One of the most overlooked factors in good governance discussions is how it promotes and strengthens democracy.
The truth is that Prime Minister Narendra Modi saved “democracy” from losing relevance across the developing South. He has shown the way to make democracy performance-driven, by competing with a totalitarian China that had once caught the imagination of the world for its quick delivery in May 2014, when Narendra Modi became India’s Prime Minister, efficient governance, and not the type of governance, was the focal point of global debate. Modi took the challenge. “Democracy can deliver,” he said. If Manmohan Singh faced the global economic meltdown and Fukushima nuclear disaster, Modi faced the pandemic and the post-pandemic uncertainties. Never before the world was so uncertain as in the last four years, and it could remain so for another few years.
EVOLVING PHILOSOPHY
After the liberalisation of 1991, the then Prime Minister Narasimha Rao famously said that the days of ideological politics were over and that they should be replaced by politics of performance. Modi is the first politician who realised what Rao envisioned. In the past, voters replaced a performance-driven Vajpayee government with a Congress-led coalition.
Essentially, therefore, Modi introduced new standards in Indian politics. His was the first government that had been highly target-oriented. All governments put timelines for project competition, but the Modi government has been exceptional in achieving them. Taking toilets to every home has been a long-drawn agenda. The Modi government achieved it. Same with electricity and cooking gas connections. From abrogation of Article 370 in Kashmir to promoting digital transaction—the unthinkable happened.
The Opposition went after the failures, like the 2016 demonetisation. But that’s missing the wood for the trees. In the end, Modi stuck to his target. High-value (Rs 2,000) currency was withdrawn and digital payments became commonplace. This government did not ask people to wait for a lifetime to see benefits coming.
The way the government and the public view good governance has evolved over the past seven decades. The most fundamental change has been top-down, where the government has chosen to redefine governance issues. The most decisive moment came with the Vajpayee government (1999-2004), which sought to shift the philosophy of governance from a government-centric vision to a citizen-centric one.
His term witnessed transformational initiatives like the Kisan Credit Card, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SAA), PM Gram Sadak Yojana, and the National Rural Health Program. It was fitting that the Modi government declared his birthday (25 December) as Good Governance Day in 2014. And the significance of this lies in bridging the gap between citizens and the government by encouraging active participation and awareness. At Vajpayee’s centenary, the government also announced the Good Governance Week (Sushasan Saptah) festivities from 19 December to 25 December.
WHY GOOD GOVERNANCE?
Broadly speaking, governance is about decision-making and ensuring such decisions are implemented to benefit society and citizens as widely as possible, reaching the eponymous last person. However, the concept of good governance goes deeper, focusing on participation, equity, and sustainability. The United Nations (UN) describes it through its eight significant characteristics. Good governance must be accountable, consensus-oriented, effective, equitable, inclusive, participatory, responsive, and transparent. Such a comprehensive framework ensures that the voices of the most vulnerable are heard and that decisions are made to address current and future needs.
For long, the masses perceived the government as unresponsive, unaccountable, and opaque. Hence, a critical development in the idea of Good Governance Day is the growing emphasis on cultivating transparency, accountability, and responsiveness within the government machinery. This varies from plans like geotagging finished projects to real-time tracking of ongoing projects and utilizing digital initiatives. Further, the onslaught of social media changed the game entirely, with the government jumping to use it as an aide to propagate projects and their progress.
Meanwhile, some, like Sushma Swaraj, used Twitter diplomacy as a tool for grievance redressal, addressing the problems and concerns of the Indian diaspora worldwide swiftly and decisively through a single post on Twitter (now X). Such community engagement through these platforms allowed the government to address grievances and monitor the quality of work. This adherence to the principles of transparency and accountability is a hallmark of good governance, assuring citizens that their voices are heard and their needs are met.
The current dispensation has worked to expand the scope of good governance to enable a broader and more comprehensive approach to address citizen concerns in health (Ayushman Bharat), agriculture (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi), self-finance (Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY), infrastructure, and necessities (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana [PMAY], Jal Jeevan Mission), among others. The concept of good governance can also be found through historical antecedents, which the government has sought to highlight by regarding it as Rajadharma, where the vision of inclusive development is sought and worked upon.
STRENGTHENING DEMOCRACY
One of the most overlooked factors in good governance discussions is how it promotes and strengthens democracy. Expanding government initiatives and policies means little if they are not implemented and do not contribute to the nation’s prosperity. The democratic structure, as defined by Dr Ambedkar, can only be realized if government efforts reach the citizens and are not limited to elites in metropolises.
Instead, it is about the citizens in towns and villages of this great country. The decentralization of government, be it financial, as seen today with GST, which is the most democratic way of sharing revenues between states and the union government, or through the spirit of cooperative federalism, is a critical way of distributing services and ensuring accountability. The public is now more aware and armed with legal provisions to protect and ensure the implementation of policies than ever before.
The comprehensive approach of the Modi administration, coupled with forward-looking awareness in the Indian public in realizing the vision of Viksit Bharat, shows that governance is no longer viewed as evil and corrupt but democratic and responsible. No doubt, issues linger. The federal structure of the Indian system, followed by political immaturity coupled with political agendas and outside influence, sees the administration at the local level faltering.
Efforts by the union government and sometimes even at the state level to promote good governance have led to various perceptible changes. The attraction and scrutiny by media also push the government to perform better, but at the local level—Panchayat and Nagar Palika level—such changes are still lagging. The political agenda of some parties, which incentivizes the local administration to falter for credit, is also to blame, which, in all honesty, is what citizens face daily.
In the spirit of Vajpayee’s centenary, governments should rise above political differences and narrow party agendas to deliver good governance for the vision of Viksit Bharat. India, with its ancient wisdom and non-binary approach to life and living, needs to rediscover its age-old wisdom and adapt the usable parts of it in the new age.
* Prof Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit is the Vice Chancellor of JNU.