage payments to restore the faith of workers in the programme. The process of wage payments created by the central government has become even more convoluted. For instance, seven or more functionaries have to sign off before payment due to a worker can be approved
    • Strengthening implementation capacities where expenditure is low instead of curbing expenditure where employment generation is high. For a universal, demand-based social security programme such as NREGA, reforms cannot be based on ‘targetting’ better. There has to be a focus on exclusion and not inclusion “errors”.Instead of using expenditure and income poverty as the only markers, exclusion must be identified at the household level.
    • Running the programme like a Demand-based law, and not a scheme. Intermittent and unpredictable fund releases by the central government are one of the fundamental reasons why State governments are unable to ensure the full potential of NREGA.
    • Making discussions on any proposed reforms participatory as NREGA emerged from the demands of a vibrant peoples’ movement across India and its cornerstones have been its pathbreaking provisions for public accountability.There has to be a leveraging of consultative processes and forums built into it, such as the State and Central Employment Guarantee Councils. 
    • An earnest attempt to map the impact of each of its “reforms” on access to and the expenditure of NREGA, particularly in poorer States. A slew of “reforms” — the majority have focused on centralisation such as the electronic fund management system, geotagging of assets and a national mobile monitoring system (NMMS) — have disrupted implementation.
  • The Committee shall consider some principles in order to guide its discussions and recommendations. Reforms to NREGA must prioritise the access of workers to entitlements with ease and dignity, rather than focus on administrative and fiscal efficacy alone.
  • Read More…

Warning bells

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Union Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • The highly leveraged Adani group’s market troubles, in the wake of a U.S.based short seller’s report alleging ‘stock manipulation and questionable accounting practices’, dragged down banking shares led by the State Bank of India and even the state-owned LIC appreciably, triggering investor concern about broader financial sector stability.
  • India’s regulators including SEBI and the Reserve Bank of India have an opportunity, rather an obligation, to clear the air by allaying fears of any broader systemic contagion.
  • Given the extent of public trust reposed in these companies in the form of savers’ deposits and life insurance policies as well as taxpayer resources that have been invested to keep the PSU lenders adequately capitalised, financial system regulators would be serving the larger public interest by preemptively communicating messages of reassurance. 
  • Regulators could also enhance credibility in India as an investment destination by tightening not just the listing requirements but more crucially the enforcement actions in case of egregious breaches of the laws.
  • The Indian regulators also need to address the debate on the credibility of credit-rating agencies.At a time when India holds the G20 presidency, authorities must ensure the regulatory framework is seen in nothing less than the best light.
  • Read More…

The path to righting historical wrongs in Tamil Nadu

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • State Government and Administration
  • Rural Development
• Relevance:
  • The plight of the Scheduled Tribe communities and the need for some remedies.
  • Many Adivasi groups in India continue to suffer the stigma of criminality due to the Habitual Offenders Act, 1952, which replaced the colonial Criminal Tribes Act, 1871. This law is a “crude colonial construct”, which should be repealed at the earliest.
  • The structural issues with governance and the negation of tribal communities’ concerns need to be addressed. For instance, a study by Jocelyn I. Lee and Steven A. Wolf in 2018 on the rate of the formal distribution of rights claims under the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, commonly known as the Forest Rights Act, found that no title rights were issued in Tamil Nadu because of a ban on the issuance of titles by the High Court till early 2016.
  • The “development-induced displacement” trajectory adopted by the country has often been at the expense of the Scheduled Tribes (STs), either by way of exclusion or forced “inclusion” in a “mainstream” that is completely alien to their “world view” through what the Xaxa Committee in 2014 had called the “ashramisation” of the tribal.
  • The makers of the Constitution, even while underlining the importance of sharing the values of modernity with the STs, who have a great deal of heterogeneity among themselves, had been careful enough to provide a certain degree of autonomy to them to have a say in their development pursuit.Accordingly, the Fifth and Sixth Schedules, which are governed by Articles 244 (1) and (2) of the Constitution, provides certain rights to tribes.
  • The Fifth Schedule had been also termed by the Mungekar Committee in 2009 for tribal development as a “Constitution within Constitution”. It allows for the creation of Scheduled Areas by the President of India
  • The criteria for creation of scheduled areas is based on four factors following the Dhebar Commission (1960-61): preponderance of the tribes in the population; compact and reasonable size; underdeveloped nature of the area; and marked disparity in the economic standards of the people.
  • Areas with more than 50% ST population had been declared Integrated Tribal Development Project (ITDP) areas in Tamil Nadu.But by declaring new scheduled areas and with the enforcement of the Fifth Schedule, not only are Panchayati Raj Institutions reserved for STs under the Panchayat (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, but three kinds of autonomy are made available to the STs through the gram sabhas: 
    • Developmental autonomy pertaining to land alienation, land acquisition, tribal subplan, social sector institutions, etc.; 
    • Autonomy over the resolution of disputes as per tribal laws and customs; 
    • Autonomy over the ownership and management of natural resources.
  • Moving forward would be only fulfilling a commitment made in 1976 by the Government of India and reiterated by the Mungekar Committee.
  • State Governments need to show political will and set aside their electoral interest to create a self-governed path for tribal development. Of course, these measures alone are not the panacea to all tribal problems. It should be complemented with clear policies and a plan for tribal development reflected in the yearly Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP). The formulation of this plan must include representatives of different tribes to make it people-centric and people-driven.
  • Read More…

Portentous overkill

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The recent directions to block access to the BBC Documentary on websites using emergency powers under the IT Rules, 2021 and Section 69A of the IT Act, 2000, has only resulted in citizens gaining access through screenings and shares over smartphones — akin to how the suppression of information has the unintended consequences of raising more awareness, or the ‘Streisand effect’.
  • The government should not arbitrarily block the dissemination of media content just because it is critical of the regime.
  • The events that led to the pogrom, the horrific crimes, the callousness of the then regime and the lack of sufficient recourse to law and order steps, have all been well recorded and commented upon in the Indian press.
  • The online blocking of the first episode using emergency powers cannot be justified on the basis provided by the MIB that it is “propagandist”, and only reflects a recent tendency to utilise IT rules to assert executive power rather than address this as a free speech issue –  misinformation and hate speech. The IT rules were amended in February 2021 to allow for increased government control over online news publications — actions that are now being heard in courts.
  • Recent High Court orders have also weighed in on the need to protect free speech and have stayed the government’s moves to control freedom of expression on digital platforms.
  • Read More…

PM calls for prison reforms and repeal of obsolete laws

• In Syllabus:
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Development Dynamics
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Comparative Public Administration
• Relevance:
  • At the 57th All India Conference of Directors General and Inspectors General of Police organised by the Intelligence Bureau (IB), the Prime Minister suggested making the police forces more sensitive and training them in emerging technologies and emphasised the importance of the National Data Governance Framework for smoothing of data exchange across agencies.
  • The Prime Minister suggested that while we should further leverage technological solutions like biometrics etc., there is also a need to further strengthen the traditional policing mechanisms like foot patrols etc.
  • He recommended repealing obsolete criminal laws and building standards for police organisations across States and discussed strengthening of border as well as coastal security by organising frequent visits of officials to these locations.
  • The PM emphasised enhanced cooperation between the State Police and the Central agencies to leverage capabilities and share best practices and further suggested replicating the model of the conference at the State/district levels for discussing emerging challenges and evolving best practices among their teams.
  • Read More…

A reminder of the flaws in India’s urbanisation policies

• In Syllabus:
  • Urban Local Government
  • State Government and Administration
  • Financial Administration and Management
• Relevance:
  • A report by the World Bank, released in November last year, on financing India’s urban infrastructure needs, focuses on private investments ameliorating urban problems. This push to attract private capital since 1990s continues to plague India’s policy paradigm in the urban sector.
  • After three decades of reforms, urban finance predominantly comes from the government. Of the finances needed to fund urban capital expenditures, 48%, 24% and 15% are derived from the central, State, and city governments, respectively. Public–private partnership projects contribute 3% and commercial debt 2%.
  • The core idea of the WB report and the solutions suggested include “improving the fiscal base and creditworthiness of the Indian cities. Cities must institute a buoyant revenue base and be able to recover the cost of providing its services”. In simpler terms, it means increasing property taxes, user fees and service charges to name a few.
  • The basic problem with this report and other reports drawn up in a similar fashion include  
    • These are made using a top to bottom approach, with too much of a focus on technocentric solutions using very high capital intensive technologies. For the urban context, plans must be made from below by engaging with the people and identifying their needs.
    • Need for empowering the city governments and the people at large, heeding to the recommendations of the national task force that reviewed the 74th Constitutional Amendment, chaired by K.C. Sivaramakrishnan,
    • Urban governance is in shambles. Regular elections should be held in cities and there must be empowerment through the transferring of the three Fs: finances, functions, and functionaries. 
    • Cities primarily are run by parastatals and the city governments hardly have any role to play in the smooth functioning of such parastatals
  • An improved urban legal framework that includes a stable and certain fiscal transfer regime, accords financial powers to ULBs [urban local bodies] along with attendant rules/regulations will determine the medium-to-long term scale of investment flows for urban infrastructure.
  • Read More…

Necessary pushback

• In Syllabus: 
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Accountability and Control
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The Supreme Court collegium has done well to push back against the Union government’s attempts to block the appointment of some advocates as High Court judges.
  • Communications between the collegium and the Centre offer a glimpse into the untenable nature of the government’s objections to proposed appointees, making it abundantly clear how badly the current regime wants to control judicial appointments.
  • The government appears to think that potential candidates for judicial appointments should not have political views of their own, or that a tendency to make their views or opinion known will amount to a possible bias in their functioning as judges.
  • Indeed, one can say that the history of judicial appointments is replete with instances of government law officers, who invariably enjoy the confidence of the political leadership at the Centre or the States, and lawyers who represent political leaders being offered positions on both the Supreme Court and High Court Benches.
  • The act of filtering out candidates who may not further the government’s  political agenda will surely give the impression of a threat to judicial independence.
  • Read More…

There is hardly any autonomy at the panchayat level

• In Syllabus: 
  • Rural Development
  • District Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Financial Administration and Management
• Relevance:
  • The article explains the issue of state government control over functioning of panchayats.
  • Recently, an up-sarpanch in Telangana’s committed suicide due to indebtedness. He had taken out a loan to undertake development works in the village and was unable to pay after the State government’s inordinate delay in releasing bill payments.
  • Assessment of the extent of decentralization of powers to panchayats:
    • Issue of funding– Gram panchayats remain fiscally dependent on grants from the State and the Centre for everyday activities. Broadly, panchayats have three main sources of funds — their own sources of revenue, grants in aid, and discretionary or scheme-based funds.
    • Their own sources of revenue constitute a tiny proportion of overall panchayat funds. For instance, in Telangana, less than a quarter of a panchayat’s revenue comes from its own sources of revenue.
    • Further, access to discretionary grants for panchayats remains dependent on political and bureaucratic connections. Even when higher levels of government allocate funds to local governments, sarpanchs need help in accessing them. An inordinate delay in transferring approved funds to panchayat accounts stalls local development.
    • There are also severe constraints on panchayats for using the funds allocated to them. State governments often impose spending limits on various expenditures through panchayat funds. In almost all States, there is a system of double authorisation for spending panchayat funds. Apart from sarpanchs, disbursal of payments requires bureaucratic concurrence.The sarpanch and the panchayat secretary, who reports to the Block Development Officer (BDO), must co-sign cheques issued for payments from panchayat funds.
  • Interference of higher authorities– State governments also bind local governments through the local bureaucracy. Approval for public works projects often requires technical approval from the engineering department and administrative approval from local officials of the rural development department.
  • Higher-level politicians and bureaucrats often intervene in selecting beneficiaries for government programmes and limiting the power of sarpanches further.
  • Sarpanchs need to have good relationships with politicians and local bureaucrats if they want access to discretionary resources, timely disbursement of funds and be able to successfully execute any project or programme in their village.
  • The ability of sarpanches to exercise administrative control over local employees is also limited. In many States, the recruitment of local functionaries is conducted at the district or block level. Often the sarpanch does not even have the power to dismiss these local-level employees.
  • Dismissal process– Sarpanchs can be dismissed while in office. Gram Panchayat Acts in many States have empowered district-level bureaucrats, mostly District Collectors, to act against sarpanchs for official misconduct.
    • Across the country, there are regular instances of bureaucrats deciding to dismiss sarpanchs from office. In Telangana, more than 100 sarpanchs have been dismissed from office in recent years.
  • There is a need to reexamine the provisions of the respective Gram Panchayat laws and consider greater devolution of funds, functions, and functionaries to local governments by the states.
  • State-level politicians and government officials resist giving sarpanchs power because they feel that sarpanchs will misuse funds allocated to a village. 
  • Moreover, India has limited decentralisation because if local governments get genuine autonomy to allocate the monies, power will shift from the MLAs and State government controlled bureaucracy to the sarpanch.
  • Read More…

Under Constitution, law declared by the Supreme Court is binding on all

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • The public criticism aired by Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) judgment may be seen as comments by a high constitutional authority against “the law of the land”.
  • The Supreme Court has held that its judicial pronouncements lay down the law. Article 141 of the Constitution mandates that a law declared by the Supreme Court is binding on all courts, even the Supreme Court.
  • That is, as long as the NJAC judgment, which upholds the Collegium system of judicial appointments, exists, the court is bound to comply with the verdict. Parliament is free to bring a new law on judicial appointments, possibly through a Constitution amendment, but that too will be subject to judicial review.
  • Article 368 postulates only a ‘procedure’ for amendment of the Constitution. The same could not be treated as a ‘power’ vested in Parliament to amend the Constitution so as to alter the ‘core’ of the Constitution, which has also been described as the ‘basic features/ basic structure’ of the Constitution,
  • Read More…

A Governor and a Chief Minister at loggerheads

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Tamil Nadu Governor R. N. Ravi walked out of the Assembly after Chief Minister M. K. Stalin said only the portions of the Governor’s speech prepared and approved by the State Cabinet. Deviations from the original text would be expunged.
  • The 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1976, had made ministerial advice binding on the President but no such provision has been made for the Governor. The Supreme Court of India, however, has in several landmark judgements defined limits of the discretionary powers.
  • In the 2016 Nabam Rebia judgement, a Five judge Bench led by then Chief Justice of India, J. S. Khehar, said that Article 163 of the Constitution does not give the Governor a “general discretionary power to act against or without the advice of his council of ministers”.
  • Non-BJP State governments have alleged that these constant faceoffs have resulted in delays in getting gubernatorial assent for Bills passed by the Assembly and have affected governance.
  • Several experts panels were set up to suggest to improve Centre-State Relations. Most of these reports have advocated for appointing nonpolitical Governors through independent mechanisms after consultations with the concerned Chief Ministers. 
  • The Sarkaria Commission had pointed out that the role of the Governor “is to see that a government is formed and not to try to form a government”. However, the recommendations of these reports have not been taken up by any government so far.
  • Read More…

Capital stalemate

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Personnel Administration and Civil Services
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • The Government of NCT of Delhi has alleged that the aldermen appointed by Mr. Saxena were given voting rights in violation of the MCD Act, a question that remains unclarified. The party has pointed out that the Lieutenant Governor is ignoring the Council of Ministers and issuing orders to the bureaucracy directly on all matters, regardless of the division of power established by the Supreme Court between the two entities.
  • Technically, the Lieutenant Governor has executive control over only the three reserved subjects of police, public order and land; all other subjects (transferred subjects) lie with the elected government. But by virtue of being in control of the bureaucracy, and exercising the power to transfer, suspend or take any action against any employee of the Delhi government, the Lieutenant Governor’s authority extends beyond those.
  • The Supreme Court’s calls for statesmanship and wisdom by actors have not resolved the stalemate, which is seriously impacting governance in the national capital. The heightened political competition between the AAP and the BJP has worsened the situation, but the root of it all is the legal ambiguity that needs to be dispelled.
  • Read More…

Reckless spree

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration(Disaster Management)
  • Rural Development
• Relevance:
  • The land subsidence in Joshimath has become emblematic of a geological disaster that has in fact manifested across India, in the neighbourhood of several large resource extraction projects
  • Experts and civil society have called on the government on many occasions to ease its dam-building spree, of late over rivers in the north and the Northeast; to moderate tourism in the regions to be sustainable; and to not blow off unstable hillsides to widen roads.
  • In Joshimath, which is particularly prone to landslides, questions about zoning, carrying capacity and tipping points have all been set aside. The government must undertake whatever repair and restoration efforts it is undertaking at Joshimath at all the other sites as well. 
  • The national and the State governments must listen to both science and the people already living near mines and dams. There is an argument
  • to allow economically developing countries to emit more before becoming carbon-neutral, but it is not a free pass to plunder natural resources at the cost of climate justice.
  • Read More…

The ‘Union’ government sends out a message of unity and confluence

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • The Tamil Nadu government’s decision to shun the usage of the term ‘Central government’ in its official communications and replace it with ‘Union government’ is a major step towards regaining the consciousness of our Constitution.
  • The Constituent Assembly did not use the term ‘Centre’ or ‘Central government’ in all of its 395 Articles in 22 Parts and eight Schedules in the original Constitution.
  • the aims and objects in the  Objectives Resolution defined that India shall be a Union of territories willing to join the “Independent Sovereign Republic”. The emphasis was on the consolidation and confluence of various provinces and territories to form a strong united country.
  • Many members of the Constituent Assembly were of the opinion that the principles of the British Cabinet Mission Plan (1946) be adopted, which contemplated a Central government with very limited powers whereas the provinces had substantial autonomy. The Partition and the violence of 1947 in Kashmir forced the Constituent Assembly to revise its approach and it resolved in favour of a strong Centre.
  • In the Constituent Assembly, B.R Ambedkar observed that the word ‘Union’ was advisedly used in order to negative the right of secession of States by emphasising, after all, that “India shall be a Union of States”.
  • Ambedkar justified the usage of ‘Union of States’ saying that the Drafting Committee wanted to make it clear that though India was to be a federation, it was not the result of an agreement and that therefore, no State has the right to secede from it. “The federation is a Union because it is indestructible,”
  • The members of the Constituent Assembly were very cautious of not using the word ‘Centre’ or ‘Central government’ in the Constitution as they intended to keep away the tendency of centralising of powers in one unit. The ‘Union government’ or the ‘Government of India’ has a unifying effect as the message sought to be given is that the government is of all.
  • Read More…

Barking up the wrong tree

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Development Dynamics 
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Administrative Reforms 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration 
• Relevance:
  • The Election Commission of India (EC) has announced its intention of introducing remote voting across the country— a facility to enable voters who are residents elsewhere to vote in their home constituencies. Considering that India has a significant fraction of migrant population, this provision is much required. 
  • However, the EC’s overemphasis on the RVMs appears to be misplaced. There is much more to remote voting than voting electronics, and the commission’s proposal appears to be sketchy and grossly inadequate.
    • First, how will it be ensured that all those who wish to apply for remote voting are able to do so without let or hindrance, and that all applications are processed fairly without inadvertent or selective exclusions? s it needs to be ensured that all applications — and the decisions on them — are publicly verifiable, from both remote and home locations. This can only be done with verifiable zero­trust technology that is crucially linked to digitisation of the electoral rolls, which, by itself, requires a thorough examination.
    • Second, how will it be ensured that a person allowed to vote remotely is invalidated for local voting and also that nobody is incorrectly invalidated? Since the two lists will be at different locations, the correctness will not be easy to demonstrate in a publicly verifiable way. 
    • Third, how will the votes — both the electronic votes and the VVPAT slips — be consolidated and counted? Will the counting and the VVPAT audit happen at the remote location, or at the home constituency after consolidation?
    • Fourth, who will be the polling agents at the remote locations? How will it be ensured that in a different political environment at the remote site, a remote voter will not be coerced?
  • The above problems are not insurmountable, but they will require considerably more due diligence. They will also require a significant shift of emphasis from designing electronics to ensuring verifiability.
  • Unfortunately, this misplaced emphasis on unverifiable voting machines has been a long­standing, ostrich like problem with the EC.
  • One way out to ensure public verifiability — as an approximation to software independence — is to audit the electronic results with a count of the VVPATs, either with a complete count or that of a statistically significant sample. The procedure for doing this, called risk limiting audit, is well established in voting literature. Unfortunately, it appears that election results are declared in India without any VVPAT audits at all. Even the Supreme Court’s stipulation of auditing five randomly selected EVMs in every Assembly constituency against VVPAT counts appears to be without any sound statistical basis.
  • Read More…

Bad and ugly

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Behavior
  • Accountability and Control
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The constitutional convention is that the President or the Governor should not depart from the text, as it is nothing but a statement of policy of the elected government.
  • Most Chief Ministers have in the past avoided confrontation despite the occasional departure from the convention. Mr. Stalin, however, chose to hand out an immediate riposte in the very presence of the Governor through a resolution
  • The events highlight the consequences of a confrontationist attitude on the part of constitutional functionaries.
  • Future confrontations can be avoided if the Governor gives up his penchant for making politically loaded remarks and is heedful of the State’s political sensibilities. 
  • In the longer term, the role of the Governor in the country’s constitutional scheme needs a thorough overhaul, so that incumbents in Raj Bhavan give up their sense of overlordship and focus on their core constitutional functions.
  • Read More…

‘Excluding civil servants from a State’s realm negates autonomy’

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Personnel Administration and Civil Services
  • Development Dynamics
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • SC’s question to Delhi Government whether civil servants posted in the national capital in relation to public order, police and land will come outside the purview of the executive power of the Delhi government.
  • At the core of the case is how “civil servants are accountable to the respective Ministers who, in turn, are accountable to the legislature, which is accountable to the people”.
  • Excluding civil servants from a local or State government’s realm negates autonomy, which is the very purpose of government in federalism.
  • The 2018 judgment, though holding that the Lieutenant Governor Of Delhi was bound by the “aid and advice” of the popularly elected Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government, had not cally dealt with the issue of ‘services’.
  • On February 14, 2019, a  two-judge Bench of the court had given a split opinion on the question of control over ‘services’ in Delhi.
  • Read More…

A step towards fighting corruption

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Personnel Administration and Civil Services
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • In a judgment in December 2022 — Neeraj Dutta v. State (Govt. of NCT of Delhi) — the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court came down heavily on corruption among public servants in the country and lowered the bar for the quantum of evidence required to convict persons charged with corruption. 
  • Through its ruling, the Supreme Court debunks the myth that absolute proof of guilt alone can help convict an offender. The court has now laid down that even if prosecution witnesses turn hostile, a conviction would be in order if all the circumstantial evidence marshalled by the prosecution and produced before the court points unmistakably to the guilt of the accused – a great step towards ensuring integrity in public services,
  • Supreme Court has set the standard of ‘preponderance of probability’, a yardstick that is usually not acceptable to sustain conviction in criminal trials. Earlier, the belief was that only conclusive proof, namely, proof that does not leave an iota of doubt in the minds of the courts, was required. This has now been diluted. The court has directed that infirmities such as nonavailability of the complainant, either because he is dead or otherwise not traceable, should not stand in the way of accepting the story of the prosecution. The same liberal application of the law of evidence will now apply to cases where prosecution witnesses turn hostile, either because of inducement or intimidation. 
  • Why this Ruling?
  • There are two aspects to the fight against corruption:
  • The severity of the law and its application; and 
  • The strength of public opinion that would help carry forward the campaign for a clean public life. Both are equally important.
  • The more you enhance penalties for criminal behaviour, the higher will be the quantum of proof required by the courts to be convinced of the guilt of those arraigned before them. It is probably this hard reality that persuaded the Constitutional Bench to lower the bar for the quantum of evidence required to convict persons charged with corruption 
  • Read More…

Municipal corporations in India are gasping for funds

• In Syllabus:
  • Urban Local Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • The combined budget of all the municipal corporations in India is much smaller than that of the Central and State governments, an RBI analysis of finances of urban local bodies – “Report on municipal finances”  concluded.
  • Own-Tax Revenue – Taxes earned by municipal corporations in India are grossly inadequate to meet their expenditure needs. In India, the own tax revenue of municipal corporations, comprising property tax, water tax, toll tax and other local taxes, formed 31-34% of the total revenue in the FY18-FY20 Period. This share was low compared to many other countries and it also declined over time.
  • Total Revenue – Using budgetary data from 201 municipal corporations across India, the RBI report calculated their overall revenue receipts — consisting of own tax revenue, own non-tax revenue and transfers. In 2017-18 (actuals), it was estimated to be 0.61% of the GDP and according to budget estimates of 2019-20, it increased slightly to 0.72% of the GDP. This was much smaller than Brazil’s 7% and South Africa’s 6%.
  • Property Taxes – Another major issue with the municipal corporations’ revenue raising capabilities was their dependence on property taxes. In 2017-18, the property taxes formed over 40% of the municipal corporations’ own tax revenue. Despite such dominance, property tax collection in India was much lower compared to OECD countries due to undervaluation, and poor administration,
  • Expenditure – Over 70% was spent on revenue expenditures such as salaries/wages/bonus (25%), operational and maintenance charges (16.2%), pensions (7.4%), etc., while less than 30% was capital expenditure.
  • The corporations are mostly dependent on transfers from the Union and State Governments with their revenue raising potential being limited.
  • Read More…

A mountain reeling under human aggression

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration(Disaster Management)
  • Rural Development
• Relevance
  • While implementing a freeway project in the Himalayas, a major question that arises is whether the mountain morphology with steep slopes and sharp gradients is easily amenable to human engineering — a caveat raised by many expert committees in the past.
  • The Himalayan terrain demands sustainable tourism, not mass tourism. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) report on the Chamoli disaster in April 2022 clearly states that “in the long term, it will be necessary to focus on finding alternative sources of energy, as the area appears to be environmentally sensitive”.
  • A development strategy for the Himalayas should not come at the cost of the environment. The Joshimath episode is a warning that the Himalayan environment is at a tipping point and it may not be able to withstand another push generated by intrusive anthropogenic activities in the form of massive construction projects of townships, highways, tunnels, railway tracks and dams — an ecosystem already grappling with the consequences of global warming.
  • It should be primarily based on the region’s natural resources such as forest, water, biodiversity and ecotourism. Rather than building massive dams, focus should be on small projects that would be helpful in providing local energy supply.
  • An appropriate strategy for human wellbeing should use traditional knowledge, agricultural practices, construction practices and local cultural aspects.
  • Read More…

A participatory mapping exercise

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Rural Development
• Relevance:
  • The demarcation of a 1km buffer zone around the protected forests in Kerala on the direction of the Supreme Court has raised serious concerns in society. This is often beset by a paucity of reliable ground-level data. 
  • Forest areas are being used for various Non-forestry Purposes, including the expansion of human settlements, leading to the fragmentation of forest patches. The forest settlement boundary is pushed deep into the Western Ghats, exposing trails of wildlife movement, and aggravating human-wildlife conflicts. In 2021, there were instances of 8,107 human-wildlife conflicts.
  • Fixing the boundary between natural forest vegetation and humanised landscape is necessary. It warrants a detailed land use survey on a cadastral scale at the plot level. Participation of local people is imperative.
  • Drawing from past experiences, local panchayat and residents can be mobilised to undertake the programme of land use and asset survey for the panchayats bordering the protected forests. 
  • Students from schools and colleges, along with teachers can be involved. Scientific institutes and departments may be mandated to extend technical support.
  • The ownership of the maps and local action must rest with the local inhabitants.
  • Read More…

Imagining the politics of fraternity

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • In the eyes of our nation’s founders, fraternity was not merely a value to aspire to, but a foundational principle to be upheld by all the political forces; hence, it was included in the Preamble as well as in the fundamental duties of our Constitution.
  • Traditionally there were two ideas of fraternity.
    • The first emerged from the JudeoChristian World view which envisaged a brotherhood among men owing to the belief that all men were ‘children of God’. 
    • The second more radical and secular idea of fraternity was born out of the crucible of the French Revolution. Here, fraternity denoted a sense of solidarity and brotherhood among those who were opposed to the tyrannical monarchical order. This idea became the basis of modern citizenship.
  • In the Indian context, Bandhutva emerged during the process of anticolonial struggle and the concomitant process of nation building. The most ardent champion of Bandhutva was Dr. B. R. Ambedkar.
  • In The Buddha and his Dhamma, Ambedkar argued that any society which sanctioned the supremacy of one group over the other is bound to have perpetual conflict. The only way to resolve this conflict is to make fraternity universally effective. For Ambedkar, fraternity was the fundamental enabling condition for the realisation of liberty and equality, which would otherwise merely be ‘coats of paint’.
  • We are living in an age of extreme inequality. Across the world, the principle of fraternity is threatened by the political culture spawned by extreme social and economic polarisation with one enabling the other. This is leading to rise of xenophobia and racial tensions.
  • Read More…

Avoid further delay in conducting the Census

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Administrative Reforms
• Relevance:
  • Importance of Census Data and implications of its delay:
    • The Constitution talks about the use of Census data for delimitation of constituencies and for determining the quantum of reservation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.
    • The Census alone can provide population data for every village and town in the country. Sample surveys can provide reliable data on social and demographic indicators only at higher geographic levels. 
    • In many towns and even panchayats that have seen rapid changes in the composition of their population over the last decade, this would mean that either too many or too few seats are being reserved.
    • Apart from the population count, the Census has also been providing data on population characteristics, housing and amenities.
    • For answers to questions on the improvement in literacy and educational levels, economic activity, migration, etc., or the impact of programmes like Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, one must depend on sample surveys. But this information cannot be used to find answers to how many villages have literacy rates below 75% or which tehsils have a low percentage of people getting protected water supply which can be attained by comprehensive Census data..
    • The rural-urban distribution of population has been rapidly changing over the years. There is high population growth in the urban areas. Some cities have been growing faster than others through inmigration.
    • The pandemic resulted in deaths among adults and the aged relatively more than children. Its impact on age distribution in severely affected areas would be of interest as it would give an indirect estimates of the number of deaths. 
  • The Constitution does not say what should be the periodicity of the census. The Census Act, 1948, which predates the Constitution, provides the legal background for several activities relating to the Census without mentioning anything about its Periodicity. This provision puts the onus of deciding when to conduct a Census on the executive. This is unlike the position in several countries such as the U.S. and Japan where the Constitution or the Census law mandates a Census with defined periodicity.
  • The Census is a single-shot operation and there is no scope for a retake. The Central government’s stated stand is that the data for the National Population Register would be updated during the Census. As the Census has been considerably delayed, it would be advisable to separate these two and disassociate the Census from a politically sensitive issue.
  • The first Census after 2026 would be used for delimitation of parliamentary and Assembly constituencies and for apportionment of parliamentary seats among the States. Due to the disparity in growth rates between the States, there could be changes in the distribution of seats in Parliament. That Census is likely to be held in a more politically charged atmosphere. Hence, it is necessary that this Census is done as early as possible.
  •  Read More…

A timely halt

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • District Administration
  • Urban Local Government
  • Rural Development
• Relevance:
  • The Supreme Court’s timely intervention has halted the forcible eviction of some 50,000 people from Haldwani in Uttarakhand, where the occupants are accused of squatting on railway property for decades.
  • It is significant that the Bench underscored the human angle to the issue and spoke about the need for rehabilitation before eviction while staying the Uttarakhand High Court order.
  • Conflicts between occupants of public land and the state that wants to reclaim the land are a never ending saga in the country. A shortage of housing, as well as inadequate recognition of the right to shelter, means that large masses of people encroach on vacant land, be it on the bed of water bodies or government property.
  • There are court judgments that stress rehabilitation measures and consultation with the oustees before eviction. Some courts have also recorded the view that mandatory rehabilitation may prove to be an incentive for encroachment.
  • India does not have a good record on rehabilitation of those evicted from public spaces, and this case presents an opportunity to the Supreme Court to lay down the law on meaningful rehabilitation as well as effective prevention of encroachments.
  • Read More…

Remote work helped in saving jobs during COVID: ILO report

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Theory
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Report: ‘Working Time and Work-Life Balance Around the World’,
  • Short time work and worksharing measures or other forms of job retention helped people reduce the volume of work and save jobs during the COVID19 pandemic,
  • The system of reduced working hours and flexible working time arrangements can benefit economies, enterprises and workers, and lay the ground for a better and more healthy worklife balance,.
  • The report looked at the two main aspects of working time –  working hours and working time arrangements (also called work schedules) and the effects of both on business performance and workers’ work-life balance.
  • The ‘Great Resignation’ phenomenon has placed worklife Balance at the forefront of social and labour market issues in the post-pandemic world”
  • Read More…

To boost ‘Make in India’, Centre flags unfair tender norms

• In Syllabus:
  • Public Policy
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Public Sector Undertakings
  • Plans and Priorities
  • Union Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • Union government has flagged over a dozen “restrictive and discriminatory” conditions which prevented local suppliers from participating in bidding processes initiated by its various departments and Ministries. This is in violation of the Public Procurement Preference to Make in India (PPP-MII) Order, 2017, issued to protect the interests of local suppliers.
  • The DPIIT in consultation with the Department of Expenditure and the Government e Marketplace (GeM) had identified over a dozen conditions commonly introduced in tender conditions that went against the local suppliers but suited the interests of foreign manufacturers and
  • Excessive turnover requirement as a prequalifying criteria, insisting on specific experience of supplying products to other nations such as export to G8 countries, specifying foreign brands either for finished products or for part of scope of work were among conditions that prevented the local manufacturers from taking part in the procurement process,
  • Read More…

Political parties are not like companies

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Development Dynamics
  • Comparative Public Administration
  • Philosophical  and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • The flawed analogy of Political Parties viz-a-viz Corporations
  • A key difference between a political party and a company is that parties have claimants and volunteers while a company has employees. This difference has an impact on all aspects of Decision-making and operations of the two entities.
  • The purpose of a political party is to capture state power in service of some stated social agenda.On the other hand, most private companies operate in a narrowly defined and apolitical space selling goods and services.
  • A political party must manage tradeoffs between multiple conflicting interests, generate consensus, and then mobilise the electorate around its chosen narrative. This is a more nebulous space than one in which predefined goods and services are exchanged for profit.
  • Unlike employees, political functionaries cannot be ‘fired’, especially since many may not have a post to begin with. This is because political functionaries don’t just perform a role but also serve as representatives of some or other interests. The ability to enforce discipline in a political party is thus directly related to the ability of the leadership to consolidate power at the top.
  • In a political party, power is more informal and dynamic than in a corporation. Hence, corporate notions of hierarchy, compartmentalisation, professionalisation, discipline and accountability do not translate well within a political setting. In a corporation, a promoter can outsource management to a ‘professional’ without worrying about losing control as long as s/he controls majority shares. However, in a political party, power once delegated can be lost if the representative interests realign.
  • Given these vagaries in the functioning of political parties, there are indeed discernible trends towards ‘corporatisation’ and ‘professionalisation’ of parties. These include anti defection law which divests political discretion from elected representatives by constraining them to the whip and vesting all decisionmaking in the party leadership. Chief Ministers using the bureaucracy to bypass Ministers and the use of political consultants to bypass the party organisation are other examples of professionalization of political parties.
  • Instead of improving efficiency, this has resulted in further degradation of overall public purpose. Pruning political discretion from positions has made individuals in those positions expendable like employees and less capable of negotiating the party’s internal power structures. The ‘professionalisation’ of politics has also facilitated rampant party hopping by political functionaries in the manner of employees flitting across companies. This reduces the overall credibility of the political space.
  • Read More…

As Joshimath sinks, all projects stopped

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Accountability and Control
  • State Government and Administration
  • District Administration
  • Urban Local Government
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • With residents of the Joshimath town reporting frequent landslips and hundreds of houses in the hill town in Uttarakhand developing cracks, the district administration has issued orders to stop all construction work.
  • The administration has also been tasked with working on an immediate action plan and a longterm one to manage the situation. A National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team will be deployed on priority basis.
  • The Ministry of Jal Shakti on Friday constituted a committee to conduct a rapid study of the occurrence of land subsidence and its impact in the Joshimath region. In a statement, the Ministry said the committee would ascertain the cause and effects of landslips, and the measures to be taken to safeguard human settlements, buildings, highway infrastructure and the riverine system.
  • Read More…

Why is Japan offering money to move out of Tokyo?

• In Syllabus:
  • Public Policy
  • Development Dynamics
  • Financial Management and Administration
  • Urban Local Government
• Relevance:
  • According to local media reports, Japan will pay up to one million yen (approximately ₹6 lakh) per child to families if they move out of the Tokyo metropolitan area to reduce population concentration in the capital area.
  • The impact of emigration from rural to urban spaces has been felt sharply in rural areas the most, where the number of local community members have decreased, leading to a shrinkage in local and smallscale economic opportunities. Once people move out and local economies decline, it becomes difficult to maintain essential life services in these areas, and the region loses its charm and functionality.
  • Japan’s two-pronged solution to this problem includes achieving the goal of a vibrant local community and correcting the overconcentration in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Tokyo is also prone to earthquakes, and the overconcentration of the population and economy makes the nation vulnerable to loss.
  • To strengthen its efforts of reducing overconcentration in Tokyo, the government plans to pursue  policies like offering a lucrative sum of money, improving ties with local communities, creating a profitable economy, and promoting a work-life balance focused on peace of mind.
  • Read More…

Freedom in authority

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Organisations
  • Accountability and Control
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • The Supreme Court has shown sound restraint while examining the issue of misuse of free speech, especially by political functionaries holding public office.
  • The bench correctly concluded that the specified grounds for reasonable restrictions in Article 19(2) are “exhaustive” and nothing further can be added by judicial fiat. The majority also declined to expand the notion of ‘collective responsibility’ to fix liability on the state for such remarks.
  • In a differing opinion, Justice BV Nagarathna said that it is possible to attribute vicarious responsibility to the government if a minister’s view represents that of the government and is related to the affairs of the state.Political leaders do need an occasional reminder that they should show utmost restraint, as their public utterances tend to get circulated and also influence their followers.
  • The court has restated and clarified several principles, including that of constitutional tort, or a civil wrong that is actionable. The main opinion concludes that a mere statement by a minister that goes against an individual’s fundamental rights may not be actionable, but becomes actionable if it results in actual harm or loss. Justice Nagarathna, on the other hand, holds the view that there should be a proper legal framework to define acts and omissions that amount to ‘constitutional tort’
  • The court’s overall view that fundamental rights are enforceable even against private actors is indeed a welcome one. This largely settles the question of whether these rights are only ‘vertical’, that is, enforceable only against the state, or ‘horizontal’ too, that is enforceable by one person against another.
  • Read More…

Why has a high-power Ladakh committee been formed?

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Rural Development 
  • Urban Local Government
• Relevance:
  • A high-powered committee to discuss measures to protect Ladakh’s unique culture and language taking into consideration its geographical location and strategic importance; ensure protection of land and employment for the people of Ladakh; strategise inclusive development and discuss issues related to the empowerment of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill District Councils of Leh and Kargil.
  • The civil society groups renewed their demand to seek full Statehood for Ladakh after repeated failure to ensure progress on the demand for inclusion under the sixth schedule of the Constitution.
  • Not keen to give any special status to Ladakh, the MHA informed a parliamentary standing committee recently that the objective for inclusion of tribal population under the sixth schedule is to ensure their overall socioeconomic development, which, the UT administration has already been taking care of and that sufficient funds are being provided to Ladakh to meet its overall developmental requirements for instance, increase in reservation of STs in direct recruitment from 10% to 45%.
  • Read More…

The values of local self governance

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Theories
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
  • Rural Development 
  • Urban Local Government
• Relevance:
  • Since local governments seldom derive their authority directly from the Constitution, India’s constitutional reforms for decentralisation are exceptional.
  • On 30th anniversary of the constitutional amendments, it is important to ask fundamental questions: Why should local governments be empowered? Why are they weak despite constitutional reforms? How can the idea of local self governance be revived?
  • Understanding the normative basis of local self-governance is important since this also informs the institutional form local governments take. Local self-governance is linked to the idea of subsidiarity and is typically grounded on two broad arguments.
    • First, it provides for efficient provision of public goods since governments with smaller jurisdictions can provide services as per the preferences of their residents. 
    • Second, it promotes deeper democracy since governments that are closer to the people allow citizens to engage with public affairs more easily.
  • Despite the constitutional promise of local self-governance, local governments, especially municipalities, operate with limited autonomy and authority.This includes the discretion given to the States regarding devolution of powers and levying of local taxes and reluctance of state governments to dilute their control over the cities which are economic powerhouses and a source of funding for state governments and political parties.
  • Despite the courts’ contrasting judgements on various accounts,  the Patna High Court’s recent order declaring some provisions of the Bihar Municipal (Amendment) Act, 2021 as unconstitutional is pathbreaking. 
    • The 2021 amendment had transferred the powers of appointment of Grade C and D employees of municipalities from the Empowered Standing Committee of the municipality to the State government controlled Directorate of Municipal Administration. The court held that these provisions violate the 74th Amendment since the recentralization of power and the weakening of self-governance “Are incompatible with the idea, intent and design of the constitutional amendment”.
  • Hence, debates on federalism should include larger discussions on how power should be divided and shared between governments at the Union, State, and local level since local governments are, normatively and structurally, an integral part of the federal framework of the Constitution.
  • Read More…

Overly deferential

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Administrative Reforms 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The Supreme Court in the judgment on demonetisation upheld the government’s power to demonetise notes without quantitative restrictions and accepted the claim that there was adequate consultation between the Union government, which initiated the proposal, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
  • The majority has brushed aside substantial arguments based on proportionality, holding that demonetisation survives every test for proportionality: there was a legitimate purpose (unearthing fake currency and hoarded wealth and combating terror funding), there was a nexus between the action and the objectives, and the court did not have the expertise to suggest a less intrusive way of achieving these objectives. 
  • However, it does not properly address the question on whether the adverse consequences could have been limited. 
  • Justice B.V. Nagarathna’s dissent, holding the process to be flawed and the RBI’s approach to be without application of mind, is a consolation for those who want the courts to hold those in power to account.
  • Read More…

How is India moving to regulate online gaming?

• In Syllabus:
  • Accountability and Control
  • Public Policy
  • Financial Administration and Management
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration
• Relevance:
  • The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has released draft amendments in relation to online gaming. The idea is to ensure that online games are in conformity with Indian laws and to safeguard users against potential harm.
  • The draft proposes a self-regulatory mechanism which, in future, may also regulate the content of online gaming.
  • The proposals are aimed at safeguarding the interests of users by introducing set procedures and norms for verification and user engagement.
  • It defines what constitutes an online game and addresses the discourse in the sector about the definitions of a ‘game of skill’ and ‘game of chance’.
  • For the monetary aspect of it, operators would have to inform the user about the policy related to withdrawal or refund of their deposit, measures taken for its protection, the manner and distribution of winnings and the fees and other charges to be paid by the user. 
  • They would also have to be informed about the risk of potential financial loss and addiction associated with the game. Addiction is to be combated using repeated warning messages should the user exceed a reasonable duration while playing a certain game.
  • Before hosting or publishing a game, the platform would have to verify it from the Self-regulatory body it is associated with. The platform is expected to appoint a key management personnel or senior employee as its Chief Compliance Officer who would be entrusted with coordinating with law enforcement agencies to ensure compliance with their orders or requisitions.
  • It must have in place an appropriate mechanism for receipt and resolution of grievances. The complainant must be able to track the status of the same using a unique ticket number.
  • Experts have welcomed the government’s initiative to bring online gaming under a central regulation.The rules still bucket all gaming intermediaries into a broad category irrespective of size or risk. They all require similar compliances, including the need to have India based officers. This can make it difficult for global players to start their services in India.
  • Read More…

Over the borderline

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Rural Development
  • Law and Order
• Relevance:
  • The Government of India is paying special attention to the development of border villages, especially from a security perspective.
  • Importance of  the Vibrant Village Programme (VVP) to promote development and communication in border villages. The scheme is for funding development of “border villages with sparse population, limited connectivity and infrastructure (that) often get left out from the development gains,”
  • VVP would cover construction of village infrastructure, housing, tourist centres, road connectivity, provisioning of decentralised renewable energy, direct-to-home access for Doordarshan and educational channels, and support for livelihood generation. There were also plans to open the villages along the China border in Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and the Union Territory of Ladakh for tourists.
  • Need to verify the appropriateness of holding border areas close to the rest of the country. This is a dynamic challenge and requires a sensitive approach towards the ethnic and cultural strings of the local populations.
  • Read More…

Towards reducing India’s prison footprint

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Behaviour
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Administrative Reforms
  • Law and Order
• Relevance:
  • The President’s emphasis on how the judiciary, executive, and legislature must work together to help those incarcerated. She intriguingly questioned: How are we claiming that we are progressing as a nation, if we are still building prisons to address the issue of overcrowding?
  • In stark contrast, Lieutenant Governor of Delhi (LG) Vinai Kumar Saxena directed the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to allocate 1.6 lakh square metres of land to Delhi’s prison department to construct a district prison complex in Narela. The Delhi prison administration is essentially creating solitary confinement which will have a severe detrimental effect on prisoners’ mental health.
  • Frank Gehry, at the Yale School of Architecture in 2017, in a course on architecture and mass incarceration.promoted models which  featured open and communal space, fresh air, and spaces for family visits and therapy. These emphasized the need to break away from the traditional conception of prisons as mere warehouses and cages, even for the most violent inmates. The students viewed prisoners and prison staff as their clients, rather than the state bureaucracy, and this impacted their designs.
  • Prisons in India are still governed by the Prisons Act, 1894, a colonial legislation which treats prisoners as subpar citizens, and provides the legal basis for punishment to be retributive, rather than rehabilitative. These laws are also highly casteist, and remain largely unchanged since they were drafted by the British.
  • Dalits and Adivasis are overrepresented In Indian prisons. The National Dalit Movement for Justice and the National Centre for Dalit Human Rights’ report ‘Criminal Justice in the Shadow of Caste’ explains the social, systemic, legal, and political barriers that contribute to this.
  • Progress is antithetical to setting up prisons, and congestion in prisons must be addressed in non-carceral ways. These could include releasing unwell or old inmates, reducing penalties, allowing bail at affordable costs, employing anti-carceral ways of holding people accountable for their crimes, and expediting trials.
  • Our approach to crime should be preventive, rather than reactive. Instead of investing thousands of crores in finding “state of the art” ways to cage and harm people, the LG should reflect on the soul of India’s Constitution which imposes welfare obligations on the state.
  • Read More…

SC lists U.P.’s plea against order on civic polls

• In Syllabus:
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Urban Local Government
  • Rural Development
• Relevance:
  • The case raises the fundamental question whether quota for political representation in urban self-government bodies can be equated with reservation in higher education and public employment.
  • The appeal by UP Government shall be countered by a 2010 Constitution Bench judgment of the Supreme Court in K. Krishnamurthy vs Union of India, which had clearly held that the “nature and purpose of reservation in relation to local bodies is considerably different from that in relation to higher education and public employment”. This cannot be mechanically applied in the context of reservations enabled by Articles 243D and 243T [reservation of seats in panchayats, municipalities].
  • The court had explained that though social and economic sense could act as a barrier to effective political participation and representation, such backwardness cannot be the sole criteria for identifying the backward classes inadequately represented politically.
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ST Commission holds its ground on impact of new rules on Forest Rights Act

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Rural Development
• Relevance:
  • National Commission for Scheduled Tribes had pointed out that the Forest Conservation Rules, 2022 had done away with the clause to mandatorily seek consent of the gram sabhas before the Stage 1 clearance or even after Stage 2 clearance.
  • In such a scenario, project proponents, having received partial clearance,will be pushing the State governments and Union Territory administrations for “diversion at the earliest”, which would be“ seriously impacting the process of recognition of rights under the FRA”.
  • The panel highlighted the applications for divergence which were granted clearance and cases of misrepresentation with regard to Forests Rights Act, 2005.
  • Read More…

Ayes and nays

• In Syllabus:
  • Public Policy
  • Development Dynamics
  • Philosophical and Constitutional framework of Government
  • Union Government and Administration 
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Administrative Reforms 
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • High rate of internal migration within India  has often led to migrants often seeing their political and economic rights compromised at their place of origin and residence.
  • The Remote Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) prototype can be used for up to 72 constituencies simultaneously from a single, remote polling booth.
  • A hurried move will only do more damage to the integrity of the electoral process, which many fear is eroding, and for valid reasons.
  • The ECI’s ambitious plan comes against this backdrop of public scepticism about its own impartiality and, less justifiably, about the reliability of the EVMs.
  • The proposed plan will add more questions to the mix, including some fundamental ones such as about the correlation between citizenship and territoriality. Defining a migrant who is eligible to vote remotely is going to be controversial.
  • Read More…

The advent of ‘app-solute’ chaos in NREGA under the guise of transparency

• In Syllabus:
  • Administrative Theories
  • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Financial Management and Administration
  • Union Government and Administration
  • State Government and Administration 
  • Rural Development
  • Administrative Reforms 
• Relevance:
  • Digitally capturing the attendance of workers employed under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) has been made universal by the Centre from January 1, 2023 via the National Mobile Monitoring Software(NMMS) App.
  • Launched by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) , the application is meant for “improving citizen oversight and increasing transparency” in National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) works.
  • It is to be deployed by NREGA Mates, local women at the panchayat level who are selected and trained to monitor NREGA worksites. The main feature of the app is the real-time, photographed, geotagged attendance of every worker to be taken once in each half of the day.
  • Issues with deployment of the app
    • While such an app may be useful in monitoring the attendance of workers who have fixed work timings, in most States, NREGA wages are calculated based on the amount of work done each day, and workers do not need to commit to fixed hours.
    • Due to the traditional burden of household chores and care work on women, the app is likely to disproportionately affect women workers.
    • A stable network is a must for real-time Monitoring; unfortunately, it remains patchy in much of rural India. This could lead to workers not being able to mark their attendance, and consequently lose a day of wages.
    • The app has adversely impacted NREGA Mates as well. Now, to be a Mate, one needs to have a smartphone. This new condition disqualifies thousands of women who do not own smartphones from becoming Mates.
    • Non-resolution of the implementation errors in the pilot projects with the same problems persistent in the recent expansion of the usage of the app.
    • Beyond the problems in implementation, the intended purpose of such an application, and its effectiveness remain unclear.With no physical attendance records signed by workers anymore, workers have no proof of their attendance and work done.
    • The MoRD has not provided much clarity on either the magnitude of this corruption or the manner in which the NMMS addresses it. There are no parameters established to assess the app’s performance, either on transparency, or on quicker processed payments.
    • It seems ironic that an application meant to improve citizen oversight and transparency was implemented with no consultation and discussion with NREGA workers, functionaries, or government field officials. The NMMS is consequently blind to the actual functioning of NREGA on the ground.
  • Instead of focusing on this app or introducing other complex technological reforms, social audits must be strengthened. Social audits are Citizen-centric instruments, where the citizens of the panchayat have a direct role and say in how NREGA functions in their panchayat.
  • Read More…

Is judicial majoritarianism justified?

• In Syllabus: 
  • Accountability and Control
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Law and Order Administration
  • Significant Issues in Indian Administration
• Relevance:
  • The blind acceptance of numerical majorities in judicial decision-making and the constitutional disregard of analysis and appreciation of arguments and evidence in dissenting judgments have been in news recently after the recent Supreme Court Judgement on demonetization.
  • What is judicial majoritarianism?
    • The requirement for a majority consensus flows from Article 145(5) of the Constitution, which states that no judgment in such cases can be delivered except with the concurrence of a majority of the judges but that judges are free to deliver dissenting judgments or opinions.
    • Numerical majorities are of particular importance to cases, which involve a substantial interpretation of constitutional provisions. In such cases, Constitutional Benches, consisting of five or more judges, are set up in consonance with Article 145(3) of the Constitution.
    • Such Benches usually consist of five, seven, nine, 11 or even 13 judges.
  • Issue of why numerical majorities of judicial bodies are accepted without any debate, while numerical majorities in representative bodies such as the Lok Sabha are often looked at with suspicion.
• Constitutional history:
  • The dissenting opinion of Justice H.R. Khanna in A.D.M. Jabalpur v. Shivkant Shukla (1976) upholding the right to life and personal liberty even during situations of constitutional exceptionalism is a prime example.
  • Another example is the dissenting opinion of Justice Subba Rao in the Kharak Singh v. State of U.P. (1962) case upholding the right to privacy which received the judicial stamp of approval in the K.S. Puttaswamy v. UOI (2017) case.
• Solution/Way Forward:
  • Seniority-based assessment: Ronald Dworkin proffers a system that may either give more weightage to the vote of senior judges given that they have more experience or to the junior judges as they may represent popular opinion better.
  • Inculcate critical discourse
  • Read More…

Fire and ice – Problem Facing Ladakh

• In Syllabus:
  • Development Dynamics
  • Union Government and Administration
  • Rural Development
• Relevance: 
  • Demands of agitating people in Ladakh:
    • Inclusion of the region in the Sixth Schedule under Article 244 of the Constitution
    • Full-fledged Statehood, 
    • Separate Lok Sabha seats for Leh and Kargil districts and 
    • Job reservation for locals.
• They describe the demands as key to protecting Ladakh’s identity, culture, and fragile environment.
• Main issues facing Ladakhi people
  • Ladakh came under a bureaucracy soon after its status was changed to that of a UT in August 2019. The bureaucracy has been hostile and unresponsive to the local population.
  • The constant tussle between locals and elected representatives of the two Hill Councils of Kargil and Leh has only widened over the months.
  • Leh’s political and religious bodies formed the Leh Apex Body(LAB) in 2020. In the Kargil district, some political parties and Shia Muslim-affiliated seminaries joined hands in November 2020 to form the Kargil Democratic Alliance(KDA). It is advocating for re-joining with the erstwhile J&K State and restoration of its special status under Article 370.
• Response of the center
• The two committees appointed by it to reassure the local populations have made little progress in the last two years.
• The second committee appointed this year under the Minister of State has only deepened local anger. It has no mandate to address the issues being raised.

• Read More…

The funding and demand for MGNREGA

• In Syllabus:
• • Development Dynamics
  • Public Policy
  • Rural Development
• Relevance:
  • Economic Survey 2022-23 showed that 6.49 crore households demanded work under the MGNREGS. According to the survey, the program had a positive effect on household income, agricultural productivity, and expenditures for production. It added that this helped with “income diversification and infusing resilience into rural livelihoods.”
• Significance of MGNREGA to Rural Employment
  • The program was useful not only for rural workers but also for migrant laborers, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused widespread reverse migration.
  • It offered a crucial lifeline to a record 11 crore workers during the first COVID-19 lockdown in 2020.
  • Studies have provided empirical evidence to support the assertion that earnings received under the MGNREGA program helped cover 20% to 80% of the income lost as a result of the lockdown.
  • About 8.55 crore households demanded MGNREGA work in 2020-21, followed by 8.05 crore in 2021-22, compared to a total of 6.16 core households asking for work in the pre-pandemic year 2019-20.
• Current trend
  • The latest economic survey data showed that as of January 24 this year, 6.49 crore households had already requested jobs under the scheme with two more months until the financial year ends.
  • Notably, this demand-side figure is still higher than pre-pandemic levels, demonstrating that rural households are still requesting work under the plan despite the removal of pandemic restraints and changes in migratory trends.
  • In addition, the Ministry of Rural Development informed Parliament in August of last year that demand under MGNREGS had doubled in the previous seven years, with 3.07 crore households requesting work in May 2022 compared to 1.64 in the same month in 2015.
  • This was despite the pandemic-induced surge in demand.
• Challenges:
  • Lower budgetary allocation: NREGA Sangharsh Morcha, an advocacy group, stated that “every year, roughly 80-90% of the budget gets consumed within the first six months,” which causes a halt in operations on the ground and a holdup in paying workers’ wages.
  • Delay in wage payments: The delay in wage payments is another problem that still prevents the program from being implemented properly. According to information made public by the Center, 18 States were still owing 4,700 crores in MGNREGA salaries as of December 14, 2022, barely three months before the fiscal year’s conclusion. Notably, the Indian Supreme Court ordered the government to make sure that wages were paid on time in 2016, describing the practice of making employees wait for pay for months as “forced labour.”
  • Delay in Material costs: Additionally, as of December 14, 19 States owed the government material charges totaling 5,450 crores (for MGNREGA projects). Additionally, since a delay in payment disrupts the supply chain, the delay in material costs has a cascading effect on the MNREGA operation.
  • Number days of employments: The Scheme provides each household 100 days of employment each year, however according to a report by PRS Legislative Research, less than 10% of households have, on average, worked 100 days at a wage since 2016–17. Additionally, this fiscal year saw the lowest number of days of employment per household i.e 42 days, under the MGNREGS in five years.
  • Minimum Wage rate: The fact that the minimum wage rate under MGNREGS is set by the central government using the Consumer Price Index-Agricultural Laborers has also drawn criticism from a panel of the Rural Development Ministry. Since agricultural labourers and MGNREGS employees perform different types of work, it was suggested that the minimum wage be determined in relation to the Consumer Price Index-Rural, which was more recent and provided for larger spending on healthcare and education.
  • The Parliamentary Committee said last year that fake job cards, rampant corruption, late uploading of muster registers, and irregular payment of jobless allowance are a few other problems impeding the functioning of MGNREGA.
  • Read More…

Alienation: the separation of labour from the product, process, humanity and society

• In Syllabus: 
  • Administrative Theorists (Consequences of Taylorism)
  • Administrative Reforms
  • Public Policy
• Relevance:
  • Theory of alienation
    • The idea of alienation was developed by a young Marx out of his study of Friedrich Hegel.  Karl Marx explained the idea of alienation for the first time in his book “Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts”. Later, he further elaborated on the idea in his book “Capital”.
    • As per Merriam-Webster dictionary, alienation refers to the withdrawal or separation of a person from an object or position of former attachment. 
    • However, according to Marx, alienation refers to a feeling of separation from one’s own labour and the loss of power over it.
  • Types of alienation
  • Karl Marx discussed four types of alienation, which includes:
  • Alienation of the worker from their product of labour: In this form of alienation, a worker is neither involved in the design and development of a product nor has any kind of control or ownership over the product. 
  • Further, the worker usually does not even receive any benefit from the existence of that product other than his wages. The product hence is not made for the worker’s own use but for the purpose of producing a profit for the capitalist. 
  • Therefore the worker is said to be alienated from their own product of labour.
  • Alienation of the worker from the process of labour: This form of alienation is closely related to alienation from the product of labour.
    • As per this form of alienation, despite not being involved in design and development, the workers are often forced to work for long hours, in poor conditions, and perform repetitive tasks for low wages. 
    • Workers do not have control over production and are coerced to work as a means of survival.
  • Alienation of the worker from his Gattungswesen (species-essence): Gattungswesen or species-essence is Marx’s definition of human nature which consists of the person’s inherent potential.
    • • As per this form of alienation, the worker loses his inherent identity and the opportunity for self-development.
      • This often leads to psychological dissatisfaction for the worker.
  • Alienation of the worker from other workers: According to this form of alienation, in a capitalist mode of production, workers become an ever-cheaper commodity the more goods they produce. 
    • • • Further, his/her mental and physical energies are exhausted due to imposed or forced work and he/she is left with no time to interact with others. 
        • Workers also start becoming competitive with each other in order to save their jobs.
  • Other perspectives on alienation
    • • • Writers have further tried to provide a social-psychological perspective to the concept of alienation by linking it to powerlessness, meaninglessness, normlessness, self-estrangement and social isolation.
        • According to experts, there can be several causes for these forms of alienation which includes:
          • Bureaucracy and organisational structures
          • Lack of ownership
          • Social disorganisation 
          • Lack of technology 
          • Poor management
    • A few authors opine that assembly-line workers (production line workers) experience the greatest sense of alienation and workers/professionals like physicians or teachers experience the least form of alienation. 
    • Some authors further believe that alienation would most probably be the lowest in an organisational setup where members have control and opportunities for self-fulfilment in their roles.
    • This idea of alienation is different from that of Marx as this idea is a more reformist view, whereas Marx considered it necessary to abolish private property and change social and economic structures.
    • Additionally, the idea of alienation is also used in a political dimension with the alienation of the electorate being one of the key reasons for the disaffection of people over various government policies.

Criticisms

• • There have been criticisms over Marx’s explanation that it was not worked out in terms of its consequences and how it might be addressed or eliminated.
    • Further, the solution of communism has not yet occurred, and it cannot be expected in the near future.
  • Marx’s idea of alienation has provided an overview of the labour market, and the living and working conditions of his era. However, most of those have changed significantly in modern times.
    • Currently, labour laws are in place across the world which has led to a greater division of labour.
    • At present, only some of the workers witness poor working conditions and not all. Furthermore, the effects of labour on different segments are dependent on the countries they live in.
  • Critics also argue that the concept of Marxism focuses only on class and ignores various other key forms of segregation.
    • Critics point out that Marx studied the idea of alienation only in terms of the exchange of labour and private property. However, the concept of alienation can also be related to the segregation of society based on ethnicity, race, caste and gender.
  • Experts like Ricoeur have argued that since the idea of alienation is popular, it is often used in subjective experiences of estrangement diluting the scientific and analytical potential of the concept.
  • The theory is also criticised by philosophers such as Althusser, for its essentialism. 
    • Modern-day experts also opine that Marx’s theory of alienation is underdeveloped and tentative. 
  • Further, according to experts, this concept of alienation suffers from the danger of paternalism.
  • Read More…