A fresh but welcome orientation in Indian politics is the growing competition among the state governments to showcase their administration as pro- “good governance”. They are outdoing each other in adoption of laws which enforce timely provision of government services, transparency, speedy redress of grievances, use of information technology in spreading education and computerisation of land records, connecting villages by optical fibre, and encouraging growth of Internet and mobile services. Some of the states are also outdoing each other in providing a suitable environment for encouraging business, promoting industry, trade and commerce. Comparative figures in infant motility rates, gender issues, immunisation and child labour provide the necessary incentives to the chief ministers of the different states to do better. Provision of adequate infrastructure and transport connectivity to promote the state economy is now driving state policy. This is encouraging.
The Planning Commission and the economic surveys of the government of India have played a significant role in motivating the state administrations to do better. On seeing the statistics of each state and comparing their own states with the others the chief ministers have started actively discussing with their officers ways to identify the areas where investment should be directed. Figures of people living below the poverty line and the per capita income in each state are in the nature of name and shame. When chief ministers face the Planning Commission for approval of their annual plans, the panel also castigates the states where implementation has been slow. The performances of the states are analysed very thoroughly and no chief minister wants to be reprimanded for poor performance in the discussions that follow. Competition in promulgating populist schemes has been replaced by competition in promoting skill development, increasing professional education institutes, establishing IITs, IIMs, setting up of IT cities and promotion of science and technology.
Chief ministers have come to see a connection between good governance and growth of GDP. Elections are being fought on the plank of development and good governance as was evident in the recent elections in Jharkhand and Jammu and Kashmir. People are rejecting those governments which are deemed to be corrupt, inactive or feudal in approach. A new expectation is rising in the people. They expect their governments to create jobs, by adopting policies which promote trade, commerce and industry and enable people to have more money in their hands. They expect their governments to be manned by ministers who are educated and professional in their approach and have a modern vision of development. The captains of trade and industry are demanding ease in doing business. Each state is attempting to adopt policies which can reduce the number of clearances required for setting up businesses. Rajasthan has taken the lead in reforming labour legislation. The Centre is following suit and has also enacted measures which will beneficially effect business. Today, it is not the Centre alone which is taking the initiative. States are also taking the lead in promoting new policies suited to the times.
In certain matters where public interest litigations have been filed the courts are also taking decisions, paving the way for innovative decisions. Unshackling the bureaucracy from the stranglehold of politicians, the courts have laid down stringent steps to be taken by state governments vis-à-vis civil services. The Supreme Court has directed that Civil Services Boards be established in each state to prevent whimsical transfer of civil servants. It has directed the central government to take steps to ensure fixed tenure for senior government officials. Similarly, directions have been given in the case of police officials by the Supreme Court. However, in the implementation of these directions the states have been laggards. The chief ministers are now trying to also compete in all those sectors in which India as a nation is being ranked internationally. This includes corruption and human development indices, malnutrition, gender equality and poverty. Sanitation, provision of toilets and providing drinking water in each school are the new areas in which states are competing to outperform each other. It is also encouraging to see that in the energy sector, instead of competing in giving free power to the farmers, the states are now competing to increase production of power. More and more investments are going into power production as the states see energy as the prime mover of development.
The Gujarat model of power distribution and management has set the cat among the pigeons. About a decade and half ago, the World Bank had initiated the move to privatise power distribution and to unbundle the state electricity boards. At that time also, the states were competing among themselves to not only unbundle the monolithic structure of the electricity boards but also to set up regulators, as that was recommended by the World Bank as the ideal model to be followed in the growth of the sector. But now that we have our own indigenous Gujarat model, the states are vying with each other to adopt that model which essentially separates the industrial and domestic rural feeders. It is gratifying to see the young chief minister of UP finally taking the reigns in his own hands and directing the state power corporation to go all out to provide power supply to rural areas for 24 hours through domestic feeders and 20 hours to rural industries.
The decision of the central government to set up 100 smart cities has also started competition among the states. Each is competing to get more allocation of these smart cities. They are putting up well-prepared proposals for consideration of the Centre to avail of the financial and other advantages. The states see advantage in urbanisation as agents of growth and development.
The success of the private sector is mainly said to be the competition generated which brings out the best in those who manage the industry. If the chief ministers of different states get motivated in a similar manner and compete with each other in development perhaps that would be the panacea for all-round development of the country.
The author is a former chief secretary of Uttar Pradesh.
Email: yognarain@gmail.com