Last Updated: May 2023 (Ethical Governance in India)
Table of Contents
Ethical Governance in India
This article deals with the topic titled ‘ Ethical Governance in India (UPSC Notes) .’ This is part of our series on ‘Ethics’. For more articles, you can click here.
Introduction
Ethical Governance is a corruption-free, moral and people-centric government.
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Philosophical Basis of Ethical Governance
People think that concept of Good Governance is modern. But they are wrong. Many times in past, scholars have conceptualized what constitutes good governance.
Kautilya
- Kautilya, in his Arthashastra, wrote, “In the happiness of subjects lies the happiness of king and in the welfare of subjects lies the welfare of king. ” Hence, he has written about Citizen-Centric Government.
- Kautilya has also highlighted the corruption & given the concept of Kantakshodhana, i.e. king should purge those elements strictly.
Gandhi’s Vision of Ramrajya
- The vision of Ramrajya, or the ideal state, involves Governance based on Moral Principles like nonviolence, truth, and righteousness.
- Gandhi said that government which is not working in the people’s interest is morally corrupt.
- Swaraj, i.e. Self Rule, is one of the pillars of his Ramrajya or Good Governance.
Aristotle
He has divided the government into two parts
- Perverted Government: Power is used in the interest of the ruling class
- Legitimate Government: Power is used in the public interest
8 Characters of Ethical Government
Rule of Law
- Rule of Law involves governance based upon rules and regulations
- In modern times, these rules & regulations are codified in the country’s constitution and laws.
People’s Participation
- Real democracy doesn’t just mean voting to elect government but the participation of people in governance itself.
- The mechanism of people’s participation in contemporary times are
Conventional Tools | – Voting – Pressure Groups |
New & Contemporary | – Panchayati Raj Institutions & Gram Sabha – RTI – Social Auditing – Citizen Charter – e-Governance (C2G) – Social Media (change.org, online petitions) |
Consensus Orientation
- Consensus Orientation in governance involves seeking input from various individuals and groups affected by a decision or policy, aiming to reach a consensus that considers the diverse perspectives and interests involved.
- Ethical Governance is opposite to the ‘Winner takes All’ approach.
Equity and Inclusiveness
- The distribution of resources should be based on the principle of equity so that different sections of society receive these resources based on their need
- Inclusiveness involves including weaker sections in decision-making.
Effective and Efficient
- Effective government achieves the targets in the stipulated time.
- An efficient government is one which delivers maximum with minimum resources
Accountable
- Discussed separately (CLICK HERE)
Transparent
- The literal meaning of Transparency is openness
- Tools of Transparency include RTI, E-Governance etc.
- Dealt exclusively in a separate article (CLICK HERE)
Responsive
- A responsive government is one which positively responds to people’s demands, needs and aspirations in a timely manner.
Impediments to Ethical Governance in India
The whole scene has to be seen in the context of
- Corruption, Nepotism and Crony Capitalism
- Misuse of power in personal interest
- Red Tapism: Undue delay in public service delivery because of complex procedures
- Lack of Transparency
- Weak Accountability
- Lack of public participation in decision making
- Bureaucratic apathy, particularly towards weaker sections of society
- Status quo and elitist orientation of bureaucracy
- Politicization of Bureaucracy
- Criminalization of politics
How to Strengthen Ethical Governance
For this, we need to take various steps in various fields
1. Political Structure
- Enforce expenditure limits on elections strictly
- Bring Political Parties under RTI
- Remove excessive protection given to tainted politicians
2. Statutory Structure
2nd Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC) has given various recommendations in this regard
- Amend the Prevention of Corruption Act
- Integrity Pacts – When Government Organisation signs any contract with a Private organization, sign integrity pacts stating that if Private Organisation is found involved in any wrongdoing, the contract will cancel automatically.
3. Institutional Structure
- Strengthen and give more teeth to CVC, Lokpal, CBI etc.
4. Social Infrastructure
Take help of society in reducing corruption and increasing Ethical Governance
- Give Civic Education in Schools.
- False Claims Act (USA): If you think there is wrongdoing in some organization, gather evidence & produce it before the court. If the fine is imposed on that organization, some portion of money from that fine will be given to the litigant.
- Social Audit: Social Audit is the audit through client or beneficiary groups or civil society groups (i.e. stakeholders) to ensure the social accountability of an organization.