BENGALURU: With September 15 being observed as International Day of Democracy, political pundits, members of NGOs and ward committees called upon people not to treat the day as a one-off affair. People should make it a point to participate in elections and engage in governance works on a daily basis, they said. The day was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in 2007.
During a seminar -- Daily Democracy -- Prof Gooru Sreeramulu, Chairman, of the Department of Political Science, and Dean, of the Faculty of Social Sciences, at Gulbarga University, stressed on the importance of understanding the essence of democracy. “A democratic country has a system of government in which people have the power to participate in decision-making and hold decision-makers accountable. We have to understand that democracy enhances the quality of decision-making and also gives dignity to citizens through active participation in governance,” he said.
Noting that democracy is also not just about celebrating Independence Day and Republic Day, or voting once in five years, Santosh Nargund, head of Civic Participation, Janaagraha, said it is a continuous process by which citizens actively engage with officials and elected representatives and participate in the governance of the city and country.
“Active citizenship is about finding and acting upon local solutions for global problems such as environmental sustainability and climate change as well as important aspects of governance such as public health, civic infrastructure and services, which contribute to improving the quality of life in our cities, towns and villages,” said Nargund.
Dr Sharada B Patil, Assistant Professor, KLE Society’s Gurusiddappa Kotambri Law College, Hubballi, said, “Democracy is everybody’s responsibility. We, the people of India, have adopted the supreme law, namely the constitution, under which the government elected by us should function to achieve the goals of justice, liberty, equality and fraternity. We must work towards that goal daily so that our representatives also work in the same way.”
INT’L DAY OF DEMOCRACY: TRAFFIC ADVISORY ISSUED
As the International Democracy Day programme will be held at Vidhana Soudha, the Bengaluru city traffic police has issued a traffic advisory, making traffic arrangements on Friday, from 9.30 am to 1 pm. Parking areas have been designated for people - Palace Ground (for buses and other LGV vehicles), Kanteerava Stadium, Nehru Taralaya (planetarium) and M S Building. Vehicles will not be permitted from KR Circle towards Gopala Gowda Circle. Similarly, vehicles from Balekundri Circle will not be allowed to proceed towards KR Circle. To manage the flow of vehicles, vehicles coming from KR Circle will be redirected to Nrupathunga Road and vehicles from Balekundri Circle towards Queens Circle. Vehicles from CTO Circle will be allowed to continue towards Raj Bhavan Road.