Annamalai University: M.A. Political Science

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159E1230
1 – 30
ANNAMALAI UNIVERSITY
DIRECTORATE OF DISTANCE EDUCATION
M.A. Political Science

SECOND SEMESTER
CITIZEN AND CIVIL AWARENESS

LESSONS: 1 – 30
Copyright Reserved
(For Private Circulation Only)
Second Semester
Editorial Board
Chairman
Dr. N. Ramagopal
Dean
Faculty of Arts
Annamalai University
Members
Dr. R. Singaravel Dr. P. Vijayan
Director Director
Directorate of Distance Education Academic Affairs
Annamalai University Annamalai University
Dr. C. Subramanian Dr. J. Subramaniyan

Professor and Head Associate Professor and Coordinator
Department of Political Science & Political Science & Public Admn. Wing,
Public Administration Directorate of Distance Education
Internals
Dr. P. Sakthivel Dr. D. Devanathan
Professor Professor
Department of Political Science & . Department of Political Science &
Public Administration Public Administration
Externals
Dr. D. Ramakrishnan Dr. R. Srinivasan

Professor and Head Professor
Dept. of Political Science Political Science & Public Admn.
Madurai Kamaraj University Institute of Distance Education
Madurai University of Madras
Chennai
Lesson Writer
Dr. S. Prabakaran
Assistant Professor
Department of Political Science and Public Administration
Annamalai University
Second Semester
Syllabus
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
LO1: To learn about the citizen obligation under Indian Constitution
LO2: To know the major government services in India
LO3: To explore the citizen charter
LO4: To understand about the RTI Act, 2005.
COURSE OUTCOMES
At the end of the course, the student will be able to
CO1 To appraise about the civic awareness
CO2 To understand the duties of a citizen
CO3 To impart knowledge about NGO’s, Right to Education Act, 2005 of India
Unit –I : Introduction
Need for Political Education – Citizen Obligation under Indian Constitution –
Citizenship Training – Political Culture.
Unit –II : Government Services
Approaching Government Agencies for various Welfare Programmes – Appling
for Ration Card – Birth and Death Certificates – Voter Registration – Voter Identity
Card – Permanent Account Number Card (PAN Card) – Enrolling Membership for
Central and State Government Programme- Employment Registration - Consumer
forum and its uses for citizens – Redressing of Citizen Grievances.
Unit –III : Citizen Charter
Citizens Charter – Meaning, Origin – Need for Citizen Charter.- E .Governance
- Delivery of Services
Unit –IV : Non-Governmental Organizations
NGO – Meaning, Significance – Dimensions – Organization and Functions of
NGO - Regulatory Mechanism at Central and State level Government over NGOs –
Sources of Finances of NGOs – Expenditure, Account and Audit of NGOs.-Self Help
Group and Women Empowerment.
Unit –V : Right To Information Act
Right to Information Act 2005- Right to Education and Employment -
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) -
Entrepreneurship.
Text books
1. A.Hoveyda. Indian Government And Politics Dorling KindersLey India Pvt.Ltd,
New Delhi-2011.
2. A.K.Mehra. Party system in India Lancer Publisher, New Delhi.2013.
3. M.M.Sankndher.Democratic Politics and Governance in India , Deep & Deep
Publication ,New Delhi,2013.
Supplementary Readings
1. M.B.Mathur. Governance reform For Vision India, Macmillan India Ltd, New
Delhi, 2015.
2. E.Vasuand. Dolly Mathew, Good Governance: Initiatives In India, Prentice-Hall
of india Pvt.Ltd, New Delhi, 2014.
ii

Second Semester
Contents
Lesson Page
Title
No. No.
1 Need for Political Education 1
2 Citizen Obligations under Indian constitution 5
3 Citizenship Training 10
4 Political Culture 17
5 Welfare Programmes by the Government of India 28
6 Ration Card and its Process 43
7 Birth and Death Certificate 49
8 Voter Registration 56
9 Voter Identity Card 63
10 Permanent Account Number 75
11 Enrolling Membership for Centre and State Governments 82
Programmes
12 Employment Registration 96
13 Consumer Forum 100
14 Grievance Redressal 108
15 Citizens' Charters 118
16 Need for Citizen Charter 129
17 Electronic Governance and Service Delivery in India : Theory and 137
Practice
18 NGOs (Non – Governmental Organization), Meaning, Significance, 164
Dimensions, and Functions
19 Regulatory Mechanism at Centre and State Level Government 183
over NGO’S
20 Source of Finance and Expenditure of NGO’S 201
21 Expenditure of NGO’S 209
22 NGO Accounting 214
23 Audit of Non Governmental Organizations (NGOS) 228
24 Self-Help Group (SHG) 235
25 Women's Empowerment 241
26 Right to Information Act, 2005 262
27 Right to Education 269
28 Right to Employment 279
29 National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005 290
30 Entrepreneurship 303
LESSON – 1
NEED FOR POLITICAL EDUCATION
1.1 INTRODUCTION
India is one country where most of the people do not have access to basic
facilities. In certain cases they have the facilities on paper but in reality there is
absolutely nothing for them. The question is who should be blamed in such a
scenario? Are the policy-makers to be blamed because they do not think enough of
the people who can vote them to power? Are the middlemen to be criticized for the
fact that they are taking away from the common people – especially the depressed
classes – what is rightfully theirs? Well, the problem always lies in the roots and in
this case a significant portion of the blame needs to be apportioned to the leaders.
Many scholars have often stated that in India one of the main problems
plaguing the political system is the general lack of education among most
politicians. While it is true that institutional education always does not guarantee a
good and justifiable disposition, its value – especially in a society like India – should
not be altogether dismissed. To start with, let us think of how lack of education can
actually hurt an individual. Education helps one see things from a different
perspective.
1.2 OBJECTIVES
 This lesson aims to throw light on political culture.
 Why political culture is important.
 To know the social constraint’s which hinder the political culture.
1.3 CONTENTS
1.3.1 Introduction
1.3.2 Tradition and social constraints
1.3.3 Exposure global politics and advancement
1.3.1 Introduction
Political culture can be thought of as a nation’s political personality. It
encompasses the deep-rooted, well-established political traits that are
characteristic of a society. Political culture takes into account the attitudes, values,
and beliefs that people in a society have about the political system, including
standard assumptions about the way that government works. As political scientist
W. Lance Bennett notes, the components of political culture can be difficult to
analyze. “They are rather like the lenses in a pair of glasses: they are not the things
we see when we look at the world; they are the things we see with.”W. Lance
Bennett, Public Opinion in American Politics (New York: Harcourt Brace
Jovanovich, 1980), 368. Political culture helps build community and facilitate
communication because people share an understanding of how and why political
events, actions, and experiences occur in their country.
Political culture includes formal rules as well as customs and traditions,
sometimes referred to as “habits of the heart,” that are passed on generationally.
People agree to abide by certain formal rules, such as the country’s constitution
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and codified laws. They also live by unstated rules: for example, the willingness in
the United States to accept the outcomes of elections without resorting to violence.
Political culture sets the boundaries of acceptable political behavior in a society.
Daniel J. Elazar, The American Mosaic (Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1994).
While the civic culture in the United States has remained relatively stable over
time, shifts have occurred as a result of transforming experiences, such as war,
economic crises, and other societal upheavals, that have reshaped attitudes and
beliefs. Ronald Inglehart, Culture Shift in Advanced Industrial Society (Princeton, NJ:
Princeton University Press, 1990). Key events, such as the Civil War, World War I,
World War II, the Great Depression, the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement,
and the terrorist attacks of 9/11 have influenced the political worldviews of
American citizens, especially young people, whose political values and attitudes are
less well established.
1.3.2 Tradition and social constraints
Indian society is still eulogized for its firm adherence to norms as well as age
old values and traditions. As well as it has served the nation in all these years,
especially in its Independence Movement, it has also erected some insurmountable
barriers in the path of development – especially in the rural areas. Problems like
caste and religion-based discrimination are common in the country and it takes an
intelligent and educated mind to see the light through this and guide the people in
the right manner. There are some areas in the country where female foeticide,
infanticide and Sati are still practised. Perhaps only an educated mind can
understand how perilous these customs are to the general good of the country and
do something affirmative about the same. Someone less educated and more steeped
in tradition cannot be expected to feel or act in the same way.
Corruption, especially in the last 10 odd years, as well as before that, has
really stalled India’s progress more than any other vice. Now if one analyses why
such things happen the most obvious answer would be that people bow to their
inner cravings and want to cement their position in the seat of power by hook or
crook so that they continue to enjoy the fruits of the same for a sustained period of
time. If they understand that they will not be able to do well by that way they
decide to maximize their stay at top and get involved in huge scams such as
MadhuKoda, the former chief minister of Jharkhand, did.
Educated leaders
This only betrays a lack of conviction in one’s ability to do well in life outside
the political arena. Perhaps someone who is well-educated and armed with a
university or a college degree will know that he or she has something good to fall
back upon in case the political career does not work out well. That would enable a
person in question to approach his or her political career in a relaxed frame of mind
and judge things impartially and act in the interest of greater good.
Discrimination is one age old problem of India. People are discriminated
against because they are women (common areas being education and choice of life
partner in rural areas and restrictions on free movement in urban centres), belong
to a particular religion, which is automatically assumed to have an instant
connection to terrorism, are from a particular caste (the situation is especially dire
3
in rural areas of most States where people could be refused even drinking water, to
having their women violated and houses burnt and still be deprived by the justice
system) and because one comes from a certain economic class. Perhaps people who
are educated can understand the baseless nature of such discriminations and their
rationale and do something decisive about it.
1.3.3 Exposure to global politics and advancements
Proper policies are one way in which India can achieve the growth that it
deserves, considering its ample natural resources. However, how can a leader who
is not exposed to global politics, economics and other facets of policy-making, has
no knowledge of how things are being done in advanced countries and is only
interested in short-term benefits for himself/herself and the immediate community
that elected him or her to power be expected to do anything in this regard? With an
educated person at least there is some hope that exposure to the world through the
media of education and personal interest will help in some positive thinking and
proper identification and resolution of problems.
It is said that science and technology are not at fault for making machines out
of humans who have invented these wonders – it depends on a particular person as
to how he or she wishes to be influenced by the same. The case is similar with
education and power as well. With great power comes great responsibility – some
might choose to remain irresponsible but then that does not make power faulty.
Education is merely a tool that can teach one to be responsible but the final
decision rests with the institution.
1.4 REVISION POINTS
Political culture: A political culture is a set of attitudes and practices held by
a people that shapes their political behavior. It includes moral judgments,
political myths, beliefs, and ideas about what makes for a good society.
Social constraints: Specifically, we define social constraints as patterns of
behavior that provide opportunities for and constraints on implementation of
engineering projects. Social constraints can include formal practices such as
government regulations or informal norms including cultural preferences.
Values and beliefs of a nation
Need of political culture
1.5 INTEXT QUESTIONS
1. What are ethical constraints?
2. What is an example of a social fact?
3. What makes a social fact a social constraint?
1.6 SUMMARY
The term 'political culture' is used in the field of social science. It refers to
historically-based, widely-shared beliefs, feelings, and values about the nature of
political systems, which can serve as a link between citizens and government.
Different countries have different political cultures, which can help us
understand how and why their governments are organized in a certain way, why
democracies succeed or fail, or why some countries still have monarchies.
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Understanding our own political culture can also provide clues to political
relationships, such as those we share with each other or our governments.
In the United States, we may be tempted to think of political culture in terms
of our voting status as a Democrat or a Republican. However, it's important to
understand that political culture differs from political ideology. The term 'political
ideology' refers to a code of beliefs or views about governments and politics that
may influence the way we vote or whether or not we support certain legislative
actions.
For example, two people can share a political culture, but have different
political ideologies. In other words, a right-wing conservative can be from the same
political culture as a left-wing liberal. In other words, political culture is something
we share, while a political ideology is something we use to define ourselves and
make political decisions.
1.7 TERMINAL EXERCISE
1. What is political culture?
2. What is the need for political culture?
3. Name few social constraints in the political culture of India?
4. Define political values and beliefs?
1.8 SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL
"Durkheim's aphorism, the Justification Hypothesis, and the nature of social
facts". Sociological Viewpoints, fall issue, 57–70. Full text.
Edgar, Andrew. (1999). "Cultural Anthropology". in Edgar, Andrew and
Sedgwick, Peter R. (eds.). Key Concepts in Cultural Theory. New York: Routledge.
ISBN 978-0-415-11404-2
1.9 ASSIGNMENT
Visit a local society to analyse the significance of different cultures.
1.10 REFERENCES
1. Almond, Gabriel A. 1954 The Appeals of Communism. Princeton Univ. Press.
2. Almond, Gabriel A. 1956 Comparative Political Systems. Journal of
Politics 18:391–409.
3. Almond, Gabriel A.; and Verba, Sidney 1963 The Civic Culture: Political
Attitudes and Democracy in Five Nations. Princeton Univ. Press.
4. Banfield, Edward C. 1958 The Moral Basis of a Backward Society. Glencoe,
III.: Free Press.
1.11 LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Develop some questions on political culture and try to answer that.
Collect some information of different cultures in your locality.
1.12 KEYWORDS
Constraints – restrictions
Tradition – custom
Culture- philosophy

5
LESSON – 2
CITIZEN OBLIGATIONS UNDER INDIAN CONSTITUTION
2.1 INTRODUCTION
We the People, We the Citizen a citizen of a country is an individual recognized
under the custom or law as being a legal member of a sovereign nation or allegiance
to a government in exchange for its protection, whether at home or abroad. A
citizen is one of the dominant pillars of the country. They are entitled to enjoy all
the legal rights and privileges granted by a state to the people encompassing its
constituency and are obligated to obey its laws and to attain his or her duties as
called upon. We are all a citizen of our country and retain several rights and
responsibilities towards our community, state, and country. Each citizen has a
responsibility to make his or her community a decent place to inhabit. When you
are a responsible citizen, it implies that you know your duty adequately and will
volunteer for numerous things that are required by the community or the society in
general.
2.2 OBJECTIVES
 After reading this lesson you will be aware of citizens various obligations
under our constitution.
 To familiarize about fundamental rights and duties.
 How obligations support national integrity.
2.3 CONTENTS
2.3.1 Citizens
2.3.2 Responsible citizens
2.3.3 India and responsibility
2.3.4 Responsible Indian citizen
2.3.1 Citizens
As a good and responsible citizen of the country, first one must be aware of the
fundamental rights and duties. Comprehending all the rules and regulations
proposed by the government may boost every citizen in achieving their
responsibilities towards the country. Responsible citizens build their community a
good habitat to live by following the principles and helping others.
We as a citizen, are all accountable for the good or bad conditions of the nation.
We need to shift our attention into action to procure positive impacts on our
community and country. An individual action performed by a person can change a
life, but collaborative actions have a positive impact on the entire nation. Therefore,
the duties of citizens count as a contribution to a flourishing society and nation as
a whole.
A responsible citizen has fractions of responsibilities and commitments for the
development as well as prosperity and peace in the country. A country can flourish
when its citizens are responsible enough to build a strong and powerful nation. We
are all responsible for the protection and development of our country.
6
2.3.2 Responsible citizens
A responsible citizen abides by all the law and order of the country. They are
entitled to exercise all the fundamental rights and duties, such as casting a vote,
paying government taxes and protecting the country from corruption. Being a good
and responsible citizen of the country, one must engage in activities or assist in
tackling issues such as keeping the environment clean, raising money for charities,
conserving electricity, water, and natural resources, or protecting public properties,
etc.
Every state or country provides its citizens with some fundamental civil rights
such as personal rights, religious rights, social rights, moral rights, economic
rights, and political rights, etc. A right is a liberty that is protected by the state,
such as the right to free speech and religion.
Rights are given to the citizens for their individual moral, material or
personality development and growth in social life. Responsibility is a moral duty
that one should perform, such as recycling, preserving culture and heritage, etc.
Voting is both a right and a responsibility.
2.3.3 India and responsibility
India is a democratic country where its citizens live freely. Democracy in the
country can function only when its citizens have both rights and responsibilities.
Rights and responsibilities are two sides of a coin that goes hand in hand with us in
whatever home, society, state, or country we live in.A democratic system of the
country is entirely founded on the freedom of its citizens to celebrate their rights.
Fundamental rights bestowed to the Indian citizens are an essential part of the
Constitution. The rights are not violable in the common circumstances but they are
not absolute either and are subject to reasonable restrictions as necessary for the
protection of public interest. Such rights prevent the government from being
dictatorial and oppressive. In any case of rights violations of an individual, courts
can protect and safeguard them.
Indian Constitution provides six fundamental rights to their citizens, which are:
 Right to Equality (Article 14 – Article 18)
 Right to Religion (Articles 25 – Article 28)
 Right against Exploitation (Articles 23 – Article 24)
 Right to Culture and Education (Articles 29 – Article 30)
 Right to Freedom (Articles 19 – Article 22)
 Right to Constitutional Remedies (Article 32)
To completely enjoy the rights, citizens must perform their responsibilities
towards the country in a decent manner because the rights and responsibilities of
an individual are inter-related to each other. If we have rights, we must have their
corresponding responsibilities too. Rights and duties of each citizen preserved in
the Indian Constitution are very valuable and inter-related considering the
prosperity of the country.
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2.3.4 Responsible Indian citizen
In The Constitution of India book published and accepted by the first
parliament of India on 26th of January 1950, under Article 51A, it’s been duly
pointed out that it shall be the duty of every citizen of India –
 To abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the
National Flag and the National Anthem;
 To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle
for freedom;
 To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India;
 To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do
so;
 To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the
people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional
diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women;
 To value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture;
 To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes,
rivers, wildlife and to have compassion for living creatures;
 To develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and
reform;
 To safeguard public property and to abjure violence;
 To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective
activity, so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavour and
achievement;
 Who is a parent or guardian, to provide opportunities for education to his
child, or as the case may be, ward between the age of six to fourteen years.
The constitution book delineates every responsibility and duty that an Indian
citizen is expected to abide by. As a citizen of the country, we are morally and
legally required to perform our duties furnished by the government. They can be
civic duties or moral duties which cannot be enforced legally upon the citizens even
by the courts.
Being a citizen of India, some of the moral responsibilities and duties
mentioned in the constitution are: We must respect the National Flag and National
Anthem, obey the laws of our country, protect the power, unity and integrity of the
country, safeguard public property, pay our taxes with honesty promptly, protect
and preserve cultural heritage sites, protect, preserve and improve the natural
environment, we must guard the country and maintain the spirit of a common
brotherhood, we must respect, value and follow all the noble ideals used in the
national struggle for freedom, etc. Inclusion of such commitments to the
Constitution is important for the progress, peace, and prosperity of the country.
2.4 REVISION POINTS
Obligation something by which a person is bound or obliged to do certain
things, and which arises out of a sense of duty or results from custom, law,
etc.India is a democratic country where its citizens live freely. Democracy in the
8
country can function only when its citizens have both rights and responsibilities.
Rights and responsibilities are two sides of a coin that goes hand in hand with us in
whatever home, society, state, or country we live in.
1. What are the five obligations and responsibilities of a citizen?
2. Enlist few obligations of Indian citizens
3. Is there a moral obligation to obey the law?
4. What makes you a good citizen?
2.6 SUMMARY
As a good and responsible citizen of the country, first one must be aware of the
fundamental rights and duties. Comprehending all the rules and regulations
proposed by the government may boost every citizen in achieving their
responsibilities towards the country. Responsible citizens build their community a
good habitat to live by following the principles and helping others.
We as a citizen, are all accountable for the good or bad conditions of the
nation. We need to shift our attention into action to procure positive impacts on our
community and country. An individual action performed by a person can change a
life, but collaborative actions have a positive impact on the entire nation. Therefore,
the duties of citizens count as a contribution to a flourishing society and nation as
a whole.
A responsible citizen has fractions of responsibilities and commitments for the
development as well as prosperity and peace in the country. A country can flourish
when its citizens are responsible enough to build a strong and powerful nation. We
are all responsible for the protection and development of our country.
1. What are constitutional duties of a citizen?
2. What are the responsibilities of a Indian citizen?
Austin, Granville (1999). The Indian Constitution: Cornerstone of a Nation. New
Delhi: Oxford University Press. p. 390. ISBN 0-19-564959-1.
Basu, Durga Das (1993). Introduction to the Constitution of India (15th ed.). New
Delhi: Prentice Hall of India. p. 475. ISBN 81-203-0839-5.
Basu, Durga Das (2003). Shorter Constitution of India (13th ed.). Nagpur:
Wadhwa& Co. p. 1972. ISBN 978-81-8038-206-2.
2.9 ASSIGNMENT
Read Indian constitutions fundamental duties and find out the data related to
obligation of citizens and its impact
2.10 REFERENCES
1. Owens, David (2012-09-20). Obligation. Oxford University Press.
2. Jump up to:a b Ogien, Albert (2016-12-01). "Obligation and Impersonality:
Wittgenstein and the Nature of the Social". Philosophy of the Social
9
Sciences. 46 (6): 604–623. doi:10.1177/0048393116649970. ISSN 0048-
3931.
3. Korsgaard, Christine (July 1989). "Kant's Analysis of Obligation: The
Argument of Foundations". The Monist. 72: 311–340. doi:10.5840/
monist198972317.
4. "Contracts and agreements | Small Business". www.smallbusiness.wa.gov.
au. Retrieved 2019-11-27.
5. Jump up to:a b c Song, Edward (2012). "Acceptance, Fairness, and Political
Obligation". Legal Theory. 18.
6. Jump up to:a b Miller, Kaarlo (2006-06-01). "Social obligation as reason for
action". Cognitive Systems Research. Cognition, Joint Action and Collective
Intentionality. 7 (2): 273–285. doi:10.1016/j.cogsys.2005.1
1. Write an essay on citizen obligation under Indian constitution.
2. Develop some questions on citizen obligation.
2.12 KEYWORDS
Obligation – duty
Fundamental – vital
Responsible - answerable

10
LESSON – 3
CITIZENSHIP TRAINING
3.1 INTRODUCTION
Citizenship as legal status defines the civil, political and social rights.
As well the citizen has the legal right to be protected by law “In a republican
nation whose citizens are to be led by reason and persuasion and not by force, the
art of reasoning becomes of first importance”. Thomas Jefferson ,1786
3.2 OBJECTIVES
 This lesson aims to understand the need of citizenship training.
 After reading this lesson student to realize the procedure of citizenship
training.
 Throws light on ethics, laws, political participation, citizenship dignity,
equality, social responsibility
3.3 CONTENTS
3.3.1 General Goals
3.3.2 Social Integration
3.3.3 Dimensions of citizenship
3.3.4 Philosophy of Ethics
3.3.5 Theory of Ethics
3.3.6 Declarations and conventions
The development of modern morality is a process closely linked to the social
and cultural development of the various populations and humanity. Some
evolutionary biologists, especially the socio-biologists believe that morality is the
product of an evolutionary work on individual level as well as at the group level by
selecting a group to discuss a controversial topic in the theory of evolution. Some of
them affirm that the theory of evolution is the result of the human behavior
development and a large evolving ethics that offered the benefits of increased
evolutionary success. Consequently human feelings evolved from the “Pro-social""
such as feelings of empathy or guilt that respond ethical behavior. However
biologists stated that the morality of human beings arise from the "Altruistic
instincts".
3.3.1 General Goals
Raise community awareness about the concept of citizenship, social
responsibility, participation in civic and cultural affairs, and economic productivity;
Support self-development
Develop contemplative Reflective thinking Encourage rational problem solving,
decision- making, and social work. Methodology/ Concept of citizenship in
three key elements
According to civil, political and social rights:
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Citizen has the right to freedom & to act according to the law and to claim
legal protection;
The right to social and political participation;
The right to be a member of the political community which aims to deliver an
excellent source of identity
3.3.2 Social Integration
Citizenship responsibility
Citizenship refers to the fact that the citizen should be member of his/her
community and participate to community activities that aims to create a better
environment, happiness and harmonious society. As democracies, citizenship relies
on the dissemination of awareness among citizens about their rights and
responsibilities as citizens to express their opinions about their needs to social
participation and its impact on local communities and citizenship. Who are the
righteous citizens? The ones who have the knowledge and understanding about: the
laws and rules of voting for the role of government offices and the impact on the
diversity of human rights and the media, cultural, finances, the economy, the
environment and the concepts of sustainable development, such as: democracy,
justice, equality, fairness , freedom , the power and the rule of law.
3.3.3 Dimensions of citizenship
It can be said that citizenship contributes to social integration and the relation
between the three dimensions that define the rights of citizens through the

available political activities while the concept of citizenship is seen as a source of
identity through the promotion of self- esteem (Rawls / in1972.544).
Relations between the three dimensions are complex:
The rights a citizen enjoys will partly define the range of available political
activities while explaining how citizenship can be a source of identity by
strengthening her sense of self-respect (Rawls 1972, 544).A strong civic identity can
itself motivate citizens to participate actively in their society's political life. That
distinct groups within a state do not share the same sense of identity towards their‟
political community (or communities) can be a reason to argue in favor of a
differentiated allocation of rights (Carens 2000, 168–173). Citizenship allow
community leaders to contribute to nation-building and national duty.
Consequently psychological dimension submit people with appropriate profile. It
will not affect the collective identity in the political community power.
If citizens have a strong sense of political affiliation, it will enhance social
cohesion and social integration as an important goal or problem to achieve
citizenship
Active Citizenship
Active citizenship refers to organizations and their philosophy to participate to
social responsibility and in the building of their nation-states, despite the fact that
these figures may not have specific roles in the government. They can be seen as
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active citizenship rights versus responsibilities. If companies give rights of the

people in its jurisdiction, it means that they assume certain responsibilities. This
will be the most pronounced in any country, or the level of the nation-state, but it
can also be broader, such as global citizenship. This means that effective citizen
may obtain the rights and responsibilities in a balanced way. The responsibilities of
active citizenship is in fact more complicated than writing a list of rights despite the
fact that the vote may be considered as fundamental responsibility , there are some
people who are not able to fully participate in the voting process.
An active citizen is a person who takes part in the community. In other part
volunteerism work has been identified by writers like Jonathan Tisch, who wrote in
the Huffington Post in 2010 calling for Americans to provide assistance to others,
particularly through the provision of professional experience in areas such as
banking, education, engineering, and technology to help the less fortunate people.
The active citizenship includes volunteering, donating, and recycling.
Feminist criticism
Since 1970 feminist theory has been criticized in models of the Republic and
liberal in the private and public spheres. Feminist criticism has led to the
development of alternative conceptions of politics and citizenship. In the classic
formulation, the Republican concept of political public sphere is seen as a world of
freedom and equality & has considered that the citizens male and female have the
equal freedom to engage in civil society for the benefit of the public service, and to
decide what is fair or unfair, harmful or helpful (Aristotle,1253a11)
Management role
 Fulfill our commitment as citizens to build a better system and more
sustainability for future generations:
 Protect citizens;
 Meet our obligations to the public’s interest;
 Act with the mentality of administrative and professional help in order to
improve communities and social environment
Recognition of human energies
Attract, develop and retain the best talent to serve the nation which is a
challenge to build a strong independent state. It does strengthen the cooperation
through competition and the recognition of qualifications
The value of creativity
Enable citizens to work to become a high-performance enterprise; create long-
term relationships between employees and their managers to continue to evaluate
efforts;
Unification of the social network
Take advantage of connections & cooperation and learn to deliver exceptional
service to the community;
Respect for the individual
 Valuation of biodiversity & unique contributions;
13
 Promote trust and openness environment & citizen access in a way that
reflect the moral values
Integrity & honesty
To be honest and inspiring confidence in what we mean by our words and our
behavior and assume the responsibility of our actions
Citizenship partnership
Citizenship is necessary to partnership and to improve the performance of the
core values of the system work ethics. It does reflect the satisfaction of the local
communities in their access to basic services. Consequently it also reveals the
effectiveness of the system and the merits of the institutions in their ability to
provide services in an appropriate manner governed by the administrative hierarchy
and competition skills in strategy work and evaluation of public services.
Concept of diversity at work
 Is going to beyond capacity, age, race, sex, religion, sexual orientation,
gender identity and expression to create an environment that welcomes all
forms of differences
 It does appeal to diversity process through the adoption of a comprehensive
culture that supports talent;
 It does promote high energy to entrench the innovative culture of core
values;
 It does provide a collaborative environment that allows diversity for an
effective work environment
Concept of dignity
According to philosophy, religion, human rights, medicine, and law, the term
dignity is used in the moral, ethical, legal and political debates and show that
humans have the innate right to live and enjoy all the fundamental rights. The
ethics are an extension of the underlying concepts of rights to protect people from
abuse and harm. For example dignity is used in politics to protect the vulnerable
and oppressed peoples, to the cultures, the religious beliefs and to the Supreme
examples and animals used for food or plants. Also it does link to the value of
human dignity in general, depending on how the use of the term or in the moral
context.
3.3.4 Philosophy of Ethics
It is a system that agree the philosophy of religion, culture, and other ethical
rules. Morality may also be synonymous with "good" or "right" either moral
corruption, it is an active opposition of the ethics and take different forms that
include ignorance and apathy toward a set of standards or ethical principles which
leads to blasphemy. However ethical theory of ethics involves the defense of the
concepts of right and wrong behavior that address conflicts in moral diversity and
ethical diversity. This term comes from the Greek word “spirit” which means
"character". And Super field is known as axiology of the science of values that
include both the philosophy of ethics and aesthetics. However philosophical ethics
defines the best way to attain human life.
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3.3.5 Theory of Ethics
Morality can be divided in to four main areas:
Meta-Ethics
Is the theory of moral values that determine the truth
Normative Ethics
Is a practical theory that determines the moral action. However realistic ethics
arises moral theory for the commitment of the people and very specific actions for
specific situations, such as in work and business
Descriptive Ethics
Is known as the relative morality and is the study of people's beliefs about
ethics that seeks to resolve problems and to deal with human beliefs like the
concepts of good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime
issues. It is the philosophy of public problems, such as those associated with
reality, presence, knowledge ,values, reason, mind, and language.
It is a philosophy that address the problems on basis of rational. However the
philosophy of "can refer to" organized religion as a set of beliefs and cultural
systems that are related to humanity, many religions, stories, symbols, and sacred
history which aims to explain the meaning and origin of life on the universe. In
other part, human beliefs originate their ethics according to religious laws and a
pattern preferred life.
According to some estimates, there are nearly 4,200 religions in the world.
Many religions have organized behaviors, clergy, and the definition of what
constitutes a commitment or membership, the holy places, and the holy books. It
can also include the practice of religion rituals, sermons, or veneration of God,
sacrifices and fascination / Trance, indoctrination, initiation, funerals and
marriages, meditation, prayer, music, art, dance, or other aspects of human
culture. Religions may also contain myths.
Morality and ethics
Morals (also known as moral philosophy) is the branch of philosophy that
addresses questions about morality. And "is commonly used interchangeably with
'morality' which is sometimes used in the ethical principles
And "the word morality" include certain types of ethical theories such as
deontology, descriptive and normative that
Indicates the meaning of "morality" to personal and cultural values, codes of
conduct or social customs. However the standard refers to the "morality" on
everything that is actually right or wrong, and that may be independent of the
values or norms held by the people or the specific cultures.
Realism and Anti-realism
Philosophical theories about the nature and origins of morality (and this is the
meta-theories of ethics) and is divided into two categories:
Moral realism and Ethical realism
Are theories that show a moral report based on objective facts that recognize
social conformity in shaping individuals' decisions, and remember that those
cultural norms and customs define a moral right behavior.
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Moral anti-reality
The moral arguments see also fail or do don’t try to provide objective moral
truths. Instead, we see that moral judgments are false allegations beyond the moral
truths objectivity (error theory) both claim attitudes about personal rather than
objective facts (Self moral and ethical self), or else no attempts to describe the world
at all, but something else, such as the expression of feelings, issuing orders (far
from the cognitive school).
3.3.6 Declarations and conventions
During the 20th century, the word dignity appeared in a variety of writings as
a reason for making peace and promoting human rights.
“All people are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed
with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of
brotherhood.
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration,
without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political
or other national or social origin, property, birth or other status of opinion."
3.4 REVISION POINTS
1. Citizenship responsibility
Citizenship refers to the fact that the citizen should be member of his/her
community and participate to community activities that aims to create a better
environment, happiness and harmonious society.
2. Morality and ethics
Morals (also known as moral philosophy) is the branch of philosophy that
addresses questions about morality. Meta-Ethics Is the theory of moral values that
determine the truth.
1. What is the importance of citizenship education?
2. What are benefits of citizenship training?
3.6 SUMMARY
Raise community awareness about the concept of citizenship, social
responsibility, participation in civic and cultural affairs, and economic productivity;
Support self-development
Develop contemplative Reflective thinking Encourage rational problem solving,
decision- making, and social work. Active citizenship refers to organizations and
their philosophy to participate to social responsibility and in the building of their
nation-states, despite the fact that these figures may not have specific roles in the
government. They can be seen as active citizenship rights versus responsibilities. If
companies give rights of the people in its jurisdiction, it means that they assume
certain responsibilities. This will be the most pronounced in any country, or the
level of the nation-state, but it can also be broader, such as global citizenship. This
means that effective citizen may obtain the rights and responsibilities in a balanced
way. The responsibilities of active citizenship is in fact more complicated than
writing a list of rights despite the fact that the vote may be considered as
16
fundamental responsibility, there are some people who are not able to fully
participate in the voting process.
1. What is citizenship training
2. Why citizenship training is necessary
3. What are citizenship obligations
4. Enlist few citizenship training and its general goals
5. What is active citizenship?
1. Foreigners division, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of
India. "Acquisition of Indian citizenship". Retrieved 26 September 2019.
2. "Passport alone no proof of citizenship: Bombay HC". Times of India. 29
October 2013. Retrieved 3 July 2013.
3. "Acquisition of Indian Citizenship (IC)". Government of India - Ministry of
Home Affairs - Foreigners Division. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
4. "The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019" (PDF). PRS India. Retrieved 17
August2019.
5. "LokSabha live: Citizenship Bill to be tabled in RajyaSabha next". The Times
of India. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
6. "Letter from British High Commission Nairobi" (PDF). Retrieved 2 April 2018.
3.9 ASSIGNMENT
To attend the national importance days and to understand the values and
obligations of responsible citizenship
To memorize the national anthem and song
3.10 REFERENCES
1. "The Gazette of India - Extraordinary" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India
- Archive. Archived (PDF) from the original on 27 December 2018.: "The
expression 'British subjects' shall be deemed to include the Ruler and
subjects of any of the Acceding States."
2. Namakkal, Jessica (3 April 2017). "The Terror of Decolonization: Exploring
French India's "Goonda Raj"". Interventions. 19 (3): 338–357. doi:10.1080/
1369801X.2016.1231586. ISSN 1369-801X.
3. Jump up to:a b Agrawala, S. K.; KoteswaraRao, M. (1990). "Nationality and
International Law in Indian Perspective". In Swan SikKo (ed.). Nationality and
International Law in Asian Perspective - Google Books. ISBN 9780792308768.
Identify various activities through which we can acquire good citizenship
training.
Write a note on citizenship training.
3.12 KEYWORDS
Legal – authorized
Ethical – moral
Goal – target
Evolution - growth

17
LESSON – 4
POLITICAL CULTURE
4.1 INTRODUCTION
Political culture is a learned cultural by which the people or the society change
or found changes in their habits or manner. ... So, the political composed of the
attitudes beliefs emotions motive norms and values sentiments cognition which
represent the political behavior and issue is called political culture.
4.2 OBJECTIVES
 This lesson emphasis political culture of different societies
 After going through this lesson students will know the importance of
political culture.
4.3 CONTENTS
4.3.1 Conception
4.3.2 Political philosophy
4.3.3 Categories
4.3.4 Political Culture in India
4.3.5 Salient features of Political Culture
4.3.6 Nature of Political Culture
4.3.7 Case study of Manipur’s Political Culture
4.3.8 Political Culture of Manipur after India’s Independence
4.3.1 Conception
In 1963, two Americans, Gabriel Almond and Sidney Verba, outlined three
types of political culture that can be combined to create civic culture. These three
key features expressed by both men were composed to establish a link between the
public and the government. The first of these features is "deference", which
considers the concepts of respect, acknowledgment of "inferiority" or "superiority",
and authority in society.
The second key feature is "consensus" which represents the key link between
government and public agreement and appeasement. Support for appeasement may
not always be shared by the whole nation, but as a whole, people agree to sustain
it, meaning it is a common agreement. There are various "Examples of Consensus"
in British political culture: how people are governed as a whole, consensus
regarding the welfare state, agreement as to who acts as head of state, and with
what powers.
The third feature of British political culture is "homogeneity". Church
attendance as a whole is decreasing. Sections of the Scottish and Welsh
populations have called for independence.
4.3.2 Political philosophy
The term political culture was brought into political science to promote the
American political system. The concept was used by Gabriel Almond in the late 50s,
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and outlined in The Civic Culture (1963, Almond & Verba), but was soon opposed
by two European political scientists, Gerhard Lehmbruch and Arend Lijphart.
Lehmbruch analysed politics in Switzerland and Austria and Lijphart analysed
politics in Netherlands. Both argued that there are political systems that are more
stable than the one in the USA.
4.3.3 Categories
Different typologies of political culture have been proposed. According to
political scientist William S. Stewart, all political behavior can be explained as
participating in one or more of eight political cultures: anarchism, oligarchy, Tory
corporatism, fascism, classical liberalism, radical liberalism, democratic socialism,
and Leninist socialism. Societies that exemplify each of these cultures have existed
historicallyGabriel Almond and Sidney Verba in The Civic Culture outlined three
pure types of political culture based on level and type of political participation and
the nature of people's attitudes toward politics:
Parochial – Where citizens are only remotely aware of the presence of central
government, and live their lives near enough regardless of the decisions taken by
the state, distant and unaware of political phenomena. They have neither
knowledge nor interest in politics. This type of political culture is in general
congruent with a traditional political structure.
Subject – Where citizens are aware of central government, and are heavily
subjected to its decisions with little scope for dissent. The individual is aware of
politics, its actors and institutions. It is affectively oriented towards politics, yet it is
on the "downward flow" side of the politics. In general congruent with a centralized
authoritarian structure.
Participant – Citizens are able to influence the government in various ways and
they are affected by it. The individual is oriented toward the system as a whole, to
both the political and administrative structures and processes (to both the input
and output aspects). In general congruent with a democratic political structure.
Almond and Verba wrote that these types of political culture can combine to
create the civic culture, which mixes the best elements of each.
Arend Lijphart wrote that there are different classifications of political culture:
First classification:
Mass political culture
Elite political culture
Second classification (of elite political culture):
Coalitional
Contradictive
Lijphart also classified the structure of society:
Homogeneous
heterogeneous
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Structure of society (right)

Political culture of elites homogeneous heterogeneous
(down)
depoliticalised consociative
Coalitional
democracy democracy
centrifugal
Contradictive centripetal democracy
democracy
4.3.4 Political Culture in India
Culture is regarded as a complex phenomenon which includes knowledge, art,
belief, morals, law, custom and other capabilities acquired by man as a member of
society. Culture may be said to have composed of two parts, i.e., material culture
and non-material culture. Material culture includes all the material and tangible
equipments and objects which are made and produced by human beings. On the
other hand, non-material equipment and capabilities made and acquired by man in
group life are included in non-material culture.
The people of a society share a common human nature like emotional drives,
intellectual capacities and moral perspectives. The common human nature
expresses itself in the form of certain values, belief and emotional attitudes which
are transmitted from one generation to another, though with greater or lesser
modifications, and they constitute the general culture of that society. Social
relationships are subject to an endless process of transformation, of growth and
decay of fusion and separation. Since they are all expressions of human nature, the
social relationships of the present are found in germ at least in the past and those
of the past survive, if only as relics in the present.
Culture, is therefore, a profound possession that ramifies throughout human
life. No matter what aspect or part of society is considered, the presence of a
cultural mode of transmission is of paramount importance. Politics is one of the
unavoidable circumstances/facts of human existence/relations. Everyone is
involved in some fashion at some time in some kind of political system. Each
political system is embedded in a sociological and psychological environment- the
set of values, beliefs, orientation and attitudes of the people toward politics, i.e., the
political culture. The political culture of a society defines the situation in which
political action takes place. It provides the subjective orientation to politics. The
political culture is of course but one aspect of politics.
However, the political culture encompasses both the political ideals and the
operating norms of a polity. Political culture includes not only the attitudes to the
politics, political values, ideologies, national character and cultural ethos, but also
the style, manner and substantive form of politics. The political culture of a people
gives them an orientation towards their polity and its processes. One way to learn
about political beliefs is to observe the ways in which political structure operates.
These beliefs affect and are affected by the way in which the structures operate and
there is a close circle of relationship between culture and structure. Political culture
is thus the manifestation in aggregate form of the psychological and subjective
20
dimensions of politics. A political culture is the product of both the collective

history of a political system and the life histories of the members of that system. In
brief, political culture is to the political system what culture is to the social system.
The term political culture was first used by Gabriel Almond in “Comparative
Political System” which appeared in the Journal of Political System Vol. 18, 1956.
Several others like Samuel Beer, Adam Ulams, Sidney Verba, Lucian Pye, Dennis
Kavangh, etc., have been responsible for popularising it. Gradually, this term
became popular and now it has come to stand as a very important touchstone for a
morphological study of the political system.
In the words of Almond and Powell “Political culture is the pattern of individual
attitudes and orientations towards politics among the members of a political
system”.
Lucian Pye writes that “political culture is the set of attitudes, beliefs and
sentiments of that give orders and meaning to a political process and that provide
the underlaying assumptions and rules that govern behaviour in the political
system. It encompasses both the political ideals and the operating norms of a
polity. Political culture is thus the manifestation in aggregate form of the
psychological and subjective dimensions of politics.”
According to Sidney Verba “Political culture is the subjective orientation to
politics or the system of empirical beliefs expressive symbols, and values which
define the situation in which political action takes place”.
4.3.5 Salient features of Political Culture
Robert A. Dahl have singled out political culture as a factor explaining
different patterns of political opposition whose salient elements are :
i. Orientations of problem solving.
ii. Orientations to collective action.
iii. Orientations to the political system and
iv. Orientations to other people.
A political culture is a product of many inter-related factors, traditional as well
as modern elements. Changes in political culture come under the influence of these
factors. A study of these factors is essential for an understanding of the political
culture.
History plays an important role in the making and evolution of political
culture. Historical events always influence the shaping of political culture in a big
way. In the case of British political culture, the signing of Magna Carta, 1215,
Petition of Rights, 1628, and the 17th century struggle between the King and the
Parliament over the issue of sovereignty, the Glorious Revolution of 1688 etc. have
all played a deterministic role. Likewise, the American Declaration of Independence,
the war of Independence and the civil war of mid 19th century exercised a big
influence upon the American political culture. Indian political culture bears the
influence of events of the freedom struggle and the contact with western civilisation
21
and culture. As such the political culture of each society is greatly influenced by the
historical events.
Beside historical development, geography is another important factor in
fashioning a political culture. Favourable location has helped British to meet
successfully foreign invasions. The vast size and diversities have helped the
Americans to accept the values of equality and freedom for all.
4.3.6 Nature of Political Culture
The nature of political culture is always determined by the existence of ethnic
differences and ethnic conflicts among several ethnic groups or minorities which
live in the society. Ethnic differences have recently began to affect attitudes in
Great Britain. Yet the United States, with a more polyglot population has succeeded
in assimilating the vast number of immigrants, at least the voluntary ones, so that
different ethnic groups think of themselves primarily as Americans. Ethnic
differences give rise to the emergence of sub-political cultures within the national
political culture.
The concept of political culture refers orientations -cognitive, affective and
evaluative, towards, political objects and actions. Indian political culture bears the
impact of the ideology of democratic socialism. Sometimes, the difference of
ideological interpretations may lead to internal discontent and disaffection and
eventually destroy rather than enhance the unity of the collectivity.
The socio-economic factors always play a deterministic role in laying down the
foundation of the political culture. A predominantly urban, industrialised society is
a more complex society. Putting a premium on rapid communication, limits of
poverty, employment, urbanisation, literacy etc, play a leading role in shaping the
political culture of the society. A predominantly urban, industrialised society is a
more complex society, putting a premium on rapid communication.
Industrialisation is an important factor in changing values and attitudes.
Rapid influx of immigrants, war, revolution all may provoke changes in political
values and beliefs with subsequent strains on the Political System. A political
culture is not static but will respond to new ideas generated from within the
political system or imparted or imposed from outside.
The political culture provides guides for political behaviour, and for the society
as a whole it constitutes a structure of values and norms which helps ensure
coherence in the operation of institutions and organisations. The stability of a
political system is underlined by the relative success or failure of the assimilation of
new attitudes into the existing value structure and for this there is the need to
examine the means of effective transmission of the political culture from generation
to generation. The political culture is the product of the history of both the political
system and the individual members of the system, and thus is rooted in public
events and private experience. In this sense, the development of the concept of
political culture is an attempt to bridge the gap between micro and macro
sociological analysis.
22
A.W. Burke has pointed out, “Modern Japan has inherited a remarkably
integrated ethos, which despite rapid changes, has always provided a source of
stability. Industrialisation, rapid influxes of immigrants, war, and especially defeat
in a major war, revolution etc. all may provoke changes in political values and
beliefs, with subsequent strains on the political system and in this way there is
continuous development in political culture.
In ancient India, monarchy prevailed and people were not politically aware and
the political culture was parochial in nature. However, with the coming of the
British the different Kingdoms in India were consolidated in the hands of a single
political power, i.e., the British. The discontaintment of the people during the
British period made the people aware of their rights and duties. The political
culture in India showed a marked change. Earlier, politics was confined to a certain
few of the population but now politics became broadened and caste factor begun to
influence the Indian polity. The national movement made the people politically
aware. When the British left India in 1947, India embraced the parliamentary form
of government, the idea of which was borrowed form the British. The first general
elections were held in India in 1952. The constitution of India permit every adult
reaching 18 years of age to cast their votes without any restriction. The people are
now increasing their political participation and the political culture exhibits the
“participant type of political culture”.
4.3.7 Case study of Manipur’s Political Culture
Political culture is undoubtedly connected with the study of politics. The study
of political culture is related to the study of political defection, political corruption,
political stratification, political socialisation, pressure group, political behaviours,
voting behaviours etc. The political system of a country having standard political
culture can easily face grave dangers. In the frequent changing of the political
system, the political culture of Manipur is being studied here. The nature or the
system of administration of the state is also studied to have some knowledge about
the smooth functioning of the state politics. And, in order to have a better idea of
Manipur politics, it would be ideal if we have a brief idea of the nature of political
culture and socialisation in Manipur.
For a long time Manipur enjoyed a rich and long historical tradition with a
different cultural and separate political identity of her own. There was no
separation of powers and the three functions of the government were combined in
the hands of one person. But there was division of labour. From the modern point
of view, the government was neither representative nor responsible. The king was
the head of the state and he was assisted in the administration by his ministers
and sixty four phamdous (members of the royal court). The king himself took no
direct part in the administration except on formal occasions when he presided over
the Darbar.
In ancient days the people were thus completely ignorant of their political and
civil rights due to lack of education and poor communication. Politics was confined
to a very restricted circle, covering the king, his nobles and a few ambitious men.
The political background during the time of monarchy was not conducive to a
23
vigorous political monument. Besides, the economic standard of the people being
very low, they could not think of their own political status, as they were deeply
engaged in the hard struggle for existence. Due to communication gap between the
people and government, the political consciousness of the people was considerably
low. Due to the lack of education the people remained completely ignorant and loyal
to the ruler. As a consequence, the nature of politics was very limited. As the level
of economic development of the people was very low they could not think of their
own political status. There was little scope for the people to get themselves involved
in politics.
The war between the English and the Burmese ended with the signing of the
treaty of Yandaboo in 1826. By this treaty the Burmese occupation of Manipur
ended. Under the terms of this treaty the Burmese recognisedGambhir Singh as the
Raja of Manipur. This was the beginning of the end of the sovereignty of monarchy
in Manipur as the region was incorporated into British rule after 1826. In 1936 an
office of the British Political Agency was established in Manipur in order to preserve
friendly relations between Manipur and Britain.
In 1890, the outbreak of palace revolt in Manipur gave a very good opportunity
to the British to interfere in the domestic affairs of Manipur. A fierce fighting took
place between the British forces and Manipuri troops. And finally on April 27, 1891
Manipur lost her sovereignty to the British and it became a colonial dependency of
the British. The British authorities brought several changes in the administrative
system of the State which in fact greatly effected the traditional practices in the
state.
There was a wide spread agitation against the system of Pothang - a form of
forced labour towards the end of 1913. Those labourers were forced to carry bags or
baggages of the officers/members of the royal families but they were never paid
their wages. The Maharaja forced upon the people a number of formalities, e.g., the
undoing of the umbrella and tucking up the flowing portion of the dhoti before the
Maharaja and the British administrator. In most cases, the British government
supported the administrative policy of the King. The Britishers wanted to follow the
containment policy so that the Manipuris might not rise against them. Another
interesting role of the government was the interference in the private life of the
common people. It is recorded that if there was a divorce case between husband
and wife, then they had to pay a sum of Rs. 1 as fine to the authority. But the value
of one rupee of that time was very big. Majority of the common people was not in a
position to give this amount of money to the government. The common people did
not have enough courage to fight various heinous social evils in the state against
the King. This shows that the orientation of political culture of that time was
exhibited in the form of what came to be known as subject political culture. The
citizens were not able to change the political system due to their lack of political
consciousness.
There were two different types of tribal movements during the colonial period
which greatly helped in raising the political consciousness of the people. These
24
movements were the Kuki Rebellion of 1917-1919 and the Zeliangrong movement of
1930-1932. The basic objectives of the movements were against the feudal system
and colonial policy of the imperialists and to try to bring a change in the system.
There were personalities like H. Irabot Singh, H. Angou Singh, etc., who very
much resented the religious exploitation and social persecution carried out by the
Brahmins and the Maharaja on the common people and wanted to form a socio-
religious organization for the upliftment and promotion of the social and religious
life of the people. So, a socio religious organisation known as the Nikhil Hindu
Manipuri Mahasabha was formed in 1934 under the Presidentship of the then
Maharaja. The formation of the Nikhil Hindu Manipuri Mahasabha marked a
turning point in the political history of Manipur because the agitation for
constitutional reforms emanated from the same platform. The Mahasabha extended
its network among the people and tried to impress upon them the long standing
necessity of democratization of political process and state machinery. The
Mahasabha opened its branches in all the important centers of the state. The Nikhil
Hindu Manipuri Mahasabha later on, became the first political party in the year
1938 under the name of Nikhil Manipuri Mahasabha.
However the Nikhil Manipuri Mahasabha involved its first political movement
during the women’s agitation of 1939. Consequently, the party started demanding
the introduction of full responsible government in the state. In the meantime,
different political parties were also formed in the state. The aims of these different
political parties were the abolition of feudal and colonial administrative system and
establishment of a popular government in the state. But the policies and
programmes had to be modified to suit to the local conditions of Manipur. These
political parties also gave strong emphasis on the establishment of a responsible
government in Manipur. The birth or existence of these political parties in Manipur
offered a certain degree of political consciousness to the people of Manipur and also
gave a strong impetus to the political movement and finally brought a sweeping
change in the political system of Manipur.
As the movement grew stronger, day by day the Maharaja under people’s
pressure announced his desire to introduce a fully democratic and constitutional
form of government in Manipur. As such, a constitution drafting committee was
formed in December 1946. Even after the constitution making committee was
formed the demand for responsible government continued to take greater and
greater momentum. Accordingly, the Manipur State Constitution Act, 1947 and the
Manipur Hill Regulation Act 1947 were passed and demoractic elections were held
in Manipur for the first time in 1948. As no party got majority a coalition was
formed. Under the provision of the constitution the people enjoyed certain political
rights and liberties. The legislative assembly constituted by the elected
representatives of the people on the basis of democratic principle, was a great
landmark in the political history of Manipur. It fulfilled a long standing desire of the
people for a fully responsible government.
25
After the formation of the government, Manipur was merged into the Indian
Union on October 15,1949. Under part ‘C’ State Act, Manipur was declared as a
part ‘C’ state with effect from 1952 till it became a Union Territory in 1957. It is
generally believed that the political status of Manipur was very much lowered when
Manipur became a part of the Indian Union. The sovereign independent status and
full democratic rights of the Manipur which had regained when British left India in
1947 had been taken away by the Indian Government after signing the Merger
Agreement by the Maharaja on 21st September 1949. The agreement came into
force on 15th October, 1949. On that day, the legislature was dissolved. The
ministry also ceased to function from that day and the entire administration was
taken over by the Chief Commissioner.
4.3.8 Political Culture of Manipur after India’s Independence
Under the Constitution of India, the first general elections were held in
January, 1952 on the basis of adult franchise. The people of Manipur who had
popular government, whose members were elected in 1948 based on adult
franchise for the first time in the whole of India, could not remain satisfied with the
rule of the bureaucrats. And they remained discontent and started agitation to
restore the responsible government which they once enjoyed. The formation of State
Reorganization Commission created apprehension in the minds of the local
politicians and intelligentsia regarding the fate of Manipur. Under the Territorial
Council Act, 1956 provisions were made for a territorial council for Manipur.
Before 1950 almost all the caste communities have their separate movements
and they were localized. But they joined together and took active part for statehood
movement. The form of government that was brought into existence after the
merger into the Indian Union was not up to the hopes and aspirations of the people
of Manipur.
The government of India imposed Armed Forces Special Powers Act. 1958 as a
means of controlling and containing the relentless problems of insurgency. The
imposition of this Act is tantamount to the negation of the democratic rights and
values of the people of the state. Preservation of ethnic identity increasing rampant
corruption, problems of insurgency and ineffective implementation of land reforms,
etc., were the basic problems confronting this state which are neglected by the
Government of India.
The political atmosphere in Manipur continued to be tense reaching the climax
gradually. When Prime Minister Indira Gandhi paid a short visit to Imphal, various
demonstrations in support of the demand for a full-fledged statehood for Manipur
were taken out. In a series of clashes between the police and the demonstrators
many people were killed and injured. The agitation for full statehood continued in
full vigour. Ultimately, on January 21, 1972 Manipur emerged in the political map
of India as a full-fledged state headed by a Governor, The political aspiration of the
people of Manipur for more than twenty years have at last been fulfilled. The people
in Manipur have developed aspirations towards democratic processes and practices
with the attainment of statehood. Since, 1972, we find changes in the pattern of
26
political culture of people of Manipur as it advances itself from the status of a

Union Territory to that of a state.
Due to continuous political socialization among the people of Manipur, the
political orientation of the people also changed from time to time. The political
stratification and political alliances are complex issues in the state. In Manipur, the
power is in the hands of the political elite whether they may be from the urban,
rural or hill areas. But the party system in Manipur is not based on region, caste,
religion, etc. The political culture of the people had changed after Manipur attained
its statehood. The regional parties played an important role in the politics of
Manipur. In the early 1970’s the regional political parties were very active, strong
and popular. The political ideologies of the regional political parties influenced the
people’s choice of candidates and their political orientations. The people’s political
orientations was changed, as one could see from the election results of 1980 and
1984.
In Manipur politics, as in any state politics, the opposition parties label charge
that the government is running through corruption, nepotism and favouritism.
There was no peace in the hills and valley. The Government is taking more interest
in matters of transfer and posting for government servants. They care for big
landlords, black marketeers, profiteers and capitalists as alleged by the opposition
parties. The people of Manipur are unconcerned about what the Government is
doing. Various pressure or interest groups such as the business groups, chamber
of commerce show the loyalty to the party in power in the state. And various other
organizations always act according to the tune of the political party which is in
power. In Manipur the people are not against the operation of pressure groups as it
is also the essential feature of democracy.
In Manipur, as the political socialization continued, people’s orientation
towards political understanding also underwent a change from time to time. The
kind of political culture that exists now-a-days in the state may be characterised as
participant political culture. People have become more aware of their rights and
duties. They are now actively involved in the process of democratic political
functioning.
4.4 REVISION POINTS
Political Culture in India: Culture is regarded as a complex phenomenon which
includes knowledge, art, belief, morals, law, custom and other capabilities acquired
by man as a member of society.
Categories
Different typologies of political culture have been proposed. According to
political scientist William S. Stewart, all political behavior can be explained as
participating in one or more of eight political cultures: anarchism, oligarchy, Tory
corporatism, fascism, classical liberalism, radical liberalism, democratic socialism,
and Leninist socialism.
1. What is political culture and types of political culture?
2. Why is political culture important?
27
4.6 SUMMARY
A Political Culture is a set of attitudes and practices held by a people that
shapes their political behavior. It includes moral judgments, political myths, beliefs,
and ideas about what makes for a good society. A political culture is a reflection of
a government, but it also incorporates elements of history and tradition that may
predate the current regime. Political cultures matter because they shape a
population’s political perceptions and actions. Governments can help shape
political culture and public opinion through education, public events, and
commemoration of the past. Political cultures vary greatly from state to state and
sometimes even within a state. Generally speaking, however, political culture
remains more or less the same over time.
1. What is political Culture?
2. Enlist few examples of political culture
3. Name different elements of political culture
4. How does govt. affect culture?
5. Why is political culture important?
1. International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, New York: Macmillen,
1968, Vol. 12, p. 218 (quoted in Jo Freedman, The Political Culture of the
Democratic and Republican Parties (1986).
2. Stanford Report, Obit: Gabriel Almond, January 8, 2003
3. Verba, Sidney; Almond, Gabriel (1963). The Civic Culture. Princeton: Princeton
University Press.
4.9 ASSIGNMENT
To visit different societies having different cultures to access the similarities
and difference among them
4.10 REFERENCE
1. International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences, New York: Macmillen,
1968, Vol. 12, p. 218 (quoted in Jo Freedman, The Political Culture of the
Democratic and Republican Parties (1986).
2. Stanford Report, Obit: Gabriel Almond, January 8, 2003
3. Verba, Sidney; Almond, Gabriel (1963). The Civic Culture. Princeton: Princeton
University Press.
4. Lukšič, Igor (2006). Političnakultura, pp. 40–42. FDV, Ljubljana. Retrieved
on June 29, 2007.
Enlist few similarities of different cultures.
Develop a note on political culture.
4.12 KEYWORDS
Culture – philosophy
Political – dogmatic
Ethical – moral
Values - beliefs

28
LESSON – 5
WELFARE PROGRAMMES BY THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
5.1 INTRODUCTION
Government of India launched so many welfare programmes for the holistic
development of the country. Some are Antyodaya Anna Yojna, National
GraminAwaas Mission (formerly Indira AwasYojna), BharatNirman, etc. all these
programmes are launched to alleviate the poverty and generate employment so that
economy can grow rapidly in this competitive world.
According to a general survey done by the National Sample Survey
Organization (NSSO), 58% of total employment exist in rural sector and only 38% in
urban sector of our country. As per the estimation by the Ranjrajan panel the
number of Below Poverty Line declined to 21.9% of the population in 2011-12, from
29.8% in 2009-10 and 37.2% in 2004-05. As per the Suresh Tendulkar panel's
recommendations in 2011-12, the poverty line had been fixed at Rs 27 spending in
rural areas and Rs 33 in urban areas so total poverty is 21.9% at the national level.
5.2 OBJECTIVES
 This lesson throws light on various welfare programmers of India.
 After reading going through from this chapter, students will know the
benefits and procedure of these programmers.
5.3 CONTENTS
5.3.1 Welfare programs
5.3.2 Different Progrmmaes of Government of India are given below
5.3.3 List of Union Government Schemes in India
5.3.1 Welfare programs
Government of India launched several programmes for poverty alleviation,
employment generation, and better health and education facilities. some
programmes are: Antyodaya AnnaYojna, National Gramin Awaas Mission (formerly
Indira awas yojna), Bharat Nirman,etc.
Government of India launched so many welfare programmes for the holistic
development of the country. Some are Antyodaya Anna Yojna, National Gramin
Awaas Mission (formerly Indira Awas Yojna), Bharat Nirman, etc. all these
programmes are launched to alleviate the poverty and generate employment so that
economy can grow rapidly in this competitive world.
According to a general survey done by the National Sample Survey
Organization (NSSO), 58% of total employment exist in rural sector and only 38% in
urban sector of our country. As per the estimation by the Ranjrajan panel the
number of Below Poverty Line declined to 21.9% of the population in 2011-12, from
29.8% in 2009-10 and 37.2% in 2004-05. As per the Suresh Tendulkar panel's
recommendations in 2011-12, the poverty line had been fixed at Rs 27 spending in
rural areas and Rs 33 in urban areas so total poverty is 21.9% at the national level.
29
5.3.2 Different Progrmmaes of Government of India are given below
Valmiki Ambedkar Awas Yojana (VAMBAY):
The VAMBAY launched in December 2001 facilitates the construction and
upgradation of dwelling units for the slum dwellers and provides a healthy and
enabling urban environment through community toilets under Nirmal Bharat
Abhiyan, a component of the scheme. The Central Government provides a subsidy
of 50 per cent, the balance 50 per cent being arranged by the State Government.
Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojana (SJSRY):
The Urban Self Employment Programme and the Urban Wage Employment
Programme are the two special components of the SJSRY, which, in December
1997, substituted for various extant programmers implemented for urban poverty
alleviation. SJSRY is funded on 75:25 basis between the Centre and the States.
Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY):
AAY launched in December 2000 provides food grains at a highly subsidized
rate of Rs.2.00 per kg for wheat and Rs.3.00 per kg for rice to the poor families
under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS). The scale of issue, which
was initially 25 kg per family per month, was increased to 35 kg per family per
month from April 1, 2002. The scheme initially for one crore families was expanded
in June 2003 by adding another 50 lakh BPL Families.
Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY):
The PMGSY, launched in December 2000 as a 100 per cent centrally
Sponsored Scheme, aims at providing rural connectivity to unconnected habitations
with population of 500 persons or more in the rural areas by the end of the Tenth
Plan period. Augmenting and modernizing rural roads has been included as an item
of the NCMP. The programme is funded mainly from the accruals of diesel cess in
the Central Road Fund. In addition, support of the multi-lateral funding agencies
and the domestic financial institutions are being obtained to meet the financial
requirements of the programme.
Prime Minister’s Rozgar Yojana (PMRY):
PMRY started in 1993 with the objective of making available self-employment
opportunities to the educated unemployed youth by assisting them in setting up
any economically viable activity. While the REGP is implemented in the rural areas
and small towns (population up to 20,000) for setting up village industries without
any cap on income, educational qualification or age of the beneficiary, PMRY is
meant for educated unemployed youth with family income of up to Rs.40, 000 per
annum, in both urban and rural areas, for engaging in any economically viable
activity.
Pradhan Mantri Gramodaya Yojana (PMGY):
PMGY launched in 2000-01 envisages allocation of Additional Central
Assistance (ACA) to the States and UTs for selected basic services such as primary
health, primary education, rural shelter, rural drinking water, nutrition and rural
electrification.
30
Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY):
The Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) operationalised from 1999-2000 is the major
scheme for construction of houses for the poor, free of cost. The Ministry of Rural
Development (MORD) provides equity support to the Housing and Urban
Development Corporation (HUDCO) for this purpose.
Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana (SGRY):
SGRY, launched in 2001, aims at providing additional wage employment in all
rural areas and thereby food security and improve nutritional levels. The SGRY is
open to all rural poor who are in need of wage employment and desire to do manual
and unskilled work around the village/habitat. The programme is implemented
through the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs).
Swaranjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY):
SGSY, launched in April 1999, aims at bringing the assisted poor families
(Swarozgaris) above the poverty line by organizing them into Self Help Groups
(SHGs) through a mix of Bank credit and Government subsidy.
Jawahar Rozgar Yojana (JRY):
JRY was launched as Centrally Sponsored Scheme on 1st April, 1989 by
merging National Rural Employment Programme (NREP) and Rural Landless
Employment Guarantee Programme (RLEGP). Its main objective was generation of
additional gainful employment for the unemployed and under-employed people in
rural areas through the creation of rural economic infrastructure, community and
social assets with the aim of improving the quality of life of the rural poor.
Integrated Rural Development Programme:
The Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) was started in 1980-81
in all blocks of the country and continued as a major self-employment scheme till
April 1, 1999. Then, it was restructured as the Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar
Yojana (SGSY) which aimed at self-employment of the rural poor. The objective will
be achieved through acquisition of productive assets or appropriate skills that
would generate an additional income on a sustained basis to enable them to cross
poverty line.
Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana:
The primary objective of the PMGSY is to provide Connectivity, by way of an
All-weather Road (with necessary culverts and cross-drainage structures, which is
operable throughout the year), to the eligible unconnected Habitations in the rural
areas, in such a way that all Unconnected Habitations with a population of 1000
persons and above are covered in three years (2000-2003) and all Unconnected
Habitations with a population of 500 persons and above by the end of the Tenth
Plan Period (2007). In respect of the Hill States (North-East, Sikkim, Himachal
Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttaranchal) and the Desert Areas (as identified in the
Desert Development Programme) as well as the Tribal (Schedule V) areas, the
objective would be to connect Habitations with a population of 250 persons and
above.
31
Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidutikaran Yojana:
Under RGGVY, electricity distribution infrastructure is envisaged to establish
Rural Electricity Distribution Backbone (REDB) with at least a 33/11KV sub-
station in a block, Village Electrification Infrastructure (VEI) with at least a
Distribution Transformer in a village or hamlet, and standalone grids with
generation where grid supply is not feasible.
Subsidy towards capital expenditure to the tune of 90% is being provided,
through Rural Electrification Corporation Limited (REC), which is a nodal agency
for implementation of the scheme. Electrification of un-electrified Below Poverty
Line (BPL) households is being financed with 100% capital subsidy @ Rs.2200/- per
connection in all rural habitations.
Rashtriya Swastha Bima Yojana:
RSBY has been launched by Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government
of India to provide health insurance coverage for Below Poverty Line (BPL) families.
The objective of RSBY is to provide protection to BPL households from financial
liabilities arising out of health shocks that involve hospitalization. Beneficiaries
under RSBY are entitled to hospitalization coverage up to Rs. 30,000/- for most of
the diseases that require hospitalization. Government has even fixed the package
rates for the hospitals for a large number of interventions. Pre-existing conditions
are covered from day one and there is no age limit. Coverage extends to five
members of the family which includes the head of household, spouse and up to
three dependents. Beneficiaries need to pay only Rs. 30/- as registration fee while
Central and State Government pays the premium to the insurer selected by the
State Government on the basis of a competitive bidding.
The expenditure done on the welfare of the weaker sections of the country
plays a very prominent role in increasing the welfare of these sections
5.3.3 List of Union Government Schemes in India
The ministries of the Government of India have come up with various
government programs called schemes (Yojana) from time to time. These schemes
could be either Central, state specific or joint collaboration between the Centre and
the states. They are detailed below:
Outlay/
Date of
Scheme Ministry Status Sector Provisions
Launch
statistics
Atal Pension Ministry May 9, Pension A pension program that allows
Yojana of 2015 people to make voluntary
Finance contributions within a certain
range with a matching
government contribution to
receive pension in the future.
Ujala Yojna MoP May 1, Electrification Replaced the "Bachat Lamp
2015 Yojana". Reduces the cost of
energy-saving compact
fluorescent lamps
Central MoHFW 1954 Health comprehensive medical care
Government facilities to central government
32
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
Health Scheme employees and their family
members.
Deendayal MoSJE April 1, Social Justice Create an enabling
Disabled 2003 environment to ensure equal
Rehabilitation opportunities, equity, social
Scheme justice and empowerment of
persons with disabilities.
Deen Dayal Rural Septemb Rural It is a Government of India
Upadhyaya developm er 25, Development project to engage rural youth,
Grameen ent 2014 especially BPL and SC/ST
Kaushalya ministry segments of the population, in
Yojana gainful employment through
skill training programmes.
Digital MoE&IT July 1, Digitally It aims to ensure that
India Programm 2015 Empowered government services are
e Nation available to citizens
electronically and people get
benefits from the latest
information and
communication technology.
Gramin MoA March Agriculture Creation of scientific storage
Bhandaran 31, 2007 capacity with allied facilities in
Yojana rural areas to meet the
requirements of farmers for
storing farm produce,
processed farm produce and
agricultural inputs. Improve
their marketability through
promotion of grading,
standardisation and quality
control of agricultural produce.
Pradhan Mantri MoRD 1985 Res Housing, Provides financial assistance to
Gramin Awaas tructure Rural rural poor for constructing
Yojana d on 25 their houses themselves.
June
2015
Pradhan Mantri MoWCD 2010 Mother Care A cash incentive of Rs. 4000 to
Matritva women (19 years and above) for
Vandana the first two live births
Yojana
Integrated Child MoWCD October Child The scheme aims to
Development 2, 1975 Development tackle malnutrition and health
Services problems in children below 6
years of age and their mothers
by providing cash incentives
conditional upon registration
at Anganwadi centres and
vaccination of newborn
children.
33
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
Deen Dayal MoRD 1978 Rural Self-employment programme to
Upadhyaya Development raise the income-generation
Antyodaya capacity of target groups
Yojana among the poor. The scheme
has been merged with another
scheme named Swarnajayanti
Gram Swarozgar Yojana
(SGSY).
Janani MoHFW 2005 Mother Care One-time cash incentive to
Suraksha pregnant women for
Yojana institutional/home births
through skilled assistance.
Jawaharlal MoUD Decembe Urban A programme to improve the
Nehru National r 3, 2005 Development quality of life and
Urban Renewal infrastructure in the cities. To
Mission be replaced by Atal Mission for
(JnNURM) Rejuvenation and Urban
Transformation.
Kasturba MoHRD July Education Educational facilities
Gandhi Balika 2004 (residential schools) for girls
Vidyalaya belonging to SC, ST, OBC,
minority communities and
families below the poverty line
(BPL) in educationally
backward blocks.
INSPIRE Departm Scholarships for top science
Programme ent of students, Fellowships for
Science pursuing PhD, research grants
and to researchers.
Technolo
gy (India)
Kishore MoST 1999 Scholarship programme to
Vaigyanik encourage students to take up
Protsahan research careers in the areas of
Yojana basic sciences, engineering and
medicine.
Livestock MoA Agriculture Insurance to cattle and
Insurance attaining qualitative
Scheme improvement in livestock and
their products.
Mahatma MoRD February Rs. Rural Wage Legal guarantee for one
Gandhi 6, 2006 40,000 Employment hundred days of employment
National Rural crore in in every financial year to adult
Employment 2010–11 members of any rural
Guarantee Act household willing to do public
work-related unskilled manual
work at the statutory minimum
wage of Rs. 120 per day in
2009 prices.
34
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
Members of MoSPI Decembe Each MP has the choice to
Parliament r 23, suggest to the District Collector
Local Area 1993 for works to the tune of Rs 5
Development crores per annum to be taken
Scheme up in his/her constituency.
The Rajya Sabha Member of
Parliament can recommend
works in one or more districts
in the State from where he/she
has been elected.
Midday Meal MoHRD August Health, Lunch (free of cost) to school-
Scheme 15, 1995 Education children on all working days
Namami Gange MoWR March 20000 Clean and Integrates the efforts to clean
Programme 1995 crore for protect River and protect River Ganga in a
5 years Ganga comprehensive manner.
National MoHRD May 5, Education Make 80 million adults in the
Literacy 1988 age group of 15–35 years
Mission literate.
Programme
National January Pension Contribution-based pension
Pension 1, 2004 system.
Scheme
National MoA Agriculture Financial assistance to
Scheme on fishermen for construction of
Welfare of house, community hall for
Fishermen recreation and common
working place and installation
of tube-wells for drinking
water.
National Service MoYAS 1969 Personality development
Scheme through social (or community)
service.
National Social MoRD August Pension Public assistance to its citizens
Assistance 15, 1995 in the case of unemployment,
Scheme old age, sickness and
disablement and in other cases
of undeserved want.
Pooled Finance MoUD Septemb Allocation Urban Pooled Finance Development
Development er 29, of Rs. 400 Infrastructure Fund (PFDF), which would
Fund Scheme 2006 crore Development enable the Urban Local Bodies
(ULBs) including small and
medium sized municipalities to
raise funds from the market on
a sustainable basis to meet
their investment needs. PFDF
will provide credit
enhancement to ULBs to
access marketborrowings
based on their credit
worthiness through State level
Pooled Finance Mechanism viz.
35
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
a State Pooled Finance Entity
(SPEF).
Pradhan Mantri MoRD July 23, Model Village Integrated development
Adarsh Gram 2010 of Schedule Caste majority
Yojana villages in four states.
Pradhan Mantri MoSD&E April Skill To provide encouragement to
Kaushal Vikas 2015 development youth for development of
Yojna initiative employable skills by providing
schemes monetary rewards by
recognition of prior learning or
by undergoing training at
affiliated centres.
Pradhan Mantri MoF May 9, Insurance Accidental insurance with a
Suraksha Bima 2015 premium of Rs. 12 per year.
Yojana
Pradhan Mantri MoF May 9, Insurance Life insurance of Rs. 2 lakh
Jeevan Jyoti 2015 with a premium of Rs. 330 per
Bima Yojana year.
Pradhan Mantri MoF August Financial National Mission for Financial
Jan Dhan 28, 2014 inclusion Inclusion to ensure access to
Yojana financial services, namely
Banking Savings & Deposit
Accounts, Remittance, Credit,
Insurance, and Pension in an
affordable manner.
Pradhan Mantri MoRD Decembe Rural Good all-weather road
Gram Sadak r 25, Development connectivity to unconnected
Yojana 2000 villages.
Rajiv Awas MhUPA 2013 Urban It envisages a "Slum Free India"
Yojana Housing with inclusive and equitable
cities in which every citizen has
access to basic civic
infrastructure and social
amenities and decent shelter.
Rajiv Gandhi MoP April To be Rural Programme for creation of
Grameen 2005 replaced Electrification Rural Electricity Infrastructure
Vidyutikaran by Deen & Household Electrification for
Yojana Dayal providing access to electricity
Upadhyay to ruralhouseholds.
a Gram
Jyoti
Yojana
Rashtriya Krishi MoA August Agriculture Achieve 4% annual growth in
Vikas Yojana 1, 2007 agriculture through
development of agriculture and
its allied sectors during the XI
Plan period.
Rashtriya MoHFW April 1, Insurance Health insurance to poor (BPL),
Swasthya Bima 2008 domestic workers, MGNERGA
36
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
Yojana workers, rikshaw-pullers,
building and other
construction workers, and
many other categories as may
be identified by the respective
states.
RNTCP MoHFW 1997 Health Tuberculosis control initiative.
Saksham or MoWCD 2014 Skill Aims at all-round development
Rajiv Gandhi Development of Adolescent Boys and make
Scheme for them self-reliant, gender-
Empowerment sensitive and aware citizens,
of Adolescent when they grow up. It cover all
Boys adolescent boys (both school
going and out of school) in the
age-group of 11 to 18 years
subdivided into two categories,
viz. 11-14 & 14–18 years. In
2014–15, an allocation of Rs.
25 crore is made for the
scheme.
Sabla or Rajiv MoWCD 2011 Skill Empowering adolescent girls
Gandhi Scheme Development (Age) of 11–18 years with focus
for on out-of-school girls by
Empowerment improvement in their
of Adolescent nutritional and health status
Girls and upgrading various skills
like home skills, life skills and
vocational skills. Merged
Nutrition Programme for
Adolescent Girls (NPAG)
and Kishori Shakti
Yojana (KSY).
Sampoorna MoRD Septemb Rural Self Providing additional wage
Grameen er 25, Employment employment and food security,
Rozgar Yojana 2001 alongside creation of durable
community assets in rural
areas.
Swabhiman MoF February Financial To make banking facility
15, 2011 Inclusion available to all citizens and to
get 5 crore accounts opened by
Mar 2012. Replaced by
Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan
Yojana.
Swarnajayanti MoRD April 1, Rural Bring the assisted poor families
Gram 1999 Employment above the poverty line by
Swarozgar organising them into Self Help
Yojana Groups (SHGs) through the
process of social mobilisation,
their training and capacity
building and provision of
income generating assets
37
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
through a mix of bank credit
and government subsidy.
Swavalamban MoF Septemb To be Pension pension scheme to the workers
er 26, replaced in unorganised sector. Any
2010 by Atal citizen who is not part of any
Pension statutory pension scheme of
Yojana the Government and
contributes between Rs. 1000
and Rs. 12000/- per annum,
could join the scheme. The
Central Government shall
contribute Rs. 1000 per annum
to such subscribers.
Udisha MoWCD Child Care Training programme for ICDS
workers.
Voluntary June 18, Closed on Opportunity to the income tax/
Disclosure of 1997 31 wealth tax defaulters to
Income Scheme December disclose their undisclosed
1998 income at the prevailing tax
rates.
National Rural MoRD June $5.1 This scheme will organise rural
Livelihood 2011 Billion poor into Self Help Group(SHG)
Mission (NRLM) groups and make them capable
for self-employment. The idea
is to develop better livelihood
options for the poor.
National Urban MoHUPA 24 This scheme will reduce
Livelihood Septemb poverty of urban poor
Mission (NULM) er 2013 households specially street
vendors who constitute an
important segment of urban
poor by enabling them to
access gainful self-employment
and skilled wage employment
opportunities.
HRIDAY – MoUD Jan Urban The scheme seeks to preserve
Heritage City 2015 Development and rejuvenate the rich
Development cultural heritage of the
and country.
Augmentation
Yojana
Sukanya MoWCD 22 The scheme primarily ensures
Samridhi January equitable share to a girl child
Yojana (Girl 2015 in resources and savings of a
Child Prosperity family in which she is generally
Scheme) discriminated as against a
male child.
Smart Cities MoUD June 25, Urban To enable better living and
Mission 2015 Development drive economic growth
stressing on the need for
38
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
people centric urban planning
and development.
AMRUT MoUD June 25, Urban To enable better living and
2015 Development drive economic growth
stressing on the need for
and development.
Pradhan Mantri MoHUPA June 25, Housing To enable better living and
Awas 2015 drive economic growth
Yojana (PMAY) stressing on the need for
and development.
National Child Ministry Launche The objective of this project is
Labour of d in 9 to eliminate child labour in
Projects(NCLP) Labour districts hazardous industries by 2010.
and in 1987 Under this scheme, the target
Employ and has group is all children below 14
ment been years of age who are working in
expande occupations and processes
d in listed in the Schedule to the
January Child Labour (Prohibition &
2005 to Regulation) Act, 1986 or
250 occupations and processes that
districts are harmful to the health of the
in 21 child.
different
states of
the
country
National Career Ministry 20 July Employment The objective of this project is
Service of 2015 to help job-seekers land up at
(India) (NCS) Labour the job they deserve.
and Under this scheme, an online
Employ job-portal named as National
ment Career Service portal has been
launched which acts as a
common platform for Job-
seekers, employers, skill
providers, govt. departments,
placement organisations and
counsellors. The portal
possesses mre than 3.11 crore
registered job-seekers and
more than 9 lakh employers
from across the country.
Antyodaya Dec. 25, Under the scheme, 1 crore of
Anna Yojana 2000 the poorest among the poor
(BPL, below poverty line)
families covered under the
targeted public distribution
system are identified. Issue of
39
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
ration cards following the
recognition of Antyodaya
families; unique quota cards to
be recognised and "Antyodaya
Ration Card" must be given to
the Antyodaya families. The
scheme has been further
expanded twice by additional
50 lakh BPL families each in
June 2003 and in August
2004, thus covering 2 crore
families under the AAY scheme.
Pradhan Mantri MoSD&E July 15, Skill Seeks to provide the
Kaushal Vikas 2015 Development institutional capacity to train a
Yojana minimum 40 crore skilled
people by 2022
National Food Governm 2007 for It launched in 2007 for 5 years
Security ent of 5 years to increase production and
Mission India productivity of wheat, rice and
pulses on a sustainable basis
so as to ensure food security of
the country.
The aim is to bridge the yield
gap in respect of these crops
through dissemination of
improved technologies and
farm management practices.
Pradhan Mantri MoP&NG 1 May Rs. 8000 Launched to provide free LPG
Ujjwala Yojana 2016 crore connections to women from
below poverty line families.
Pradhan Governm 1 July Generic Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya
Mantri Bhartiya ent of 2015 Medicine Janaushadhi Pariyojana’ is a
Jan India campaign launched by the
Aushadhi Kendr Department of
a (PMBJK) Pharmaceuticals, Govt. Of
India, to provide quality
medicines at affordable prices
to the masses through special
kendra’s known as Pradhan
Mantri Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi
Kendra. Pradhan Mantri
Bhartiya Jan Aushadhi Kendra
(PMBJK) have been set up to
provide generic drugs, which
are available at lesser prices
but are equivalent in quality
and efficacy as expensive
branded drugs.
Standup India DFS, 5 April Loans to The objective of the Stand-Up
MoF 2016 SC/ST/Wome India scheme is to facilitate
Governm n bank loans between INR 10
40
Outlay/
Date of
Launch
statistics
ent of entrepreneurs lakh (INR 1,00,000) and INR 1
India for greenfield Crore (INR 10,000,000) to at
enterprises least one Scheduled Caste (SC)
or Scheduled Tribe (ST)
borrower and at least one
woman borrower per bank
branch for setting up a
greenfield enterprise. This
enterprise may be in
manufacturing, services or the
trading sector. In case of non-
individual enterprises at least
51% of the shareholding and
controlling stake should be
held by either an SC/ST or
Woman entrepreneur. Loans
can be applied online through
the Standup Mitra or Udyami
Mitra portals.
5.4 REVISION POINTS

ValmikiAmbedkarAwasYojana (VAMBAY):
Abhiyan, a component of the scheme.
SwarnaJayantiShahariRozgarYojana (SJSRY):
alleviation. SJSRY is funded on 75:25 basis between the Centre and the States
1. What are welfare schemes in India?
2. What are social welfare Programmes?
3. How many types of PM Yojana are there?
5.6 SUMMARY
The Indian Constitution establishes a welfare state. This is clear from the
salient features in the Preamble and the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP).
In this spirit, India is making a determined attempt to fulfill its ideal of a welfare
state not only in principle but also through economic planning, thus securing to the
Indian citizens justice—social, economic and political. The Indian Constitution
establishes a welfare state. This is clear from the salient features in the Preamble
and the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP). In this spirit, India is making a
determined attempt to fulfill its ideal of a welfare state not only in principle but also
41
through economic planning, thus securing to the Indian citizens justice—social,

economic and political.
In this spirit, striving towards the similar objectives, this portal provides
information on entitlements, schemes, programmes and institution details related
to women, children, SC, ST, OBC, Minorities, Senior Citizens, unorganised sector,
differently-abled and others
1. What is welfare scheme?
2. Name few welfare schemes?
3. Enlist few benefits of welfare schemes?
4. Name major schemes of central govt.?
"National Rural Livelihood Mission: Understanding the vulnerability of low-
income groups – Moneylife". Moneylife.in. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
"National Urban Livelihood Mission".Retrieved 6 July 2016.
"Ministry of urban housing and poverty alleviation scheme".Archived from the
originalon 16 August 2016.Retrieved 6 July 2016.
"HRIDAY scheme launched, Rs.500 cr sanctioned for 12 cities | Day & Night
News".Dayandnightnews.com. 22 January 2015. Archived from the original on 14
July 2015.Retrieved 23 July 2015.
5.9 ASSIGNMENT
1. To visit a local panchayat member to know the different welfare schemes of
govt.
2. To read and listen the news on daily basis to know new schemes
inaugurated by govt.
5.10 REFERENCES
1. "Approval of Indira Gandhi MatritvaSahyogYojana (IGMSY)- a Conditional
Maternity Benefit (CMB) Scheme" (PDF). Wcd.nic.in. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
2. "AMRUT Scheme to replace JNNURM – Banking Manual".
Banking.mercenie.com. 3 February 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
3. "Frequently ASked Questions on MGNREGA Operational Guidelines –
2013"(PDF). Nrega.nic.in. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
4. "Welcome to Ministry of Rural Development (Govt. of India)". Rural.nic.in.
Retrieved 23 July 2015.
5. "Rs. 20,000-crore budget for NamamiGange scheme". The Hindu. 13 May
2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
6. "Setting up of Pooled Finance Development Fund". Retrieved 4 June 2018.
7. "pmkvyofficial". Retrieved 6 July 2016.
42
8. "ministry document on PMKVY". Retrieved 6 July 2016.

9. "beginning of skill development initiative schemes" (PDF). Retrieved 6
July 2016.
Enroll the name of needy people in different schemes which will give you more
knowledge of these schemes.
Compare different welfare schemes programmes.
5.12 KEYWORDS
Programs – packages
Welfare – well being
Relief – respite
Sponsored - backed

43
LESSON – 6
RATION CARD AND ITS PROCESS
6.1 INTRODUCTION
Ration card in India is a popular document of address and identity proof, that
makes Indian households eligible to purchase subsidised food grain from the Public
Distribution System. e-ration card is a seamless facility provided by several state
governments for households to obtain a ration card.
E-ration was first introduced in Delhi and has gradually covered states such
as Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Only aadhaar cardholders can apply using e-ration
card facility.
6.2 OBJECTIVES
 To know about the significance of ration card
 To find the procedures for its uses
6.3 CONTENTS
6.3.1 Preface
6.3.2 How to apply for a new Ration Card?
6.3.3 Eligibility
6.3.4 Documents required
6.3.5 How to transfer Ration Card?
6.3.6 Different types of Ration Cards and benefits
6.3.7 What is the “One Nation, One Ration Card’ system?
6.3.8 Challenges
6.3.9 Way Forward
6.3.1 Preface
A ration card is a document issued by the State Government which serves as a
proof of nationality. It is an important document which not only serves as an
identity proof but also indicates an individual’s economic status.
It is a voluntary document and not compulsory for every citizen to obtain, but
people generally apply for it as it is well-accepted identity proof and helps an
individual avail various Government benefits through this scheme.Ration cards
have multiple categories which are issued by the earning capacity of an individual.
A different state has different schemes but is based on an individual’s annual
income.
Ration cards are issued based upon the total members in a family, and each
category of the ration card determines an individual’s entitlement to certain
rationed goods. Individuals with higher earning capacity (as fixed by the respective
state Govt) cannot obtain rations at a subsidised cost.
44
6.3.2 How to apply for a new Ration Card?
Each state Government has prescribed separate application forms which can
be submitted manually or online for obtaining a ration card. Common procedures
that are generally followed in most of the states are given below.
6.3.3 Eligibility
Listed below are the eligibility criteria for obtaining a ration card from the state
government – An Individual:
 Should be an Indian citizen
 Should not hold ration card in other states
 Live and cook separately
 Applicant and member of the family must be close relatives
 Should not possess any other family card in the same state
6.3.4 Documents required
Following are the list of documents to be submitted at the local ration office by
the applicant:
 Completed and signed application form
Identify proof of the applicant can be any of the following:
 Election photo ID card
 Driving license
 Passport
 Any other Govt issued ID card
 Applicant’s current residence proof should be submitted which can be any of
the following document:
 Electricity bill
 Telephone bill
 Latest LPG receipt
 Bank Pass Book
 Rental agreement/ rent paid receipt
 Photograph of the head of the family
 Details about the annual income of the applicant
 Old cancelled/surrendered ration card if any
The applicant is required to pay a basic minimum fee along with the
application form. Once the application is submitted, the file is sent for field
verification.The officer in charge of verification has to inspect and certify the details
submitted by the applicant for further processing.
This inspection has to be carried out generally within 30 days from the date of
submission of the application. Once all the details are verified and confirmed by the
officer, ration card is created and issued to the applicant based on their annual
income.
45
If the application is rejected, a rejection letter is issued with reasons for the
same to the applicant. In case of any false/ misleading information, the applicant
would be liable for criminal prosecution and consequent punishment as prescribed
under the law.
6.3.5 How to transfer Ration Card?
If an individual is shifted or relocated to a different city and the ration card
has to be transferred from one state to another, then the individual has to submit
an application to the nearest ration office in the new jurisdiction.
A written application has to be submitted along with proof of the new address
(documents as listed above), and the necessary application fee has to be paid after
which the transfer is processed.
Similarly, a new ration card is issued or modified when a woman in the family
is married and moves to her husband’s house. For this purpose, the application
has to be submitted to remove her name from the parent’s ration card and to add
her name to the husband’s family card (marriage certificate has to be submitted for
completing this procedure).
6.3.6 Different Types of Ration Cards and Benefits
Different types of ration cards are present in India. The state government
categorises people and issues different ration cards according to the categories. In
2013, The National Food and Security Act (NFSA) was passed to provide a certain
quantity and quality food to people at affordable prices. NFSA provides for two types
of ration cards for all the states in the country
Ration Cards under NFSA, 2013
NFSA provides for ration cards which are issued by the respective state
governments. Distribution of food in fair price shops is according to the quantity
and quality mentioned in NFSA. The different types of ration cards under NFSA are:
Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY)
This type of ration card is given to impoverished families identified by the state
governments. Persons who do not have stable income are issued this card.
Unemployed people, women and old aged people fall under this category. These
card holders are eligible to receive 35kg of food grains per month per family. They
receive foodgrains at the subsidised price of Rs.3 for rice, Rs.2 for wheat and Rs.1
for coarse grains.
Priority Household (PHH)
The families not covered under AAY come under the PHH. The state
governments identify priority household families under the Targeted Public
Distribution System (TPDS) according to their exclusive, inclusive guidelines. The
PHH cardholders receive 5kg of food grains per person per month. Foodgrains are
at the subsidised price of Rs.3 for rice, Rs.2 for wheat and Rs.1 for coarse grains for
these cardholders.
46
Ration Cards under TPDS
Before the introduction of NFSA, the state governments issued ration cards
under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS). After passing NFSA, states
started issuing ration cards under it (which are mentioned above). The state
governments which are yet to enforce the NFSA system, still follow the old ration
cards issued by them under TPDS. They are:
Below Poverty Line (BPL)
Families that have BPL cards are the ones who are living below the poverty line
specified by the state government. BPL families receive 10kg to 20kg food grains per
family per month at 50% of economic cost. The subsidised end retail price for
specified quantities of wheat, rice, sugar and other items vary from state to state.
Each state government fixes different rates per quantity.
Above Poverty Line (APL)
Families that have this card are the ones who are living above the poverty line
as specified by the state government. APL families receive 10kg to 20kg food grains
per family per month at 100% of economic cost. Each state government fixes a
subsidised retail rate for rice, wheat, sugar and kerosene oil for a certain quantity.
Annapoorna Yojana (AY)
AY ration cards are given to older people who are poor and above 65 years.
Cardholders receive 10 kgs of foodgrains per month under this card. State
governments issue these cards to the older people who come under this scheme as
specified by them.
E-ration Cards
Some of the state Governments has introduced E-ration Cards through EPDS
(Electronic Public Distribution System). An advanced Public Distribution System
helps the public to locate the details of the ration goods and its available online
through the EPDS platform.
6.3.7 What is the ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ system?
Under the National Food Security Act, 2013, about 81 crore persons are
entitled to buy subsidized foodgrain — rice at Rs 3/kg, wheat at Rs 2/kg, and
coarse grains at Re 1/kg from their designated Fair Price Shops (FPS) of the
Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS).
Currently, about 23 crore ration cards have been issued to nearly 80 crore
beneficiaries of NFSA in all states and UTs. In the present system, a ration
cardholder can buy foodgrains only from an FPS that has been assigned to her in
the locality in which she lives. However, this will change once the ‘One Nation, One
Ration Card’ system becomes operational nationally. This is how it will work:
Suppose a beneficiary lives in the district of Basti in Uttar Pradesh and
migrates to Mumbai for work. Currently, she is no longer able to purchase
subsidised food grains from a PDS shop in her new locality in Mumbai. However,
under the ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ system, the beneficiary will be able to buy
subsidised food grains from any FPS across the country. The new system, based on
47
a technological solution, will identify a beneficiary through biometric authentication

on electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) devices installed at the FPSs, and enable that
person to purchase the quantity of food grains to which she is entitled under the
NFSA.
6.3.8 Challenges
Prone to corruption: Every state has its own rules for Public Distribution
System (PDS). If ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ is implemented, it will further boost
corruption in an already corrupted Public Distribution System.
The scheme will increase the woes of the common man and, the middlemen
and corrupt PDS shop owners will exploit them.
Tamil Nadu has opposed the proposal of the Centre, saying it would result in
undesirable consequences and is against federalism.
6.3.9 Way Forward
The current migrant crisis should be seen as an opportunity to develop a
national migration policy addressing the challenges faced by migrant workers’
productivity, living conditions and social security.
While this must be done, the government must also fast-track the ONORC
scheme because India’s present rights-based regime is based on the assumption
that people are sedentary.
The ONORC should also include access to health and other things.
6.4 REVISION POINTS
 Procedure for applying ration card
 Available types of ration card
 Dimensions of One Nation and One Ration Card
 What are the different Types of Ration Cards and its benefits?
 How to apply for a new ration card?
6.6 SUMMARY
Ration Card means a document issued by the Food and Supplies Department,
of a State to the beneficiary (residents of the State) for the purchase of essential
commodities under the Public Distribution System from the fair price shop. It is a
must for a State Governments to ensure that no eligible applicant is denied a ration
card under the Public Distribution System
 Find out the documents require for applying new ration card.
 Make an observation about one nation and one ration card and its
feasibility.
 https://epds.nic.in/documents/RCMS-User-Documentation.pdf
 https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/06/19/one-nation-one-ration-card-
scheme-4/
48
6.9 ASSIGNMENT
Write an essay about the significance of the ration card in India?
6.10 REFERENCES
 https://epds.nic.in/documents/RCMS-User-Documentation.pdf
 https://www.insightsonindia.com/2020/06/19/one-nation-one-ration-card-
scheme-4/
Find out the different colours of ration cards, why it has been classified?
6.12 KEYWORDS
 Above Poverty Line – People living above its nationally design and poverty
threshold
 Below poverty line – People living below its nationally design and poverty
threshold
 Priority Household – Households meeting eligibility criteria set by State
Government

49
LESSON – 7
BIRTH AND DEATH CERTIFICATE
7.1 INTRODUCTION
A birth certificate is a vital record that documents the birth of a child. The
term "birth certificate" can refer to either the original document certifying the
circumstances of the birth or to a certified copy of or representation of the ensuing
registration of that birth. Depending on the jurisdiction, a record of birth might or
might not contain verification of the event by such as a midwife or doctor
The phrase death certificate can refer either to a document issued by a medical
practitioner certifying the deceased state of a person or, popularly, to a document
issued by a person such as a registrar of vital statistics that declares the date,
location and cause of a person's death as later entered in an official register of
deaths.
7.2 OBJECTIVES
 This lesson emphasis on procedure of birth certificate
 Throws light on its legal procedure and benefits.
 After reading this lesson, we will become aware of death certificate and its
importance.
 The lesson wills aware students regarding legal procedure to get death
certificate.
 Throws light on documents required to get death certificate.
7.3 CONTENTS
7.3.1 Birth certificate
7.3.2 The Legal Framework
7.3.3 What You Need to Do
7.3.4 What is the process for applying for a Birth Certificate?
7.3.5 What all documents does one require for such an application?
7.3.6 Where is this Birth Certificate required?
7.3.7 Death certificate
7.3.8 Duty to Register
7.3.9 Documents Required
7.3.10 How to Obtain Death Certificate Information
7.3.1 Birth certificate
Birth Certificate is the most important identity document that makes it
possible for anyone in possession of it to benefit from a gamut of services offered by
the Indian Government to its citizens. It becomes necessary to obtain a Birth
Certificate because it serves to establish the date and fact of one’s birth for a whole
range of purposes, like acquiring the right to vote, admission to schools and to the
Government Service, claiming the right to marry at the legally permissible age,
50
settlement of inheritance and property rights, and obtaining Government-issued

identity documents like a driving licence or passport.
7.3.2 The Legal Framework
In India, it is mandatory under the law (as per the Registration of Births &
Deaths Act, 1969) to register every birth/stillbirth with the concerned State/UT
Government within 21 days of its occurrence. The Government accordingly
has provided for a well-defined system for registration of Birth, with the Registrar
General at the centre and the Chief Registrars in the States, running through
district registrars to the village and town registrars at the periphery.
7.3.3 What You Need to Do
To apply for a Birth Certificate, you must first register the birth. The birth has
to be registered with the concerned local authorities within 21 days of its
occurrence, by filling up the form prescribed by the Registrar. Birth Certificate is
then issued after verification with the actual records of the concerned hospital. In
case the birth has not been registered within the specified time of its occurrence,
the certificate is issued after due police verification ordered by the revenue
authorities.
Birth certificates
It is important for you to know the procedure to apply for and obtain a birth
certificate for your child born in India. Birth Certificate is issued by the Municipal
Corporation/Municipal Council in urban areas whereas in rural areas the authority
is the Tehsildar at the Taluka level. The authority at the village level is the Gram
Panchayat Office.
51
7.3.4 What is the process for applying for a Birth Certificate?
Step 1- Get a birth Certificate Registration Form from the registrar’s office
(from your municipal authority).
Step 2- When a child is born in a hospital, the form is provided by the Medical
Officer In-charge.
Step 3- Fill in the form within 21 days of birth of the child.
Step 4- If birth is not registered within 21 days of it’s occurrence, birth
certificate is issued after police verification.
Step 5- Once the verification of the birth records (date, time, place of birth,
parent’s ID proof, nursing home etc.) is done by the registrar, birth certificate is
issued to the applicant.
Step 6- 7 days after applying for birth certificate, follow up with municipal
authority to obtain the birth certificate.
Step 7- By providing a self addressed envelope at the municipality office, the
birth certificate is posted to the respective address within 7–14 working days.
7.3.5 What all documents does one require for such an application?
 Parents birth certificates
 Marriage certificate of the parents
 Proof of birth letter in hospital
 Parents’ identity proof (for verification)
7.3.6 Where is this Birth Certificate required?
 A birth certificate is required for:
 Seeking admission in educational institutes.
 Getting employment.
 Establishing one’s age with any institution.
 Claiming social security benefits (e.g. health schemes).
 Passport Application.
 Immigration needs like applying for Green Card.
 Obtaining certified documents such as Voter’s ID, Driving License, Passport,
Marriage Certificate, etc.
An important question to ponder upon is what happens if a person does not
have a Birth Certificate?
Person without a birth certificate will not be identified as an Indian citizen &
will not be eligible to reap all the benefits/ rights.So, always remember — get your
child’s birth certificate as soon as possible just after his/her birth!!
7.3.7 Death certificate
A Death Certificate is a document issued by the Government to the nearest
relatives of the deceased, stating the date, fact and cause of death. It is mandatory
under the law to register every death with the concerned State Government within
52
21 days of its occurrence. The Registrar General (Centre), Chief Registrars (States),
District Registrars and Town Registrars oversee the administration
7.3.8 Duty to Register
A death can be reported and registered by the head of the family, in case it
occurs in a house; by the medical in-charge if it occurs in a hospital; by the jail in-
charge if it occurs in a jail; and by the headman of the village or the in-charge of
the local police station in case the body is found deserted in that area.
Procedure
The application form in which you are required to apply is usually available
with the area's local body authorities, or with the Registrar who maintains the
Register of Deaths. To obtain the Death Certificate, evidence of death will need to be
provided. This may be a hospital letter where death took place or a certificate from
a civil official who certified the death at either the crematorium or burial grounds.
If a death is not registered within 21 days of its occurrence, permission from
the Registrar/Area Magistrate, along with the fee prescribed in case of late
registration, is required.
7.3.9 Documents Required
Proof of birth of the deceased.
 An affidavit specifying the date and time of death
 A copy of the ration card
 The required fee in the form of court fee stamps
 Person requesting the death certificate is required to provide the evidence of
relationship with the deceased and complete address with nationality
7.3.10 How to Obtain Death Certificate Information
The steps given above are for a person to submit the information of a person's
death in India so that an official government death certificate can be created.If a
person seeks the information from a deceased person's Indian death certificate, if
such an official government document was created, the steps can be more
complicated. Often a person wishes to find the death certificate information of a
deceased ancestor for genealogical research reasons.
A researcher will have to contact the agency in charge of recording death
certificate information in the particular state in India where the person died. The
Chief Registrar's Office or an Area Magistrate's Office in each Indian state or region
within a state has that responsibility. A researcher can find the web site for the
particular state in India by selecting the name of the state on the Indian
Government portal web page "How to Obtain a Death Certificate."[1] Some areas in
India make it possible to request a copy of a death certificate or the information
from a death certificate online through their official government web sites. However,
that is not true for all Indian state or regional governments. There will have to be a
fee paid for the copy of the death certificate or the information from a death
certificate.
53
7.4 REVISION POINTS
The Legal Framework
In India, it is mandatory under the law (as per the Registration of Births & Deaths
Act, 1969) to register every birth/stillbirth with the concerned State/UT Government
within 21 days of its occurrence.
Birth certificates
It is important for you to know the procedure to apply for and obtain a birth
certificate for your child born in India.
Duty to Register
A death can be reported and registered by the head of the family, in case it
occurs in a house; by the medical in-charge if it occurs in a hospital; by the jail in-
charge if it occurs in a jail; and by the headman of the village or the in-charge of
the local police station in case the body is found.
Procedure
The application form in which you are required to apply is usually available
with the area's local body authorities, or with the Registrar who maintains the
Register of Deaths.
1. How can I verify a birth certificate?
2. What is the procedure to get birth certificate?
3. How can I get my birth certificate online?
4. Who needs a death certificate when someone dies?
5. What happens if a death is not registered?
7.6 SUMMARY
A birth certificate is a vital record that documents the birth of a child. The
term "birth certificate" can refer to either the original document certifying the
circumstances of the birth or to a certified copy of or representation of the ensuing
registration of that birth. Depending on the jurisdiction, a record of birth might or
might not contain verification of the event by such as a midwife or
doctorTraditionally births were poorly recorded in India.
For official purposes, other proofs are accepted in India in lieu of the birth
certificate, such as matriculation certificates. Facilities are available to produce a
birth certificate from a passport.
By law since 1969, registration of births is compulsory as per provisions of
Registration of Births & Deaths Act. Birth certificates are issued by the Government
of India or the municipality concerned. Specific rules vary by state, region and
municipality.
In Delhi, for example, births must be registered within 21 days by the hospital
or institution, or by a family member if the birth has taken place at home. After
registration, a birth certificate can be obtained by applying to the relevant
54
authority. Certificates can also be issued under special provisions to adopted

children, and undocumented orphans. Overseas births can also be registered.
Some municipalities, such as the Greater Chennai Corporation allow for fully
digital birth certificates to be applied for, printed, and verified online.
A Death Certificate is a document issued by the Government to the nearest
relatives of the deceased, stating the date, fact and cause of death. It is mandatory
under the law to register every death with the concerned State Government within
21 days of its occurrence. The Registrar General (Centre), Chief Registrars (States),
District Registrars and Town Registrars oversee the administration.
Before issuing a death certificate, the authorities usually require a certificate
from a physician or coroner to validate the cause of death and the identity of the
deceased. In cases where it is not completely clear that a person is dead (usually
because their body is being sustained by life support), a neurologist is often called
in to verify brain death and to fill out the appropriate documentation. The failure of
a physician to immediately submit the required form to the government (to trigger
issuance of the death certificate) is often both a crime and cause for loss of one's
license to practice. This is because of past scandals in which dead people continued
to receive public benefits or voted in elections.
A full explanation of the cause of death includes any other diseases and
disorders the person had at the time of death, even though they did not directly
cause the death.
1. What is birth certificate ?
2. Give any two Benefits of birth certificate ?
3. What is the legal frame work to obtain birth certificate ?
4. Name few documents required for birth certificate?
5. What is death certificate
6. Why need of death certificate
7. Name a competent authority who provides death certificate
8. Documents required for death certificate
1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 10 March 2017. Retrieved 4
April 2017.
2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 10 March 2017. Retrieved 4
April 2017.
3. http://www.bdm.nsw.gov.au/Documents/apply-for-record-a-change-of-
sex.pdf
4. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 April 2017.
Retrieved 4 April 2017.
5. Find Free Death Records gives details on how to apply for death records in
each state.
6. Online Death Indexes and Records lists some online death certificate indexes
55
7. Where to Write for Vital Records (including Death Certificates) from the
National Center for Health Statistics
7.9 ASSIGNMENT
Visit a local maternity hospital to know exact procedure of attaining birth
certificate
Visit any competent authority which issues death certificate, like hospital and
police station.
7.10 REFERENCES
1. GRO (2015). "Information on a birth, marriage or death
certificate". gro.gov.uk. Government UK. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
2. Treasury Solicitor's Department (10 March 2014). "Proof of Identity checklist
for individuals". gov.uk. Government UK. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
3. Births and Deaths Registration Act, 1953, 1 & 2 Eliz. 2, c. 1, accessed
October 2011.
4. GRO (2015). "Ordering a certificate for events which have taken place during
the last 50 years". gro.gov.uk. Government UK. Retrieved 8 September 2015.
5. en:Edict_of_Versailles, oldid 911039343
6. "Legifrance translations | Légifrance, le service public de la diffusion du
droit". www.legifrance.gouv.fr. Retrieved 26 October 2019.
7. Jump up to:a b "Department of Dte.of Economics & Statistics".
www.delhi.gov.in. Government of NCT of Delhi. Archived from the original on
18
8. Mortality Data from the U.S. National Vital Statistics System - See Methods -
Data collection - for copies of death certificates and how to fill them.
9. Magrane BP, Gilliland MGF, and King DE. Certification of Death by Family
Physicians. American Family Physician 1997 Oct 1;56(5):1433-
8. PMID 9337765
10. Swain GR, Ward GK, Hartlaub PP. Death certificates: Let's get it right.
American Family Physician February 15, 2005 PMID 15742904
1. Write a note on birth certificate.
2. Help your family member to obtain birth certificate.
3. Make a list of benefits of the death certificate.
4. Make list of documents required for death certificate.
7.12 KEYWORDS
1. Legal – lawful
2. Register – list
3. Authority – specialist
4. Framework - outline

56
LESSON – 8
VOTER REGISTRATION
8.1 INTRODUCTION
Voter registration (or enrollment) is the requirement that a person otherwise
eligible to vote register (or enroll) on an electoral roll before they will be entitled or
permitted to vote. Such enrollment may be automatic or may require application
being made by the eligible voter. The rules governing registration vary between
jurisdictions. Some jurisdictions have "election day registration" and others do not
require registration, or may require production of evidence of entitlement to vote at
time of voting. In some jurisdictions registration by those of voting age is
compulsory, while in most it is optional. In jurisdictions where registration is
voluntary, an effort may be made to encourage persons otherwise eligible to vote to
register, in what is called as a voter registration drive.
8.2 OBJECTIVES
 This lesson throws light on the voter registration process.
 After completing the lesson students will become fully aware of procedure
and benefits of voter registration.
8.3 CONTENTS
8.3.1 Election Commission of India (ECI)
8.3.2 Voter Education
8.3.3 Who can become a voter?
8.3.4 Electoral Rolls
8.3.5 Registration of name in Electoral Roll
8.3.6 Grievance redressal mechanisms
8.3.1 Election Commission of India (ECI)
Election Commission of India is a permanent Constitutional Body. The
Election Commission was established in accordance with the Constitution on 25th
January 1950. The Constitution of India has vested in the Election Commission of
India the superintendence, direction and control of the entire process for conduct of
elections to Parliament and Legislature of every State and to the offices of President
and Vice-President of India.
8.3.2 Voter Education
Voters’ Participation in the democratic and electoral processes is integral to
the successful running of any democracy and the very basis of wholesome
democratic elections. Recognizing this, Election Commission of India, in 2009,
formally adopted Voter Education and Electoral participation as an integral part of
its election management.
8.3.3 Who can become a voter?
Every Citizen who is 18 years old on the qualifying date (1st January of the
concerned year, unless disqualified is eligible to be enrolled)
57
Enrollment only at ordinary place of residence.

Enrollment only at one place.
8.3.4 Electoral Rolls
The names of eligible electors ordinarily residing in an assembly constituency,
are enlisted in the voters list by the registering authority, these lists are called
Electoral Roll of that constituency.
8.3.5 Registration of name in Electoral Roll
One has to file the application for the purpose, in prescribed Form 6, before
the Electoral Registration Officer / Assistant Electoral Registration Officer of the
constituency within which the place of ordinary residence of the applicant falls. The
application accompanied by copies of the relevant documents can be filed in person
before the concerned Electoral Registration Officer / Assistant Electoral
Registration Officer or sent by post addressed to him/her or can be handed over to
the Booth Level Officer of the respective polling area, or can even be filed online on
website of Chief Electoral Officer of the concerned state or website of Election
Commission of India. While filing Form 6 online, the copies of necessary documents
should also be uploaded.
The options for an eligible voter to submit Form 6 are as follows.
Option I - Online application
Apply online for new registration. - Application for Inclusion of Name in
Electoral Roll for First time Voter OR on Shifting from One Constituency to Another
Constituency. The documents required to be uploaded are One recent passport size
coloured photograph Proof of residence (such as Aadhaar, driving license, passport,
bank pass book, any postal letter received in your name on your address etc). In
case you are a student residing in a Hostel of your University / Institute or
elsewhere (e.g. PG) etc, then please get a Declaration in the proforma at Annexure
One (click here also) to Form 6.
Proof of age, such as birth certificate, school leaving certificate etc. However
this is only required if you are between 18 and 21 years of age.
Also, you can use Voter Helpline App to verify your name in Electoral Roll or
register online.
Option II - Download Form 6 from the website and send it by post.
Fill two copies of Form 6. This form is also available free of cost in offices of
Electoral Registration Officers / Assistant Electoral Registration Officers and Booth
Level Officers. The application accompanied by copies of the relevant documents
can be filed in person before the concerned Electoral Registration Officer /
Assistant Electoral Registration Officer or sent by post addressed to him or can be
handed over to the Booth Level Officer of your polling area.
58
Call 1950 for any help (Please add your STD code before 1950).
Documents
Proof of age Proof of residence
There are many suggested documents There are many documents suggested to
suggested for submission of proof of prove your place of residence and you
age. You can choose any one of the can choose any one of the following:-
following:-
Birth certificate issued by a Municipal
Bank / Kisan / Post Office current Pass
Authority or district office of the
Book, or
Registrar of Births & Deaths or Baptism
certificate; or Applicant’s Ration Card / Passport /
Driving license / Income Tax Return
Birth certificate from the school
filed or Assessment Order, or
(Govt./Recognized) last attended by the
applicant or any other recognized Latest Water / Telephone / Electricity /
educational institution; or Gas Connection Bill for that address,
either in the name of the applicant or
If a person is class 10 or more pass, he
that of his / her immediate relation like
should give a copy of the mark sheet of
parents etc. or
class 10 or 12, if it contains date of
birth as a proof of date of birth. Postal department’s post received /
delivered in the applicant’s name at the
Mark sheet of class 8 if it contains date
given address.
of birth; or
Mark sheet of class 5 if it contains date
of birth; or
A declaration in prescribed format made
by either of his parents if the person is
not educated till class 10 (in those cases
where parent himself for verification
before BLO/ERO/AERO); or
A certificate of his age given by a
sarpanch of the concerned Gram
Panchayat or by a member of the
concerned Municipal Corporation /
Municipal Committee, the person is not
educated till class 10 and both the
parents are not alive.
Any other Government document
showing age e.g. Passport.
Deletion of name or Correction, if required

If you have already registered as a voter, election commission of India provides
the other facilities to voter in case he/she has shifted to other polling, name
correction transposition of entry in electoral rolls and including service voter facility
also.
59
1. Application for deletion of name
If a voter has shifted to other polling area or constituency or they have died or
wrong entry have been done then you can submit application for their name
deletion using Form 7.
Apply online for Enrolment, Modification, Deletion and change of address in
electoral roll
2. Application for Name Correction
If there is an error in (i.e., any mistake in Name, Father’s Name or age) in
electoral rolls or in your Electoral Photo Identity Card (EPIC) then you can submit
application to do necessary correction
Use Form No. 8 to modify the wrong entry
Submit Xerox copy of birth certificate as a proof of identity
Correction of entries in electoral roll- Application for correction to particulars
entered in electoral roll
3. Application for transposition of entry in electoral rolls
If your house has been shifted in other polling area or constituency, then there
is need to transposition your entry in the electoral roll of that area Use Form No. 8A
for this purpose Enclose Xerox copy of address proof (i.e., Current Passbook of
Bank/Post office or Ration card/Passport/Driving License/Income Tax Assessment
order or latest Water/Telephone/Electricity/Gas connection bill for that address
(either in the name of the applicant or that of his/her parents name, etc.) or Postal
department’s posts received/delivered in the applicant’s name at the given address
Application for transposition of entry in electoral roll (in case of Shifting from
One Place of Residence to Another Place of Residence within Same Constituency)
Application Form
For inclusion of names -Form No. 6
For inclusion of names for overseas electors Form- 6A
For any objection on inclusion of names Form- 7
For correction of entries in the Electoral Rolls Form- 8
For transposition of entry in electoral roll Form- 8A
Appointment of proxy by classified service voter to give vote / Revocation of
appointment of proxy or Appointment of substitute proxy by classified service voter
to give vote. Form- 13F & G
Check your name in Electoral Rolls
Search the name in Electoral List - Using the National Voter Service Portal
Use Voter Helpline App to verify your name in Electoral Roll or register online.
Visit https://electoralsearch.in/ to see if you are registered to vote
Call 1950 for any help (Please add your STD code before 1950).
60
Every State Election Commission has made available “Electoral Rolls” online
for public use. You can search yours and your family members name in electoral
rolls, whether that has included or not.
Select your state to search your name in Electoral Rolls and for other information
Andman& Nicobar Andhra Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh Assam
Bihar Chandigarh
Chhattisgarh Dadra & Nagar Haveli
Daman & Diu NCT of Delhi
Goa Gujarat
Haryana Himachal Pradesh
Jammu & Kashmir Jharkhand
Karnataka Kerala
Lakshadweep Madhya Pradesh
Maharashtra Manipur
Meghalaya Mizoram
Nagaland Odisha
Puducherry Punjab
Rajasthan Sikkim
Tamil Nadu Tripura
Uttarakhand Uttar Pradesh
West Bengal Telangana

8.3.6 Grievance redressal mechanisms
If you have any grievance in regard to electoral roll, Electors Photo Identity
Card or any other election related matter you may approach following Officers:-
Chief Electoral Officer---At the State Level
District Election Officer---At the District Level
Returning Officer ---At the Constituency Level
Assistant Returning Officer---At Taluka/Tahsil Level
Electoral Registration Officer---At the Constituency Level
Presiding Officer--- At Polling Station
Zonal Officer ---For a group of Polling stations
61
Detailed addresses are available on the websites of the CEOs of respective

States/UTs and website links are given in table.
During every election, the Commission appoints observers who are senior civil
service officers from outside the state. If you have any grievances or problems, you
should approach them.
8.4 REVISION POINTS
Election Commission of India (ECI)
Election Commission of India is a permanent Constitutional Body. The
Election Commission was established in accordance with the Constitution on 25th
January 1950.
Voter Education
Voters’ Participation in the democratic and electoral processes is integral to
the successful running of any democracy and the very basis of wholesome
democratic elections.
Electoral Rolls
The names of eligible electors ordinarily residing in an assembly constituency,
are enlisted in the voters list by the registering authority, these lists are called
Electoral Roll of that constituency.
1. Define election commission ?
2. Enlist benefits of voter registration?
3. Define process of voter registration?
8.6 SUMMARY
Voter registration (or enrollment) is the requirement that a person otherwise
eligible to vote register (or enroll) on an electoral roll before they will be entitled or
permitted to vote. Such enrollment may be automatic or may require application
being made by the eligible voter. The rules governing registration vary between
jurisdictions. Some jurisdictions have "election day registration" and others do not
require registration, or may require production of evidence of entitlement to vote at
time of voting. In some jurisdictions registration by those of voting age is
compulsory, while in most it is optional. In jurisdictions where registration is
voluntary, an effort may be made to encourage persons otherwise eligible to vote to
register, in what is called as a voter registration drive.
Registered persons may need to re-register or update their registration if they
change residence or other relevant information. In some jurisdictions, when a
person registers a change of residence with a government agency, say, for a driver's
license, the government agency may forward the information to the electoral agency
to automatically update the voter registration information.
Even in countries where registration is the individual's responsibility, many
reformers, seeking to maximize voter turnout, argue for a wider availability of the
required forms, or more ease of process by having more places where they can
register. The United States, for example, the National Voter Registration Act of
1993 ("Motor Voter Law") and similar laws require states to offer voter registration
62
at motor vehicle departments (driver's license offices) as well as disability

centers, public schools, and public libraries, in order to offer more access to the
system. State authorities are also required to accept mail-in voter registrations.
Many jurisdictions also offer online registrations.
1. What is voter identity card ?
2. What is the eglibilityof voter registration?
3. Name authority which controls voter registration?
1. Electoral roll
2. Electronic identification
3. Electronic poll book
4. Voter ID laws
8.9 ASSIGNMENT
Students are advised to visit a local [BLO] block level officer to get information
regarding voter registration
8.10 REFERENCE
1. "Right to Vote and Compilation of the voting register". Vaalit. Retrieved 17
October2018.
2. Legislative Council. "Paragraph 9" (PDF). Retrieved 4 August 2010.
3. Making electoral operations public ( ... ) gives a supervisory role and
participation to the candidate, the party representatives and, albeit in a
milder form, the same voters: Buonomo, Giampiero (2000).
"Elezionicontestate, analisivoto per votosullavolontàdell'elettore". Diritto &
Giustiziaedizione online. Archived from the original on 24 March 2016. –
via Questia (subscription required)
4. Valgloven §2, (Norwegian.) "Stemmerett" means right to vote while
"stemmeplikt" means that voting is compulsory.
5. Peru: voting is obligatory
6. http://www.juntaelectoralcentral.es/cs/jec/informacion/enlaces/Electores
7. EURIM (May 2011). "INDIVIDUAL VOTER REGISTRATION – LESSONS FROM
OVERSEAS" (PDF). Information Governance Individual Voter Registration
Subgroup Status Report. EURIM (Information Society Alliance). Retrieved 9
June 2012.
1. Write a paragraph on voter registration and highlight its importance.
2. Enlist some benefits of voter registration.
8.12 KEYWORDS
1. Enrollment – membership
2. Registration – record-keeping
3. Electoral – democratic
4. Eligibility – admissibility

63
LESSON – 9
VOTER IDENTITY CARD
9.1 INTRODUCTION
A Voter ID card, also known as the Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) is a
photo identity card that is issued by the Election Commission of India to all
individuals who are eligible to vote.
The primary purpose of this card is to improve the accuracy of the electoral
roll and to help prevent cases of electoral fraud. Additionally, it also serves as an
identification proof when individual’s cast their vote. This card is commonly known
by other names such as an election card, voter’s card, Voter ID, etc.
9.2 OBJECTIVES
 This lesson enable readers to know voter ID properly
 Gives Awareness of Election Commission of India.
 This will aware student’s that voter ID acts eligibility and procedure.
9.3 CONTENTS
9.3.1 Voter ID card
9.3.2 How to apply for a Voter ID Card?
9.3.3 Offline Voters ID Method
9.3.4 Semi-Online Election ID
9.3.5 Documents Required For Voter ID Card
9.3.6 Voter ID Card Eligibility
9.3.7 How to Register for Voter ID?
9.3.8 Track Voter ID Application Status Online
9.3.9 What to do if your Voter ID card is not received
9.3.10 How to Verify Voter ID?
9.3.11 Voter ID Card Correction in Electoral roll
9.3.12 How to vote without Voter ID Card?
9.3.13 Fake or Defunct Voter ID Cards
9.3.14 Fields Included In a Voter ID Card
9.3.15 Uses of a Election Card or Voter ID Card
9.3.16 Why Is It Important To Have?
9.3.17 Why should you vote?
9.3.18 Things to keep in mind while applying for a New Voter ID
9.3.19 Know more about Voter ID Pages
64
9.3.1 Voter ID card
A Voter ID card, also known as the Electors Photo Identity Card (EPIC) is a
photo identity card that is issued by the Election Commission of India to all
individuals who are eligible to vote.
roll and to help prevent cases of electoral fraud. Additionally, it also serves as an
identification proof when individual’s cast their vote. This card is commonly known
by other names such as an election card, voter’s card, Voter ID, etc.
India is one of the world’s largest democratic countries, which constitutes of
millions of people. Given the diversity that the country sustains, there are
innumerable political parties that have been formed in every state, district or town.
Elections are an elaborate affair in India and also a very integral part of the
democracy. Elections in India are held once every 5 years. As responsible citizens of
the nation, it is our duty to exercise our right to vote. However, since it involves
very large part of the population, elections are never an easy affair. There are
innumerable instances of electoral fraud that take place during elections, beside
many other such malpractices. Hence, to smoothen things to an extent, the
Election Commission of India has introduced the system of Voter ID cards.
9.3.2 How to apply for a Voter ID Card?
Customers can apply for their voter ID either online, offline or through semi-
online methods.
Voter Card Online Method:
Citizens can follow the method mentioned below to apply for a Online Voter ID:
 Applicant have to visit the national website of election commission and click
on National Voters’ Services Portal.
 On clicking, citizens will be directed to a new page, where they have to click
on ‘Apply online for registration of new voter id’.
 The online form will open and applicants have to fill in all the required
details. Form 6 is divided into 4 sections and the applicant has to fill in all of
them.
 After filling in the details, applicants can click on ‘Submit’. If they have not
completed the form and wish to finish it later, they can click on ‘Save’ and if
they want to change the entire information, they can click on ‘Reset’. There
is a upload button on the top of the form, which applicants can use to
upload all the required documents.
 In addition to this, they have to also provide a photo. After all the documents
are uploaded, applicants will be sent a reference number through which they
can check Voter ID Status
9.3.3 Offline Voters ID Method:
If customers cannot or do not want to apply online, then they can follow the
method mentioned below to apply for a voter ID offline:
 Applicants have to visit the State Election office and request for a Form 6.
65
 After filling in the necessary details and providing all relevant documents
such as Identity proof and address proof, customers can submit the form to
the office and after verification of all details, customers will be issued with
the Election ID after a specified period of time.
9.3.4 Semi-Online Election ID:
Citizens can apply for a voter ID using semi-online method as well. To apply,
they have to:
 Visit the national election commission or state election commission website
and download Form 6.
 Fill the form with relevant details along with the required documents.
 Submit the form at the Election Office by either post or in person.
Voter ID is only issued after necessary verification of all documents and details
provided by the applicant.
9.3.5 Documents Required For Voter ID Card
While applying for a Voters ID, you have to submit the following documents:
 Identity Proof.
 Address Proof.
 Photograph.
9.3.6 Voter ID Card Eligibility
In order to apply for/obtain a Voter’s ID card, individuals must conform to the
following criteria:
 Applicant must not be below 18 years of age.
 However, applicants who belong to any specified special category and who
are financially bankrupt, (even if they are above 18 years of age) are not
eligible to apply for a Voter Id card.
9.3.7 How to Register for Voter ID?
Customers can register for a Voter ID by following the steps mentioned in the
application process above. Applicants can register themselves as voters by
procuring Form 6 and filling up the form. This form will have to be submitted either
online or at one of the Electoral Offices along with the necessary documents. Once
everything has been verified, customers will receive their Voter ID by post.
Customers are advised to check their Voter ID for mistakes once they receive this
document so as to prevent issues later on.
Online Voter Registration
The online registration process for a Voter ID is much simpler and easier
compared to filling up complex forms and waiting in the queue for hours. An
individual can visit the website of Election Commission of India (ECI) and follow few
steps to apply for a Voter ID Card. There are many Indian citizens who are still not
aware of this facility. When you choose the traditional method of the application
process, chances are you will discover spelling or numerical mistakes in your Voter
ID at a later stage. The online application is far superior, faster, and a simpler
method of application that lets you track the status as well.
66
The Voter ID is a necessity for the upcoming assembly elections. If you do not
have a Voter ID card, you can follow these instructions for the application
procedure:
 Visit the National Voters' Services Portal's website http://www.nvsp.in/
 Choose form 6 provided under the 'Forms for registration in E-Roll' option on
the left side of the screen
 Under 'National Services' Click on 'Apply online for registration of new voter'
 Choose the name of the State and Assembly Constituency based on your
locality
 Enter your Personal Detail:
 Name
 Gender
 Date of Birth
 Place of Birth
 Father's/Mother's/ Husband's Name
 Address
 Family member's details (if they already have a Voter ID Card)
 Provide scanned copy of the following documents:
 Your photograph
 Identity proof
 Address proof
 Enter the Declaration Details:
 Click 'Save' to continue with the edits later or 'Submit'
Once you have submitted your application, you will be provided with an
application reference ID. You will need to make a note of the ID to track the status
of your application. You will also receive a text message with the ID for your
reference. Based on your application, a verification will be carried out by the ECI's
representative to approve your application.
9.3.8 Track Voter ID Application Status Online
Citizens can track the status of their application on the website of the State
Election Commission. All Indians states have a State Election Commission, which
means that every state has an official CEO website. On this website, applicants can
track the status of their Voter’s ID application.
To track the status, they have to:
 Visit the electoral CEO official website.
 Click on ‘Know the Status of Your Application for Enrolment'. A separate
window will open asking for some basic details of the form such as the Form
number.
 You can also apply on the National Voters’ Services Portal and click on
‘Search your Name in electoral roll’. When the link opens, you will get 2
options to track your application:
67
 First Option – Write and submit the application number or EPIC

number and state number. This will help you get your EPIC card
number.
 Second Option – Submit some details to get your Voter ID card status.
You have to enter the following details:
 Name
 Date of birth
 Gender
 State
 Father’s name
 District constituency
Applicants can also use their reference id to track their application status on
the National Voters’ Services Portal.
9.3.9 What to do if your Voter ID card is not received?
If you haven’t received the Voter ID Card or any notification, please follow the
steps to check the status:
 Visit - NVSP Online Application Status Portal
 Enter your reference number for online application (received while submitting
form 6)
 Click ‘Track Status’
 You will see the status of your application
If the verification process is taking time and you haven’t received the card after
the application, you are recommended to visit the DEO with your reference number.
9.3.10 How to Verify Voter ID?
Customers can verify their Voter ID by using their Voter ID number. In case
they suspect that their ID is fake or defunct, they can always verify the same both
online or offline. They will have to visit the official website of the Chief Electoral
Officer of their state, and click on the relevant link, provide their Voter ID details.
By doing so, they can check if their name is present in the electoral roll. This can
also be done offline wherein customers can repeat the above procedure at the
Election Commission’s Office. Customers are also advised to ensure that they have
their Application number that they would have received at the time of applying for
their Voter ID, in case they wish to verify certain details at a later date.
9.3.11 Voter ID Card Correction in Electoral roll
ECI provides all eligible voters a Voter ID card which has details like their
name, address, etc. The number of voters in a particular constituency are reflected
in the electoral roll, and any mistakes which are in your card are likely to show up
in the list as well. Individuals who wish to change/correct their name in their voter
ID can do so by making use of certain forms which the ECI has created.
If your name is wrong, all you need to do is fill out Form 8, highlighting the
corrections to be made in your voter ID. This form needs to be submitted along with
68
relevant supporting documents to the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) of your

assembly constituency. Once submitted, the ERO will take relevant steps to ensure
corrections are incorporated into your voter ID.
The form can be downloaded from the official website of the Election
Commission of India, or one could request for changes by submitting it online as
well.
9.3.12 How to vote without Voter ID Card?
To be eligible to vote in India, a person has to register himself or herself as a
registered voter. The person can either register for the same offline or can visit the
election commission website and get registered there. If the person is already a
registered voter, then he or she can vote without the voter ID card. The following list
of documents are accepted in case the person does not have his or her voter ID:
 Passport
 Driving license
 Service Identity Cards with photographs issued to employees by Central,
State Govt, Public Sector Undertakings, Public Limited Companies.
 Passbooks with Photograph issued by Bank or Post Office
 PAN card
 Aadhar card
 Smart Card issued by Registrar General of India(RGI) under the National
Population Register
 Pension order with a photo
 MNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act Job
Card
 Health Insurance Smart Card issued under the scheme of the Ministry of
Labour
9.3.13 Fake or Defunct Voter ID Cards
Like many other documents, fake or defunct Voter Id cards are also quite
prevalent in India. These cards have little or no reliability and cannot be used by an
individual to cast a vote. However, these cards are often misused for other purposes
where a personal identification is required, for instance, to purchase a SIM card.
9.3.14 Fields Included In a Voter ID Card
A voter ID card is an efficient and widely accepted form of personal
identification in India. Not only does it facilitate one to cast their vote during an
election but also acts as an identity proof and address proof for a variety of
purposes. This card is issued by the Election Commission of India to all eligible
Voters and comprises of the following fields:
 A hologram sticker.
 Serial number.
 Photograph of the card holder.
 Name of elector / card holder.
69
 Card holder’s parent’s Name.

 Card holder’s gender.
 Elector’s / card holder’s age as on the date of issue of the card.
Elector / card holder’s complete residential address is provided on the rear
side of the card, along with the signature of the issuing authority.
9.3.15 Uses of a Election Card or Voter ID Card
The Voter ID card is of great use to every Indian citizen for a variety of reasons:
 The card serves as an accepted form of personal identity.
 The Voter ID Card acts as an acknowledgement that the card holder is a
registered voter.
 The card includes several identification features like the applicant’s
signature, photograph, fingerprints, etc., which provide added assurance for
the card holder.
 In case of an election, the card carries provisions (by way of marking) to
prevent the holder from voting multiple times.
 The Voter ID card can be designed to suit electoral requirements of a
population with low literacy population.
 It is especially helpful as a form of identification for voters with no fixed
address.
9.3.16 Why Is It Important To Have?
The Voter ID Card is an important document for Indian citizens for a variety of
reasons. Some of them are:
 Proof of Identity – The Voter ID card is an important document for Indian
citizens as it is a valid form of an identification proof. The Voter ID card is
accepted at various offices and institutions that require the individual to
furnish a valid form of identification, like insurance companies, online travel
companies, gas companies, banks, etc. Also, almost all government run
agencies, insurance providers, claim firms, mortgage providers like banks
ask applicants to provide a Voter ID number in order to process their
request.
 Casting Votes – The Voter ID card is essential if you wish to cast your vote
during any election. If you hold a valid Voter ID card and your name is
present in the electoral roll of your local area, you can cast your vote.
 Registration In Electoral Roll Of A Non-Domicile State – The Voter ID
serves yet another purpose of allowing individuals to register their name in
the electoral roll of a state other than their state of domicile. This is
especially helpful if a person has migrated from another state and wishes to
enrol in the electoral list of his local area / constituency.
9.3.17 Why should you vote?
Voting is the right of every Indian citizen and as citizens living in a democratic
society, voting is essential to maintain the tenets of this type of rule. Voting ensures
that the leader at the centre or state is someone who is trusted by citizens and is
believed to be capable by all citizens. The voting process is carried out in different
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stages, right from panchayat elections to the elections conducted to choose a Prime
Minister for the country.
However, in order to vote, customers must be eligible. In India, citizens above
the age of 18 can vote, regardless of caste and gender. In addition to this they must
also possess a Voter ID without which they cannot vote. This is a document that
serves as an Identity proof as well as Address proof. However, these cards are not
issued to those who are bankrupt or mentally challenged.
9.3.18 Things to keep in mind while applying for a New Voter ID
Voter ID is one of the most important documents needed for Indian citizens as
it enables them to carry out their voting duty. Voting is the foundation of a
democratic country and it is imperative for every individual to do so. There are
certain things to keep in mind prior to applying for a voter ID.
 Applicants will have to be above the age of 18 as it is legally impossible for
them to vote otherwise.
 They should be of sound mind and should not be bankrupt.
 They should fill out the relevant forms such as Form 6 for application and
ensure that they provide relevant original documents.
 Individuals should apply for a Voter ID only through government websites or
centres or those that have been approved by the government, else they might
just receive a fake document.
 Individuals should ensure that all details in their application forms are
correct, such as the spelling of their name, birth date and so on. If this is
not corrected in the beginning, their Voter ID will have the wrong
information printed on it.
 Applicants should also ensure that the information that is being provided is
legally correct and is not fake.
 Once applicants receive their Voter ID, they will have to check the document
to see if all the information is correct.
9.3.19 Know more about Voter ID Pages
Voter ID Status
Once you have applied for your Voter ID, you can track its status in the easiest
and most convenient ways. Find out how to track the status of your application
through the official ECI website, through SMS or by using the helpline service.
Learn about the information you are required to provide in order to track the status
of your Voter ID. Using these methods, you can find out whether your card is active
or still being processed.
Voter ID Registration
There are multiple avenues for Voter ID registration, knowing when and how to
apply is important to get your Voter ID on time in order to be able to exercise your
right to vote. Find out the different ways to apply online and offline and get your
Voter ID in the easiest way. Procedures are different for general electors, service
electors and NRI electors. Learn about your procedure, documents required and the
correct form to use to get your Voter ID.
71
Apply for Voter ID Card Online
Applying for a Voter ID usually entails a long and tedious process. But the
Government of India has simplified this process by digitizing it and making it
available online. Online applications are faster and more convenient and are
delivered within a month. Learn where to obtain the application form, how to fill it
in, how to upload your documents and finally submit your application. The online
application services can be used by all eligible electors including NRIs.
Voter ID Verification
Once you have applied for your Voter ID, it is important to track its status to
know whether your card has been approved and your name has been added to the
electoral roll. Verification entails a team being sent to your registered address. You
might receive you card without any verification, but if either of the two does not
take place within two months, you need to address the issue promptly. Find out the
methods of verification, tracking your status, and redressal of any issues.
Voters ID Card Forms
Applying for your Voter ID can be a hassle if you get muddled up in the
different forms available and the multiple avenues for registration. There are
various forms available for modifications and changes to the Voter ID details as
well. In order to keep the process clean and simple, you should be aware of which
form you require according to your eligibility. Find out the correct form to use
according to your category and desired request.
How to Apply for Duplicate Voter ID Card
For individuals who have lost or misplaced their Voter ID, or have even have it
stolen from them, procedures are in place to apply for a duplicate card. In case the
card is damaged or unusable, an individual can get a new card by following the
right procedure. Duplicate cards are issued offline as well as through an online
process. Find out which form to use, the documents to submit and how to go about
getting a new Voter ID.
How to Rectify Address in Voter ID
Rectifying a wrong address or any errors made in the spelling of your address
on your Voter ID card can be done through a simple and fast process. A Voter’s ID
allows an individual to participate in the elections but also serves as proof of
identification and residence. It is important to have up to date and accurate details
mentioned on the card. The facility for correcting the registered address is available
online and offline. Find out the step-by-step procedure, which form to use,
documents required and other important details.
Find out Process of Change/Correct Name in Voter ID Card
A change in the name mentioned on the Voter’s ID can be for a number of
reasons that include a legal change in name, change due to marriage or an error
made in the card. A Voter’s ID is one of the important documents of identification
and should be updated as needed. The lengthy process to rectify the name has been
simplified and made more user-friendly by the Government of India. Applicants can
use online and offline methods to get the issue resolved quickly. The step-by-step
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process has been detailed to ensure that applicants use the correct form and
submit the required documents to facilitate smooth processing.
Find Out Process to Change Voter ID Card Address Online
Changing your place of residence will mostly mean you have changed your
constituency as well. In these cases, your name will have to be deleted from the
previous electoral roll and added to the electoral roll of your new constituency. The
facility for updating your new address and shifting your constituency is available
online and offline. All your other details will be retained, but a new Voter ID card
will be issued to you. Learn about the forms required, the procedure and
documents required to finish this process smoothly and without any hassle.
Election Commission
Voting is the basis of a democracy and requires monitoring and laws to govern
its processes and facilities. The Election Commission plays a pivotal role in the
elections of India. The Commission and the Election Laws enable smooth conduct
of elections, settlement of disputes and prevent fraudulent practices. Learn more
about the commission, election laws, electoral rolls, polling, and information related
to the candidates. Be aware of what is considered to be corrupt practices, and the
grievance redressal mechanisms in place to address these issues.
All You Need to know about NRI Voter ID Card
Indians who are currently residing abroad still have the right to vote and the
need to include them into the electoral rolls has been addressed by the
Government. NRIs can apply online, or offline if they are in the country, and get
their Voter ID issued. Know more about the eligibility criteria, the form required,
the documents to be submitted and the process of being included in the electoral
rolls. Currently, NRIs have to be present in their constituency to cast their vote and
cannot do it remotely.
Color Voter ID
Originally, Voter ID cards were simple black and white cards with the details of
the voter, a hologram sticker, a unique serial number and a stamped signature of
the issuing authority. As we move into the digital age of India, these old cards
simply don’t cut it anymore. The Government has introduced color Voter ID cards.
Both new and old applicants can get their color Voter ID. Find out more about how
and where to register for the new card, and the fees payable.
Election Laws in India
When we talk about laws, rules, commission and politics, it can seem
complicated and incomprehensible. But once simplified, it all becomes much easier
to understand. Learn about the Government of India, Election Laws and the
process of our democracy in a more simplified manner. Find out more about the
details of elections that include election requisites, election symbols, the Model
Code of Conduct, and the structure of the Government of India. Redressal of issues,
disputes and doubts related to elections is also an important part of the election
process.
73
About Electoral Roll and how to use it to get details
The Electoral Roll is an integral part of the elections process in India. All
eligible and registered voters are mentioned in the Electoral Roll and this helps in
identifying the voters, tallying results and figuring out the statistics related to
voting. Find out how to search for your name in the Electoral Rolls to ensure you
are a registered voter. You can also learn more about deletion, correction of
transposition of your name in the Electoral Rolls.
All about EVM
EVMs are Electronic Voting Machines that revolutionised the process of voting
in India. EVMs are used in the State and General Elections and helped make the
process more user-friendly, secure and fast. These machines are independent of
electricity and save paper. Even with its own limitations, EVMs helped simplify the
tedious voting process including casting votes, counting, tallying and generating the
results. Find out more about EVMs and how they changed the way India votes.
All you need to know about SVEEP
The right to vote is a privilege that was won after a great struggle by our
freedom fighters. The importance of voting is sometimes lost amongst the hustle
and bustle of life, or there is an a apathy towards it. The Election Commission of
India introduced a programme called SVEEP which is the Systematic Voters’
Education and Electoral Participation. It aims at informing the citizens about the
importance of voting and how each vote plays an pivotal role in the election process.
The programme centers around motivating more citizens to vote. Learn more about
its objectives, structure, process, events and facilities.
9.4 REVISION POINTS
Voter ID
roll and to help prevent cases of electoral fraud.
Voter ID Card Eligibility:
In order to apply for/obtain a Voter’s ID card, individuals must conform to the
following criteria:
 Applicant must not be below 18 years of age.
 However, applicants who belong to any specified special category and who
are financially bankrupt, (even if they are above 18 years of age) are not
eligible to apply for a Voter Id card.
How to Register for Voter ID?
Customers can register for a Voter ID by following the steps mentioned in the
application process, Applicants can register themselves as voters by procuring
Form 6 and filling upto datye details.
1. What is the eligibility of voter ID?
2. Give introduction of election commission of India?
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9.6 SUMMARY
The Indian voter ID card is an identity document issued by the Election
Commission of India to adult domiciles of India who have reached the age of 18,
which primarily serves as an identity proof for Indian citizens while casting their
ballot in the country's municipal, state, and national elections. It also serves as
general identity, address, and age proof for other purposes such as buying a mobile
phone SIM card or applying for a passport. It also serves as a Travel Document to
travel to Nepal and Bhutan by Land or Air It is also known as Electoral Photo
Identity Card (EPIC). It was first introduced in 1993 during the tenure of the Chief
Election Commissioner.
1. Define voter id card?
2. Give any two advantages of voter id card?
3. Name the issuing authority of voter id card?
Electoral roll
Electronic identification
Electronic poll book
Voter ID laws
9.9 ASSIGNMENT
Help your family member to attain a voter id card.
9.10 REFERENCES
1. Any document required for voter id card? "Indian Name Passengers".
boi.gov.in.
2. "Election Commission of India". Eci.nic.in. Retrieved 26 February 2015. New
Delhi, PTI. "New hard plastic voter identity card on the anvil". The Hindu
Business Line. The Hindu Group of Companies. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
3. Singh, B.K. "e-Tender Notice for engaging reputed service provider
firm/company/agency for printing and supply of personalized PVC EPIC
Cards" (PDF). Chief Electoral Officer, Delhi. OFFICE OF THE CHIEF
ELECTORAL OFFICER, DELHI. Retrieved 23 April 2019.
You may compare your state’s registration and voting requirements with those
of other states.
Visit block level officer to discuss more about voter ID.
9.12 KEYWORDS
Innumerable – countless
Malpractice – misconduct
Procedure – way
Legal –legitimate

75
LESSON – 10
PERMANENT ACCOUNT NUMBER
10.1 INTRODUCTION
A permanent account number (PAN) is a ten-character alphanumeric
identifier, issued in the form of a laminated "PAN card", by the income tax
department, to any "person" who applies for it or to whom the department allots the
number without an application.
A PAN is a unique identifier issued to all judicial entities identifiable under
the Indian Income Tax Act, 1961. The income tax PAN and its linked card are
issued under Section 139A of the Income Tax Act. It is issued by the Indian Income
Tax Department under the supervision of the Central Board for Direct Taxes (CBDT)
and it also serves as an important proof of identification.
It is also issued to foreign nationals (such as investors) subject to a valid visa,
and hence a PAN card is not acceptable as proof of Indian citizenship. A PAN is
necessary for filing income tax returns.
10.2 OBJECTIVES
 After completing this lesson, students will be able to
 Explain the PAN registration requirements and process in the country.
 Complete a PAN registration form, and
 Mail in PAN registration cards if students qualify for PAN.
10.3 CONTENTS
10.3.1 A permanent account number (PAN)
10.3.2 The PAN structure is as follows
10.3.3 Provisions
10.3.4 Obtaining a PAN
10.3.5 Operating model
10.3.6 PAN for foreign citizens
10.3.7 Fake PAN cards
10.3.1 A permanent account number (PAN)
It is a ten-character alphanumeric identifier, issued in the form of a laminated
"PAN card", by the income tax department, to any "person" who applies for it or to
whom the department allots the number without an application.
A PAN is a unique identifier issued to all judicial entities identifiable under
the Indian Income Tax Act, 1961. The income tax PAN and its linked card are
issued under Section 139A of the Income Tax Act. It is issued by the Indian Income
Tax Department under the supervision of the Central Board for Direct Taxes (CBDT)
and it also serves as an important proof of identification.
76
It is also issued to foreign nationals (such as investors) subject to a valid visa,

and hence a PAN card is not acceptable as proof of Indian citizenship. A PAN is
necessary for filing income tax returns
The PAN (or PAN number) is a ten-character long alpha-numeric unique
identifier.
10.3.2 The PAN structure is as follows
AAAPL1234C:
The first five characters are letters (in uppercase by default), followed by four
numerals, and the last (tenth) character is a letter.
The first three characters of the code are three letters forming a sequence of
alphabets letters from AAA to ZZZ
The fourth character identifies the type of holder of the card. Each holder type
is uniquely defined by a letter from the list below:
A — Association of persons (AOP)
B — Body of individuals (BOI)
C — Company
F — Firm
G — Government
H — HUF (Hindu undivided family)
L — Local authority
J — Artificial juridical person
P — Individual (proprietor)
T — Trust (AOP)
E – LLP (limited liability partnership)
The fifth character of the PAN is the first character of either:
of the surname or last name of the person, in the case of a "personal" PAN
card, where the fourth character is "P" orof the name of the entity, trust, society, or
organisation in the case of a company/HUF/firm/AOP/trust/BOI/local
authority/artificial judicial person/government, where the fourth character is "C",
"H", "F", "A", "T", "B", "L", "J", "G".The last (tenth) character is an alphabetic digit
used as a check-sum to verify the validity of that current code.
10.3.3 Provisions
In recent times, the DOI (date of issue) of the PAN card is mentioned at the
right (vertical) hand side of the photo on the PAN card if issued by NSDL and will
not be mentioned if issued by UTI-TSL.
The central government has introduced a new online service called "Know Your
PAN",to for knowing your PAN number, verify your PANfor new and existing PAN
numbers.
77
Failure to comply with the provisions of Section 139A of Income Tax Act, a
penalty of ₹10,000/- for each default is payable u/s.272B to the assessing officer.
EXCPM6544N
The primary purpose of the PAN is to bring a universal identification to all
financial transactions and to prevent tax evasion by keeping track of monetary
transactions, especially those of high-net-worth individuals who can impact the
economy.
Quoting the PAN is mandatory when filing income tax returns, tax deduction
at source, or any other communication with the Income Tax Department. PAN is
also steadily becoming a mandatory document for opening a new bank account, a
new landline telephone connection / a mobile phone connection, purchase of
foreign currency, bank deposits above ₹50,000, purchase and sale of immovable
properties, vehicles etc.
10.3.4 Obtaining a PAN
Obtaining a PAN may be optional or voluntary like a passport, driving
license, Aadhaar etc. However, its use is mandatory at required places, like PAN for
high-value financial transactions, driving license for motor driving, passport for
foreign travel etc..
One can apply for PAN by submitting the prescribed PAN application to the
authorized PAN agency of the district or through online submission
to NSDL Website, UTI along with 2 recent passport size color photographs, proof of
ID, Address and Date of Birth and fee. In case of re-print (re-issue), a photocopy of
the old PAN is also required. It takes about 10–15 days to receive the card.
A user with an Aadhaar card can also submit e-KYC.
Prescribed PAN application forms
There are two types of PAN applications:
Application for allotment of PAN: This application should be used when the
applicant has never applied for a PAN or does not have PAN allotted to him.
FORM 49AA: - To be filled by foreign citizens
Application for new PAN Card or/and Changes or Corrections in PAN Data: -
Those who have already obtained the PAN and wish to obtain the new PAN card or
want to make some changes/corrections in their PAN data, are required to submit
their applications in the following form prescribed by ITD: 'REQUEST FOR NEW
PAN CARD OR/AND CHANGES OR CORRECTION IN PAN DATA’ - The same
form(49A/49AA) can be used by Indian as well as foreign citizens. A new PAN card
bearing the same PAN but updated information is issued to the applicant, in such a
case.
Pan card allocated date can be checked from official website of UTI. You can
even apply online through pan card seva.
78
10.3.5 Operating model
The issuance of PAN, verification, delivery and maintenance works on public-
private partnership (PPP) model like Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) for reasons of
economy, efficiency, and effectiveness. The reputed entities like NSDL e-Governance
Infrastructure Limited (formerly National Securities Depository Limited) and UTI
Infrastructure Technology Services Limited (UTIITSL) has been entrusted by Income
Tax Department as managed service providers for processing of applications,
collecting, handling and verifying personal documents like proof of ID, age and
address, clarification with the applicants, printing the card and the letter and then
mailing it. The processing agencies obtain the new PAN number online from the
server of the income tax department after successful processing of the application
documents. Some critics in India may call the handling, processing, and delivery of
personal ID and financial documents by private contractors as a violation of
privacy.
One should avail services from the authorised PAN Centres established by
NSDL e-Governance and UTIITSL which have been entrusted by the Income Tax
Department.
NSDL e-Govcentres can be located at TIN website. It is now very easy to apply
online using Aadhaar based eSignature at NSDL e-Gov's website. One can register
first at NSDL e-Gov's website https:// www.onlineservices.nsdl.com/ paam/
endUserRegisterContact.html. After registration, the applicant receives a token
number. One can continue with filling form. The applicant can save the details and
complete the form at his convenience by logging using his/her registered details.
One can upload photo/signature and supporting documents and finally eSign the
application using Aadhaar and OTP. After successful eSign one can download and
keep copy of the signed form for his reference. An acknowledgement receipt and
form is also received through e-mail at registered email ID.
10.3.6 PAN for foreign citizens
PAN is an important document for foreign citizens also, who wish to undertake
business in India or wish to invest in India. Procedure to obtain PAN is same as
applicable for Indian citizens. However, the application is required to be filled using
Form 49AA meant for foreign citizens and submitted at any of the authorized PAN
Service Centre through the authorized representative in India. List of documents
applicable for foreign citizens are given below:
Individuals and HUF
 Documents accepted as proof of identity
 Copy of passport, or Voter's ID card
 Copy of Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card issued by Government of India,
 Copy of Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card issued by Government of India,
 Copy of other national or citizenship Identification Number or Taxpayer
Identification Number duly attested by "Apostille" (in respect of countries
which are signatories to the Hague Convention of 1961) or by the Indian
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Embassy or High Commission or Consulate in the country where the

applicant is located or authorised officials of overseas branches of Scheduled
Banks registered in India (in prescribed format) .
 Documents accepted as proof of address
 Proof of identity documents mentioned above bearing the address of the
applicant or
 Copy of bank account statement in the country residence, or
 Copy of non-resident external (NRE) bank accountstatement in India, or
 Copy of certificate of residence in India or residential permit issued by the
state police authorities, or
 Copy of registration certificate issued by the Foreigner's Registration Office
showing Indian address, or
 Copy of visa granted and copy of appointment letter or contract from an
Indian company and certificate (in original) of Indian address issued by the
employer.
For other than individuals and HUF (including those having no office of their own in India)
Documents accepted as proof of identity and proof of address
Copy of certificate of registration issued in the country where the applicant is
located, duly attested by "Apostille" (in respect of the countries which are
signatories to the Hague Convention of 1961) or by the Indian Embassy or High
Commission or Consulate in the country where the applicant is located or
authorised officials of overseas branches of Scheduled Banks registered in India (in
prescribed format) ; or
Copy of registration certificate issued in India or of approval granted to set up
office in India by Indian Authorities.
At present, PAN Service Centres are located in India only. However, foreign
citizens may find online mode of application more convenient when the klunky web
user interface is working. The online facility allows payment of fees using credit
card option for foreign citizens (but only if they have India based credit card as
international credit cards are not always accepted by the third party fee collectors.)
Unlike most countries, India charges a fee to issue a TIN (PAN ID). The fees charges
are ₹107 if the PAN card is to be received in India and ₹989 if the PAN Card is to be
received at a foreign location. Note that online application only eliminates data
entry errors. One still needs to mail the application with photographs to India-
based centers. The application requires two photographs. One on the top right
requires signature within the box below it. The other one on the top left requires
signature across the photograph (such that part of signature is on the photograph
and part on the form). There is anywhere from 2 to 20 days lag between your
documents reaching the center and the initial processing/verification which only
takes a day. The actual issue of PAN number by the tax department is within 48
hours. The actual PAN card is sent to the overseas address by the
registered/certified mail and may take additional 2 weeks after the issue of the PAN
number which is initially conveyed by email.
80
10.3.7 Fake PAN cards
Although there are only 30 million income tax payers in India, yet there are
170 million genuine PANs issued as of 2014. While the alphanumeric PAN number
is unique, individuals and corporate entities have been able to obtain multiple PAN
cards fraudulently. It is illegal to obtain multiple PANs and there is a penalty
of ₹10,000 (US$140) when caught. In addition, there are fake PAN cards due to
ubiquitous plastic card printers Additionally, illegal immigrants have also got PAN
cards issued to them; most have used the services of PAN card agents.
One should take due care to refrain from using services of tout agents who
claim to provide hand delivery of PAN cards and charge extra. Also, there are
certain sites that have proliferated on the web that provide online PAN Service at
additional charge. However, there are only two authorized entities who are also
authorized to host online PAN application services on behalf of ITD, i.e. NSDL e-
Governance & UTIITSL.
10.4 REVISION POINT
A permanent account number (PAN) is a ten-character alphanumeric
identifier, issued in the form of a laminated "PAN card", by the income tax
department, to any "person" who applies for it or to whom the department allots the
number without an application.
Provisions
In recent times, the DOI (date of issue) of the PAN card is mentioned at the
right (vertical) hand side of the photo on the PAN card if issued by NSDL and will
not be mentioned if issued by UTI-TSL.
The PAN structure is as follows: AAAPL1234C:
1. What does 10 digit PAN number mean?
2. Why is PAN card required?
3. Is Aadhaar card compulsory for PAN card?
10.6 SUMMARY
PAN Card is a Permanent Account Number which consists of 10-digit
alphanumeric characters and is assigned to all taxpayers in India. It is issued under
the Indian Income Tax Act, 1961 by the Indian Income Tax Department under the
supervision of the Central Board for Direct Taxes (CBDT).
Basically, PAN card is an electronic system in which all the tax related
information of a person or company is recorded against a single PAN number. Let
us tell you that two tax paying entities can't have the same PAN Card. For
major financial transaction PAN card is mandatory like for opening a bank account,
sale or purchase of assets etc. That is why PAN card provides the details of the
account holder in a unique way.
1. Define PAN card
2. State benefits of PAN card
3. Name any required document for PAN card
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10.8 ASSIGNMENT
1. Read a text book related to VAT and GST taxes
2. Visit website of income tax department.
1. Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax)
2. Income Tax Department Karnataka & Goa
3. Central Excise (India)
4. Union budget of India
10.10 REFERENCES
1. For the U.S, see Julianna Pacheco and Eric Plutzer, "How State Electoral
Institutions Influence the Electoral Participation of Young Citizens",
Department of Political Science, Penn State University, 2007, i + 18 pp.
2. "Frequently Asked Questions". Archived from the original on 10 June 2010.
Retrieved 4 August 2010.
3. "LEY-18556 01-OCT-1986 MINISTERIO DEL INTERIOR - Ley Chile -
BibliotecadelCongresoNacional". leychile.cl. 1 October 1986. Archived from
the original on 7 April 2012.
4. "Folketing (Parliamentary) Elections Act" (PDF). Ministry of Social Affairs and
the Interior. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 November 2016. Retrieved 7
November 2016.
1. Develop a note on income tax department in India.
2. List out various benefits of PAN card.
10.12 KEYWORDS
Permanent – eternal
Judicial – legal
Numerical – statistical
Revenue – income

82
LESSON – 11
ENROLLING MEMBERSHIP FOR CENTRE AND
STATE GOVERNMENT PROGRAMME
11.1 INTRODUCTION
Indian Government, at all levels, announces Welfare Schemes for a cross
section of the society from time to time. These schemes could be either Central,
State specific or a joint collaboration between the Centre and the States. In this
section, we have attempted to provide you an easy and single point access to
information about several welfare schemes of the Government and their various
aspects including eligible beneficiaries, types of benefits, scheme details etc.
11.2 OBJECTIVES
 The lesson throws light on center and state sponsored schemes for welfare.
 How to enroll in these schemes and beneficiaries of these schemes
 Procedure for registration to center and state schemes.
11.3 CONTENTS
11.3.1 The Central Social Welfare Board
11.3.2 Different Programmes of Government of India are Given Below
11.3.3 Welfare Programmes In Timal Nadu
11.3.4 Chief Minister’s Girl Child Protection Scheme
11.3.5 Puratchi Thalaivar Mgr – Nutritious Meal Programme
11.3.6 Marriage Assistance Schemes
11.3.1 The Central Social Welfare Board
The Central Social Welfare Board was established in 1953 by a Resolution of
Govt. of India to carry out welfare activities for promoting voluntarism, providing
technical and financial assistance to the voluntary organisations for the general
welfare of family, women and children. This was the first effort on the part of the
Govt. of India to set up an organization, which would work on the principle of
voluntarism as a non-governmental organization. The objective of setting up
Central Social Welfare Board was to work as a link between the government and the
people.
 Guidelines for Integrated Development of Commercial Floriculture Scheme
 Social defence schemes of Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
 Schemes and programmes for differently abled by Ministry of Social Justice
and Empowerment
 Information on RashtriyaMadhyamikShikshaAbhiyan
 Information on Child DevelopmentBalikaSamriddhiYojana by the Ministry of
Women and Child Development
 Central Herd Registration Scheme by Department of Animal Husbandry
Dairying & Fisheries
 Information on schemes of animal husbandry
83
 Download forms of schemes for care of older persons

 Prime Minister Rural Development Fellows Scheme
 Information about Jan ShikshanSansthan scheme
 Scheme for financial assistance for promotion and strengthening of regional
and local museums
 Scheme of post-matric scholarships for OBC
 Pradhan Mantri Gram SadakYojana by Ministry of Rural Development
 Information on welfare schemes for Central Reserve Police Force Personnel
 Scholarships Scheme by Centre for Cultural Resources and Training
 Schemes and programmes of Ministry of Rural Development
 Rajiv Gandhi GrameenVidyutikaranYojana
 Information on Naval Group Insurance Scheme by Indian Navy
 Export Promotion Scheme of Central Silk Board
 information on Schemes petrochemical by the Department of Chemical and
Petrochemical
 Information on Vocational training centers in tribal areas
 Application status filed for NHM related schemes to avail subsidy in Kerala
 Schemes by Department of School Education of Tamil Nadu
 Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin Portal
 Information about SwavalambanScheme
 SukanyaSamriddhiYojna
 Rajiv Gandhi Panchayat SashaktikaranAbhiyan (RGPSA) Scheme
 Backward Regions Grant Fund Scheme by Ministry of Panchayati Raj
 Website of Pradhan Mantri Jan-DhanYojana (PMJDY)
11.3.2 Different Programmes of Government of India are given below:
ValmikiAmbedkar Awas Yojana (VAMBAY):
Abhiyan, a component of the scheme. The Central Government provides a subsidy
of 50 per cent, the balance 50 per cent being arranged by the State Government.
SwarnaJayantiShahariRozgarYojana (SJSRY):
alleviation. SJSRY is funded on 75:25 basis between the Centre and the States.
Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY):
AAY launched in December 2000 provides food grains at a highly subsidized
rate of Rs.2.00 per kg for wheat and Rs.3.00 per kg for rice to the poor families
under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS). The scale of issue, which
was initially 25 kg per family per month, was increased to 35 kg per family per
84
month from April 1, 2002. The scheme initially for one crore families was expanded
in June 2003 by adding another 50 lakh BPL Families.
Pradhan Mantri Gram SadakYojana (PMGSY):
The PMGSY, launched in December 2000 as a 100 per cent centrally
Sponsored Scheme, aims at providing rural connectivity to unconnected habitations
with population of 500 persons or more in the rural areas by the end of the Tenth
Plan period. Augmenting and modernizing rural roads has been included as an item
of the NCMP. The programme is funded mainly from the accruals of diesel cess in
the Central Road Fund. In addition, support of the multi-lateral funding agencies
and the domestic financial institutions are being obtained to meet the financial
requirements of the programme.
Prime Minister’s RozgarYojana (PMRY):
PMRY started in 1993 with the objective of making available self-employment
opportunities to the educated unemployed youth by assisting them in setting up
any economically viable activity. While the REGP is implemented in the rural areas
and small towns (population up to 20,000) for setting up village industries without
any cap on income, educational qualification or age of the beneficiary, PMRY is
meant for educated unemployed youth with family income of up to Rs.40, 000 per
annum, in both urban and rural areas, for engaging in any economically viable
activity.
Pradhan MantriGramodayaYojana (PMGY):
PMGY launched in 2000-01 envisages allocation of Additional Central
Assistance (ACA) to the States and UTs for selected basic services such as primary
health, primary education, rural shelter, rural drinking water, nutrition and rural
electrification.
Indira AwaasYojana (IAY):
The Indira AwaasYojana (IAY) operationalised from 1999-2000 is the major
scheme for construction of houses for the poor, free of cost. The Ministry of Rural
Development (MORD) provides equity support to the Housing and Urban
Development Corporation (HUDCO) for this purpose.
SampoornaGrameenRozgarYojana (SGRY):
SGRY, launched in 2001, aims at providing additional wage employment in all
rural areas and thereby food security and improve nutritional levels. The SGRY is
open to all rural poor who are in need of wage employment and desire to do manual
and unskilled work around the village/habitat. The programme is implemented
through the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs).
Swaranjayanti Gram SwarozgarYojana (SGSY):
SGSY, launched in April 1999, aims at bringing the assisted poor families
(Swarozgaris) above the poverty line by organizing them into Self Help Groups
(SHGs) through a mix of Bank credit and Government subsidy.
85
JawaharRozgarYojana (JRY):
JRY was launched as Centrally Sponsored Scheme on 1st April, 1989 by
merging National Rural Employment Programme (NREP) and Rural Landless
Employment Guarantee Programme (RLEGP). Its main objective was generation of
additional gainful employment for the unemployed and under-employed people in
rural areas through the creation of rural economic infrastructure, community and
social assets with the aim of improving the quality of life of the rural poor.
Integrated Rural Development Programme:
The Integrated Rural Development Programme (IRDP) was started in 1980-81
in all blocks of the country and continued as a major self-employment scheme till
April 1, 1999. Then, it was restructured as the Swarnjayanti Gram
SwarozgarYojana (SGSY) which aimed at self-employment of the rural poor. The
objective will be achieved through acquisition of productive assets or appropriate
skills that would generate an additional income on a sustained basis to enable
them to cross poverty line.
Pradhan Mantri Gram SadakYojana:
The primary objective of the PMGSY is to provide Connectivity, by way of an
All-weather Road (with necessary culverts and cross-drainage structures, which is
operable throughout the year), to the eligible unconnected Habitations in the rural
areas, in such a way that all Unconnected Habitations with a population of 1000
persons and above are covered in three years (2000-2003) and all Unconnected
Habitations with a population of 500 persons and above by the end of the Tenth
Plan Period (2007). In respect of the Hill States (North-East, Sikkim, Himachal
Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttaranchal) and the Desert Areas (as identified in the
Desert Development Programme) as well as the Tribal (Schedule V) areas, the
objective would be to connect Habitations with a population of 250 persons and
above.
Rajiv Gandhi GrameenVidutikaranYojana:
Under RGGVY, electricity distribution infrastructure is envisaged to establish
Rural Electricity Distribution Backbone (REDB) with at least a 33/11KV sub-
station in a block, Village Electrification Infrastructure (VEI) with at least a
Distribution Transformer in a village or hamlet, and standalone grids with
generation where grid supply is not feasible.
Subsidy towards capital expenditure to the tune of 90% is being provided,
through Rural Electrification Corporation Limited (REC), which is a nodal agency
for implementation of the scheme. Electrification of un-electrified Below Poverty
Line (BPL) households is being financed with 100% capital subsidy @ Rs.2200/- per
connection in all rural habitations.
RashtriyaSwastha Bima Yojana:
RSBY has been launched by Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government
of India to provide health insurance coverage for Below Poverty Line (BPL) families.
The objective of RSBY is to provide protection to BPL households from financial
liabilities arising out of health shocks that involve hospitalization. Beneficiaries
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under RSBY are entitled to hospitalization coverage up to Rs. 30,000/- for most of
the diseases that require hospitalization. Government has even fixed the package
rates for the hospitals for a large number of interventions. Pre-existing conditions
are covered from day one and there is no age limit. Coverage extends to five
members of the family which includes the head of household, spouse and up to
three dependents. Beneficiaries need to pay only Rs. 30/- as registration fee while
Central and State Government pays the premium to the insurer selected by the
State Government on the basis of a competitive bidding.
The expenditure done on the welfare of the weaker sections of the country
plays a very prominent role in increasing the welfare of these sections
11.3.3 Welfare Programmes in Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is witnessing a vibrant development phase, with the state
government giving special emphasis for the development of the women and children
addressing their concern in a multi phased manner to the social welfare and
nutritious programme department.
The Social Welfare and Nutritious Meal Programme Department of the
Government of Tamil Nadu under the able guidance of the Honble Chief Minister of
Tamil Nadu had always ensured the welfare of the poor, the downtrodden, Women,
Children, Senior Citizens and third genders. Their health, nutrition, education,
protection and development have been improved through various Social Welfare
Schemes. They have also been provided with innumerable opportunities and
facilities to live a dignified life.
The department has initiated, a comprehensive strategy aimed towards the
protection and welfare of girl children and women through schemes like The Chief
Ministers Girl Child Protection Scheme, The Cradle Baby Scheme, Child Adoption,
Marriage Assistance Scheme Free Supply of Sweing Machines and Government
Service Homes and Working Women Hostels to benefit the girl children and women
at large.
Special focus has been given to issues relating to senior citizens and third
genders by implementing schemes like Old Age Homes, Day Care Center and
Integrated Complexes for the Senior Citizens and wide range of services for the
inclusion and livelihood promotion of the third genders.
The Department of Social Welfare is also implementing various Social
Legislations for Women like Child Marriage Prohibition Act-2006 and Dowry
Prohibition Act,1961, Domestic Violence Act,2005, Maintenance and Welfare of
Parents and Senior Citizen’s Act,2007, Sexual Harassment of Women at Work Place
Act,2013. The Department is taking several measures to create awareness among
women and others in the society on these Acts in order to ensure that women
actually benefit from these provisions available for them.
87
SPECILISATIONS
11.3.4 Chief Minister’s Girl Child Protection Scheme
The Chief Minister’s Girl Child Protection Scheme, introduced by the then
Hon’ble Chief Minister of TamilNadu in 1992, is a pioneering and path-breaking
scheme for the welfare of girl child. The Girl Child Protection Scheme is aimed at
preventing gender discrimination by empowering and protecting rights of girl
Children through direct investment from Government.
The scheme aims to:
 Promote enrollment and retention of the girl child in school and to ensure
her education at least up to intermediate level.
 Encourage girls to get married only after the age of 18 years.
 Encourage parents to adopt family planning norm with two girl children.
 Protect the rights of the girl child and provide social and financial
empowerment to girl child.
 Strengthen the role of the family in improving the status of the girl child.
Mode of Deposits under the Scheme
Scheme-I
An amount of Rs. 50,000 is deposited in the name of the girl child born on or
after 01/08/2011, in the form of fixed deposit with the Tamil Nadu Power Finance
and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited, for a family with one girl
child only. The copy of the fixed deposit receipt is given to the family of the girl
child.
Scheme-II
An amount of Rs. 25,000 is deposited in the names of two girl children born on
or after 01/08/2011 in the form of fixed deposit with Tamil Nadu Power Finance
and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited, for a family with two girl
children only. The copy of the fixed deposit receipt is given to the family of the girl
children.
The above deposit is renewed at the end of every 5 years and on completion of
18 years of age the amount deposited along with interest will be given to the girl
child. To get this benefit, the girl child should appear for 10 th standard public
examination. Thus, the matured amount will help the girl child to pursue her
higher education. The new scheme implemented from 01.08.2011 has maturity
benefits as detailed below.
Details of Final Maturity
Sl. Initial Deposit Maturity payable after

Schemes
No. Amount (Rs.) 18 years
1 Scheme-I 50,000 Rs.3,00,232
2 Scheme-II 25,000 Rs.1,50,117

(for each girl child) (for each girl child)
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From the year 2013-14, the benefits provided under the Marriage Assistance
Scheme have also been extended to the beneficiaries under the Girl Child Protection
Scheme who were enrolled in the years from 1992 to 1995.An annual incentive of
Rs.1800 is given to the girl child every year from the 6th year of deposit in order to
meet education expenses.For this scheme, the Annual income limit was enhanced
from Rs. 24,000/- to Rs.72000/- with effect from 14.10.2014 for both Schemes.
Impact of the Scheme
The increasing trend in the female literacy of Tamil Nadu from 64.55% in 2001
to 73.44% in 2011 and the reduction in the dropout rate of girl children can also be
attributed to the scheme. So far 868077 beneficiaries have been benefitted under
this scheme from 1997-2017.
11.3.5 Puratchi Thalaivar MGR – Nutritious Meal Programme
Tamil Nadu is a pioneering State which introduced the Nutritious Meal
program during the year 1982. The objective was to enhance the enrolment of
students and retain the attendance in schools and simultaneously to improve the
nutritional levels among children. A Child who is hungry or ill cannot concentrate
in his/her studies with full attention. Due to this factor a free hot cooked lunch is
being provided to children in Primary and Upper Primary classes up to Tenth
Standard in Government, Government aided Schools, Special Training Centres,
Madarasas and Maktabs supported under SarvaShikshaAbhiyan.
Objectives of the Programme
1. To maximize enrollment and reduce school dropout rates with a view to
universalize elementary education.
2. To provide nutrition to the under fed and under nourished children.
3. To encourage children from disadvantaged backgrounds to attend school
regularly and to help them in attaining formal education.
4. To empower women by offering employment opportunities
Salient Features of the Scheme
i. Primary School children in the age group of 5-9 years and Upper Primary
School children in the age group of 10-15 years are provided with hot cooked
nutritious variety meals inside the school campus itself, for five days a week
for a total of 220 days in a year.
ii. The children enrolled under National Child Labour Project Special Schools in
16 Districts viz., Kancheepuram, Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Namakkal,
Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri, Salem, Coimbatore, Erode, Tiruppur,
Thiruchirappalli, Dindigul, Virudhunagar, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi and
Chennai are also provided with hot cooked nutritious variety meals for 312
days in a year.
iii. Foodgrains (rice) @ 100 gm per child per school day for primary children
(1st stdto 5 th std) and @ 150 gm for upper primary (6 th std to 10th std) is
provided.
iv. Eggs are served to all children from 1st std to 10th std on all 5 working days.
Colouring scheme for eggs for each day of the week, with impression
89
“TamilNaduArasu” (Tamilnadu Government) to prevent pilferage and

staleness.
v. Banana weighing 100 gms is provided for non egg eating children @ Rs. 1.25
per banana.
vi. 20 gms of Black Bengal gram / Green gram is provided to children taking
into consideration the present day protein, vitamins and calorific needs of
the children.
vii. 20 gms of boiled potatoes on all Fridays to supplement carbohydrates.
viii. In order to address iodine and iron deficiency among children and as a part
of health intervention programme, Double Fortified Salt is used for cooking
which prevents iodine deficiency in children thereby preventing goitre.
ix. During important occasions, Sweet Pongal is served to children by using
Jaggery and Ghee.
Beneficiaries in Schools (Nutritious Meal Centres) 2016-17
The total number of beneficiaries in Primary Schools (1 st std to 5 th std) are
26,88,345 covering 26,780 Nutritious Meal Centres.
The total number of beneficiaries in Upper Primary schools (6th std to 8th std)
are 21,10,620 and in respect of 9th and 10 th std are 6,98,066 covering 15,993 Noon
Meal Centres. As regards the National Child Labour Project 8,816 beneficiaries are
covered by 274 Noon Meal Centres. Thus, total number of beneficiaries have been
55,05,847 in 43,047 Noon Meal Centres during the year 2016-17.
Introduction of Variety Meals
As a special nutritional intervention 13 kinds of variety menu with 4 different
kinds of egg masalas were introduced during the year 2013 in one pilot block of
each district. After ascertaining the success of this scheme, the variety meals
programme has been extended to the rest of the blocks in all Districts from
15.8.2014.
Days First and Third Week Second and Fourth Week

Monday Vegetable Biriyani with Pepper Egg SambarSadham (Bisibelabath)
with Onion Tomato Masala Egg.
Tuesday Black Bengal Gram Pulav Mixed Meal Maker with Vegetable
(bfh©il¡fliyòyÎ) with Tomato Masala Rice and Pepper Egg
Egg.
Wednesday Tomato Rice with Pepper Egg Tamarind Rice with Tomato
Masala Egg
Thursday Rice, Sambar and Boiled Egg Lemon Rice, Sundal and Tomato
Egg
Friday Curry Leaf Rice / KeeraiSadham Rice, Sambar and Boiled Egg with
with Masala Egg and Chilly Fried Fried Potato.
Potato.
90
Nutritional Norms
GOI Norms State Govt Provision
Sl. Protein
Stage
No Calories
Calories (In Kcl) (In Protein (In gms)
(In Kcl)
gms)
1. Primary 450 12 557.00 18.92
2. Upper Primary 700 20 735.00 22.77
Training
All Noon Meal Employees were given with training for the preparation of variety
meals by 20 expert Chefs from Chennai headed by Chef. Damodaran. In vernacular
language booklets have been printed and distributed to the Noon Meal Employees.
Food Grain Management
Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation supplies rice, dhal, oil and salt at the
doorsteps of the Noon Meal Centers in order to ensure quality and quantity.
Maintaining 45 days buffer stock at NMC level to provide meal without any
delay
Fund Flow Mechanism
The Noon Meal Organizers are permitted to purchase vegetables and
condiments locally using the funds credited as advance grant into their bank
account through Electronic Clearance System (ECS). From the year 2012, an
amount of Rs.1.17 per primary school child and Rs. 1.27 per Upper Primary school
child is provided to the Noon Meal Organizers towards this purpose.
Government of India provides cooking cost (excluding the labour and
administrative charges) @ Rs.4.13 for primary and Rs.6.18 for upper primary
children. However, the State Government provides more than the mandatory share
of 40% so as to provide nutritious food to children.
Additional
MDM Norms Centre State
Class State Total
(60:40) 60% 40%
contribution
Primary 4.13 2.48 1.65 2.81 6.94

(1-5 Std)
Upper 6.18 3.71 2.47 0.86 7.04

Primary
(6-8 Std)
9th & 10th 100% contribution by State Government 8.61

91
Infrastructure & Facilities
Construction of Kitchen-cum-Stores
The Central Government started providing 100% central assistance for
construction of kitchen-cum-stores in Government schools, since the year 2006-07
at a flat rate of Rs.60,000/- per unit. However, from the year 2009 onwards, the
cost of construction of kitchen-cum-stores is determined on the basis of plinth area
norms and State schedule of rates prevalent in the State. Now, 20 sq.mt plinth area
is admissible for schools having upto 100 children. For every additional 100
children, additional 4 sq.mt plinth area can be added. The expenditure arrived out
of the schedule of rates are shared in the ratio of 75:25 between the centre and
state.
Modernisation of Noon Meal Centres
In order to create ‘smoke free atmosphere’ in the Noon Meal Centres,
Modernisation of Noon Meal Centres, have been taken up and LPG connection is
provided to the centres exclusively out of State Funds.
Kitchen Devices
Noon Meal Centres are provided with sufficient kitchen devices like
AluminiumDabara with lid, Stainless steel karandi, Indoliumkadai etc., to facilitate
cooking. Government of India provides funds to the tune of Rs.5000/- per Noon
Meal Centre as one time Central Assistance for the procurement of kitchen devices.
Stainless Steel Plates and Tumblers are provided to the Noon Meal Beneficiaries
both out of State and Central funds.
To facilitate the cooking process involved in the variety meals, all the Noon
Meal Centres have been provided with mixies
Information Boards
Under contingency plan necessary important phone numbers have been put
up in all Noon Meal Centres during the year 2014-15 & 2015-16.
 In each Noon Meal Centre an Organiser, one cook and one cook assistant
are employed for the implementation of the scheme. The Noon Meal
Employees are provided with Special Time Scale of Pay. Their salary is
credited to the respective employees bank account through ECS.
 In addition they are also provided with Festival Advance.
 All retired Noon Meal Employees are provided with a monthly pension of Rs.
1500/-.
 During retirement the organizer is given with Rs. 60,000/- and Cook & Cook
Assistant with Rs. 25,000/- as lumpsum payment. In addition a sum of Rs.
10,000/- is provided as Special Provident Fund.
 Special test is conducted by Teachers Recruitment Board for qualified
organizers and are appointed as Teachers in Schools.
 All categories of NMC staff are enrolled in PF Scheme. Allotment of account
numbers by the Government Data centre is in progress.
 The legal heir of the Noon Meal employee who dies while in service is
provided employment on compassionate grounds.
92
State Level Steering cum Monitoring committee Meeting
 Once in six months, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu takes up the
review of every scheme in which the implementation of noon meal
programme is also monitored.
 There is a monitoring cell functioning at Secretariat headed by Secretary to
Government and assisted by Deputy Secretary and his team. The
implementation of the scheme is monitored by conducting review meetings
once in 15 days by Secretary to Government.
 Review meeting to watch the progress of expenditure is also being conducted
by the Planning Development Department with the officials of the Secretariat
and Directorate of Social Welfare.
 In the Directorate also there is a monitoring cell headed by the Director of
Social Welfare assisted by Joint Director (NMP) and team. So as at Districts,
the scheme is being monitored by the District Collectors. Each District /
Block has been provided with pucca management structure to monitor the
programme at different levels.
11.3.6 Marriage Assistance Schemes
In most communities, it is a customary cultural requirement for a girl to wear
“Thirumangalyam” made of gold during marriage and the parents celebrate the
marriage function according to their customs and cultural backgrounds. However,
parents from economically weaker sections are not able to cope with the burden of
expenses towards the marriage of their daughters. In order to help such parents
and to encourage them to educate their daughters till the right age, Marriage
Assistance Schemes were introduced by the Government. Five Marriage Assistance
Schemes are implemented to help the daughters of poor parents, orphan girls,
widows who re-marry, widows daughter’s marriage and inter-caste married couples.
Eligibility Criteria for availing assistance under the five Marriage Assistance Schemes
Scheme-I
Education Qualification: The bride should have studied 10th Std (passed or
failed), If studied in private / Distance Education, bride should have passed 10th
std, Bride should have studied up to V Std in case of Scheduled Tribe.
Cash Assistance: `25,000 paid through ECS.
Scheme-II
Education Qualification: Degree holders from regular colleges, Distance
education / Government recognized Open University are eligible, Diploma holders
should have qualified from the Institution recognized by the Directorate of
Technical Education, Government of Tamil Nadu.
Cash Assistance: `50,000 paid through ECS.
1. Moovalur Ramamirtham Ammaiyar Ninaivu Marriage Assistance Scheme
To avail benefit under this scheme, the annual income of the family should not
exceed `72,000.
93
2. Dr. Dharmambal Ammaiyar Ninaivu Widow Remarriage Assistance Scheme
Under this scheme, financial assistance of `15,000 is given through ECS and
`10,000 as National Savings Certificate along with 4 gram 22 carat gold coin for
making “Thirumangalyam”. There is no income ceiling and educational qualification
prescribed to avail benefit under this scheme. The degree / diploma holders are
given `50,000, out of which, `30,000 is given through ECS and `20,000 is given as
National Savings Certificate along with 4 gram 22 carat gold coin for making
“Thirumangalyam”.
3. E.V.R. Maniammaiyar Ninaivu Marriage Assistance Scheme for Daughters of Poor
Widows
To avail benefit under this scheme, the annual income of the family should not
exceed `72,000.
4. Annai Therasa Ninaivu Marriage Assistance Scheme for Orphan Girls
There is no income ceiling for availing benefit under this marriage assistance
scheme.
5. Dr. Muthulakshmi Reddy Ninaivu Inter-Caste Marriage Assistance Scheme
Cash assistance of `25,000 is given under this scheme, out of which `15,000
is given through ECS and `10,000 in the form of National Saving Certificate along
with 4 gram 22 carat gold coin for making “Thirumangalyam”. The degree / diploma
holders receive `50,000 out of which `30,000 is given through ECS and `20,000 as
National Saving Certificate along with 4 gram 22 carat gold coin for making
“Thirumangalyam”. There is no income ceiling and minimum educational
qualification stipulated.
Types of Inter-caste Marriage
Category –I : Either of the spouse of the Inter-caste married couples should be
from Scheduled caste or Scheduled Tribe while the other spouse may be from any
other Community.
Category–II : Either of the spouse should be from forward or other community
and the other spouse from BC/MBC.
Social Welfare:
A social welfare system provides assistance to needy individuals and
families.The types and amount of welfare available to individuals and families vary
depending on the country, state or region.
11.4 REVISION POINTS
ValmikiAmbedkar Awas Yojana (VAMBAY): The VAMBAY launched in
December 2001 facilitates the construction and upgradation of dwelling units for
the slum dwellers and provides a healthy and enabling urban environment through
community toilets under Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan, a component of the scheme. The
Central Government provides a subsidy of 50 per cent, the balance 50 per cent
being arranged by the State Government.
SwarnaJayantiShahariRozgarYojana (SJSRY): The Urban Self Employment
Programme and the Urban Wage Employment Programme are the two special
94
components of the SJSRY, which, in December 1997, substituted for various extant
programmers implemented for urban poverty alleviation. SJSRY is funded on 75:25
basis between the Centre and the States.
Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY): AAY launched in December 2000 provides food
grains at a highly subsidized rate of Rs.2.00 per kg for wheat and Rs.3.00 per kg for
rice to the poor families under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS). The
scale of issue, which was initially 25 kg per family per month, was increased to 35
kg per family per month from April 1, 2002. The scheme initially for one crore
families was expanded in June 2003 by adding another 50 lakh BPL Families.
1. What are social welfare Programmes?
2. What is the aim of the social welfare Programme?
3. Who benefits from social welfare programs?
11.6 SUMMARY
Social welfare systems provide assistance to individuals and families through
programs such as health care, food stamps, unemployment compensation, housing
assistance, and child care assistance. In the U.S., a caseworker is assigned to each
individual or family applying for benefits to determine and confirm the applicant's
needs.
The benefits available to an individual vary by state. Eligibility is determined
based on factors surrounding the person’s financial status and how it relates to the
minimum acceptable levels within a particular state. The factors involved can
include the size of the family unit, current income levels, or an assessed disability.
Within each state, social welfare systems may go by different names, but they
often serve similar functions. This can cause confusion when attempting to
compare one state's program to another. Additionally, the requirements to qualify
also vary, depending on the poverty line in a particular state. This allows for
adjustments based on items such as cost of living that are not standardized across
the country.
1. What are social welfare policies?
2. Why social welfare programs are important?
3. Name some programs of solid welfare of Central Government?
4. What are the benefits of the welfare schemes?
5. How to enroll in these schemes?
Go through websites of social welfare ministry and know more about new
schemes.
Hand books and sociological thoughts of India.
11.9 ASSIGNMENT
Develop some questions on welfare schemes and answer them.
95
In your locality help deserved persons to enroll in these schemes and

experience first hand knowledge.
11.10 REFERENCES
 heNew Fontana Dictionary of Modern Thought Third Edition (1999), Allan
Bullock and Stephen Trombley Eds., p. 919.
 "Social Security History". Social Security. 2019-09-28. Archived from the
original on 2019-09-28Retrieved 2019-09-28.
 "About us - Department for Work and Pensions". Gov.uk. Retrieved 8
 November 2017. "Trajan". Britannica.com. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
 "The Roman Empire: in the First Century. The Roman Empire. Emperors.
Nerva&TrajanPBS". Pbs.org. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
 Robert Henry Nelson (2001). "Economics as religión: from Samuelson to
Chicago and beyond". Penn State Press. p. 103. ISBN 0-271-02095-4
1. Make a list of center and state welfare programs.
2. Compare different schemes and list out progress of some schemes at ground
level.
11.12 KEYWORDS
Welfare – well being
Program – package
Beneficiaries – Receivers
Enroll – join

96
LESSON – 12
EMPLOYMENT REGISTRATION
12.1 INTRODUCTION
Employment Exchange refers to an office of the central or state government,
which collects and furnishes information on the prospective employers, available
vacancies and job seekers, thereby facilitating jobseekers to find a suitable job and
for industry to find the suitable manpower.
Central Employment Exchange means any Employment Exchange established
by the Government of India, (Ministry of Labour and Employment); Others set up
by state governments are called local employment exchanges.
A definition of the term is given in Section 2(d) of the Employment Exchanges
(Compulsory Notification of Vacancies) Act, 1959 as mentioned below:
Employment Exchange means any office or place established and maintained
by the Government for the collection and furnishing of information, either by the
keeping of registers or otherwise, respecting---
i. Persons who seek to engage employees.
ii. Persons who seek employment, and
iii. Vacancies to which persons seeking employment, may be appointed;
Job seekers register themselves with the Employment Exchanges and get
notified as soon as any vacancy matches their desired profile.
The main activities of the employment exchanges are registration and
placement of job seekers, and to some extent career counselling and vocational
guidance particularly for the under-privileged sections of the society, and collection
of employment market information. Some of the State Governments arrange
disbursement of unemployment allowance to certain specific categories of job
seekers out of their own resources through the employment exchanges of it.
12.2 OBJECTIVES
 This lesson also throws light on filling of form for employment registration.
 To know legal framework to register in employment registration
12.3 CONTENTS
12.3.1 Role of employment exchange
12.3.2 Benefits
12.3.3 Online registration process
12.3.4 Offline registration process
12.3.1 Role of employment exchange
An Employment Exchange is an organization that provides employment
assistance on the basis of qualification and experience. The Departments of
Employment in various States of India allow unemployed educated youth residing
in the respective States to pre-register for impending job vacancies occurring in
different sectors of that State.
97
Employment Exchanges have been renamed as "Employment Guidance and

Promotion Centres" as the focus is now on vocational guidance and career
counseling besides registration, submission, placement, etc.
Employers can post their vacancies with employment exchanges and choose
from among the registered candidates as per their requirements. Establishments in
the private sector employing between 10–24 persons are being brought under the
purview of the Act-The Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of
Vacancies) Act, 1959 for the purpose of submission of returns. This is likely to
result in a more realistic estimate of employment in the organized sector. The
employer is being mandated to furnish information relating to the result of selection
against the vacancies notified within thirty days from the date of selection, to make
the registration data more rational. The definitions of employee and employer are
being broad based to include contract labours who have worked for more than 240
days in a year.
12.3.2 Benefits
 Job seekers can search for suitable jobs based on their qualification
 The registered job seekers can check their status on the job waiting-list
online.
 The unique Registration Number provided by Employment Exchange can be
a reference while applying for jobs, especially government jobs.
 Whenever government vacancies are announced, list of registered members
with suitable educational profiles are forwarded to respective employers for
consideration.
12.3.3 Online Registration Process
 Please visit State Employment Exchange website for online registration.
 If you are not a registered member, you need to register to create your
account.
 Log in to State Employment exchange website with your credentials.
 Select the district name. In case of certain states, your native state and
district details are also asked for. Hence follow the instructions given in the
respective state portal.
 Fill the profile form. On submission of the form, an acknowledgement
containing the Registration Number, Registration Date and Name of the
Employment Exchange is generated.
 This acknowledgement may be printed and kept for future reference.
 Produce all relevant certificates in support of education, experience, caste,
sports, handicapped (issued by Medical Board/CMO), ex-serviceman, widow,
freedom fighter and proof of residence etc. to the Employment Exchange
mentioned within 15 days from the date registration. The time limit may
vary from state to state.
 Apart from the above documents you need to submit one of the following
documents as residence proof :
 Ration Card.
 Voter ID Card.
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 Certificate from Municipal Councilor/Sarpanch.

 Proof of job in the State of either of the parents.
 Certificate of Education in the State.
 Letter from gazetted officer or school head.
 Certificate issued by an MLA/MP.
 Domicile Certificate.
 Finally, Employment Exchange will issue you a registration card carrying
Registration No with date of renewal of that registration.
12.3.4 Offline Registration Process
Note: For offline registration, users will have to visit their nearest Employment
Exchange with all up-to-date qualification documents and experience certificates.
 Visit nearest employment exchange office in your area of residence and fill
up the required application form.
 Submit attested photocopies of all your up-to-date education and
experience-related certificates along with your resume.
 Caste Certificate (optional) and photographs.
 Experience Certificate, if you have
 Produce any one of the following identity documents
 Voter's Identity Card
 Ration Card
 Passport
 Birth Certificate
 Domicile Certificate
 After registration, you will be issued a registration number.
As "Employment Guidance and Promotion Centres" as the focus is now on
vocational guidance and career counseling besides registration, submission,
placement, etc.
Central Employment Exchange means any Employment Exchange established
by the Government of India, (Ministry of Labour and Employment); Others set up
by state governments are called local employment exchanges.
Benefits
Job seekers can search for suitable jobs based on their qualification
The registered job seekers can check their status on the job waiting-list online
1. What documents are required for employment registration?
2. How do one can apply for employment registration?
12.6 SUMMARY
An Employment Exchange is an organisation that provides employment
assistance on the basis of qualification and experience. The Departments of
Employment in various States of India allow unemployed educated youth residing
99
in the respective States to pre-register for impending job vacancies occurring in

different sectors of that State.
Employment Exchanges have been renamed as "Employment Guidance and
Promotion Centres" as the focus is now on vocational guidance and career
counselling besides registration, submission, placement, etc.
Employers can post their vacancies with employment exchanges and choose
from among the registered candidates as per their requirements. Establishments in
the private sector employing between 10–24 persons are being brought under the
purview of the Act-The Employment Exchanges (Compulsory Notification of
Vacancies) Act, 1959 for the purpose of submission of returns. This is likely to
result in a more realistic estimate of employment in the organised sector. The
employer is being mandated to furnish information relating to the result of selection
against the vacancies notified within thirty days from the date of selection, to make
the registration data more rational. The definitions of employee and employer are
being broad based to include contract labour who have worked for more than 240
days in a year.
1. What is the purpose of employment registration?
2. How one can get register in the employment registration?
3. Give benefits of employment registration?
4. Name any document required for employment registration?
 Employment Exchange Policy and Procedure ,The Collection of Employment
Market Information Part Vocational Guidance and Employment Counseling
 Placement of the Persons with Disabilities
12.9 ASSIGNMENT
Visit a employment registration office to know the details further
12.10 REFERENCES
 "Budget data" (PDF). www.indiabudget.gov.in. 2019.
 Jump up to:a b c "Ministry of Labour and Employment Annual Report for
Year 2011–2012" (PDF). Ministry of Labour and Employment. Retrieved 6
June 2012.
 "National Skill Development Mission". www.pmindia.gov.in.
 "Thrust Areas of Ministry of Labour & Employment, Govt. of India".
1. Write few questions on employment registration and try to answer these
questions.
2. Write a short paragraph on it.
12.12 KEYWORDS
Employment – service
Registration – recording
Job – trade
Office – work place

100
LESSON – 13
CONSUMER FORUM
13.1 INTRODUCTION
Under the provisions of the CP Act, 1986 there is a three tier quasi-judicial
mechanism at the District, State and National levels to provide simple and speedy
resolution to consumer disputes-
At the district level it is called District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum
(District Forum). It has jurisdiction to entertain consumer complaints where the
value of goods/services including compensation claimed, if any is uptoRs. 20 Lakhs
At the state level it is known as State Consumer Disputes Redressal
Commission (State Commission). It has jurisdiction to entertain consumer
complaints where the value of goods/services and compensation claimed if any
UptoRs. 1Crore and appeals against orders of District Forum.
At the national level, It is called the National Consumer Disputes Redressal
Commission. It has jurisdiction to entertain complaints where the value of goods /
services including compensation claimed, if any exceeds Rs. 1 Crore and appeals
against order of State Commissions.
13.2 OBJECTIVES
 To know about the consumer courts
 To learn about the consumer rights and responsibilities
13.3 CONTENTS
13.3.1 Consumer Courts
13.3.3.1 Rights provided by Consumer Court
13.3.3.2 List of Consumer Courts in India
13.3.3.3 Process to file a Complaint
13.3.2 Consumer movement
13.3.3 Consumer Rights and Responsibility
Under the provisions of the CP Act, 1986 there is a three tier quasi-judicial
mechanism at the District, State and National levels to provide simple and speedy
resolution to consumer disputes.
At the district level it is called District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum
(District Forum). It has jurisdiction to entertain consumer complaints where the
value of goods/services including compensation claimed, if any is uptoRs. 20
Lakhs.
At the state level it is known as State Consumer Disputes Redressal
Commission (State Commission). It has jurisdiction to entertain consumer
complaints where the value of goods/services and compensation claimed if any
UptoRs. 1Crore and appeals against orders of District Forum.
101
At the national level, It is called the National Consumer Disputes Redressal

Commission. It has jurisdiction to entertain complaints where the value of goods /
services including compensation claimed, if any exceeds Rs. 1 Crore and appeals
against order of State Commissions.
13.3.1 Consumer Court
Consumer Court is a special purpose court in India that deals with cases
regarding consumer disputes, conflicts and grievances. They are judiciary hearings
set up by the government to protect the consumers' rights. Its main function is to
maintain the fair practices & contracts by sellers. Consumers can file a case
against a seller if they are cheated or exploited by sellers. The court will only give a
verdict in favour of the consumers/customers if they have proof of exploitation, i.e.,
bills or purchase memos. If a consumer does not have the proper documents
required for filing a case then it would be very difficult for the consumer to win or
even file a case.
13.3.3.1 Rights provided by consumer courts
The consumer rights provided by consumer courts in India are:
1. Right to Safety: The right to be protected from all types of hazardous goods
and services
2. Right to Information: The right to be fully informed about the performance
and quality of all goods and services
3. Right to Choose: The right to free choice of goods and services
4. Right to be Heard: The right to be heard in all decision-making processes
related to consumer interest
5. Right to Redressal: The right to seek compensation, whenever consumer
rights have been infringed
6. Right to Consumer Education: The right to complete consumer education
13.3.3.2 List of consumer courts in India
National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC): A national level
court works for the whole country and deals compensation claimed exceeds rupees
ten crore. The National Commission is the Apex body of Consumer Courts; it is also
the highest appellate court in the hierarchy.
1. State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (SCDRC): A state level
court works at the state level with cases where compensation claimed is
above one crore to ten crores. The State Commission also has the appellate
jurisdiction over the District Forum.
2. District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum (DCDRF): A district level court
works at the district level with cases where the compensation claimed is up
to one crore.
13.3.3.3 Process to file a complaint
The Process to file complaint with Consumer Courts in India is to file a
complaint, first you will need to buy a copy of the Consumer Protection Act. The
format for filing a complaint is simple with the guidelines being provided as well. It
102
is advisable to draft your complaint in a clear and concise manner testifying the
facts and support it with the mandatory documentation.
 Along with your complaint and the affidavit, you must attach a list of
documents that you are submitting as part of evidence and references in the
complaint file. Make sure that you attach only photocopies of the evidence
documents.
 Sign and attach a Vakalatnama long with your documents. This will give
your lawyer the authorization to represent your case in the court.
13.3.2 Consumer movement
The consumer movement as a social force originated with the necessity of
protecting and promoting the interests of consumers against unethical and unfair
trade practices. Rampant food shortages, hoarding, black marketing, adulteration
of food and edible oil gave birth to the consumer movement in an organized form in
the 1960s.
The movement succeeded in bringing pressure. A major step was taken in
1986 by the Indian government with the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act
of 1986 (COPRA).
13.3.3 Consumer Rights and Responsibilities
1. Right to safety.
2. Right to choose.
3. Right to be informed.
4. Right to consumer education.
5. Right to heard
6. Right to seek redressal
7. Consumer protection act.
8. Consumer responsibilities.
9. Consumer rights and responsibilities.
Right to safety
Means right to be protected against the marketing of goods and services, which
are hazardous to life and property. The purchased goods and services availed of
should not only meet their immediate needs, but also fulfil long term interests.
Before purchasing, consumers should insist on the quality of the products as well
as on the guarantee of the products and services. They should preferably purchase
quality marked products such as ISI, AGMARK, etc
Right to choose
Means right to be assured, wherever possible of access to variety of goods and
services at competitive price. In case of monopolies, it means right to be assured of
satisfactory quality and service at a fair price. It also includes right to basic goods
and services. This is because unrestricted right of the minority to choose can mean
a denial for the majority of its fair share. This right can be better exercised in a
competitive market where a variety of goods are available at competitive prices.
103
Right to be informed
Means right to be informed about the quality, quantity, potency, purity,
standard and price of goods so as to protect the consumer against unfair trade
practices. Consumer should insist on getting all the information about the product
or service before making a choice or a decision. This will enable him to act wisely
and responsibly and also enable him to desist from falling prey to high pressure
selling techniques.
Right to consumer education
Means the right to acquire the knowledge and skill to be an informed
consumer throughout life. Ignorance of consumers, particularly of rural consumers,
is mainly responsible for their exploitation. They should know their rights and must
exercise them. Only then real consumer protection can be achieved with success.
Right to be heard
Means that consumer's interests will receive due consideration at appropriate
forums. It also includes right to be represented in various forums formed to
consider the consumer's welfare. The Consumers should form non-political and
non-commercial consumer organizations which can be given representation in
various committees formed by the Government and other bodies in matters relating
to consumers.
Right to Seek redressal
Means right to seek redressal against unfair trade practices or unscrupulous
exploitation of consumers. It also includes right to fair settlement of the genuine
grievances of the consumer. Consumers must make complaint for their genuine
grievances.Manya times their complaint may be of small value but its impact on the
society as a whole may be very large. They can also take the help of consumer
organisations in seeking redressal of their grievances.
As the markets are globalizing, the direct link between the manufacturer and
the final user getting distant, post purchase grievances have to be heard through a
strong redressal system. For this, Consumer disputes redressal agencies (popularly
known as Consumer Forums or Consumer Courts) are set up under the Act at
District, State and National level to provide simple and inexpensive quick redressal
against consumer complaints. The District forum deals with complaints where the
compensation sought is less than 23 lakhs. This limit is commonly known as the
‘pecuniary jurisdiction’ of the Consumer Redressal Forum. The State Forum deals
with the complaints where the value of the goods and services and compensation
claimed does not exceed rupees one crore and the National Forum entertains the
complaints where the value of the goods or services and compensation claimed
exceeds rupees one crore.
The Consumer Forum can order the company to take the following actions
once it hears the complaint and decides that the company is at fault:
104
Consumer Protection Act
“An Act to provide for better protection of the interests of consumers and for
that purpose to make provision for the establishment of consumer councils and
other authorities for the settlement of consumers' disputes and for matters
connected therewith.”(According to Consumer Protection Act, 1986).
Consumer Protection Act, 1986 seeks to promote and protect the interest of
consumers against deficiencies and defects in goods or services. It also seeks to
secure the rights of a consumer against unfair or restrictive trade practices. This
act was passed in Lok Sabha on 9th December,1986 and Rajya Sabha on 10th
December, 1986 and assented by the President of India on 24th December, 1986
and was published in the Gazette of India on 26th December, 1986.
Consumer Responsibilities
Ask Yourself!
 Have you faced any problems as a consumer?
 Have you ever complained when you have had such a problem?
 Do you know that you could seek the assistance of a consumer group to
protect your interests?
Be Critically Aware
 The responsibility to be more alert and to question more – about prices,
about quantity and quality of goods bought and services used.
Be Involved
 The responsibility to be assertive – to ensure that you get a fair deal as a
consumer. Remember, if you are passive, you are likely to be exploited.
Be Organized
 The responsibility to join hands and raise voices as consumers; to fight in a
collective and to develop the strength and influence to promote and protect
consumer interest.
Practice Sustainable Consumption
 The responsibility to be aware of the impact of your consumption on other
citizens, especially the disadvantaged or powerless groups; and to consume
based on needs – not wants.
Be Responsible to the Environment
 The responsibility to be aware and to understand the environmental
consequences of our consumption. We should recognize our individual and
social responsibility to conserve natural resources and protect the earth for
future generations.
Consumer Rights Vs Responsibilities
105
Issue corrective advertisement for any earlier misrepresentation

Sl.No Rights Responsibility
1 Right to be 1. Ensure that the company has provided you the contact
heard details of the consumer grievance handling system and are
easily accessible.
2. Avoid purchase of products/services from a company
which do not provide details of the consumer grievance
officers to handle consumer grievances
2 Right to Redress 1. Ignoring the loss suffered on purchase of defective goods

and services and not filing complaint encourages the corrupt
business man to supply low standards or defective goods and
services. Therefor file a complaint even for a small loss. File
only a genuine complaint.
2. Consumer must file a complaint if not satisfied with the
quality of product/services.
3. Claim the penalties/compensation as provided under rules
and regulations to ensure that the quality delivery system
improves.
4. Study carefully all terms and conditions related to
return/replacement of defective goods, refund and warranty
policies.
3 Right to Safety 1. While purchasing the goods or services, Consumer must

look for standard quality mark such as ISI, Hallmark,
Agmark, ISO, FSSAI, etc.
2. Do not buy any spurious/ fake/duplicate/ hazardous
products
4 Right to 1. Do not get carried away by advertisements only or believe

Consumer on the words of the seller. Consumer must look market
Education/ reviews/feedback. Similarly inform offers if product and
Right to be services of companies are of substandard.
Informed 2. Consumer must insist on getting complete information on
the quality, quantity, utility, price etc. of the product or
services.
3. Ask for complete contact details of the consumer grievance
mechanism of the company the consumer wish to buy from
5 Right to Choose 1. Access the information available on various alternatives

available for the product and services under purchase
consideration.
2. Compare specifications, competition and fair prices of the
goods and services before finalizing on the purchase
3. Study various feedbacks/reviews of the products/services
 Right to choose
 Right to be informed
 Right to consumer education
 Right to be heard
 Right to Seek redressal
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 Consumer Protection Act

 Consumer Responsibilities
 Ask Yourself!
 Be Critically Aware
 Be Involved
 Be Organized
 defect free of chargesReplace product with similar or superior pPay
compensation for damages / costs / inconveniences
 Withdraw the sale of the product altogetherDiscontinue or not repeat any
unfair trade practice or the restrictive trade practice
regarding consumer disputes, conflicts and grievances.
National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC): A national level
court works for the whole country and deals compensation claimed exceeds rupees
ten crore. The National Commission is the Apex body of Consumer Courts; it is also
the highest appellate court in the hierarchy.
Consumer movement
The consumer movement as a social force originated with the necessity of
protecting and promoting the interests of consumers against unethical and unfair
trade practices.
1. What is consumer complaint form?
2. How can I file a case in consumer court in India?
3. Do I need a lawyer for consumer court?
13.6 SUMMARY
regarding consumer disputes, conflicts and grievances. They are judiciary hearings
set up by the government to protect the consumers' rights. Its main function is to
maintain the fair practices & contracts by sellers. Consumers can file a case
against a seller if they are cheated or exploited by sellers. The court will only give a
verdict in favour of the consumers/customers if they have proof of exploitation, i.e.,
bills or purchase memos. If a consumer does not have the proper documents
required for filing a case then it would be very difficult for the consumer to win or
even file a case
1. What is the role of consumer forum?
2. What is the meaning of consumer forum?
3. How do I write a consumer complaint?
4. How much time does consumer court take?
5. What are the rights of consumer?
6. What are the responsibilities of the consumer?
107
1. Visit consumer forms website and consumer courts.
2. Go through to consumer acts in India to know more.
13.9 ASSIGNMENT
Visit a consumer court to get your complaint redressed, will give you a frist
hand experience regarding consumer forum.
13.10 REFERENCES
 "National Consumer Forum India".
 "CONSUMER PROTECTION AND NATIONAL CONSUMER DISPUTES
REDRESSAL COMMISSION". NCDRC.Archived from the original on 21 July
2011.Retrieved 18 December 2012.
 Insta Remedy & Technology Solutions Private Ltd. (21 March
2017). "Consumer Courts in India".
 "DCDRF, Raigad".Archived from the original on 10 April 2009.Retrieved 4
January 2013.
Whenever you find any fraud or malpractice by a seller turn to consumer court
to understand the process better and its benefits.
13.12 KEYWORDS
Consumer – buyer
Court – law court
Form – procedure
Privileges - rights

108
LESSON – 14
GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL
14.1 INTRODUCTION
Grievance Redressal is a management- and governance-related process used
commonly in India. While the term "Grievance Redressal" primarily covers the
receipt and processing of complaints from citizens and consumers, a wider
definition includes actions taken on any issue raised by them to avail services more
effectively.
14.2 OBJECTIVES
The lesson throws light on how grievances are redressed and its procedure.
Aware students regarding this government cells functions.
14.3 CONTENTS
14.3.1 Institution and Mechanisms of Greivance Redressal
14.3.2 Grievance Redressal Options available to Organizations
14.3.1 Institution and Mechanisms of Greivance Redressal
Grievance Redressal mechanism is mandated in Government agencies and
departments that are directly involved with serving citizens and organizations.
Usually a Public Relations Officer (PRO) is designated with the role of receiving
complaints and initiating corrective action, but this mechanism often fails on
account of lack of authority vested in the PRO over officers of various capacities.
The Government of India has made effort to systematize the nature of grievance
redressal through legislation, being driven by civil society agitations under
leadership of Anna Hazare and ArvindKejriwal for enactment of the Jan Lokpal
Bill into law.
Private businesses and Non-Profits engaged in service delivery, such as hotels,
restaurants, colleges, etc. often tend to set up their own mechanisms, such
as Feedback forms and Contact Us pages. Such means to get direct feedback
enable businesses to take corrective action in time. Governments also often accept
the responsibility of Consumer protection from private organizations
through Legislation as well as setting up Consumer Courts and Organizations for
Dispute Resolution. Such consumer courts pursue quick action for redress, while
maintaining affordability and ease to the consumer.
Coverage
Grievance Redressal typically covers the following types of complaints:
 Service Unavailability
 Non-Delivery against Commitment
 Excessive Delays
 Injustice concerns (such as over race, caste, sex)
 Staff Misbehaviour
 Malpractice
109
Wider definition of grievance redressal covers:
 Malfunctions under Warranty coverage
 Product Support issues
 Citizen Vigilance reports
 Employee Disputes
Process
Workflow for Grievance Redressal as handled by sites such as ActPlease.com

Organizations define their own process flows for grievance redressal. These are
rarely made known to the public in case of private businesses; governments and
non-profits usually share voluntarily or by mandate the hierarchy of officers
responsible for taking corrective action. Some organizations maintain a custom -
developed ticketing software, while others count on SaaS Portals such as
ActPlease.com. Feedback Portals such as TripAdvisor and Yelp are driven by
consumers, and organizations / businesses have the option to join and participate.
Depending on the desire to correct as well as level of transparency of the
organization, grievance redressal flow can include the following steps:
Input acceptance
Customers convey their grievance to the organization through feedback forms,
letters, registered communications, emails, etc. These inputs may be submitted by
mail, over the Internet, or in person.
Anonymity
Customers are often reluctant to report grievances that target individual
executives of the organization, especially those who may influence their future
interactions or have the potential to take vengeance. Under such conditions, the
organization needs to assure the customer that her identity will be hidden from
executives, and preferably from everyone. This, however, opens the potential
problem of deceitful negative inputs purposefully targeted against specific
executives, as the people reporting are kept anonymous.
110
Feedback forms on website are prone to spam submissions. There are cases
when employees themselves submit feedback - positive for their professional gain,
and negative if targeting colleagues. Some service centers make employees sign
blank feedback forms to create positive statistics. Such situations can be prevented
by seeking verification of identity of customers. This is especially possible on online
setups, such as ActPlease.com, which uses SMS to verify the authenticity of the
mobile number of reporter. Basic tools such as Captcha can prevent automatic
spammers. Mass submission of false feedback becomes less likely and easy to
detect in case of paper-based submission.
Acknowledgement & Status Tracking
Customers tend to develop much greater confidence in the grievance and
feedback mechanism if they are given a formal acknowledgement. The
acknowledgement could be by SMS and Email, as used by ActPlease.com, or simply
by publicly posting their message on the appropriate forum, such as Trip
Advisor. Ticketing Systems such as os Ticket and Fresh Desk, as well as SaaS
systems such as Act Please respond with acknowledgements with unique tracking
numbers. These may be used by customers to check the status of action taken on
their complaint.
Forwarding
Paper-based feedback as well as standard feedback forms on websites usually
forward inputs to a single officer or email address. This naturally causes scope for
delay or failure to reach the right persons. However, smarter ticketing systems sort
grievances based on their classification, and then redirect each to their relevant
executive(s) instantly.
Escalation
Smart Grievance Portals such as Act Please expect organizations to configure
typical action time for each type of complaint, as well as set up the hierarchy for
escalation. When an executive fails to take corrective action in time, the matter is
promoted to the officer next in line in seniority.
Action
Computerized and web-based systems have an advantage over paper-based
systems as they can alert the reporter immediately upon completion of action, as
marked by the executive in charge.
Verification
Customer may certify, if applicable and asked, whether the corrective action
taken on their grievance satisfies them or is not substantial enough. Should it not
be, the complaint may be marked as pending again, or be forwarded to a more
senior officer in escalated form.
Measurements
The effectiveness of implementation of a grievance redressal mechanism can be
calculated with the following parameters:
 Count of cases received
111
 Nature of cases received

 Acceptance of anonymous feedback
 Ratio of false inputs
 Time taken for corrective action
 Escalations required
 Confirmations & rejections after completion
 Repeat nature of grievances
Challenges
Traditional Grievance Redressal mechanisms tend to fail, or are very
ineffective, on account of some of these causes:
Unavailability or Difficulty to access means to report grievances, at times done
so purposefully, or due to lack of priority
Lack of authority of PRO over relevant departments and executives in
Government organizations
Disconnect of senior decision-maker executives with end customers
Non-motivation of front-end managers to forward negative feedback to higher-
ups
Fear of citizens / consumers to report malpractice about officers with
substantial authority
Inability of smaller private organizations to set up computerized mechanisms
Inaccuracy and spamming of feedback forms, driving false impressions
Delayed feedback acceptance, as feedback is taken after service has been
provided, while corrective action may be taken typically during the delivery of
service
14.3.2 Grievance Redressal Options available to Organizations
Paper-based Feedback Forms
These are most popular and usually used by consumer service businesses,
such as hotels and restaurants. They are less likely to be effective, as there is
reduced assurance of their reaching the decision-making authorities. These also
usually do not give any formal confirmation or tracking number to the complainant.
Possibility of fake submissions also remains. Customers therefore have less
confidence on such forms. Confidence can be strengthened if a central call center
sends an acknowledgement of receipt of such feedback. Another possible
reinforcement may be done by taking digitized input, which can be processed using
scantron machines.
Contact Us Links
Websites of organizations generally carry the Contact Us page, which lists the
email and phone numbers to use to submit any concerns. Many websites also
provide a form to fill that automatically gets sent by email, with confirmation to the
reporter.
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Customer-driven Feedback Websites
Websites such as Yelp and TripAdvisor allow customers to post grievances and
recommendations about organizations from personal experience. Designated
representatives of these organizations have the option to respond to such
communications, though these responses are often just standard text. The feedback
also tends to be subjective and unlikely to be auto-sorted and forwarded for action.
Organization-oriented Portals
Organizations can subscribe to grievance redressal portals such as
ActPlease.com to invite their customers to report their grievances and request
action. As such portals are configured by the organizations themselves, they can
ensure that complaints are directed properly. ActPlease, being a third party site,
handles anonymity of the reporter from the organization when necessary, while
ensuring the genuine nature of the person, through SMS verification.
Such SaaS Portals are easy to use and easily affordable for all organizations
including SMEs, while empowering them with the latest tools such as Mobile a/c
number 60332595050 ko10pm 2000 bank me fashaiadhar card number
644451794526 and Customized Websites.
Custom-developed Ticketing Systems
Large organizations involved in customer service set up their own ticketing
systems with similar features as the SaaS portals, but with greater customization in
the processing of grievances. Examples of such organizations are Bharat Sanchar
Nigam Limited and Torrent Power. Large-scale ERP software, such as SAP and
Genie also provide facility for setting up ticketed grievance redressal and customer
support systems.
1. Right to safety.
2. Right to choose.
3. Right to be informed.
4. Right to consumer education.
5. Right to heard
6. Right to seek redressal
7. Consumer protection act.
8. Consumer responsibilities.
9. Consumer rights and responsibilities.
Right to safety
Means right to be protected against the marketing of goods and services, which
are hazardous to life and property. The purchased goods and services availed of
should not only meet their immediate needs, but also fulfil long term interests.
Before purchasing, consumers should insist on the quality of the products as well
as on the guarantee of the products and services. They should preferably purchase
quality marked products such as ISI, AGMARK, etc
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Right to choose
Means right to be assured, wherever possible of access to variety of goods and
services at competitive price. In case of monopolies, it means right to be assured of
satisfactory quality and service at a fair price. It also includes right to basic goods
and services. This is because unrestricted right of the minority to choose can mean
a denial for the majority of its fair share. This right can be better exercised in a
competitive market where a variety of goods are available at competitive prices
Right to be informed
Means right to be informed about the quality, quantity, potency, purity,
standard and price of goods so as to protect the consumer against unfair trade
practices. Consumer should insist on getting all the information about the product
or service before making a choice or a decision. This will enable him to act wisely
and responsibly and also enable him to desist from falling prey to high pressure
selling techniques.
Right to consumer education
Means the right to acquire the knowledge and skill to be an informed
consumer throughout life. Ignorance of consumers, particularly of rural consumers,
is mainly responsible for their exploitation. They should know their rights and must
exercise them. Only then real consumer protection can be achieved with success.
Right to be heard
Means that consumer's interests will receive due consideration at appropriate
forums. It also includes right to be represented in various forums formed to
consider the consumer's welfare. The Consumers should form non-political and
non-commercial consumer organizations which can be given representation in
various committees formed by the Government and other bodies in matters relating
to consumers.
Right to Seek redressal
Means right to seek redressal against unfair trade practices or unscrupulous
exploitation of consumers. It also includes right to fair settlement of the genuine
grievances of the consumer. Consumers must make complaint for their genuine
grievances.Manya times their complaint may be of small value but its impact on the
society as a whole may be very large. They can also take the help of consumer
organisations in seeking redressal of their grievances.
As the markets are globalizing, the direct link between the manufacturer and
the final user getting distant, post purchase grievances have to be heard through a
strong redressal system. For this, Consumer disputes redressal agencies (popularly
known as Consumer Forums or Consumer Courts) are set up under the Act at
District, State and National level to provide simple and inexpensive quick redressal
against consumer complaints. The District forum deals with complaints where the
compensation sought is less than 23 lakhs. This limit is commonly known as the
‘pecuniary jurisdiction’ of the Consumer Redressal Forum. The State Forum deals
with the complaints where the value of the goods and services and compensation
claimed does not exceed rupees one crore and the National Forum entertains the
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complaints where the value of the goods or services and compensation claimed
exceeds rupees one crore.
The Consumer Forum can order the company to take the following actions
once it hears the complaint and decides that the company is at fault:
Correct deficiencies in the product to what they claim.
Repair defect free of charges
Replace product with similar or superior productIssue a full refund of the
pricePay compensation for damages / costs / inconveniences
Withdraw the sale of the product altogether
Discontinue or not repeat any unfair trade practice or the restrictive trade
practiceIssue corrective advertisement for any earlier misrepresentation
Consumer Protection Act
“An Act to provide for better protection of the interests of consumers and for
that purpose to make provision for the establishment of consumer councils and
other authorities for the settlement of consumers' disputes and for matters
connected therewith.”(According to Consumer Protection Act, 1986).
Consumer Protection Act, 1986 seeks to promote and protect the interest of
consumers against deficiencies and defects in goods or services. It also seeks to
secure the rights of a consumer against unfair or restrictive trade practices. This
act was passed in LokSabha on 9th December,1986 and RajyaSabha on 10th
December, 1986 and assented by the President of India on 24th December, 1986
and was published in the Gazette of India on 26th December, 1986.
Consumer Responsibilities
Ask Yourself!
 Have you faced any problems as a consumer?
 Have you ever complained when you have had such a problem?
 Do you know that you could seek the assistance of a consumer group to
protect your interests?
Be Critically Aware
 The responsibility to be more alert and to question more – about prices,
about quantity and quality of goods bought and services used.
Be Involved
 The responsibility to be assertive – to ensure that you get a fair deal as a
consumer. Remember, if you are passive, you are likely to be exploited.
Be Organized
 The responsibility to join hands and raise voices as consumers; to fight in a
collective and to develop the strength and influence to promote and protect
consumer interest.
Practice Sustainable Consumption
 The responsibility to be aware of the impact of your consumption on other
citizens, especially the disadvantaged or powerless groups; and to consume
based on needs – not wants.
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Be Responsible to the Environment
 The responsibility to be aware and to understand the environmental
consequences of our consumption. We should recognize our individual and
social responsibility to conserve natural resources and protect the earth for
future generations.
Consumer Rights Vs Responsibilities
Sl.No Rights Responsibility
1 Right to be 1. Ensure that the company has provided you the contact
heard details of the consumer grievance handling system and are
easily accessible.
2. Avoid purchase of products/services from a company
which do not provide
details of the consumer grievance officers to handle
consumer grievances
2 Right to 1. Ignoring the loss suffered on purchase of defective goods

Redress and services and not filing complaint encourages the
corrupt business man to supply low standards or defective
goods and services. Therefor file a complaint even for a
small loss. File only a genuine complaint.
2. Consumer must file a complaint if not satisfied with the
quality of product/services.
3. Claim the penalties/compensation as provided under rules
and regulations to ensure that the quality delivery system
improves.
4. Study carefully all terms and conditions related to
return/replacement of defective goods, refund and
warranty policies.
3 Right to Safety 1. While purchasing the goods or services, Consumer must

look for standard
quality mark such as ISI, Hallmark, Agmark, ISO, FSSAI,
etc.
2. Do not buy any spurious/ fake/duplicate/ hazardous
products
4 Right to 1. Do not get carried away by advertisements only or believe

Consumer on the words of the seller. Consumer must look market
Education/ reviews/feedback. Similarly inform offers if product and
Right to be services of companies are of substandard.
Informed 2. Consumer must insist on getting complete information on
the quality, quantity, utility, price etc. of the product or
services.
3. Ask for complete contact details of the consumer grievance
mechanism of the company the consumer wish to buy from
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5 Right to Choose 1. Access the information available on various alternatives

available for the product and services under purchase
consideration.
2. Compare specifications, competition and fair prices of the
goods and services before finalizing on the purchase
3. Study various feedbacks/reviews of the products/services.

Grievance Redressal is a management- and governance-related process used
commonly in India. While the term "Grievance Redressal" primarily covers the
receipt and processing of complaints from citizens and consumers, a wider
definition includes actions taken on any issue raised by them to avail services more
effectively.
Input acceptance
Customers convey their grievance to the organization through feedback forms,
letters, registered communications, emails, etc.
Acknowledgement & Status Tracking
Customers tend to develop much greater confidence in the grievance and
feedback mechanism if they are given a formal acknowledgement
1. List and the rights of the Consumers
2. List and the responsibilities of the Consumers
14.6 SUMMARY
This Policy is based on the premise that every customer has the right to
register a complaint if he or she is not satisfied with the services provided by the
Company or any other agencies associated with the Company. Customers can give
their complaint in writing or via e-mail. The Company will review and address the
grievance in accordance with this Policy and in case the customer is not satisfied
with the proposed action, the customer may use other avenues for grievance
redressal.
1. What is meant by grievance redresses?
2. What are the main causes of grievances?
3. What is mean of grievance?
4. What is grievance procedure?
5. What is an example of grievance?
t: http://consumeraffairs.nic.in
 The Consumer Protection Act, 1986
 The Legal Metrology Act, 2009
 The Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986
 The Essential Commodities Act, 1955
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 The Prevention of Black Marketing and Maintenance of Supplies of Essential

Commodities Act, 1980
 National Test Houses
 Consumer Cooperatives
14.9 ASSIGNMENT
At any government office get your complaint redressed and know the
procedure properly.
14.10 REFERENCES
1. "The Right of Citizens for Time Bound Delivery of Goods and Services and
Redressal of their Grievances Bill, 2011" - pplPress Information Bureau,
Government of India
2. Jan Lokpal Bill - as proposed by AamAadmi Party
3. Consumer Protection Act, 1986 Archived 2015-02-06 at the Wayback
Machine - Government of India
4. National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission - Government of India
5. Write a note on grievance redresses
6. List out benefits of grievance office.
Imagine Yourself as a Consumer and try to find the rights of claiming your
rights.
14.12 KEYWORDS
Grievance – compliant
Redressed – restored
Mandated – delegated
Organization – group
Effective – real

.
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LESSON – 15
CITIZENS' CHARTERS
15.1 INTRODUCTION
Citizen's Charter is a document which represents a systematic effort to focus
on the commitment of the Organisation towards its Citizens in respects of Standard
of Services, Information, Choice and Consultation, Non-discrimination and
Accessibility, Grievance Redress, Courtesy and Value for Money.
15.2 OBJECTIVES
After reading this lesson students will be able to understand the following,
 How to make administration accountable and citizen friendly.
 How to ensure transparency.
 How to take measures to improve customer service.
 How to save time of both Administration and the citizens.
15.3 CONTENTS
15.3.1 Basic Concept, Origin and Principles
15.3.2 The International Scene
15.3.3 The Indian Scene
15.3.4 Comprehensive Website on Citizens’ Charters
15.3.5 Compendium of Citizens’ Charters in Government of India
15.3.6 Lessons Learnt
15.3.7 Future Vision : Development of Charter Mark
15.3.1 Basic Concept, Origin and Principles
It has been recognized world over that good governance is essential for
sustainable development, both economic and social. The three essential aspects
emphasized in good governance are transparency, accountability and
responsiveness of the administration. Citizens' Charters initiative is a response to
the quest for solving the problems which a citizen encounters, day in and day out,
while dealing with the organizations providing public services.
The concept of Citizens' Charter enshrines the trust between the service
provider and its users. The concept was first articulated and implemented in the
United Kingdom by the Conservative Government of John Major in 1991 as a
national Programme with a simple aim: to continuously improve the quality of
public services for the people of the country so that these services respond to the
needs and wishes of the users. The Programme was re-launched in 1998 by the
Labour Government of Tony Blair which rechristened it Services First.
The basic objective of the Citizens Charter is to empower the citizen in relation
to public service delivery. Six principles of the Citizens Charter movement as
originally framed, were: (i) Quality: Improving the quality of services; (ii) Choice :
Wherever possible; (iii) Standards :Specify what to expect and how to act if
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standards are not met; (iv) Value: For the taxpayers money; (v) Accountability :
Individuals and Organisations; and (vi) Transparency : Rules/ Procedures/
Schemes/Grievances. These were later elaborated by the Labour Government as
following nine principles of Service Delivery (1998) :- Set standards of service ; Be
open and provide full information ; Consult and involve ; Encourage access and the
promotion of choice ; Treat all fairly ; Put things right when they go wrong ; Use
resources effectively ; Innovate and improve ; Work with other providers.
15.3.2 The International Scene
The UK's Citizens' Charter initiative aroused considerable interest around the
world and several countries implemented similar Programmes e.g. Australia
(Service Charter, 1997), Belgium (Public Service Users' Charter 1992), Canada
(Service Standards Initiative, 1995), France (Service Charter, 1992), India (Citizens'
Charter, 1997), Jamaica (Citizens' Charter 1994), Malaysia (Client Charter,1993),
Portugal (The Quality Charter in Public Services, 1993), and Spain(The Quality
Observatory, 1992) (OECD, 1996).
Some of these initiatives are very similar to the UK model, while others chart
new ground by leaning on the service quality paradigm of the Total Quality
Management (TQM) movement. Other initiatives are pitched somewhere in between.
Even in the UK, in the context of the Next Steps/Modernising Government
Initiatives, Citizens' Charters have acquired a service quality face for delivery of
public services. The quality tools adopted for improving public services include the
Business Excellence Model, Investors in People, Charter Mark, ISO 9000 and Best
Value (Government of UK, 1999).
The Government of Malaysia issued Guidelines on the Client's Charter in 1993
to assist government agencies to prepare and implement Client's Charter, which is
a written commitment by an agency to deliver outputs or services according to
specified standards of quality (Government of Malaysia, 1998). A Best Client's
Charter Award was instituted in 1993. The Malaysian system of Client's Charter
closely follows the UK Model. A distinction is made between agency-wide and unit
charters. The concept of 'service recovery' enjoins taking steps to restore the trust
and confidence of the client in a proactive manner when things go wrong.
The Commonwealth Government of Australia launched its Service Charter
initiative in 1997 as part of its on-going commitment to improve the quality of
service provided by agencies to the Australian community by moving the
government organisation away from bureaucratic processes to customer-focused
outcomes. Service Charters are considered a powerful tool for fostering change and
require the organisation to focus on services delivered, to measure and assess
performance, and to initiate performance improvement. By providing goals for
agencies to strive towards, a Charter acts as a surrogate for competition where
none exists (Department of Finance and Administration, 1999). Centre link is a
one-stop shop that provides access to Australian government services for over six
million customers. Centrelink has adopted one-to-one service as an innovative and
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personalized approach to service delivery. One-to-one service treats customers with

respect and consistency and takes the complexity out of dealing with government.
The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat started a Service Standard Initiative
in 1995 which took its cue from the Citizens' Charters of the United Kingdom, but
enlarged the scope considerably. This Service Standard Initiative in Canada was
started against the backdrop of citizen expectations relating to friendly, respectful
and courteous service; faster response times; extended hours at government offices;
and 'one-stop-shopping'. At the same time there was need to reduce the deficit and
provide value for money through more efficient use of resources (Treasury Board of
Canada, 1995).
A comparison of these four major Citizens' Charter initiatives shows that the
service quality approach is embedded in them in different degrees. Once a decision
is taken to make public services citizen-centric, the customer focus of the Total
Quality Management (TQM) variety cannot be far behind. In fact, the Citizens'
Charter approach has several things in common with TQM. Both begin by focusing
on meeting customer/citizen requirements. Other key common elements are
conformance to standards, stakeholder involvement and continuous improvement.
15.3.3 The Indian Scene
Over the years, in India, significant progress has been made in the field of
economic development. This, along with a substantial increase in the literacy rate,
(from 51.63% to 65.38% in the last decade) has made Indian citizens increasingly
aware of their rights. Citizens have become more articulate and expect the
administration not merely to respond to their demands but also to anticipate them.
It was in this climate that since 1996 a consensus had evolved in the Government
on effective and responsive administration. In a Conference of Chief Ministers of
various States and Union Territories held on 24 May, 1997 in New Delhi, presided
over by the Prime Minister of India, an 'Action Plan for Effective and Responsive
Government' at the Centre and State levels was adopted. One of the major decisions
at that Conference was that the Central and State Governments would formulate
Citizens' Charters, starting with those sectors that have a large public interface (e.g.
Railways, Telecom, Posts, Public Distribution Systems). These Charters were
required to include standards of service and time limits that the public can
reasonably expect, avenues of grievance redress and a provision for independent
scrutiny with the involvement of citizen and consumer groups.
Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances in Government
of India (DARPG) initiated the task of coordinating, formulating and
operationalising Citizens' Charters. Guidelines for formulating the Charters as well
as a list of do's and don'ts were communicated to various government
departments/organisations to enable them to bring out focused and effective
charters. For the formulation of the Charters, the government agencies at the
Centre and State levels were advised to constitute a task force with representation
from users, senior management and the cutting edge staff.
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The Charters are expected to incorporate the following elements :-(i) Vision and
Mission Statement; (ii) Details of business transacted by the organisation; (iii)
Details of clients; (iv) Details of services provided to each client group; (v) Details of
grievance redress mechanism and how to access it; and (vi) Expectations from the
clients.
Primarily an adaptation of the UK model, the Indian Citizens' Charter has an
additional component of expectations from the clients' or in other words obligations
of the users'. Involvement of consumer organisations, citizen groups, and other
stakeholders in the formulation of the Citizens' Charter is emphasized to ensure
that the Citizens' Charter meets the needs of the users. Regular monitoring, review
and evaluation of the Charters, both internally and through external agencies, are
enjoined. As on March, 2005, 107 Citizens' Charters had been formulated by the
Central Government Ministries/ Departments/ Organisations and 629 Charters by
various agencies of State Governments & Administrations of Union Territories. Most
of the national Charters are posted on the government's Websites and are open to
public scrutiny. The organisations with Citizens' Charters are advised to give
publicity to their Charters through such means as print/ electronic media and
awareness campaigns.
15.3.4 Comprehensive Website on Citizens' Charters
A comprehensive Website of Citizens' Charter in Government of India
(www.goicharters.nic.in) (link is external) has been developed and was launched by
the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances on 31 May, 2002.
This contains the Citizens' Charters issued by various Central Government
Ministries/ Departments/ Organisations. The Website provides useful information,
data and links.
Exemplary implementation of the Citizens' Charter
While the overall efforts and initiatives of the government on Citizens' Charter
were continuing, it was realised that exemplary implementation of the Charter in a
major public interface area of government would not only establish the new concept
in the inertia-prone bureaucracy but also act as a role model for replication in other
sectors/areas. The banking sector was identified for this purpose keeping in view
the second phase of economic reforms and the fact that this sector was fairly
advanced in terms of customer service and was also taking advantage of
information technology to speed up various processes. The primary objective of this
exercise was to build the Banking Sector as a model of excellence in the
implementation of the Citizens' Charter.
To begin with, three major National level Banks, namely, Punjab National
Bank, Punjab and Sind Bank and Oriental Bank of Commerce, were selected for a
Hand-Holding exercise by the DARPG in the year 2000. The following key issues
were highlighted for exemplary implementation of the Citizens' Charter: - (i)
stakeholder involvement in the formulation of Citizens' Charters; (ii) deployment of
the Citizens' Charters in the Banks by full involvement of the staff, specially the
employees at the cutting-edge level; (iii) creation of awareness about the Charter
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amongst the customers of the Banks; and (iv) special training for employees at all
levels about the concept and implementation of Citizens' Charter.
After an evaluation of the current status of the Charters by the identified
banks through independent agencies, Action Plans were chalked out to rectify
shortcomings. The Charters were, accordingly, revised and standardised on the
basis of the model/ mother Charter developed by the Indian Banks Association
(IBA). Training for employees of selected branches through master trainers, trained
by the National Institute of Bank Management using a module developed in
consultation with Department of ARPG wereorganised. Several measures to give
wide publicity to Citizens' Charter were also undertaken.
An external agency was engaged to once again assess and evaluate the
implementation of Citizens' Charter of these banks at the end of this exercise and
also to document the Hand-Holding Exercise. National Institute of Bank
Management was assigned this task which had since been executed and a
documentation was brought out in the Year 2003
Evaluation of Citizens' Charters
An evaluation of the Citizens' Charters of various government agencies was
carried out by DARPG and Consumer Coordination Council, New Delhi, an NGO, in
October 1998. The results were quite encouraging given the nascent stage of this
initiative in India. A brief questionnaire has been circulated to all Ministries/
Departments and State Governments/Union Territories to enable them to
undertake an in-house evaluation of their Citizens' Charters. Organisations have
also been advised to undertake external evaluations, preferably through NGOs.
During the Year 2002-03, DARPG engaged a professional agency to develop a
standardised model for internal and external evaluation of Citizens' Charters in a
more effective, quantifiable and objective manner. This agency also carried out
evaluation of implementation of Charters in 5 Central Government Organisations
and 15 Departments/ Organisations of States of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and
Uttar Pradesh. This Agency was also required to suggest methods for increasing
awareness, both within the organisation and among the users, and to suggest
possible methods for orientation of management and the staff in the task of
formulating and deploying Charters.
As per the report of evaluation carried out by the Agency, major findings were:
i) In majority of cases Charters were not formulated through a consultative
process;
ii) By and large service providers are not familiar with the philosophy, goals
and main features of the Charter;
iii) Adequate publicity to the Charters had not been given in any of the
Departments evaluated. In most Departments, the Charters are only in the
initial or middle stage of implementation;
iv) No funds have been specifically earmarked for awareness generation of
Citizens' Charter or for orientation of staff on various components of the
Charter;
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Key recommendations, inter alia, include: - (i) need for citizens and staff to be
consulted at every stage of formulation of the Charter, (ii) orientation of staff about
the salient features and goals/ objectives of the Charter; vision and mission
statement of the department; and skills such as team building, problem solving,
handling of grievances and communication skills, (iii) need for creation of database
on consumer grievances and redress, (iv) need for wider publicity of the Charter
through print media, posters, banners, leaflets, handbills, brochures, local
newspapers etc. and also through electronic media, (v) earmarking of specific
budgets for awareness generation and orientation of staff, and (vi) replication of
best practices in this field.
15.3.5 Compendium on Citizens' Charters in Government of India
With the objective of generating awareness among the citizens as well as
government functionaries of the commitments of various organisations enshrined in
their Citizens' Charter, the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public
Grievances brought out a Compendium of abridged versions of all Citizens'
Charters in Government of India in a book as well as in CD form on 14 May, 2003.
The Compendium contains the operative standards and quality of services proposed
to be provided as also the public grievance redress mechanism as committed in the
Citizens' Charters. The Compendium also contains the name, address, telephone
number, e-mail address etc. of nodal officers for Citizens' Charters in Central
Government Ministries/ Departments/ Organisations and also the list of Website
addresses of concerned Ministry/ Department/Organization.
The Compendium shall not only be useful to the citizens for ready reference,
but will also enable them to critically review the functioning of these organisations.
This would also help the organisations to compare the standards set by them, vis--
vis, those set by other organisations.
Regional Seminars
Four Regional Seminars on Citizens' Charters were organised during the year
2001-02, with a view to bring national and state level organisations along with
other stakeholders including NGOs, intelligentsia, media etc. on the same platform
and to share experiences in formulation and implementation of Citizens' Charter.
These seminars were organised at Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad,
LalBahadurShastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie, R.C.V.P.
Noronha Academy of Administration, Bhopal and Assam Administrative Staff
College, Guwahati. In all 24 State Governments/ UT Administrations and 15
Central Government Departments/ Organisations participated.
Capacity Building Workshops
On the basis of the feedback received and experience gained in these seminars,
it was decided to organise separate Capacity Building Workshops with specific
focus on (i) formulation of Charter (ii) effective implementation of Charter and (iii)
enhancing the capacity of trainers available at State Administrative Training
Institutes/ Central Civil Services Staff Colleges. During the year 2002-03, three
Capacity Building Workshops on formulation and implementation of Citizens'
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Charters were organised at H.P. Institute of Public Administration, Shimla (HP),

R.C.V.P. Noronha Academy of Administration, Bhopal and YeshwantraoChavan
Academy of Development Administration, Pune, Indian Institute of Public
Administration, New Delhi. Besides a Capacity Building Workshop for developing
Trainers and Training Modules on Citizens' Charter was organised at Indian
Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi in December 2002. In all, 15 States/
UT Administrations and 5 Central Government Departments/ Organisations
participated.
During the year 2003-04, four Capacity Building Workshops on formulation of
Citizens' Charter were organised at Administrative Training Institute, Kolkata,
Administrative Training Institute, Nainital, HCM Rajasthan State Institute of Public
Administration, Jaipur and Administrative Training Institute, Mysore. Two Capacity
Building Workshops on Citizens' Charter for Developing Trainers and Training
Programmes were also conducted during 2003-04 at LalBahadurShastri National
Academy of Administration, Mussoorie and Indian Institute of Public
Administration, New Delhi.
During the year 2004-05, three Capacity Building Workshops on Citizens'
Charters were organized at Uttaranchal Academy of Administration, Nainital, HCM
Rajasthan State Institute of Administration, Jaipur and Assam Administrative Staff
College, Guwahati.
Department-Specific Workshops
The Department is also organising '1-day Department-specific workshops' with
a twin objective of generating awareness amongst the public as well as employees
and initiating the process of consultation. 13 Department-specific workshops have
been organised in the States of Jharkhand, Uttaranchal, Madhya Pradesh and
Maharashtra during the Year 2002-03.
Information and Facilitation Counters (IFCs)
Information and Facilitation Counter (IFC) is a facility set up by selected
Central Government organisations to provide information to citizens about their
Programmes/schemes, rules and procedures etc. as well as status of cases/
applications. An IFC also acts as a nodal point for redress of public grievances. The
IFC, therefore, is a physical manifestation of Citizens' Charter. Hence it has now
been decided to set up IFCs in all government ministries/ departments having
Citizens' Charters. 105 Information and Facilitation Counters/ May I Help You/
Inquiry Counters have been set up so far.
Evaluation of the functioning of the IFCs was carried out by the DARPG and
the Consumer Coordination Council. The organisations concerned have taken
action on deficiencies pointed out in these evaluations. This Department also
regularly monitors the working of the IFCs through a half-yearly return prescribed
for all the organisations that have set up IFCs.
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Problems faced in Implementing the Charters
As pointed out, the Citizens' Charters initiative in India had started in 1997
and the Charters formulated are in a nascent stage of implementation. Introduction
of a new concept is always difficult in any organisation. Introduction and
implementation of the concept of Citizens' Charter in the Government of India was
much more difficult due to the old bureaucratic set up/procedures and the rigid
attitudes of the work force. The major obstacles encountered in this initiative were:
1. The general perception of organisations which formulated Citizens' Charters
was that the exercise was to be carried out because there was a direction
from the top. The consultation process was minimal or largely absent. It
thus became one of the routine activities of the organisation and had no
focus.
2. For any Charter to succeed, the employees responsible for its
implementation should have proper training and orientation, as
commitments of the Charter cannot be expected to be delivered by a
workforce that is unaware of the spirit and content of the Charter. However,
in many cases, the concerned staff were not adequately trained and
sensitised.
3. Sometimes, transfers and reshuffles of concerned officers at the crucial
stages of formulation/implementation of a Citizens' Charter in an
organisation severely undermined the strategic processes which were put in
place and hampered the progress of the initiative.
4. Awareness campaigns to educate clients about the Charter were not
conducted systematically.
5. In some cases, the standards/time norms of services mentioned in Citizens'
Charter were either too lax or too tight and were, therefore, unrealistic and
created an unfavourable impression on the clients of the Charter.
6. The concept behind the Citizens' Charter was not properly understood.
Information brochures, publicity materials, pamphlets produced earlier by
the organisations were mistaken for Citizens' Charters.
15.3.6 Lessons learnt
The following lessons have been learnt from the experience to date of
implementing Citizens' Charter initiative:
1. As with any new effort, the Citizens' Charter initiative is bound to be looked
at initially with skepticism by bureaucrats as well as citizens. An effective
awareness campaign amongst all the stakeholders at the initial stage is
essential to overcome this skepticism. These awareness campaigns should
be designed and delivered Innovatively and effectively.
2. The issuance of Citizens' Charter will not change overnight the mindset of
the staff and the clients, developed over a period of time. Therefore, regular,
untiring and persistent efforts are required to bring about the attitudinal
changes.
3. A new initiative always encounters barriers and misgivings from the staff.
There is a natural resistance to change, particularly among the cutting-edge
126
staff. Involving and consulting them at all the levels of formulation and
implementation of Citizens' Charter will go a long way in overcoming this
resistance and will make them an equal partner in this exercise.
4. Instead of trying to reform all the processes at once and encounter massive
resistance, it is advisable to break it into small components and tackle them
one at a time.
5. The charter initiative should have an built-in mechanism for monitoring,
evaluating and reviewing the working of the Charters, preferably through an
outside agency.
15.3.7 Future Vision : Development of Charter Mark
In 1992, the UK Government introduced Charter Mark, a scheme for
recognising and encouraging excellence in public service. To win a Charter Mark
the organisation has to demonstrate excellence against the following nine Charter
Mark criteria which correspond to the principles of public service delivery, namely,
(1) Performance Standards; (2) Information and openness; (3) Choice and
Consultation; (4) Courtesy and helpfulness; (5) Putting things right; (6) Value for
money; (7) Use satisfaction; (8) Improvements in service quality; and (9) Planned
improvements and innovations. The Government of Malaysia also instituted a 'Best
Client's Charter Award' in 1993 based on the UK model.
In India, the DARPG has identified a professional agency to develop an
appropriate Charter Mark scheme. This scheme will encourage and reward
improvement in public service delivery with reference to the commitments and
standards notified in the Charter. The 'Charter Mark' is proposed to be awarded
after assessment by an independent panel of judges. This would not only give a
sense of achievement to the organization awarded the Charter Mark but also
promote a spirit of competitiveness amongst various organizations that have issued
Citizens' Charter and generating awareness among citizens. A prototype has been
developed by the professional agency and is in the process of validation in identified
Departments/ Organizations.
The implementation of Citizens' Charter is an on-going exercise because it has
to reflect the extensive and continual changes taking place in the domain of public
services. Indian Government continuously strives to serve the citizens in an
effective and efficient way so as not only to meet but to exceed their expectations.
The Citizens' Charter initiative is a major step in this direction.
Citizens' Charters initiative is a response to the quest for solving the problems
which a citizen encounters, day in and day out, while dealing with the
organizations providing public services.
Services First
The basic objective of the Citizens Charter is to empower the citizen in relation
to public service delivery.
127
Evaluation of Citizens' Charters
An evaluation of the Citizens' Charters of various government agencies was
carried out by DARPG and Consumer Coordination Council, New Delhi, an NGO, in
October 1998.
1. When was Citizen Charter introduced in India?
2. What is meant by citizen charter?
3. What is Citizen Charter Act?
15.6 SUMMARY
Citizens’ Charters initiative is a response to the mission for solving the
problems which a citizen meets, day in and day out, while dealing with the
organisations providing public services.The charter is the declaration of
commitment to superiority in service to customers of the department. The citizen
charter declares the standards for various services offered. It includes expectations
of the Organisation from the Citizens for fulfilling its commitment. Citizen charter is
available on India post website.
The concept of Citizens’ Charter protects the trust between the service provider
and its users.Citizens’ Charter was first expressed and implemented in the United
Kingdom by the Conservative Government of John Major in 1991 as a national
programme with aim to constantly improve the quality of public services for the
people of the country so that these services respond to the needs and wishes of the
users.
1. What is the objective of our citizen charter?
2. When was Citizen Charter introduced in India?
3. Who gave the idea of citizen first?
4. Enlist benefits of citizen charter?
Red World Bank charter, school charter, financial charter will help to
understand better.
Articles on citizens charter.
15.9 ASSIGNMENT
Visit a local government office and go through its charter.
15.10 REFERENCES
For details about John Major, see the official Number 10 Downing
Street Archived October 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine web site.
Jump up to:a b c https://univ-paris12.academia.edu/ JohnMullen/Papers/
882457/John_Majors_Citizens_Charter._Fifteen_years_later Academic paper on the
citizen's charter
Jump up to:a b c d e "1991: Citizen's charter promises better services". 22 July
1991 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
128
Jump up to:a b "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-10-

06.Retrieved 2018-08-06.
Jump up to:a b Commons, The Committee Office, House of. "House of Commons
- Public Administration - Twelfth Report". publications.parliament.uk.
1. Discuss manifesto of any institution will further enhance your knowledge of
citizen charter.
2. Write a short note on citizen charter.
15.12 KEYWORDS
Charter – agreement
Liability – obligation
Accountability – answerability

129
LESSON – 16
NEED FOR CITIZEN CHARTER
16.1 INTRODUCTION
In any nation, there is a need of good governance for sustainable development,
both economic and social. The three major aspects highlighted in good governance
are transparency, accountability and responsiveness of the administration.
organizations providing public services. The charter is the declaration of
of the Organization from the Citizens for fulfilling its commitment. Citizen charter is
available on India post website. The concept of Citizens’ Charter protects the trust
between the service provider and its users.
Citizens’ Charter was first expressed and implemented in the United Kingdom
by the Conservative Government of John Major in 1991 as a national programme
with aim to constantly improve the quality of public services for the people of the
country so that these services respond to the needs and wishes of the users.
16.2 OBJECTIVES
This chapter discusses the meaning, formation, need, importance of citizen
charter.
It also throws light on Indian citizen charter.
It also gives touch to salient features of citizen charter and guidelines of citizen
charter in India.
16.3 CONTENTS
16.3.1 Necessity of Citizen Charter
16.3.2 Salient Features of a Citizen’s Charter
16.3.3 Problems faced in implementing the Charters
16.3.4 Deficiencies in the Existing Citizen’s Charters
16.3.5 Guidelines for the Citizens’ Charters in India
16.3.1 Necessity of Citizen Charter
The charters should be in place in all government departments and PSUs to
improve quality of public services continuously For any civil society intelligentsia
team or for that matter for their vociferous supporters, it should be of utmost
priority to see that citizen charters are in place in all government departments and
public sector undertakings as an effective redressal mechanism. In fact, its
importance was discussed over two decades ago in the Chief Ministers’ Conference
presided over by then Prime Minister IK Gujral on May 24, 1997.
A plan for drafting the citizen charters on a priority was prominently included
in the Nine-Point Action Plan of CMs Conference. It was mandatory for all
130
government departments — Centre and State – to formulate citizen charters and

initiate an effective public grievance redressal system.
In fact, when feedback was taken 15 years later in January 2011, 24 State
governments and Union Territories were in the process of formulating charters. VK
Agnihotri, former IAS officer of AP cadre and Rajya Shaba Secretary-General, was
responsible for monitoring the implementation of charters as well as redressal
mechanism as Secretary to Government of India in the Department of
Administrative Reforms.
Formulation of Charters
Soon after the CMs meet of 1997, formulation of charters commenced in
departments and offices, to begin within those that had a large public interface. It
was based on a consultative process, involving different stakeholders, specifying
standards of service and time limits that the public can reasonably expect. This
helped in improving the quality of administration and providing a responsive
interface between the citizen and the public services from the government. The
process also placed the citizen at the centre of administration instead of making her
a passive recipient of services rendered indifferently with no concern for quality,
timeliness or cost.
The citizen charter is a document prepared by the service provider in a clear
and precise manner about the quality and method of delivery of services to the
users (citizens). The purpose is to improve the quality of service to the public, give
people more choices, tell them what kind of service to expect from government
departments and make sure they know what to do if something goes wrong in the
process of service delivery.
The six principles of citizen charter are Published Standards, Openness and
Information, Choice and Consultation, Courtesy and Helpfulness, Redress when
things go wrong and Value for Money. Provision for independent scrutiny of actual
implementation with the involvement of citizen groups is the basic character of
charters. The charter would carry a moral commitment of the government and
provide a framework under which public services could be evaluated.
Values and Mindset
Implementation of charters by the respective organisations is a major task,
covering vast areas and staff. It, therefore, needs a monumental and sustained
effort at training, orientation, publicity and awareness building, as well as regular
and honest evaluation to transform the charter from a piece of paper into an
instrument for changing long-entrenched values and mindset. Creating a platform
of interests between the service provider and its users is the first step, balancing
the strengths and constraints of the former against the reasonable expectations of
the latter are the next.
In the then united Andhra Pradesh, for a while, remarkable work was done in
this regard. Formulation of charters and grievance redressal mechanism was a
priority item. The Dr MCR HRD Institute, the premier training centre for capacity
131
and capability building of State government employees, was the platform and
coordinator to formulate charters. The institute was entrusted with the work of
conducting departmental workshops for select departments to familiarise them with
the principles and modalities of preparing citizen charters. It was the personal
initiative of then Director General PVRK Prasad, a senior IAS officer, to put the plan
into action.
The government considered the draft charters prepared in the institute and an
informal consultation process was started by the minister concerned, secretary and
head of department with the stakeholders. A follow-up workshop was organised in
the institute within a fortnight where the minister concerned along with his senior
officials interacted formally with the representatives of the stakeholders. The
department firmed up the draft in the next one week. At this stage, the department
concerned issued a public notification through print and electronic media
indicating the contents of the proposed citizen charter and inviting suggestions
from the public on the specific points to be covered.
Plans in Place
Simultaneously, the department (coinciding with the publication for
suggestions from the public) informally started implementing the contents of the
charter to get feedback on any practical problems faced in the implementation.
Within three months of the original notification calling for suggestions from the
public, the final draft was prepared, approved and issued by the government.
Citizen Charters were rolled out in several departments to begin with. Among
them, Road Transport Authority, Department of Employment and Training,
Hyderabad Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board, transco and four discoms,
Registration and Stamps, Municipal Administration, Commercial Taxes and
Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad implemented them initially. The Centre for
Good Governance helped in preparing a roadmap for its implementation and was
building awareness among user groups. It’s better if the process starts again and
charters are in place in all the government departments and public sector
undertakings in the State.
The real issue is the need to bring about a total change in the attitude of
public servants towards redressal of public grievance at all levels and to pinpoint
responsibility for action on grievances of the people. This is dependent internally on
measures to improve the levels of motivation and morale of staff through rewards
for good work and punishment for deliberate negligence. The senior officers should
constantly supervise the staff to improve their performance consistently.
Importance of Citizen’s Charter
1. To make administration accountable and citizen friendly.
2. To ensure transparency.
3. To take measures to improve customer service.
4. To adopt a stakeholder approach.
5. To save time of both Administration and the citizen.
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The Indian Scenario
Since many years, in India, noteworthy progress has been made in the field of
economic development. This, along with a considerable increase in the literacy rate,
(from 51.63% to 65.38% in the last decade) has made Indian citizens increasingly
aware of their rights. Citizens have become more articulate and expect the
administration not merely to respond to their demands but also to anticipate them.
It was in this climate that since 1996 a consensus had evolved in the Government
on effective and responsive administration. Department of Administrative Reforms
and Public Grievances in Government of India (DARPG) initiated the task of
coordinating, formulating and operationalising Citizens’ Charters. Guidelines for
formulating the Charters as well as a list of do’s and don’ts were communicated to
various government departments/organisations to enable them to bring out focused
and effective charters. For the formulation of the Charters, the government agencies
at the Centre and State levels were advised to constitute a task force with
representation from users, senior management and the cutting edge staff.
Principally, an adaptation of the UK model, the Indian Citizens’ Charter has an
additional constituent of ‘expectations from the clients’. Involvement of consumer
organisations, citizen groups, and other stakeholders in the formulation of the
Citizens’ Charter is highlighted to confirm that the Citizens’ Charter fulfills the
needs of the users.
Regular monitoring, review and evaluation of the Charters, both internally and
through external agencies, are commanded.
Till April, 2006, 111 Citizens’ Charters had been articulated by the Central
Government Ministries/ Departments/ Organisations and 668 Charters by various
agencies of State Governments & Administrations of Union Territories. Most of the
national Charters are posted on the government’s websites and are open to public
scrutiny. The organisations with Citizens’ Charters are advised to give publicity to
their Charters through such means as print/ electronic media and awareness
crusades.
16.3.2 Salient Features of a Citizen’s Charter
The salient features of a Citizen’s Charter are:
1. Agreed and published standards for service delivery;
2. Openness and information about service delivery;
3. ‘Choice’ and Consultation with users;
4. Courtesy and helpfulness in service delivery; and
5. Provision of redressal of grievances.
Let us elaborate these points:
Standards: The Charter should lay out explicit standards of service delivery so
that users understand what they can reasonably expect from service providers.
These standards should be time‐bound, relevant, accurate, measurable and
specific. The actual performance vis‐à‐vis the standards adopted must be published
and independently validated. The tendency among organizations to develop targets
133
and standards based on their own convenience as opposed to the needs of the
citizens must be avoided.
Information and openness: A key attribute of good service is the availability
of relevant and concise information to the users at the right time and at the right
place. The Charters should contain, in plain language, full and accurate
information about services available, levels and quality of service to be expected,
available channels for grievance redressal etc. Handbooks, guides, posters, websites
are some of the channels through which information can be provided to citizens.
Choice and consultation: The Charter should provide choice of services to
users wherever practicable. There should be regular and systematic consultation
with the users of the service to fix service standards and to ascertain quality of
service delivery.
Courtesy and helpfulness: The Charter can help embed a culture of
courteous and helpful service from public servants. In addition, small initiatives
such as ‘name badges’, ‘May I help you’ counters etc. can go a long way in building
customer confidence.
Grievance redressal and complaints handling: There is a strong link
between the provision of quality service and effective handling of complaints.
Firstly, by facilitating and responding to complaints, the causes for complaint can
be reduced. Secondly, by identifying ‘trends’ in complaints, the service provider can
resolve systemic and recurring problems.
16.3.3 Problems faced in implementing the Charters
As indicated, the Citizens’ Charters initiative in India had started in 1997 and
the Charters formulated are in embryonic stage of implementation. Introduction of
a new thought is always difficult in any organisation. Introduction and
implementation of the concept of Citizens’ Charter in the Government of India was
much more complicated due to the old bureaucratic set up/procedures and the
rigid attitudes of the work force.
The major obstacles encountered in this initiative were:
1. The general perception of organisations which formulated Citizens’ Charters
was that the exercise was to be performed because there was a direction
from the top. The consultation process was minimal or largely absent. It
thus became one of the routine activities of the organisation and had no
focus.
2. For any Charter to thrive the personnel responsible for its implementation
should have proper training and orientation, as commitments of the Charter
cannot be expected to be delivered by a workforce that is unaware of the
spirit and content of the Charter. However, in many cases, the concerned
staff was not sufficiently trained and sensitised.
3. Sometimes, transfers and reshuffles of concerned officers at the critical
stages of formulation/implementation of a Citizens’ Charter in an
organisation severely destabilised the strategic processes which were put in
place and hampered the progress of the initiative.
134
4. Awareness campaigns to teach clients about the Charter were not conducted
systematically.
5. In some cases, the standards/time norms of services mentioned in Citizens’
Charter were either too negligent or too tight and were impractical and
created an unfavourable impression on the clients of the Charter.
6. The notion behind the Citizens’ Charter was not accurately understood.
Information brochures, publicity materials, pamphlets produced earlier by
the organisations were mistaken for Citizens’ Charters.
16.3.4 Deficiencies in the Existing Citizens’ Charters
1. Lack of awareness and knowledge and inadequate publicity, hence loss of
trust among service seekers
2. No training to the operative and supervisory staff
3. Lack of infrastructure and initiative
4. Hierarchy gap between the Officers and the Operative Staff-Need of team
effort
5. Different mind-sets of officers and the Staff- Insensitiveness on the part of
the Supervisors and the Staff because they are yet to be sensitized
6. Staff is not prepared to shoulder the responsibility due to lack of motivation
and accountability
7. Non-revision, complicated and restrictive rules & procedures
16.3.5 Guidelines for the Citizens’ Charters in India
1. List all Offices according to type of services they provide to public – Indicate
their location, areas they cover, type of services being rendered to public,
and phone numbers.
2. There should be a separate Citizens’ Charter (i.e., Local Citizens’ Charters)
for each office covering the services they provide. For example, there should
be a separate Charter of the Directorate, its subordinate offices, Hospitals,
Schools, etc. according to the particular services they provide.
3. Mention Service Standards – Step-by-step-Procedure based on ‘Where to go;
how to proceed’, simple and easy to fill-in Forms, specimen of duly-filled in
forms, documents, fees, etc. required, reasonable time schedule, Do’s &
Don’ts, etc., names, addresses and Tele. Nos. of concerned Officials, his
alternate for each service, etc.
4. Minimum documentation, self-attestation and self-declaration.
5. No duplication – In case desired information and document submitted earlier
like proof of residence (if there is no change), birth certificate, etc., it should
not be asked again.
6. If promised services are not provided as per specified time schedule, an
effective grievance redressal mechanism (including the provision of
compensation to the concerned citizen in order to introduce accountability)
should be introduced.
7. Provision of TATKAL (Immediate) Services if somebody is in urgent need (as
in the case of Passport, Railways, etc.) to avoid touts, bribery, etc.
8. Simultaneous changes in the Performa and other requirements to be effected
along with the changes made in the Citizens Charter.
135
9. Database of frequently required information, like ownership of property,

vehicle, etc., tax and dues paid or pending, etc.
10. If possible, the services and their related information may be presented in a
tabular form.
11. Salient features of each service should be prominently displayed in simple
and easy language at all places likely to be visited by the service seekers.
1. Citizens’ Charters initiative is a response to the mission for solving the
organisations providing public services. The charter is the declaration of
commitment to superiority in service to customers of the department.
2. need of citizen charter
3. importance
4. features
1. Explain the formulation of citizen charter?
2. Write a note on guidelines on citizenship charter in India?
16.6 SUMMARY
organisations providing public services. The charter is the declaration of
of the Organisation from the Citizens for fulfilling its commitment. Citizen charter is
available on India post website. The concept of Citizens’ Charter protects the trust
between the service provider and its users.
16.7 TERMINAL EXERCISE:
1. Give importance of need of citizenship charter?
2. Discuss in detail the Indian view on citizen charter?
3. Enumerate the salient features of citizen charter?
16.8 SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIALS:
goicharters.nic.in
darpp.nic.in
praja.org
trulbs.org/tambaram/info/citizen’s charter/html
maharashtra.gov.in
16.9 ASSIGNMENT
1. To read the news paper articles on citizen charter
2. To analyze the ways through which approach citizens approach to
government officials
3. To write the essay on citizen charter
16.10 REFERENCE
 For details about John Major, see the official Number 10 Downing
Street Archived October 16, 2011, at the Wayback Machine web site.
136
 https://univparis12.academia.edu/JohnMullen/Papers/882457/John_Majo
rs_Citizens_Charter._Fifteen_years_later Academic paper on the citizen's
charter
 Citizen's charter promises better services". 22 July 1991 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2007-10-06. Retrieved 2018-08-
06.
 Commons, The Committee Office, House of. "House of Commons - Public
Administration - Twelfth Report". publications.parliament.uk.
1. Write a detailed essay on the need of citizenship charter and present
diffculities of the charter?
16.12 KEYWORDS
Redress: restore
Charter: agreement

137
LESSON – 17
ELECTRONIC GOVERNANCE AND SERVICE DELIVERY IN INDIA:
THEORY AND PRACTICE
17.1 INTRODUCTION
Interest in e-governance is growing with the increasing use of information and
communication technology (ICT) by government to improve the quality of
governance and service delivery. Governments all over the world have been using ICTs
such as internet, websites, computers and mobile phones to provide various
government services in an efficient, equitable and transparent manner with less
corruption (good governance). Notwithstanding these advantages, there are certain
problems like poor coverage of the e-governance infrastructure, inadequate human
resources, mismanagement, technical inexperience and inequitable access (digital
divide), lack of public awareness and ineffective civil society participation. This
paper mainly reviews the experiences of e- governance reforms in improving the
quality of governance and service delivery in India. The first section deals with the
conceptual framework of e-governance. The second section focuses on e-
governance initiatives in India. The third section reviews the implications of e-
governance on service delivery in terms of efficiency, accountability, participation
and equity on the basis of the secondary resources. The fourth section deals with the
enabling conditions in promoting e-governance in India. Finally, the paper comes
with the policy perspectives Interest in e-governance is growing with the increasing
use of information and communication technology (ICT) by government to improve
the quality of governance and service delivery. Governments all over the world have
been using ICTs such as internet, websites, computers and mobile phones to deliver
services to the people. e-governance activities such as display of information relating
to government service provisions, citizen feedback (complaints, and criticisms) about
government policies and performance, payment of taxes, renewal of license with the
help of ICT is on the increase. Electronic governance has the potential to address
effectively the service delivery issues like accessibility, equity, adequacy,
responsiveness, transparency, people’s participation and corruption etc. (indicators
of good governance) in service delivery process. Many developed countries have
accorded e-governance a prominent place public sector reform and in public policies
and have allotted a significant amount of funding to e-governance projects. E-
governance is also accorded a prominent place in the development agenda of
developing countries as a promising tool for achieving good governance, which is
usually regarded as essential for economic and political development. India is fast
catching up with other countries to promote e-governance in a big way to improve the
quality of governance and service delivery. This paper mainly reviews the
experiences of e-governance reforms in improving the quality of governance and
service delivery in India. The first section deals with the conceptual framework of e-
governance. The second section focuses on e-governance initiatives in India. The
third section reviews the implications of e-governance on service delivery in terms of
efficiency (speedy delivery, cost reduction and accessibility of service),
138
accountability (transparency and simplification of procedures and actions,

reduction of corruption), participation (empowerment with information in
formulation, implementation, and monitoring of policies) and equity (benefits for
disadvantaged groups and areas/regions) on the basis of secondary resources. The
fourth section deals with enabling conditions in promoting e-governance in India.
Finally, the paper elucidates the policy perspectives.
17.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the E-Governance and its implications about service delivery
 We have enlighten in this unit about services given by various state
governments
 To understand the concept like transparency, accountability, empowerment,
reduction of corruption
17.3 CONTENTS
17.3.1 E-Governance initiative in India
17.3.2 Computerized Inter-State Check Posts of Gujarat Government(CICP)
17.3.3 Provision of information and services
17.3.4 Multiple services
17.3.5 Administrative efficiency for effective communication
17.3.6 Transparency and Accountability
17.3.7 Reduction of corruption
17.3.8 Participation
17.3.9 Empowerment
17.3.10 Equity
17.3.11 Adequate Infrastructure
17.3.12 Sound Policy and legal Framework
17.3.13 Socially relevant technologies and integrated management
17.3.14 Public and private partnership
17.3.15 Political and Administrative Leadership
17.3.16 Role of Civil Society
17.3.17 Human Resources Development and Capacity Building
Electronic governance or e-governance has been defined in a variety of ways. E-
governance is about a process of reform in the way governments work, share
information, and deliver services to internal and external clients. E-governance
refers to the use of information and communication technologies (ICT), such as the E-
governance, wide area networks, mobile phones etc. to deliver services to citizens that
have the ability to transform relations with clients, businesses, and other arms of
government. Christopher Baum defines e-government as the “transformation of
public sector’s internal and external relationship through net-enabled operations,
information technology and communications to optimize government service
delivery, constituency participation and governance” (cited in Kumar 2004). E-
governance is defined as the application of electronic means in (1) the interaction
between government and citizens, and government and businesses, as well as (2)
139
internal government operations to simplify and improve democratic, government and

business aspects of governance (Backus 2003). Rogers W’O Okot-Uma opines “e-
governance seeks to realize process and structures for harnessing the potentialities
of information and communication technologies at various levels of government and
public sector and beyond for the purpose of enhancing good governance” (cited in
Kumar 2004). The term ‘e-government’ refers to the use of ICT by government
agencies to transform relations with citizens and businesses (Venkatesh 2003;
cited in Barthwal 2003:288). E-governance has different interpretations. It implies
a smoother interface between the government and the citizens governance is
nothing but good governance. The ‘e’ is only a tool. E- governance is to enhance the
use of the information technology and to help enhance lives of the citizens. E-
governance enables active citizen involvement by informing the citizens,
representing the citizens, encouraging them to vote consulting them as required and
encouraging their participation (Patel 2001).
E-governance can be classified under a variety of models depending upon the
nature of interaction and agencies involved in the interaction. These are government
to citizen (G2C), citizen to government (C2G), government to government (G2G),
government to business (G2B), government to NGO (G2N) (Sachdeva 2003). In G2C
model, the government interacts with the citizen to provide information and various
services. Information about government services is published on the web sites and
citizen can have access to information regarding procedures for getting jobs. Citizens
can download a number of application forms for a variety of services, such as filling
of tax returns, and renewal of licenses. A large number of government departments
also offer a number of facilities and services at one place through internet portals.
Citizens can also submit applications and make online payments. Important
examples in this regard are: e-education, e-medicine, e-registration, e-transport
and so on.
In the C2G model, citizens provide information regarding themselves (e-
census), their preferences/ suggestions/ complaints to the government through
electronic devices (e-democracy, e-voting). For instance, citizens can lodge
complaints and seek redressal of their grievances. In the G2G model, different
departments are connected through networks within the government, and
networking of government offices so as to bring about synergy among them for
speedy movement of communication and thereby reducing the cost. (e-
administration, e- secretariat, e-police, e-court, and statewide networks).
Computerization of office management (personnel, accounting, office manuals and
procedures) facilitates faster and more accurate processing of tasks with lesser
manpower, and lower information and compliance-handling costs with savings
accruing from reduced labour costs. In G2B and G2N models, government interacts
with private and civil society actors to provide information and services (e-taxation).
E-governance aims to make interaction between government and NGOs (G2C),
government and business enterprises (G2B) more friendly, convenient, transparent
and inexpensive (Sharma 2002: 607).
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E-governance also can be classified under two groups on the basis of policy
formulation and implementation, viz. e-administration and e-democracy. E-
administration aims at harnessing ICTs to streamline administrative procedures and
enhance public service delivery. This vision of e-governance is greatly influenced by
the ideals and objectives of new public management, which mainly focuses on
lean government (downsizing, less bureaucracy and few rules) for provision of
customer friendly services at lower cost, such as renewal of driving license or
declaration of income and payment of taxes online. E-democracy seeks to harness
the internet for more direct empowerment of the individual. The various plebiscite
uses of the internet put on the map by advocates of direct democracy and now
featured in many official e-government strategies. Projects that directly concern the
workings of the government include online voting, online polls, online deliberations
or the use of e- mail, comment forms or other interactive internet features to
contact administration officials or legislators directly.
The above review on electronic governance gives us two different kinds of
impressions: one in a very limited sense i.e., e-governance refers to the use of ICT in
delivering services to the people, and the other is broader in sense, i.e., e-
governance not only refers to the application of ICT in delivering services to the
people, but also represents a paradigm shift of the nature of the government citizen
relationship, of the nature of the citizenship by providing them easy and greater
opportunities of comprehensive participation in the governance process and of the
nature of the interaction of the market, civil society and government organisations. It
also represents a change in the structure of bureaucracy heralding an era of
paperless government and demystifying the bureaucracy.
17.3.1 E-governance Initiatives in India
Central and State governments have initiated many strategies to promote ICT
in all walks of life. The Central Government announced the IT policy in 1998 to
make IT available to all Indians by 2008. The policy aims to make India an IT super-
power and make it the generator and exporter of software within the next 10 years.
A high power national task force on IT and software development was set-up in
1998. The policy envisages the creation of a government-wide information
infrastructure, which would simplify service delivery, reduce duplication and
improve the level and speed of services to the public. This would provide the public
with the opportunity to send and receive information through electronic terminals
instead of by writing or paper communication. Efforts are taken to increase ICT
accessibility through computers and internet to reach wider sections of society with
the help of civil society organizations (CSOs). Government processes and
procedures would be reengineered to bring about several benefits, such as
transparency at work, reduced constraints, increased efficiency and productivity
and reduced cost of service delivery. Projects are integrated across departments to
provide a single point of electronic delivery of services to citizens. Maximum
transparency in government has been ensured through citizen charters available
over the internet, for every government department. The government has already
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passed the Information Act, 2002 within the scope of Article 19 - a fundamental
right – in our constitution enabling the citizens to get the information from the
government. A number of projects are in operation in different states for promoting
electronic governance in India. The significant ones among them have been
discussed below.
Andhra Pradesh: The principal objective of the IT policy in Andhra Pradesh is
to extensively use IT in government for enhancing efficiency, transparency,
accountability in Government departments and agencies, and providing better
services to citizen. AP is one of the few states, which has introduced ICT in a big way
to make a good impact on the quality of life of the citizens. Implementation of
about 1,500 applications across 160 departments at about 10,000 sites, involving
huge financial, technical and managerial resources reflects this trend. The policy
document has mentioned, “e-governance is one of the crucial components in
realization of the concepts of SMART government and good government” (www.ap-
it.com/egovernancego/go23 governance.pdf).
The major e-governance projects in the state are: Andhra Pradesh State Wide
Area Network (APSWAN), Computer-aided Administration of Registration
Department (CARD), the Andhra Pradesh Development Monitoring System
(APDMS), the Fully Automated Services of Transport (FAST) and Secretariat
Knowledge and Information Management System (SKIMS) and Twin Cities
Network Services (TWINS).
The TWINS project in AP provides a variety of services at one spot to the
citizens of Secunderabad, Hyderabad and Ranga Reddy districts. Department
functionaries interact with citizens through 39 e- seva centres and 350 service
centres to deliver services. The services include the payment of electricity, telephone
bills, water and sewerage, property and sales tax, registration and issue of births/
deaths, caste and nativity certificates, sale and receipt of applications for passport
and telephone connections, driving license. Information regarding government
departments like tourism, education, health, revenue, and rural development
etc. can be obtained from these centers. Citizen can also avail online service
facilities such as, e-Forms, e-Filing, e-payments, e- reservations and so on.
(http://www.esevaonline.com/).
The centre handles 3,000 transactions a day, of which 80 per cent involves the
payment of utility bills. The investment on the pilot project was $ 2 million,
including hardware, software, networking, and training and site preparation. The
project has been renamed e-Seva and has been extended to eighteen other locations
with private participation (Bhatnagar 2003: 260). The centres are partnerships
between the government and private firms, which provide the hardware in return
for transaction fees. The government supplies the staff for running the project
(http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/egov/india.htm).
The Fully Automated System for Transport (FAST) project is aimed at providing
services like issuance of learner’s licenses, driving licenses and registration of
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vehicles in all thirty-seven regional transport offices in the State. All of these offices
are computerized and networked (http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/egov/india.htm).
The Andhra Pradesh State Wide Area Network (APSWAN) was commissioned in
1999 to provide connectivity between the State Secretariat and each of the twenty-
three district collectorates for data, voice and video communication. Now, officials
and ministers interact through video conferencing, thereby saving on travel time
and related expenses.
CARD - enables digital registration of property in 214 sub- registrars’ offices
across the State, leading to faster, easier and transparent property registration process
and also provides accurate calculation of stamp duty across the counter
(http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/egov/ india.htm).
The Multi-Purpose Household Survey (MPHS) is a comprehensive
household database covering the entire population of the State. The data include
the date of birth, religion, land-holding status, type of shelter, occupation and
annual income of each citizen. A data warehouse, using a supercomputer, has been
set-up in the Secretariat. Also all the geographical and infrastructure data in the
state have been captured under the GIS (Geographic Information System)
(http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/egov/india. htm).
Secretariat Knowledge and Information Management System (SKIMS) project
was launched in 2000 by networking the entire Secretariat. This project is aimed at
facilitating and extending the concept of a paperless office among the heads of all
government departments and districts. It is also aimed at storing and managing
secretariat data, information and knowledge efficiently (http://www.iimahd.
ernet.in/egov/ india.htm).
Karnataka: The important projects undertaken by the Govt. of Karnataka are
Bhoomi, Khajane and Kaveri.
Bhoomi: Twenty million rural land records belonging to over 6.7 million
farmers have been computerized in Karnataka. Citizens can obtain land records
with ownership and crop details to obtain loans from banks through 177 government
kiosks. This facility has helped farmers to not only secure land records speedily
without speed money and middlemen, but also save the time and money earlier
spent on visiting government offices where they were harassed by corrupt officials.
Now, farmers can obtain all RTC (record of rights, tenancy and crops) copy of their
land records within 30 minutes by paying Rs.15.00. Copies can be obtained for any
land parcel in the taluka by providing the name of the owner or the plot number
(http://www. bangaloreit.com/html/egovern/ Bhoomifrm.html).
Kaveri: Computerization of land registration in Karnataka known as Kaveri
intends to facilitate speedy registration without intermediaries and speed money.
Indeed, the registration of sale and mortgage deeds earlier required much manual
labour and time for registration, which has been reduced with the introduction of
this project.
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Khajane: Treasuries all over Karnataka have been computerized under a
project known as Khajane to facilitate transparency and speedy delivery of services.
Treasuries have been directly connected to rural local bodies accounting around for
4,500 zilla panchayats, taluka panchayats and gram panchayats. As a result of this
network, Rs.20,000 crores are handled in 225 treasuries serving 4.7 lakh clients in
the State.
Kerala
FRIENDS: The fast reliable, instant, efficient network for disbursement of
services (FRIENDS) project in Kerala aims at facilitating the provision of services
within a corporation or municipality at a single centre. Fourteen centres have been
established in all the district headquarters to provide smooth and transparent fast,
reliable, instant, efficient services to citizens. It is a “single window scheme” in which
the consumer is given the option of paying for common services rendered to him
under a single roof. The major feature of the project is that this software is
specifically programmed to accept payments due to different agencies by
incorporating specific rules and regulations regarding remittances pertaining to
each agency.
Individual citizens have historically been expected to pay for services used at
the office of department or the agency concerned. This means that every citizen has
to personally visit several offices and stand in queue for hours together to pay taxes
and other payments due to Government. It was against this background that the
FRIENDS project was conceived, enabling citizens to visit a single location to avail
all the services. The counters handle around 1,000 types of payments such as
electricity and water, revenue taxes, licence fees, motor vehicle taxes, university
fees, and so on. Local bodies and seven Government departments/agencies such
as Kerala State Electricity, Kerala Water Authority, BSNL, Revenue, Civil Supplies
and Motor Vehicles Department and Universities have collaborated to provide these
services.
Madhya Pradesh
Gyandoot: This is a rural intranet network started in 2001 in Dhar, a remote
district in MP, to benefit nearly a million people across 311 gram panchayats
covering 600 villages. The project provides 15 types of services through a network of
35 information centres. Citizen can avail of various benefits, such as information
about crop prices, copies of land records, government applications assistance,
obtaining of income, domicile, and caste certificates, redress of grievances, and so
on. Trained local people manage it and the gram panchayat meets the entire cost.
This project has received worldwide recognition and received the Stockholm
Challenge IT award 2000 and the Computer Society of India IT award 2000 for best
IT usage in India (http:// www.gyandoot.nic.in/). The local bodies, in
collaboration with government officials have started ICT kiosks operated by
unemployed youth who were selected and have been trained to run these kiosks. It
caters to the ICT requirements of a wide section of rural consumers.
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Maharashtra
In Maharashtra, the “Wired Village” project in Warana, a rural area, gives
information in the local language to the people of 70 villages about crop prices,
farmer’s payment dates, employment and educational opportunities through 54
kiosks. It has helped the Warana Group of Cooperatives (WGC) and the farmers
who supply sugarcane to the cooperatives to achieve better productivity. Before the
implementation of the project, there were communication problems between the
farmers and the WGC leading to inefficiency and lower productivity
(www.mah.nic.in/warana/).
Computerization of PDS in Akola District: In order to detect bogus ration
cards and black marketing in the Akola District of Maharashtra, all ration cards
were computerized by the public distribution system after a household survey in
2000 at the district as well as the tehsil level. All the cardholders were then directed
to be present for verification. Genuine cardholders were retained and bogus
cardholders were separated out. After a month, 37,000 bogus cards and 9,000 duplicate
cards were detected. One million litres of kerosene could be saved in the first six
months, and sugar, wheat and other ration items worth Rs.56 - 60 million were
saved annually in the district. Computerization of the data, thus, helped to check
corruption in the PDS in Akola District (Barthwal 2003:296).
Rajasthan
The e-governance projects in the state are: Rajnidhi, Rajswift, Lokmitra
Electronic service and Vikas Darpan. Rajnidhi Information Kiosks (Rajnidhi) is an e-
governance project in Rajasthan developed and designed to enable the citizen to
access a number of services. A citizen can obtain information relating to investment
opportunities, tourism (tourist places, fairs and festivals, forts, sanctuaries), health
(family planning and immunization of children), employment, transportation,
distance education, and agriculture. Information regarding procedures (forms,
rates, places and persons) for obtaining ration cards, licenses, birth/death, and
caste certificates, and water and electricity connections. This website also
contains electronic versions of State Government publications, statistical data,
details of Government departments and PSUs. The kiosk provides an opportunity
for the citizen to send complaints and suggestions to the Chief Minister and senior
officers directly (www.ap-it.com/ egovernancego23governance.pdf).
Lokmitra: Project provides access to Government transactions through the
internet and e-kiosks. It is equipped with five e-counters, connected to a central
server. Any citizen can avail multiple services of different departments at these
counters (www.lokmitra.gov.in).
Rajswift: is a system, which uses the internet to facilitate online data, text
and email communication between the Office of the Chief Minister and the 32
District collectors. Vikas Darpan – GIS - based Planning & Decision Support System
covers 40,000 tehsils on about 200 demographic and socio-economic indicators.
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17.3.2 Computerized Inter-State Check Posts of Gujarat Government (CICP)
Gujarat
The prominent e-governance project in Gujarat is the computerized inter-state
check post (CICP) system in which all the check posts of Gujarat have been
computerized. This helps government officials to check all the heavy vehicles passing
through the State to and control the transport of commodities to conform to
specified standards to avoid loss to life and property. Besides, the project also protects
drivers of transport vehicles from the alleged harassment of officials and checks
unaccounted money transactions. Reducing the time checking the utilization of
these techniques has been the other objective. The PPP model (Private Public
Participation) has been applied to design and run the project.
A team comprising an enlightened political executive and a technology-savvy
administrator was able to implement an online system in which each truck is
weighed on an electronic weighbridge. The base data are retrieved from a
database, and fines and taxes due to Government are automatically
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calculated and printed out (www.egov4dev.org).

E-governance and Service Delivery
This section examines the implications of e-governance on service delivery in
terms of efficiency (speedy delivery, cost reduction and accessibility of service),
accountability (transparency and simplification of procedures and actions,
reduction of corruption), participation (empowerment with information in
formulation, implementation, and monitoring of policies) and equity (benefits for
disadvantaged groups and areas/regions) on the basis of the secondary resources.
Table-1 : Governance Projects and Service Delivery
(efficiency, accountability and equity) in India
Nature of Type of Efficiency (time/ effort/ Accountability Empowerment
e-governance government money for getting the (transparency/ speed (participation/
project application job) money/ accessibility/ equity)
wastage/harassment)
Before After Before After Before After
CARD, Valuation of Few days Few Middlemen, Reduced Secrecy/ Information
AP/Kaveri in property minutes harassment discretion access
Karnataka Rs.50 to 500
CARD, AP/ Land 7-15 2-3 hours 2-5% of the Minimised Ambiguity Display
Kaveri in registration days value
Karnataka
Bhoomi, Obtaining 3-30 5-30 Rs.50-500 Rs.15 Secrecy Transparen
Karnataka land title days minutes cy
certificates
Inter-state Collect fines 30 2 minutes Harassment, Minimised Discretion Penalties
check posts, for over minutes corruption are
Gujarat loading displayed
Mandal Issue of 20-30 15 Rs.50-100 Rs.10 Discretion Transparency
computers, caste days minutes / Citizen
AP certificates Charter
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Nature of Type of Efficiency (time/ effort/ Accountability Empowerment

e-governance government money for getting the (transparency/ speed (participation/
project application job) money/ accessibility/ equity)
wastage/harassment)
Before After Before After Before After
FAST in AP Issue of delays Stipulated Rs.50-300 Reduction of Discretion Transparency
licences/ time speed / Citizen
vehicle money Charter
registration
SKIMS in AP Net working Red Speedy Absence of Transparen Complexity/ Transparency
of tapism/ communicat accountabilit cy secrecy / access to
Secretariat, delays/ ion/ y/ accountabili information
departments tedious reduction ty/ for quick
procedur of cost, accessibility action
es staff/time/ of
paper information
for quick
monitoring
& actions
APSWAN in Net-working Red- Effective Absence of Transparency Complexity Transparency
AP/ of State tape/dela communic accountabilit accountabili /secrecy / access to
Rajswift and departments ys/ ation & y/ ty/ information
Rajnidhi in & districts tedious Monitoring accessibility for quick
Rajasthan procedur / of action
es Reduction information
of for quick
cost/travel monitoring &
actions
Khajane in Net-working Red-tape/ Speedy/ Absence of Transparen Delays Speedy
Karnataka of treasuries delays/ transactions accountabilit cy Payment of
local bodies Tedious / reduction y/ /less bills
procedur of corruption
es cost/time/
Staff
CET, Computerisati Manual Computeriz Absence of Transparency Irregularitie Admissions
Karnataka on of processing ed dealings accountabilit /no s based on
admissions of y/ manipulatio ranking
applicatio n
ns
PDS Computerisati Bogus Elimination Black No black Elite Empowerme
Maharashtra on of ration card of marketing & market of capture nt of needy
cards holders ineligible corruption corruption /equity
E-seva in AP Several Several Eliminate Absence of Little scope Complex Transparen
FRIENDS in services at depts./ queue & accountabilit for process cy
Kerala, one place queue/lon avoid y/ corruption
Lokmitra in g waiting waiting
Rajasthan, periods time
Gyandoot in
MP Warna
Wired Project
Maharashtra
Source: compiled from different sources
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Speedy and Cost Effective Service Delivery

Many studies have found that the services provided by governments are
inadequate, unreliable and expensive. Citizens have to expend much effort and time
to obtain these services. Service delivery processes have problems such as
inadequate and irregular access to and supply of public services, lack of
responsibility, neglect of consumers and their needs, delayed response and
prevalence of bribery (Public Affairs Centre 2001). E-governance can promote
efficiency in administration in four ways as below.
17.3.3 Provision of information and services
Governance can improve interactions with citizens and provide services at lesser
cost and time, and greater convenience. Many government departments provide
information about activities and schemes to the public through their websites. They
also provide facilities to download information and forms to obtain various services
without visiting the concerned offices. Online facilities are also provided to obtain
licences, certificates, reservations, admissions, and allotments, which saves time
and cost. For instance, after computerisation of land records, farmers in Karnataka
can obtain RTC (record of rights) within 30 minutes by paying Rs.15.00. They can
obtain a copy of land records in the taluk office by providing the owner’s name or plot
number. Similarly, after computerization, land registration requirements in AP can
be completed within an hour instead of the several days needed earlier. The time for
registration of land sales has been reduced from a week to less than an hour.
17.3.4 Multiple services
Governments are also providing multiple services at single points to facilitate
speedy delivery of services to citizens to help save their money, effort and time, where
earlier they had to visit several offices for obtaining different services.
Lokmitra: Project in Rajasthan provides multiple services from different
government departments through e-counters connected to a central server
(www.lokmitra.gov.in). In the Panchmahal District of Gujarat, the district
administration publishes information about developmental projects/
programmes and performance of key departments. Its portal even provides the
facility to download various forms and accepts a few of these on online. Similarly,
under Gyandoot in MP, citizens can access information regarding prices of cereals
agricultural machinery and equipment in local and outside markets. Citizens can
seek advice, opinions and solutions to their problems from agricultural, animal
husbandry, health and legal experts. They can obtain income, domicile, and caste
certificates. Students can obtain examination result and question banks from
the internet.
In AP, the e-Seva project provides many services at one place. Similarly,
FRIENDS single-window model project in Kerala provides public services under a
single roof at all district headquarters. These centres handle around 1,000 types of
payments such as electricity and water, revenue taxes, license fees, motor vehicle
taxes and university fees. This facility has saved citizens much effort and time. People
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had to visit several offices and stand in long queues waiting for their turn to pay
taxes or other payments (Madon and Kiran 2003).
17.3.5 Administrative efficiency for e ffective communication
E-governance can improve the efficiency of government by streamlining
administrative procedures (simplification and transparent) for effective
communication within and outside government departments. Rationalization and
simplification of the vast number of regulations and procedures through
computerization, cut-short delays and enhance the quality of service-delivery. E-
governance not only reduces paper work, but also facilitates speedy communication
and effective coordination. This ultimately reduces red tape and corruption and
helps in providing more and better service at lesser cost (NASSCOM 2003).
For instance, the connectivity between the State Secretariat and twenty-three
district collectorates in AP for data, voice and video communication has helped
officials and ministers to interact through video conferencing and thereby save on
travel time and related expenses (http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/egov/ india.htm).
Rajswift is a system in Rajasthan, which uses the internet to facilitate online
data, text and email communication between the Office of the Chief Minister and the
32 District collectors. The networking of the entire secretariat in AP connecting
government departments and the districts has not only extended the concept of a
paperless office but also facilitated effective communication and management and
storage of secretariat data, information and knowledge (http:// www.iimahd.
ernet.in/egov/india.htm). The computerisation and networking of 225 treasuries
in Karnataka have facilitated transparency and speedy delivery of services. The
network handles around Rs.20,000 crores, serving 4.7 lakh clients and 4,500 local
governments (Zilla, Taluk, Gram panchayats and municipal bodies). In AP, CARD
enables digital registration of property in 214 sub-registrars’ offices across the state
leading to faster, easier and transparent property registration process and also
provides accurate calculation of stamp duty across the counter. ICT can also
promote efficiency in government management by staff and cost reduction. It
facilitates outsourcing and reduces transaction costs. It increases efficiency and
ensures responsive and transparent administrative environment. For instance, the
application of ICT in administration in the USA has resulted in the reduction of
staff and expenditure. ICT based e-governance initiatives brings about the
reinvention of government in terms of providing utilities and services to citizens to a
point of direct contact and the lateral integration of official records, making them
available to users. It also involves redesign of governmental institutions.
However, several studies express reservations about the efficiency of
computerised service delivery. For instance, the performance of e-centres in Kerala is
not encouraging. In most of the centres, the collection levels have stagnated and
collections are extremely erratic at a few centres. Collection in most cases has stayed
within the range of 10 to 40 lakhs in many districts. Lack of coordination between
centers and participating departments, the apathy of participating departments and
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obstinate and indifferent attitudes of office staff are major constraints in this regard
(Sreekumar 2002).
Transparency, Accountability and Corruption
Dissemination of information provides transparency and empowers citizens to
ensure accountability and prevent the administration from indulging in corrupt
practices. In many developing countries, including India, regulations are often
complex and at times inconsistent. They tend to be numerous and difficult to
comprehend not only to the public but also to the employees responsible for
implementing them. Weak implementation of laws and regulations results in the
flouting of rules and corrupt practices. Such violations are more where
administrators enjoy vast discretionary powers. In fact, administrative delays and
corruption are due to complex and non-transparent administrative procedures
(Sangita 1995a). Lack of openness in transactions is largely responsible for
corruption in official dealings. Information on income and expenditure enables
people to hold civil servants accountable, reducing inefficiency and corruption.
The bureaucracy - the instrument of state action - assuming enormous power has
came to be associated with inefficiency and corruption (Hussain 1990; Sangita
1995b; Maheswari 2000; Ghuman 2001:711; Klitgaard 2000; Jain 2003;).
Service delivery system in most of the sectors has not been satisfactory
(Punyaratabandhu-Bhakdi et. al. 1986; Paul 1995; Paul and Sekhar 2000). The
phenomenon of speed money and corruption has become one of the major issues in
administration (Hussain 1990; Sangita, 1995a; Maheshwari 2000; Jain, 2000). It is
believed that 20 to 30 per cent of illicitly money is siphoned off from government
contracts and purchases due to lack of transparency and excess of discretionary
powers. Corruption at the grass roots has become a way of life. In rural areas,
nothing moves without speed money in public offices. People are compelled to pay
bribes to get government services and facilities (certificates, licences, katha
transfers, building plan approvals, registration of properties and admission to
schools or hospitals). Approval of substandard works (roads, buildings and
hospitals) and procurement of poor quality of goods (medicines, materials,
agricultural inputs and implements) is very common. Stealing of power, water
(through unauthorized connections) and essential items (from the public distribution
system) and encroachment and misuse of government properties are very frequent.
Misappropriation of funds meant for rural development and weaker sections is
reported widely (Sangita 2000). With this state of affairs, ICT can be a better
instrument in dealing with the problems related to service delivery. The pertinent
question here is to what extent ICT has controlled corruption. Many studies point
out that e-governance holds much promise to address the problem of corruption.
17.3.6 Transparency and Accountability
Studies point out that ICT could make civil servants responsive and
accountable with free flow of information regarding administration and policy
(Mukhopadhyaya 2002). Display of information a the internet reduces manipulative
capacity as well as prevents officials from misusing resources, and thus enhances
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peoples’ trust in government. Transparency or openness in dealings with the free

flow of information to the stakeholders concerned is easy through ICT. Officials
are bound to be accountable when they deal with people or people deal with
officials electronically because all interactions are open to all concerned. The
operations are transparent and known to all the actors involved. For example, when
an aggrieved citizen appealed to which authority/official and how many days
/months that particular authority took to redress the grievance can be viewed on
the screen by anyone. This transparent transaction makes officials responsive as
their manipulative power is crippled owing to the openness. Similarly, the display of
information regarding the beneficiaries selected for various government schemes
can prevent wrong selection. Citizens can have all the information regarding how
many people have applied, their socio-economic status, the criterion for selection
etc.
Accessibility to information regarding land records, land registration,
government policies, schemes and procedures, and so on empowers citizens to
ensure accountability of administrators. The online complaint registration process,
which has been innovatively introduced by an NGO in Mumbai, gives us a good
example of how officials are made accountable to the people. If a complaint that is
filed is not responded to within the stipulated time, it is automatically passed on to
the next higher officer and this goes on till it is addressed. This process, therefore,
makes officials accountable and as a result they do not dare to neglect their
responsibility (www.prajafoundation.org).
17.3.7 Reduction of corruption
Some studies have found that corruption has drastically come down after the
introduction of e- governance (javascriptvoid (0)). E-governance, according to
scholars, checks corruption and improves service delivery. ICT promotes
transparency and empowers contestability of public functions and ensures
responsiveness. It reduces discretionary powers of administrators and transaction
costs. For instance, increasing use of smart cards allows the citizen to have access to
a number of government services and thereby prevents fraud and misuse of public
services resulting in increased public confidence in welfare and taxation services
(Wescott 2003:99).
For instance, land registration requirements in AP after computerisation can
now be completed within an hour without official harassment or bribes. Lack of
transparency in property valuation in the earlier system resulted in a flourishing
business for brokers and middlemen, leading to corruption. Antiquated procedures,
such as manual copying and indexing of documents, and storage in paper forms in
ill-maintained backrooms, have all been replaced with the application of e-
governance (Bhatnagar 2003: 259). Similarly, in a study carried out in five major
cities (Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai), it is found that corruption
in tasks such as supply of electricity services provided by municipal corporations,
urban development, transport (driving licenses), civil supplies, hospitals, water
supply, railways (ticket reservation) and land registration has declined after
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computerization (www.indiatines. economictimes.com). Studies on the ‘Bhoomi’

project in Karnataka found that payment of speed money for obtaining land records
has stopped after computerization. Generation of hundreds of crores of black
money, which was transacted in the form of bribes, has been stopped after
computerization of land records under the Bhoomi project. The farmer can have
his/her land record on payment of Rs 15.00 from the village kiosk. This saves
farmers’ time and money, and also saves them from harassment. They have easy
access to tenancy land records (Chawla 2003). E-governance projects like Bhoomi
and Khajane have made governance more transparent and citizen-friendly. The
common entrance test (CET) for admission to professional courses in Karnataka is
very transparent and efficient (Krishna 2003). Thirty- seven year-old farmer
Sivanna Dasiah, who bought a certificate to get a bank loan, told Reuters, “The
village accountant used to demand 50 to 100 or even 500 rupees sometimes for one
copy,” (Yahoo News 31st May 2001). This is the case with the sub registrar’s also
office after computerisation of land records. Corruption and harassment of the
common man has declined in registration deeds after the introduction of Kaveri
software. It has ensured speedy delivery of documents and better access to
information to the citizen through kiosks (Murthy 2003). Corruption has come down
after computerization of land registration in AP citizens can complete registration
requirements within an hour, instead of the several days needed earlier. Similarly,
the e-seva project in Hyderabad has made service delivery satisfactory in terms of
time, cost and corruption (Pardhasaradhi 2003). Similarly, corruption has
declined and revenue in the form of fines from overloaded trucks has tripled after
the computerization of 10 inter- state check-posts in Gujarat. These fines and taxes
due to the government are automatically calculated and printed out. Departmental
inspectors at these check posts were notoriously corrupt, leading to the
harassment of truck drivers and loss of revenue to the State.
Corruption and black marketing in the Public Distribution System (PDS) in
Akola District of Maharashtra was checked after computerization. In 2000, nearly
37,000 bogus cards and 9,000 duplicate cards were detected after proper survey
and verification. This ultimately helped save one million litres of kerosene in the
first six months and Rs.56 - 60 million worth of sugar, wheat and other ration items
annually (Barthwal 2003:296).
Corruption and irregularities in the issue of learners licences, driving licences
and registration of vehicles in AP have declined after computerization
(http://www.iimahd.ernet.in/egov/india.htm). Corruption has declined, while revenue
has increased after computerization of check posts in Gujarat (Bhatnagar 2003:
259). The farmers of Karnataka have paid more than Rs.19 crores in terms of user
fees for obtaining their land records (Chawla 2004). By improving government
processes (e- administration) connecting citizens (e-citizens and building external
interactions (e-society), ICT can make a significant contribution to achieving good
governance that is efficient and effective (Heeks 2001)
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However, some studies point out that e-governance projects have failed to
promote accountability and prevent corruption. Officials still collect speed money
for land registration in AP. Everything happens inside the office where officials
manually calculate the registration monetary transactions and the customer waits
outside the office. The study reveals that a lot of unaccounted money goes to the
official’s pocket (Caseley 2004). This is also the situation in the check posts in
Gujarat. Though corruption has declined to some extent with the application of e-
governance, it was found in a study in Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai and
Mumbai that bodies like municipal corporations, transport, railways and hospitals
in Delhi still topped the list in terms of corruption. Middlemen’s role had not come
down and their help is sought in getting services like railway ticket reservations,
driving licences, and municipal services (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com).
17.3.8 Participation
Participation of the stakeholders in policy formulation and implementation is
very important for achieving good governance. ICT has significantly changed the
nature and extent of citizen participation, which fundamentally differs from the
traditional kind of participation, as shown below.
Table-2 : A Comparison of the conventional governance and digital governance models
Participation Conventional Digital governance
indicators governance model
model
Mode of participation Representative Individual collective
Domain of In-situ Ex-situ
participation
Approach to Passive/reactive Pro-active
participation interactive
Impact of Indirect/delayed Direct/ immediate
participation
(http://65.110.68.184/artman/publish/concept.shtml)
E-governance enhances citizen participation in shaping the policies and
improving service delivery (Meena 2002; Budhiraj 2002). E- governance can facilitate
better participatory process in governance. People can debate and discuss public
policies before enacting any Acts or rules. It can expand policy debates beyond the
confines of dominant individuals and groups. Greater transparency can be ensured
in actions and decisions through people’s participation in such debates.
Citizens’ opinions, needs, and preferences can be communicated to the
concerned authorities to provide relevant services and goods. This feedback helps in
making service delivery more qualitative and cost effective. The online facility of
complaining and suggestions helps the citizens effectively participate in the delivery
of services. E-governance projects like ‘Bhoomi’, Gyandoot, `FRIENDS’, e-seva etc.
and most of the government websites, have a feedback section helping stakeholders
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to participate directly with the delivery system bypassing the intermediaries.

Anyone citizen can monitor the quality of many services.
ICT empowers the citizens to have access to information related to
government activities and programmes to monitor and judge government’s
performance. Accessibility of information regarding land records, land registration,
government policies, schemes and procedures, business, politics and so on
empowers the citizen very much. E- governance enhances public participation
by giving them the opportunity to share information, to suggest bettering
the administration (Budhiraja and Sachdeva 2003).
Lodging complaints electronically against erring officials and so on not only
can save time and cost but also ensures accountability. For instance, under
‘Gyandoot’ in MP, citizens can file complaints to the District Administration through
e-mail with assurance of reply within a maximum period of seven days. The
complaint includes delays in sanction and disbursement of scholarship, quality
seeds, and fertilizer, malfunctioning of drinking water and public distribution
systems and so on.
Accessibility and Equity Issue
Accessibility means that the process is the same for all the stakeholders with
multiple and reciprocal pathways for information flow. This may require actively
soliciting inputs from significant stakeholders, not from lobby groups and
institutions, but through creating structures to foster communication (Kakabadse
et.al. 2004). Discussing the digital divide issue, some scholars have expressed their
view that information-age direct democracy poses a new social segregation
challenge for those who are information-rich and information-poor on an individual
and societal basis (see Kakabadse et al 2004). It is held that fewer people have
accessibility to ICT. Therefore, promotion of e-governance would benefit the
“technology-haves”. The practical application of e-governance, however, has
disproved this idea. What is happening to the beneficiaries of ‘Bhoomi’ project? How is
the ‘Gyandoot’ project operating? The kiosks installed for running these projects serve
the demands of beneficiaries. It is immaterial whether the beneficiaries have the
knowledge to use computers or not. The ‘Soochakas’ or informers in charge of the
local kiosks in case of ‘Gyandoot’ or officials in the case of the ‘Bhoomi’ project
serve the needs of the common people. The poor have less voice on account of their
inferior social position. This has been revealed by many studies on the Panchayat
Raj system and peoples’ participation. In grama sabha meetings, these people
cannot express independent views either due to lack of awareness or due to fear of
influential leadership in the area. In this regard, e-governance promises to be of
great help to them. It is easier for people to lodge complaints, against erring local
political and administrative officials by these means.
17.3.9 Empowerment
In Maharashtra, the “Wired Village” project in Warana, a rural area, gives
information in the local language to the people of 70 villages, about crop prices,
farmers’ payment dates, employment and educational opportunities, through 54
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kiosks. It has helped farmers who supply sugarcane to the Warren Group of
Cooperatives (WGCs) to achieve productivity. Before project implementation,
there was wide communication gap between the farmers and the WGCs, leading to
inefficiency and lower productivity (www.mah.nic.in/warana/). E-governance
makes public institutions more responsive and accountable. ICT has the capacity
to challenge the monopoly of the existing political class over the means of
communication and to revitalize citizen-based democracy. In addition, these
measures empower grass-root groups to collect information, organize citizens’
initiatives, change public opinion and influence national and local policies
(Finquelievich et al. 2001: 148).
The Rajnidhi project in Rajasthan provides information related to investment
opportunities, tourism (tourist places, fairs and festivals, forts, sanctuaries), health
(family planning and immunization of children), employment, transportation, distance
education, agriculture, information regarding procedures (forms, rates, places and
persons) for obtaining ration cards, licences, birth, death and caste certificates, and
water and electricity connections. These kiosks provide an opportunity for citizens
to lodge complaints and make suggestions to the Chief Minister and senior officers
directly (www.ap-it.com/ egovernancego23governance.pdf).
17.3.10 Equity
To what extent has the ICT found solutions to the problems faced by citizens?
Has it really improved the lives of people? Attempts are on to find solutions to
common problems faced by citizens. Much effort has been made to provide access to
information through the internets. Efforts are on using ICT to provide medical
facilities (tele- medicine) and distance education to rural and backward regions. For
instance, in the Gyandoot project, information about the prices of various agricultural
commodities and expertise regarding agricultural extension is provided to the rural
people.
Equity means taking explicit care to balance the potential costs and the benefits
among all stakeholders and presupposes openness with regard to differing or
conflicting perspectives and assumptions (see Kakabadse et al. 2004). By delivering
services at the doorstep of citizens, both poor and rich, and providing equal
opportunity to all, most of the e-governance projects bring equity. The Warana
project in Maharasthra, Gyandoot in MP and Bhoomi in Karnataka clearly
demonstrate that the poor and disadvantaged are potential beneficiaries of the
services delivered through these projects. They just need to go to the nearest kiosk
and tell the operator about the service they require. Then they can get whatever
needed by paying a minimal user fee. It is not essential that they must own a
computer system or those they know how to operate this in order to access the
service. Therefore, it can be said that e-governance can address equity concerns by
providing services at the doorsteps of the poor, who are otherwise unable to access
either ICT technology or information, or do not have the capacity to raise their voice
against injustice due to their low socio-economic status. The poor can pay or collect
whatever is required in their nearest kiosk instead of going to distant places
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expending time and money, which they would have to do in case of government-
departmental dealing. Generally, urban areas are more developed with adequate
infrastructure whereas the rural areas do not have much access to these.
Therefore, people of the rural areas suffer a lot with regard to their interaction with
government, thereby causing an equity issue. However, the Warana case illustrates
how this equity issue can be addressed and how ICT can be used for rural
development.
Notwithstanding the promising and positive potential of e- governance, many
studies reveal the gloomy side of its application in India. The application of ICT has
brought maximum benefits to the elite, has increased wealth inequalities and has
had a negative impact on the poor (Madon 1998; Heeks 1999; Ramchandraiah 2003;
NASSCOM 2003). IT-led growth has shown an overemphasis in urban areas and
certain other regions in the absence of a more equitable regional development. There
is apprehension that IT-led economic growth may contribute to widening of the
rural urban disparity as shown by evidence both within and outside (Wackerman
1997; Bajpai and Navi 2000).
Application of ICT is biased towards the urban and the rich. For instance, half
the population in developing countries has not used a phone even once in their
lifetime. Only less than one per cent of the population has access to computer
facilities. In addition, most of the facilities are available only in urban areas. The
use of these facilities in rural areas is very low, as many people have no knowledge of
operating them. The lower incidence of usage is also attributed to frequent failure of
kiosks and the absence of relevant data (very little attention to the information
needs of communities). It is reported that many websites have not been updated
and the old manuals have been transferred without carrying out the
corrections. Most of the government websites are not properly maintained in
terms of updating of the content and/or design. Relevant information needed by
citizens should kept on the web page. Simple design is essential for the benefit of
the common people. Once put-up these web pages have to be properly maintained
to help in the delivery of better services.
Critical Conditions for Success of E- governance
17.3.11 Adequate Infrastructure
By using detailed analysis of 2,166 government websites of different nations,
the Third Annual Update on Global e-Government Report gives India a very low rank
in promoting e-governance in terms of information availability, citizen access, portal
access, and service delivery. Singapore with 46.3 percent tops the list of 113
countries. United States (45.3 per cent), Canada (42.4 per cent), Australia (41.5 per
cent), Taiwan (41.3 per cent), Turkey (38.3 per cent), Great Britain (37.7 per cent),
Malaysia (36.7 per cent), the Vatican (36.5 per cent), and Austria (36.0 per cent)
follow in order (http://www.insidepolitics. org/egovt03int.pdf).
Table 3 gives an idea of India’s position compared to some nations of the world
in e-governance in terms of select indicators. It clearly shows that use of ICT in
developing countries in terms of personal computers (PC), use of ICT in public
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education per capita computer use, ICT expenditure, number of internet users,
government online service availability, government prioritization of ICT use and laws
relating to ICT are very low compared to some of the other developing countries.
Though India ranks better in terms of prioritizing online service availability, it lags
behind in some aspects as in ICT investment, internet use, and ICT use in
education and per capita expenditure in the ICT sector with respect to the
burgeoning need. Thus adequate infrastructure is highly essential for the progress
of e-governance in India.
Table-3 : India’s position in the world in terms of ICT infrastructure
Country No. of Public education Internet users ICT expenditure ICT per capita Govt. Govt. Laws
PCs (per purpose (thousands) (in million US expenditure (in online prioritization relating to
1000 (in thousands) dollars) US $) service of ICT use ICT use
people) availability (Rating:1- (Rating:1-7,
(Rating:1- 7, 7
7, 7 being being best )
7 being best)
best)
Year/ 1995 2001 1995 2001 1995 2001 1995 2001 1995 2001 1995 2001 1995 2001 1995 2001
UK 201.3 366.2 989.2 1,824.0 1,100.0 24,000.0 85,484.0 1,460.4 1,460.0 2,318.6 - 5.6 - 5.2 - 5.5
US 328.1 625.0 5,900.0 16,322.0 200,000.0 142,820.0 557,252.0 812,635.0 2,118.0 2,923.0 - 5.4 - 5.3 - 5.4
Russia 17.6 49.7 176.8 471.3 220.0 4,300.0 6,188.0 9,908.0 41.8 68.2 - 2.6 - 3.7 - 3.0
Australia 275.5 515.8 187.6 706.8 500.0 7,200.0 27,545.0 37,673.0 1,524.2 1,938.8 - 3.5 - 4.5 - 5.3
Germany 178.4 382.2 466,8 1,054.9 1,500.0 30,800.0 125,825.0 154,645.0 1,537.9 1,880.4 - 4.0 - 5.0 - 5.0
Japan 120.3 348.8 182.2 2,172.0 2,000.0 55,930.0 279,798.0 413,712.0 22,282.2 3,256.2 - 3.2 - 5.5 - 4.2
China 2.3 19.0 315.4 2,092.1 60.0 3,3700.0 20,401.0 66,612.0 16.6 52.7 - 3.5 - 5.3 - 3.5
Bangla- - 1.9 - - 250.0 - - - 1.5 - 4.4 - 2.1
desh
Nepal 1.2 3.5 - - 0.2 60.0 - - - - - - - - -
India 1.3 5.8 23.6 238.7 250.0 7,000.0 7,250.0 19,662.0 7.8 19.0 - 3.9 - 5.6 - 4.3
For reaching the benefits of e-governance to all citizens, more e- governance

projects have to be implemented by building adequate e- infrastructure particularly
in rural areas and backward regions. Dependence on ICT has increased compared to
other instruments of service delivery (Mitra 2001 in Singh and Mitra 2003) for
obvious reasons of cost effectiveness, equity, participation and increased
responsiveness and accountability of service providers. As dependence has
increased, we need to have ‘e-readiness’ for promoting effective e-governance. World
Economic Forum Consultation Report on e-readiness defines e-readiness as the
ability of the ICT networks to effectively adapt them to social and economic
advancement (Budhiraja and Sachdeva 2003). Simply put, e- readiness refers to a
process of preparation for effective adoption and use of ICT for socio-economic
development or for the fulfillment of whatever objective is stipulated. This e-readiness
can be achieved through building adequate e-infrastructure, bringing about
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awareness among the leaders of government, civil society and market organizations.
By building adequate e-infrastructure and initiating more rural-centric e-governance
projects, keeping in mind the requirements of the larger section of the population,
e-governance can be promoted more effectively in India.
17.3.12 Sound Policy and legal Framework
New regulations and laws are essential with regard to the application of ICT in
promoting governance to ensure accountability and supply of quality goods and
services by private and public sectors without harming the larger society. Removal
of obsolete laws and discretionary powers, simplification of procedures to avoid
administrative bottlenecks and constitution of single windows, ensure speedy
disposal of cases. For the successful application of electronic governance, a range of
legislative regulations is required covering the aspects of electronic signatures,
electronic archiving, data matching, freedom of information, data protection,
computer crime and intellectual property rights. Already, the Government of India
has the IT Act and Convergence Bill. The following policy and legal initiatives have
to be taken for strengthening e-governance in India.
Accountability law for making public servants accountable and responsive for
non-performance and malfunctioning of their departments
Law for privacy, ensuring that any information about the citizens is not
misused
A law in line with the US Government Paper Elimination Act (GPEA) to promote
use of electronic media
Amendments to Consumers Protection Law, Tariffs and Taxation Laws,
Intellectual Property Regulations etc., are required
Preparing guidelines for Content, technological standards, Electronic payments
Setting standards for electronic publishing, archiving, e-mails etc, (Sachdeva
2003).
17.3.13 Socially relevant technologies and integrated management
Lack of peoples’ participation, fractured relationships between government
agencies and citizens, lack of availability of local resources, limited integration with
local CSOs and exogenous social and economic environment are the reasons why
ICT has failed to deliver the full range of services in governance matters (Sreekumar
2002).
Updating of data in local languages, standardization in all areas like encoding,
application logic for common uses, user interfaces, preparing data dictionaries,
making appropriate cyber laws, procedural and legal changes in the decision and
delivery-making processes as well as in the institutions, encouraging private public
partnerships can facilitate successful application of the e-governance projects in
India (Misra 2002).
Efforts are needed to incorporate local languages and local content in the
internet in a massive way. Accessing the internet using keyboards may limit the
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use of the internet. Hence, there is need to develop voice-enabled internet service
with Indian languages, and applications should emerge out of the Indian way of life
(Jhunjhunwawala 2002).
17.3.14 Public and private partnership
It is a fact that India needs huge amounts of funds for implementation of e-
governance projects. Governments do not have such large amounts of funds. In this
regard, encouraging private investment seems to be a possible answer. Public
private partnership (PPP) can be encouraged to initiate projects in order to meet
the needs of the rising population. The Gujarat Check-Post Project is an example of
the PPP model for promoting e-governance in India.
17.3.15 Political and Administrative Leadership
State governments with committed political and administrative leadership are
mainly responsible for promoting e-governance in some states in spite of poor
communication infrastructural facilities. State governments like AP and Karnataka
under the leadership of Chandrababu Naidu and S.M.Krishna respectively, have
taken major initiatives in popularising e-governance for improving the quality of
administration. They were able to overcome many barriers in implementation of e-
governance projects through a focused and strategic approach aimed at specified
targets, and allowing reasonable time frames for attaining them. Specialised agencies
have also come up within government to initiate innovative experiments. These
initiatives got major support from dedicated officers. Mr.Rajiv Chawla is an example. He
can be called the true architect of the Bhoomi project in Karnataka. It is only the
visionary and managerial capacity of Mr. Rajiv Chawla, that made the Bhoomi
project successful. Less progress in the promotion of e-governance in other states
can be attributed to the lack of committed leadership. By promoting services
through ICT, governments can reach the masses. The size of bureaucracy can
be reduced, cutting heavy expenditure incurred on payment of salaries to
employees. Government can earn enormous revenue by implementing e-governance
projects. 1.26 crore farmers of Karnataka have paid more than Rs.19 crores in
terms of user fees for obtaining their land records (Chawla 2004). The Gujarat
Check- Post Computerization project has shown that government can increase its
revenue by implementing projects like this. Similar models can be followed
elsewhere. Many state governments have responded to the possibilities of improving
administrative functions by introducing e- governance at different levels of
administration. Specialized agencies have also come up within government to
initiate innovative experiments. It is sometimes argued that given the low level
of development of communication infrastructure in most Indian states, the
prospects of e-governance is bleak. Nevertheless, the experience of various state
governments has clearly shown that barriers to the implementation of e-governance
can be overcome through a focused and strategic approach, aimed at specified
targets, and allowing a reasonable time frame for attaining them. Even in situations
where the initial conditions for trying out e-governance appear to be non- existent
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in terms of inadequate skilled personnel or weak infrastructure, a gradual, flexible

and reflective approach can bring about significant positive changes.
17.3.16 Role of Civil Society
Civil society bodies like citizens’ groups, associations and social activists are
playing an active role in extending ICT for the empowerment of citizens and
promotion of effective delivery. In a project of Cyber Grameen, a non-profit
organisation set up by Krishna Prasad Tripuraneni, a telecom entrepreneur in
Chennai, wireless technology is used to offer digital entertainment, distance
learning, tele-medicine and government services. NGOs are also making officials
responsible and accountable through e-governance projects. The Online Complaint
Monitoring System (OCMS) in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) set up with
the active involvement of an NGO named Praja Foundation to redress citizens
grievances can be mentioned in this regard. It enables a citizen to register complaints
and receive information on the complaint status quickly and easily, without the need
to visit or call the ward offices during restricted working hours
(www.prjafoundation).
Scholars attribute the ineffective utilization of installed ITC potential to the
absence of links with civil society. Its participation in the e-governance projects
initiated by the governments is, moreover, not encouraging. Civil Society and its
representatives have been kept out in most of the programmes. Even in cases where
such participation is sought, the linkages are either weak or notional (Sreekumar
2002). The CARD experience of AP suggests that until and unless civil society
bodies are active in the delivery of services, the situation will not improve (Caseley
2004). Equitable distribution of knowledge and the full exercise of citizenship is
feasible in an environment of internet use as a language and as a tool, if civil society
organizations involve themselves in developing and defending social policies
(education, health, human rights etc.). Besides this, promotion of strategic alliances
for building political culture and the notion of citizenship based on exercise of
right to communication and culture, including internet rights, is essential for the
effective application of ICT for e-governance (Bonilla and Cliche 2004). ICT provides
greater chance to people to participate in the governance process, expands citizens
rights and creates spaces for social integration. In order to derive these benefits,
equality of access to and integration of these technologies are prerequisites;
otherwise, it will procreate exclusion and thereby inequality, and, consequently, will
fail to achieve real linkage between Government and citizens (Silva 2004).
17.3.17 Human Resources Development and Capacity Building
Non-availability of proper human resources and lack of appropriate strategy
are some of the roadblocks in the path of using ICT for governance (Long 1987). The
fragmented approach in implementing e-governance programmes and
computerization has led to excessive expenditure without delivering the desired
results (Gahlot 2003). ICT has failed to obtain the desired results in facilitating
governance owing to organizational, technical and human reasons (Biscon and
Gutek 1984; NASSCOM 2003; Sachdeva 2003). Information systems are not
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technical systems, but rather are social systems and there is a need to emphasize
the operational level in their social perspective (Curely and Gremillion 1983; Land
and Hirscheim 1983). Some studies point out that official mismanagement, lack of
favorable attitudes and orientation on the part of the officials involved hinder the
progress of the application of e- governance in India. Some projects were not
effectively managed due to lack of skills and motivation among the administrative
staff (Joshi 2001). The study on Gujarat has found that truck drivers are still
subjected to harassment at the hands of the officials at the check- posts in spite of
transparency through computerization. The attitude of the officials who fear the
loss of their jobs with office automation is one of the hindering factors for
promoting electronic governance. Another problem is that of viruses, which is
intentionally created to stall the progress of ICT applications in the governance
process (Joshi 2003).
Training for imparting skills (computer operation and content assessment) and
inculcating motivation among the officials is very essential for the effective
utilization of ICT in governance. For instance, senior officers in AP were trained at
the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, for four months in hardware,
software and special problems related to implementation of IT in government
departments with practical orientation. The government has been investing
more than Rs.2,50,000 to train each functionary. It spent Rs.70 million on a four-
and-a-half-month training programme designed by the Indian Institute of
Management, Ahmedabad, to train twenty officers to function as chief information
officers. The programme covered a wide array of interdisciplinary topics, such as
technology assessment, process re- engineering, change management, information
analysis, and project management. The programme was offered as a sandwich of
classroom training alternating with hands-on project work (Bhatnagar 2003: 263).
Similar training programmes should be undertaken for capacity building of
bureaucrats for better application of ICT in service delivery. Lack of peoples’
participation and fractured relationships between government agencies and citizens
are some of the reasons for the failures of the application of the ICT in service delivery
in India (Sreekumar 2002). Studies on Gyandoot have found that people were
unaware of the project and many did not avail of any service from the project citizens
must have access to technological tools, both in physical terms (e.g., through
telecentre networks) and through educational campaigns for using these
instruments. They must be able to access electronic government services from
whatever terminal they are using. Again, to get the intended benefits of e-governance,
beneficiaries, particularly the service recipients, need to be empowered through
effective capacity building. People should be aware of the potential benefit of
electronic governance. There is need to create awareness in the masses for them to
reap the fruits of e- governance.
E- Governance initiative in India
Administrative efficiency for effe ctive communication
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Transparency and Accountability

Reduction of corruption
Participation
Empowerment
Equity
1. Write a short note on friends?
2. Explain participation?
3. Describe empowerment?
17.6 SUMMARY
It can be said that the preceding discussion on electronic governance
reiterates the fact that this has immense potentiality to promote efficient, effective,
responsive and citizen-friendly services to the people. It has the potential to go to
citizens’ doors and serve them. It is cost- effective and it can provide speedy services.
Corruption can be minimized to a large extent. Most importantly, can solve the
accessibility issue, on which there has been a basic debate as to whether it can
serve the poor and the people who do not have access to computers and do not have
the requisite knowledge of Information Communication Technology. Official
harassment and inconveniences faced in obtaining services from different
departments can be eliminated with the application of electronic governance.
Online registration of complaints, online filling of forms and applications saves time,
cost and brings about accountability and responsiveness on the part of service
providers. These form the bright side of electronic governance. Electronic
governance provides greater opportunity to the people to participate effectively in
the governance process.
However, it is not free from problems, such as inadequate skilled manpower,
lack of proper attitudinal orientation on the part of officials and people, inadequate
e-infrastructure, instances of people misusing the technology, lack of proper
awareness on the part of the general public, lack of adequate funding etc., which
hinder the progress of electronic governance in India. Public private partnership for
removing fund constraints, proper orientation training of officials, creation of mass
awareness through seminars, conferences, and workshops etc., adequate budget
allocation for building the requisite e-infrastructure, proper legislation regarding
electronic governance, maintaining the required e-readiness, encouraging civil
society participation in running target-oriented e-governance projects etc. could be
the solution for the progress of electronic governance on expected lines to deliver
services. Sound policy and a legal framework, adequate infrastructure, trained
manpower, collaborative corporate sector, active civil society, and people’s
participation are essential for the promotion of e- governance in improving the
quality of service delivery.
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17.7 TERMINAL EXERCISES
1. What is E-Governance and it implications in administration
2. Meaning of transparency and accountability
3. Give some suggestions to reduce corruptions
 News on eGovernance , India, official website
 Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), United
Kingdom, official website
 G2B portal of the Government of Perm Region
 www.ftpiicd/ org/research/reports/pdf.
17.9 ASSIGNMENTS
To make a list of services which government provide to its citizens and their
implications and uses in citizens lives.
To collect the data about the welfare schemes given by government of India
Enlist Measures taken by government to improve the transparency,
accountability, reduction of corruption
17.10 REFERENCES
 Backus Michel (2003). E-governance and developing countries; Introductions
and examples. Research Report, No.3. April, www.ftpiicd/ org/ research/
reports/pdf.
 Bajpai, Nirupama and Radjou Navi (2000). Rising global competitivenessof
Tamil Nadu’s IT industry. Economic and Political Weekly, 36(6):449-65.
 Barthwal, C.P. (2003). E-governance for good governance, The IndianJournal
of Political Science, 64 (3-4): 285-308.
 Bhatnagar, Subhash C. (2003). E-Government: Building a SMART
administration for India’s States. In Stephen Howes, Ashok K Lahiri and
Nicholas Stern (eds.), State level reforms in India, towards moreeffective
government. New Delhi: Macmillan.
 Biscon, T.K. and B. Gutek, (1984). Implementation of office automation.
Santa Monica, California: Rand Corporation. In Pandit(2002), Issues in
Designing Information Systems for GovernmentOrganizations. Management
in Government, 33 (4): 35-47.
 Bonilla, Marcelo and Gilles Cliché (1994). E-governance and society inLatin
America and Caribbean, Penang, Malaysia: South Bound Publication.
 Budhiraja, Renu and Sameer Sachdeva, (2003). E-Readiness assessment.
Management in Government, 34 (4): 17-34.
 Caseley, Jonathan (2004). Public sector reform and corruption: CARDFaçade
in Andhra Pradesh. Economic and Political Weekly, 39 (11):1151-56.
 Chawla Rajiv (2003). E-governance in Karnataka: A study of Bhoomi project.
Presented at the World Bank Annual Bank Conference on Development
Economics, held at Bangalore, India, May 21-23.
 Chawla, Rajiv (2004). Bhoomi computerization of land records. IIPA
Publication Series-12. IIPA. Bangalore: Karnataka Regional Branch.
163
 Dey, Batak (2002). E-governance in India: Problems, challenges and

opportunities. A future’s vision. Indian Journal of Public Administration, 46
(1): 300-310.
Try to find out the steps taken by government of India for the reduction of
corruption.
Explain the major steps taken for human resource development and capacity
building measures.
17.12 KEYWORDS
Empowerment: authority or power given to someone to do something
E- Democracy: is the use of information and communication technologies
(ICT) to support the democratic decision-making processes
Corruption: dishonest or fraudulent conduct by those in power, typically
involving bribery

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LESSON – 18
NGOS (NON –GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATION), MEANING,
SIGNIFICANCE, DIMENSIONS, AND FUNCTIONS
18.1 INTRODUCTION
A non-governmental organization (NGO) is any non-profit, voluntary citizens'
group which is organized on a local, national or international level. Task-oriented
and driven by people with a common interest, NGOs perform a variety of service
and humanitarian functions, bring citizen concerns to Governments, advocate and
monitor policies and encourage political participation through provision of
information. Some are organized around specific issues, such as human rights,
environment or health. They provide analysis and expertise, serve as early warning
mechanisms and help monitor and implement international agreements. Their
relationship with offices and agencies of the United Nations system differs
depending on their goals, their venue and the mandate of a particular institution
Non governmental organizations, are organizations independent of any
government. They are usually non-profit, and many NGOs are active in
humanitarian or social areas; however, NGOs can also be lobby groups for
corporations, such as the World Economic Forum NGOs are a subgroup of all
organizations founded by citizens, which include clubs and other associations that
provide services, benefits, and premises only to members. Sometimes the term is
used as a synonym of "civil society organization" to refer to any association founded
by citizens, but this is not how the term is normally used in the media or everyday
language, as recorded by major dictionaries. The explanation of the term by
NGO.org (the non-governmental organizations associated with the United Nations)
is ambivalent: "[an NGO is] any non-profit, voluntary citizens' group which is
organized on a local, national or international level," but then goes on to restrict the
meaning in the sense used by most English speakers and the media: "Task-oriented
information."
NGOs are usually funded by donations, but some avoid formal funding
altogether and are run primarily by volunteers. NGOs are highly diverse groups of
organizations engaged in a wide range of activities, and take different forms in
different parts of the world. Some may have charitable status, while others may be
registered for tax exemption based on recognition of social purposes. Others may be
fronts for political, religious, or other interests. Since the end of World War II, NGOs
have had an increasing role in international development, particularly in the fields
of humanitarian assistance and poverty alleviation.
Russia had about 277,000 NGOs in 2008. India is estimated to have had
around 2 million NGOs in 2009, just over one NGO per 600 Indians, and many
times the number of primary schools and primary health centres in India.
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The term "NGO" is not always used consistently. In some countries the term
NGO is applied to an organization that in another country would be called
an NPO (non-profit organization), and vice versa. Political parties and trade unions
are considered NGOs only in some countries. There are many different
classifications of NGO in use. The most common focus is on "orientation" and "level
of operation". An NGO's orientation refers to the type of activities it takes on. These
activities might include human rights, environmental, improving health, or
development work. An NGO's level of operation indicates the scale at which an
organization works, such as local, regional, national, or international.
The term "non-governmental organization" was first coined in 1945, when
the United Nations (UN) was created. The UN, itself an intergovernmental
organization, made it possible for certain approved specialized international non-
state agencies — i.e., non-governmental organizations — to be awarded observer
status at its assemblies and some of its meetings. Later the term became used more
widely. Today, according to the UN, any kind of private organization that is
independent from government control can be termed an "NGO", provided it is not-
for-profit, non-prevention but not simply an opposition political party. Public
surveys reveal that NGOs often enjoy a high degree of public trust, which can make
them a useful – but not always sufficient – proxy for the concerns of society and
stakeholders.
18.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the meaning, significance, dimension, types of NGO’S
 After the end of lesson student should know the history, functions of NGO’S
 To understand broader view about the NGO’S and international influence on
NGO’S
18.3 CONTENTS
18.3.1 Significance
18.3.2 Dimensions
18.3.3 Organization
18.3.4 Functions
18.3.5 Types
18.3.6 History
18.3.7 Legal status
18.3.8 World NGO Day
18.3.9 Challenges to legitimacy
18.3.1 Significance
Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) play a significant role in today’s
society
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Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) play a significant role in today’s

society, typically picking up the government’s deficits in services and social
protection for citizens via the philanthropy of donors and the socially aware.
Consequently, diverting funds from the core business to cover regulatory
expenditure, including audits, has an element of depriving those in need – and it is
the reasoning underpinning decisions to discount fees.
BDO Durban Audit Partner, Sally Juckes says auditing NGOs’ books ensured
accountability for the donors, but it was also an opportunity for the auditing firm to
give back to the community.
“It is rewarding to be able to contribute to society, knowing that people
working in the NGO sector have a common goal – to educate and uplift the
members of their society and to invest in future generations,” she says.
NGOs are non-profit organisations independent of state and international
governmental organisations; are usually funded by donations and may rely heavily
on volunteers for their operation. Highly diverse, NGOs are engaged in a wide range
of activities and take different forms globally.
In South Africa numerous NGOs face serious financial and capacity challenges
with many already closing down or scaling back their activities. This is despite the
country facing increasing developmental challenges in areas including health,
education and poverty alleviation.
Juckes believes corporate South Africa has the ability to bring its skills and
knowledge to NGOs, effectively supporting the organisations with their strategies
and mission statements. In return big business benefits from access to influential
board members and thus the chance to further business relationships.
“South African businesses have a responsibility to corporate social investment
– the responsibility to give back to the communities in which they are operating –
but more essentially, without the help of business, many NGOs will collapse and
the critical role they are playing in civil society evaporate,” Juckes says.
Big business thus also has the opportunity to create awareness around the
work NGOs perform and can add value to South Africa by ensuring these
organisations work towards improving the lives and opportunities for future
generations.
Juckes says a UK report released last year that assessed the motivations,
drivers, barriers, enablers, role models, trends and forecasts for corporate-NGO
partnerships reflected NGOs can help corporate business understand their social
impact.
In terms of the report, 87% of corporate respondents stated corporate-NGO
partnerships have improved the business understanding of social and
environmental issues, while 59% stated their business practices have changed for
the better as a result of the interaction.
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While there were not corresponding surveys conducted locally, Juckes believes
the symbiotic relationship between corporate South Africa and NGOs can bring CSI
into sharper focus – one that shifts the emphasis to an understanding of what the
NGO is achieving through its commitment.
“Take education as an example. Too many young South Africans do not have
access to tertiary education and that underpins the decision to assist educational
and social upliftment initiatives,” she says.
At an industry level, the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants
(SAICA) Thuthuka Fund sponsors promising underprivileged students through
university with the understanding that an auditing firm will employ them on
completion, thus boosting the pool of black chartered accountants working in
South Africa.
“As professional service firms, there is a demand for focusing our CSI on areas
where students do not have access to quality education – the bright children who
without the assistance from NGOs and corporate social responsibility initiatives will
have little or no future,” Juckes says.
18.3.2 Dimensions
Estimates of the number of NGOs throughout the world vary so widely,
perhaps as a result of varying definitions, as to render a general figure meaningless,
especially in the absence of any overall official data-gathering source. Estimates at
the low end specify around 26,000. Estimates at the high end specify hundreds of
thousands; Israel alone is said to have 30,000 while Russia may have 277,000, and
one estimate in India is between one and two million.
In the United States, where NGOs are exempt from income taxes, the Internal
Revenue Service reports that nearly 1,800,000 tax-exempt organizations were in
operation in fiscal 2007. In that year alone, 73,000 entities applied for and received
government recognition. Even these figures, however, may be misleading as they
include labor unions, foundations, and religious organizations including churches,
mosques, synagogues and other temples, which are not generally considered NGOs
(more commonly referred to in the United States as non-profits or not-for-profits).
Counting only charitable, religious, and social welfare groups, the number of NGOs
in the United States in 2007 was around 1,260,000.
Regardless of the actual numbers, it is widely acknowledged today that NGOs
have been growing so rapidly in recent decades as to have created a "global
associational revolution," a "massive upsurge of organized private voluntary activity
in virtually every region of the world."
The majority of NGOs operate domestically, within their respective countries.
The more broadly known NGOs, however, operate internationally, across country
borders. Examples include Médecins Sans Frontières and Amnesty International.
The number of these cross-national groups has been estimated at 40,000 in
2001, but is likely higher today.
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Collectively, NGOs comprise a socio-economic sector different from, but

engaged with, both the profit-making and government sectors. Among the terms
applied to this sector are the third sector, the independent sector, the non-profit
sector, the voluntary sector, and civil society.
Theories
Two primary theories purport to explain the derivation and growth of NGOs:
government failure and market failure. Although these terms are usually applied in
a strictly economic context, they are relevant in explaining the rise of NGOs.
According to both theories, individuals or groups organize self-help or social policy
associations when they feel that either the government or the profit-making market,
or both, will not or cannot adequately address their concerns, such as poverty, poor
or non-existent education, environmental degradation, affordable housing, and a
host of other issues.
Other theories include solidarity, or collective empowerment, espoused by
analysts in France, and religious admonitions to aid the poor, such as the Judaic
notion of tzedaka, the Christian notion of charity, and the Islamic notion of zakat.
18.3.3 Organization
Staffing
Some NGOs are highly professionalized and rely mainly on paid staff. Others
are based around voluntary labour and are less formalized. Not all people working
for non-governmental organizations are volunteers.
Many NGOs are associated with the use of international staff working in
'developing' countries, but there are many NGOs in both North and South who rely
on local employees or volunteers. There is some dispute as to whether expatriates
should be sent to developing countries. Frequently this type of personnel is
employed to satisfy a donor who wants to see the supported project managed by
someone from an industrialized country. However, the expertise of these employees
or volunteers may be counterbalanced by a number of factors: the cost of foreigners
is typically higher, they have no grassroot connections in the country they are sent
to, and local expertise is often undervalued.
The NGO sector is an essential employer in terms of numbers. For example, by
the end of 1995, CONCERN worldwide, an international Northern NGO working
against poverty, employed 174 expatriates and just over 5,000 national staff
working in ten developing countries in Africa and Asia, and in Haiti.
Funding
Small or large, NGOs require funding to operate. The amount of money
required depends on factors including the size of the operation and the extent of the
services provided. For instance, in 1999, the budget of the American Association of
Retired Persons (AARP) was over US$540 million. Funding large budgets demands
significant fundraising efforts on the part of most NGOs. Major sources of NGO
funding are membership dues, the sale of goods and services, grants from
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international institutions or national governments, and private donations. Several

EU-grants provide funds accessible to NGOs.
Even though the term "non-governmental organization" implies independence
from governments, many NGOs depend heavily on governments for their funding. A
quarter of the US$162 million income in 1998 of the famine-relief organization
Oxfam was donated by the British government and the EU. The Christian relief and
development organization World Vision United States collected US$55 million worth
of goods in 1998 from the American government.
Government funding of NGOs is controversial since, according to David Rieff,
writing in The New Republic, "the whole point of humanitarian intervention was
precisely that NGOs and civil society had both a right and an obligation to respond
with acts of aid and solidarity to people in need or being subjected to repression or
want by the forces that controlled them, whatever the governments concerned
might think about the matter." Some NGOs, such as Greenpeace do not accept
funding from governments or intergovernmental organizations.
Overhead costs
Overhead is the amount of money that is spent on running an NGO rather
than on projects. This includes office expenses. salaries, banking and bookkeeping
costs. What percentage of overall budget is spent on overhead is often used to judge
an NGO with less than 4% being viewed as good. The World Association of Non-
Governmental Organizations states that ideally more than 86% should be spent on
programs (less than 20% on overhead). The Global Fund to Fight AIDS,
Tuberculosis and Malaria has specific guidelines on how high overhead can be to
receive funding based on how the money is to be spent with overhead often needing
to be less than 5–7%. While the World Bank typically allows 37%.A high percentage
of overhead to total expenditures can make it more difficult to generate funds. High
overhead costs may also generate criticism with some claiming the certain NGOs
with high overhead are being run simply to benefit the people working for them.
While overhead costs can be a legitimate concern, a sole focus on them can be
counterproductive. Research published by the Urban Institute and the Center for
Social Innovation at Stanford University have shown how rating agencies create
incentives for non-profits to lower and hide overhead costs, which may actually
reduce organizational effectiveness by starving organizations of the infrastructure
they need to effectively deliver services. A more meaningful rating system would
provide, in addition to financial data, a qualitative evaluation of an organization’s
transparency and governance: (1) an assessment of program effectiveness; (2) and
an evaluation of feedback mechanisms designed for donors and beneficiaries; and
(3) such a rating system would also allow rated organizations to respond to an
evaluation done by a rating agency. More generally, the popular discourse of non-
profit evaluation should move away from financial notions of organizational
effectiveness and toward more substantial understandings of programmatic impact.
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Monitoring and control
In the March 2000 report on United Nations Reform priorities, former U.N.
Secretary General Kofi Annan wrote in favor of international humanitarian
intervention, arguing that the international community has a "right to
protect" citizens of the world against ethnic cleansing, genocide, and crimes against
humanity. On the heels of the report, the Canadian government launched the
Responsibility to Protect (R2P) project, outlining the issue of humanitarian
intervention. While the R2P doctrine has wide applications, among the more
controversial has been the Canadian government's use of R2P to justify its
intervention and support of the coup in Haiti. Years after R2P, the World Federalist
Movement, an organization which supports "the creation of democratic global
structures accountable to the citizens of the world and call for the division of
international authority among separate agencies", has launched Responsibility to
Protect – Engaging Civil Society (R2PCS). A collaboration between the WFM and the
Canadian government, this project aims to bring NGOs into lockstep with the
principles outlined under the original R2P project.
The governments of the countries an NGO works or is registered in may
require reporting or other monitoring and oversight. Funders generally require
reporting and assessment, such information is not necessarily publicly available.
There may also be associations and watchdog organizations that research and
publish details on the actions of NGOs working in particular geographic or program
areas.[citation needed]
In recent years, many large corporations have increased their corporate social
responsibility departments in an attempt to preempt NGO campaigns against
certain corporate practices. As the logic goes, if corporations work with NGOs,
NGOs will not work against corporations. Greater collaboration between
corporations and NGOs creates inherent risks of co-optation for the weaker partner,
typically the non-profit involved.
In December 2007, The United States Department of Defense Assistant
Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs) S. Ward Casscells established an International
Health Division under Force Health Protection & Readiness. Part of International
Health's mission is to communicate with NGOs in areas of mutual interest.
Department of Defense Directive 3000.05 in 2005, requires DoD to regard stability-
enhancing activities as a mission of importance equal to combat. In compliance
with international law, DoD has necessarily built a capacity to improve essential
services in areas of conflict such as Iraq, where the customary lead agencies (State
Department and USAID) find it difficult to operate. Unlike the "co-option" strategy
described for corporations, the OASD(HA) recognizes the neutrality of health as an
essential service. International Health cultivates collaborative relationships with
NGOs, albeit at arm's length, recognizing their traditional independence, expertise
and honest broker status. While the goals of DoD and NGOs may seem
incongruent, the DoD's emphasis on stability and security to reduce and prevent
conflict suggests, on careful analysis, important mutual interests.
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18.3.4 Functions
There are numerous classifications of NGOs. The typology the World Bank uses
divides them into Operational and Advocacy.
Generally, NGOs act as implementers, catalysts, and partners. Firstly, NGOs
act as implementers in that they mobilize resources in order to provide goods and
services to people who are suffering due to a man-made disaster or a natural
disaster. Secondly, NGOs act as catalysts in that they drive change. They have the
ability to 'inspire, facilitate, or contribute to improved thinking and action to
promote change'. Lastly, NGOs often act as partners alongside other organizations
in order to tackle problems and address human needs more effectively.
NGOs vary in their methods. Some act primarily as lobbyists, while others
primarily conduct programs and activities. For instance, an NGO such as Oxfam,
concerned with poverty alleviation, may provide needy people with the equipment
and skills to find food and clean drinking water, whereas an NGO like
the FFDA helps through investigation and documentation of human
rights violations and provides legal assistance to victims of human rights abuses.
Others, such as the Afghanistan Information Management Services, provide
specialized technical products and services to support development activities
implemented on the ground by other organizations.
Operational
Operational NGOs seek to "achieve small-scale change directly through
projects". They mobilize financial resources, materials, and volunteers to create
localized programs. They hold large-scale fundraising events and may apply to
governments and organizations for grants or contracts to raise money for projects.
They often operate in a hierarchical structure; a main headquarters being staffed by
professionals who plan projects, create budgets, keep accounts, and report and
communicate with operational fieldworkers who work directly on projects.
Operational NGOs deal with a wide range of issues, but are most often associated
with the delivery of services or environmental issues, emergency relief, and public
welfare. Operational NGOs can be further categorized by the division into relief-
oriented versus development-oriented organizations; according to whether they
stress service delivery or participation; whether they are religious or secular; and
whether they are more public- or private-oriented. Although operational NGOs can
be community-based, many are national or international. The defining activity of
operational NGOs is the implementation of projects.
Campaigning
Campaigning NGOs seek to "achieve large-scale change promoted indirectly
through influence of the political system". Campaigning NGOs need an efficient and
effective group of professional members who are able to keep supporters informed,
and motivated. They must plan and host demonstrations and events that will keep
their cause in the media. They must maintain a large informed network of
supporters who can be mobilized for events to garner media attention and influence
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policy changes. The defining activity of campaigning NGOs is holding

demonstrations. Campaigning NGOs often deal with issues relating to human
rights, women's rights, and children's rights. The primary purpose of an Advocacy
NGO is to defend or promote a specific cause. As opposed to operational project
management, these organizations typically try to raise awareness, acceptance and
knowledge by lobbying, press work and activist event.
Both operational and campaigning
It is not uncommon for NGOs to make use of both activities. Many times,
operational NGOs will use campaigning techniques if they continually face the same
issues in the field that could be remedied through policy changes. At the same time,
Campaigning NGOs, like human rights organizations often have programs that
assist the individual victims they are trying to help through their advocacy work.
Public relations
Non-governmental organizations need healthy relationships with the public to
meet their goals. Foundations and charities use sophisticated public relations
campaigns to raise funds and employ standard lobbying techniques with
governments. Interest groups may be of political importance because of their ability
to influence social and political outcomes. A code of ethics was established in 2002
by The World Association of Non Governmental Organizations.
Project management
There is an increasing awareness that management techniques are crucial to
project success in non-governmental organizations. Generally, non-governmental
organizations that are private have either a community or environmental focus.
They address varieties of issues such as religion, emergency aid, or humanitarian
affairs. They mobilize public support and voluntary contributions for aid; they often
have strong links with community groups in developing countries, and they often
work in areas where government-to-government aid is not possible. NGOs are
accepted as a part of the international relations landscape, and while they influence
national and multilateral policy-making, increasingly they are more directly
involved in local action.
Role of NGO’s
NGO’s play a significant role in bringing social change in society and
development of society. In different parts of the world, it has proven that these
organizations have many sides. To be a member of it people need to be educated,
enthusiastic and inspired.
The organization i.e. NGO’s help educates those section of society which was
left behind in the society since its inception and never enjoyed benefits that
government has facilitated them with. Such as women’s education, STs, and SCs.
1. NGO’s have given and are still giving their best in eliminating the gender
inequality which has also been a practice since earlier times. Girls face
many problems no right to education, forcefully making them marry, not
letting them work outside the houses. Therefore, NGO’s try to eliminate this
evil ideology of some societies.
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2. NGO’s Are the reason why women are not able to move out of the four walls
of the houses and participate in politics, business, social activities.now
women have witnessed a whole new world due to the efforts of NGO’s and
academic institutions. We have seen increasement in the number of women
workers. There are many foundations such as Agrani foundation, Eklavya,
Sewa and Environmental Action Group etc. Day by day women are seeing
new opportunities for themselves due to the help of NGO’s.
3. The use of technology, level of production, a pattern of utilization is almost
same all over the world whereas the world is destroying natural resources to
achieve their goals and selfish reasons. That is why NGO’s take birth to keep
eyes on such activities. There have been many health issues due to the
overutilization of natural resources causing pollution which later cause
health problems and calamities. In this case, NGO’s deserve an appreciation
as they have done a lot to work for such causes.
4. It’s not just that because of developmental processes environment has been
affected but it also has moved people from their place of origin or birth not
just that they are no even compensated and given other place to live. They
are left homeless. Hence NGO’s play a significant role to provide them
shelter and look after all the legal processes. Many projects are taking place
such as the construction of houses, roadways, dams etc and compensate
these people.
5. NGO’s one of the most important task would be that they are helping and
restoring the dignity of those who always have been ignored and never
enjoyed those activities which other people did such as women facing gender
inequality, untouchables discrimination, racial, religious discrimination in
society.
These NGO’s are working on a national and international level and have gained
great importance in the development of society.
It helps in maintaining a society which is free from all the biases and social
evils. It is setting an example of humanity is still alive. They help in spreading
awareness and guiding and pressurizing government when they fail to meet their
duties.
18.3.5 Types
NGO/GRO (governmental-related organizations) types can be understood by
their orientation and level of how they operate.
By orientation
Charitable orientation often involves a top-down effort with little participation
or input by beneficiaries. It includes NGOs with activities directed toward meeting
the needs of the disadvantaged people groups.
 Service orientation includes NGOs with activities such as the provision of
health, family planning or education services in which the programme is
designed by the NGO and people are expected to participate in its
implementation and in receiving the service.
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 Participatory orientation is characterized by self-help projects where local

people are involved particularly in the implementation of a project by
contributing cash, tools, land, materials, labour etc. In the classical
community development project, participation begins with the need
definition and continues into the planning and implementation stages.
 Empowering orientation aims to help poor people develop a clearer
understanding of the social, political and economic factors affecting their
lives, and to strengthen their awareness of their own potential power to
control their lives. There is maximum involvement of the beneficiaries with
NGOs acting as facilitators.
By level of operation
Community-based organizations (CBOs) arise out of people's own initiatives.
They can be responsible for raising the consciousness of the urban poor, helping
them to understand their rights in accessing needed services, and providing such
services.
 City-wide organizations include organizations such as chambers of
commerce and industry, coalitions of business, ethnic or educational
groups, and associations of community organizations.
 State NGOs include state-level organizations, associations and groups. Some
state NGOs also work under the guidance of National and International
NGOs.
 National NGOs include national organizations such as the YMCAs/
YWCAs, professional associations and similar groups. Some have state and
city branches and assist local NGOs.
 International NGOs range from secular agencies such as Save the Children,
to religiously motivated groups. They can be responsible for funding local
NGOs, institutions and projects and implementing projects.
Apart from "NGO", there are alternative or overlapping terms in use, including:
third-sector organization (TSO), non-profit organization (NPO), voluntary
organization (VO), civil society organization (CSO), grassroots organization (GO),
social movement organization (SMO), private voluntary organization (PVO), self-
help organization (SHO) and non-state actors (NSAs).
In Portuguese, Spanish, French, Italian and other Romance languages, the
'mirrored' abbreviation "ONG" is in use, which has the same meaning as "NGO" (for
example Organisation non-gouvernementale in French, Organização Não
Governamental in Portuguese, Organización no gubernamental in Spanish, or
Organizzazione non governativa in Italian).
Governmental-related organizations / non-governmental organizations are a
heterogeneous group. As a result, a long list of additional acronyms has developed,
including:
 BINGO: 'Business-friendly international NGO' or 'Big international NGO'
 SBO: 'Social Benefit Organization,' a positive, goal-oriented designation as a
substitute for the negative, "Non-" designations
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 TANGO: 'Technical assistance NGO'

 TSO: 'Third-sector organization'
 GONGO: 'government-organized non-governmental organization' or
'government-operated NGOs' (set up by governments to look like NGOs in
order to qualify for outside aid or promote the interests of government)
 DONGO: 'Donor-organized NGO'
 INGO: 'International NGO'
 QUANGO: 'Quasi-autonomous NGO,' or QUANGO refer to NGOs set up and
funded by government. The term is particularly prevalent within the UK
(where there are more than 1,200 of them), the Republic of Ireland, and the
Commonwealth.
 National NGO: A non-governmental organization that exists only in one
country. This term is rare due to the globalization of non-governmental
organizations, which causes an NGO to exist in more than one country.
 CSO: 'Civil Society Organization'
 ENGO: 'Environmental NGO,' such as Greenpeace and WWF
 NNGO: 'Northern NGO'
 PANGO: 'Party NGO,' set up by parties and disguised as NGOs to serve their
political matters.
 SNGO: 'Southern NGO'
 SCO: 'Social change organization'
 TNGO: 'Transnational NGO.' The term emerged during the 1970s due to the
increase of environmental and economic issues in the global community.
TNGO includes non-governmental organizations that are not confined to
only one country, but exist in two or more countries.
 GSO: Grassroots Support Organization
 MANGO: 'Market advocacy NGO'
 NGDO: 'Non-governmental development organization'
 PVDO: 'Private voluntary development organisation'
USAID refers to NGOs as private voluntary organizations. However, many
scholars have argued that this definition is highly problematic as many NGOs are
in fact state- or corporate-funded and -managed projects and have professional
staff.
GRO/NGOs exist for a variety of reasons, usually to further the political or
social goals of their members or founders. Examples include improving the state of
the natural environment, encouraging the observance of human rights, improving
the welfare of the disadvantaged, or representing a corporate agenda. However,
there are a huge number of such organizations and their goals cover a broad range
of political and philosophical positions. This can also easily be applied to private
schools and athletic organizations.
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Both operational and campaigning
It is not uncommon for NGOs to make use of both activities. Many times,
operational NGOs will use campaigning techniques if they continually face the same
issues in the field that could be remedied through policy changes. At the same time,
Campaigning NGOs, like human rights organizations often have programs that
assist the individual victims they are trying to help through their advocacy work.
18.3.6 History
International non-governmental organizations have a history dating back to at
least the late eighteenth century. It has been estimated that by 1914, there were
1083 NGOs. International NGOs were important in the anti-slavery movement and
the movement for women's suffrage, and reached a peak at the time of the World
Disarmament Conference. However, the phrase "non-governmental organization"
only came into popular use with the establishment of the United Nations
Organization in 1945 with provisions in Article 71 of Chapter 10 of the United
Nations Charter for a consultative role for organizations which are neither
governments nor member states—see Consultative Status . The definition of
"international NGO" (INGO) is first given in resolution 288 (X) of ECOSOC on
February 27, 1950: it is defined as "any international organization that is not
founded by an international treaty". The vital role of NGOs and other "major
groups" in sustainable development was recognized in Chapter 27 of Agenda 21,
leading to intense arrangements for a consultative relationship between the United
Nations and non-governmental organizations. It has been observed that the number
of INGO founded or dissolved matches the general "state of the world", rising in
periods of growth and declining in periods of crisis.
Rapid development of the non-governmental sector occurred in western
countries as a result of the processes of restructuring of the welfare state.
Further globalization of that process occurred after the fall of the communist
system and was an important part of the Washington consensus.
Globalization during the 20th century gave rise to the importance of NGOs.
Many problems could not be solved within a nation. International treaties and
international organizations such as the World Trade Organization were centered
mainly on the interests of capitalist enterprises. In an attempt to counterbalance
this trend, NGOs have developed to emphasize humanitarian issues, developmental
aid and sustainable development. A prominent example of this is the World Social
Forum, which is a rival convention to the World Economic Forum held annually in
January in Davos, Switzerland. The fifth World Social Forum in Porto Alegre, Brazil,
in January 2005 was attended by representatives from more than 1,000 NGOs. In
terms of environmental issues and sustainable development, the Earth Summit in
Rio in 1992 was the first to show the power of international NGOs, when about
2,400 representatives of NGOs came to play a central role in deliberations. Some
have argued that in forums like these, NGOs take the place of what should belong
to popular movements of the poor. Whatever the case, NGO transnational
networking is now extensive.
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18.3.7 Legal status
The legal form of NGOs is diverse and depends upon homegrown variations in
each country's laws and practices. However, four main family groups of NGOs can
be found worldwide:
 Unincorporated and voluntary association
 Trusts, charities, and foundations
 Companies not just for profit
 Entities formed or registered under special NGO or non-profit laws
The Council of Europe in Strasbourg drafted the European Convention on the
Recognition of the Legal Personality of International Non-Governmental
Organizations in 1986, which sets a common legal basis for the existence and work
of NGOs in Europe. Article 11 of the European Convention on Human
Rights protects the right to freedom of association, which is also a fundamental
norm for NGOs.
Influence of NGOs upon world affairs
Service-delivery NGOs provide public goods and services that governments
from developing countries are unable to provide to society, due to lack of resources.
Service-delivery NGOs can serve as contractors or collaborate with democratized
government agencies to reduce cost associated with public goods. Capacity-building
NGOs influence global affairs differently, in the sense that the incorporation of
accountability measures in Southern NGOs affect "culture, structure, projects and
daily operations". Advocacy and public education NGOs affect global affairs in its
ability to modify behavior through the use of ideas. Communication is the weapon
of choice used by advocacy and public-education NGOs in order to change people's
actions and behaviors. They strategically construct messages to not only shape
behavior, but to also socially mobilize communities in promoting social, political, or
environmental changes. Movement NGOs mobilizes the public and coordinate large-
scale collective activities to significantly push forward activism agenda.
In the post-Cold War era, more NGOs based in developed countries have
pursued international outreach and became involved in local and national level
social resistance and become relevant to domestic policy change in the developing
world. In for the cases where national governments are highly sensitive to external
influences via non-state actors, specialized NGOs have been able to find the right
partners (e.g., China), building up solid working networks, locating a policy niche
and facilitating domestic changes.
International Day
18.3.8 World NGO Day World NGO Day 2014 in Afghanistan
Today we celebrate the World NGO Day, we celebrate the key civil society's
contribution to public space and their unique ability to give voice to those who
would have went [sic] otherwise unheard. European Union External Action Service,
Official Statement by the Spokesperson of HR/VP Federica Mogherini on the
occasion of the WORLD NGO DAY 2017.- Bruxelles, 27/02/2017 – ID: 170227_11 '.
178
World NGO Day is observed annually on 27 February. It was officially recognised

and declared on 17 April 2010 by 12 countries of the IX Baltic Sea NGO Forum to
the 8th Summit of the Baltic Sea States in Vilnius, Lithuania. The World NGO Day
was internationally marked and recognised on 28 February 2014 in Helsinki,
Finland by Helen Clark, Administrator of the United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) and Former Prime Minister of New Zealand who congratulated
with the World NGO Day and highlighted the importance of NGO sector for
the UN through her speech.
Critiques
Issa G. Shivji is one of Africa's leading experts on law and development issues
as an author and academic. His critique on NGOs is found in two essays: "Silences
in NGO discourse: The role and future of NGOs in Africa" and "Reflections on NGOs
in Tanzania: What we are, what we are not and what we ought to be". Shivji argues
that despite the good intentions of NGO leaders and activists, he is critical of the
"objective effects of actions, regardless of their intentions". Shivji argues also that
the sudden rise of NGOs are part of a neoliberal paradigm rather than pure
altruistic motivations. He is critical of the current manifestations of NGOs wanting
to change the world without understanding it, and that the imperial relationship
continues today with the rise of NGOs.
James Pfeiffer, in his case study of NGO involvement in Mozambique, speaks
to the negative effects that NGO's have had on areas of health within the country.
He argues that over the last decade, NGO's in Mozambique have "fragmented the
local health system, undermined local control of health programs, and contributed
to growing local social inequality".
He notes further that NGO's can be uncoordinated, creating parallel projects
among different organizations, that pull health service workers away from their
routine duties in order to serve the interests of the NGO's. This ultimately
undermines local primary health care efforts, and takes away the governments'
ability to maintain agency over their own health sector. J. Pfeiffer suggested a new
model of collaboration between the NGO and the DPS (the Mozambique Provincial
Health Directorate). He mentioned the NGO should be 'formally held to standard
and adherence within the host country', for example reduce 'showcase' projects and
parallel programs that proves to be unsustainable.
Jessica Mathews wrote in Foreign Affairs in 1997: "For all their strengths,
NGOs are special interests. The best of them … often suffer from tunnel vision,
judging every public act by how it affects their particular interest". Since NGOs do
not have to worry about policy trade-offs, the overall impact of their cause might
bring more harm to society.
Vijay Prashad argues that from the 1970s "The World Bank, under Robert
McNamara, championed the NGO as an alternative to the state, leaving intact
global and regional relations of power and production."
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Others argue that NGOs are often imperialist in nature, that they sometimes
operate in a racialized manner in third world countries, and that they fulfill a
similar function to that of the clergy during the high colonial era. The
philosopher Peter Hallward argues that they are an aristocratic form of politics. He
also points to the fact that NGOs like Action Aid and Christian Aid "effectively
condoned the [2004 US backed] coup" against an elected government in Haiti and
argues that they are the "humanitarian face of imperialism". Popular movements in
the global South such as the Western Cape Anti-Eviction Campaign in South
Africa have sometimes refused to work with NGOs arguing that this will
compromise their autonomy. It has also been argued that NGOs often disempower
people by allowing funders to push for stability over social justice.
Another criticism of NGOs is that they are being designed and used as
extensions of the normal foreign-policy instruments of certain Western countries
and groups of countries. Russian President Vladimir Putin made this accusation at
the 43rd Munich Conference on Security Policy in 2007, concluding that these
NGOs "are formally independent but they are purposefully financed and therefore
under control".Also, Michael Bond wrote "Most large NGOs, such as Oxfam, the Red
Cross, Cafod and Action Aid, are striving to make their aid provision more
sustainable. But some, mostly in the US, are still exporting the ideologies of their
backers." NGOs have also been accused of using white lies or misinformed advise to
enact their campaigns, i.e., accusations that NGOs have been ignorant about
critical issues because, as chief scientist at Greenpeace Doug Parr said, these
organizations appear to have lost their efforts in being truly scientific and now seem
to be more self-interested. Rather than operating through science so as to be
rationally and effectively practical, NGOs have been accused of abusing the
utilization of science to gain their own advantages. In the beginning, as Parr
indicated, there was "a tendency among our critics to say that science is the only
decision-making tool … but political and commercial interests are using science as
a cover for getting their way." At the same time, NGOs can appear to not be
cooperative with other groups, according to the previous policy-maker for the
German branch of Friends of the Earth, Jens Katjek. "If NGOs want the best for the
environment", he says, "they have to learn to compromise."
NGOs have also been questioned as being "too much of a good thing". Eric
Werker and Faisal Ahmed bring up three potential critiques of the role of NGOs in
developing nations: too many NGOs in a nation—particularly one ruled by a
warlord—reduces the NGO's ability to establish a credible threat of removing
humanitarian assistance since they can easily be replaced by another NGO; the
frequent process of resource allocation and outsourcing to local organizations in
international development projects results in high expenses for NGOs and rings
into question how much of the resources and money actually goes to the intended
beneficiaries at the end of the allocation process; and finally, NGO missions tend to
be too paternalistic and expensive, though Werker and Ahmed propose that
vouchers are a good way to overcome this obstacle.
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18.3.9 Challenges to legitimacy
The issue of the legitimacy of NGOs raises a series of important questions.
Legitimacy is one of the most important assets possessed by an NGO and is gained
due to them being perceived as an "independent voice". Their representation also
emerges as an important question. Who bestows responsibilities to NGOs or INGOs
and how do they gain the representation of citizens and civil society is still not
scrutinized thoroughly. For instance, in the article, it is stated, "To put the point
starkly: are the citizens of countries of the South and their needs represented in
global civil society, or are citizens as well as their needs constructed by practices of
representation? And when we realize that INGOs hardly ever come face to face with
the people whose interests and problems they represent, or that they are not
accountable to the people they represent, matters become even more troublesome."
The origin of funding can have serious implications for the legitimacy of NGOs.
In recent decades NGOs have increased their numbers and range of activities to a
level where they have become increasingly dependent on a limited number of
donors. Consequently, competition has increased for funding, as have the
expectations of the donors themselves. This runs the risk of donors adding
conditions which can threaten the independence of NGOs; for example, an over-
dependence on official aid has the potential to dilute "the willingness of NGOs to
speak out on issues which are unpopular with governments". In these situations
NGOs are being held accountable by their donors, which can erode rather than
enhance their legitimacy, a difficult challenge to overcome. Some commentators
have also argued that the changes in NGO funding sources has ultimately altered
their functions.
NGOs have also been challenged on the grounds that they do not necessarily
represent the needs of the developing world, through diminishing the so-called
“Southern Voice”. Some postulate that the North–South divide exists in the arena of
NGOs. They question the equality of the relationships between Northern and
Southern parts of the same NGOs as well as the relationships between Southern
and Northern NGOs working in partnerships. This suggests a division of labour
may develop, with the North taking the lead in advocacy and resource mobilisation
whilst the South engages in service delivery in the developing world. The potential
implications of this may mean the needs of the developing world are not addressed
appropriately as Northern NGOs do not properly consult or participate in
partnerships. The real danger in this situation is that western views may take the
front seat and assign unrepresentative priorities.
The flood of NGOs has also been accused of damaging the public sector in
multiple developing countries, e.g. accusations that NGO mismanagement has
resulted in the breakdown of public health care systems. Instead of promoting
equity and alleviating poverty, NGOs have been under scrutiny for contributing to
socioeconomic inequality and disempowering services in the public sector of third
world countries.
The scale and variety of activities in which NGOs participate has grown rapidly
since the 1980s, witnessing particular expansion in the 1990s. This has presented
NGOs with a need to balance the pressures of centralisation and decentralisation.
181
By centralising NGOs, particularly those that operate at an international level, they

can assign a common theme or set of goals. Conversely it may also be
advantageous to decentralise as this can increase the chances of an NGO
responding more flexibly and effectively to localised issues by implementing projects
which are modest in scale, easily monitored, produce immediate benefits and where
all involved know that corruption will be punished.
status at its assemblies and some of its meetings.
 To know the function of ngos and its advantages.
 To revise the significance and importance of ngo’s
1. Explain the functions of NGO’s?
2. Evaluate the challenges of legitimacy?
3. Write a note on types of NGO’s?
18.6 SUMMARY
the United Nations (UN) was created.The UN, itself an intergovernmental
independent of government control can be termed an "NGO", provided it is not-for-
profit, but not simply an opposition political party.Non-governmental organization
(NGO) is a term that has become widely accepted as referring to a legally
constituted, non-governmental organization created by natural or legal persons
with no participation or representation of any government. In the cases in which
NGOs are funded totally or partially by governments, the NGO maintains its non-
governmental status and excludes government representatives from membership in
the organization.
1. Name few green NGO’S?
2. Write some functions of NGO’S?
3. Give a detailed account of funding of NGO’S?
Follow the daily newspaper and news related to NGO’s
Search research articles related to NGO’s
18.9 ASSIGNMENT
To visit the nearby NGO in your area and see how it function, on which area
NGO is related, such as environment, social or economic etc.
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18.10 REFERENCES
1. Chandrasekaran, Rajiv. 2011. \U.S. Military Dismayed by Delays in 3 Key
Development Projects in Afghanistan." The Washington Post (April 8).
2. Charnovitz, Steve. 1997. \Two Centuries of Participation: NGOs and
International Governance." Michigan Journal of International Law 18(2):
183{286.
3. Clad, James. 2003. USAID's Role in the War on Terrorism. USAID
Roundtable Discussion on Terrorism: Issue Brief 1.
4. Clark, John. 1991. Democratizing Development: The Role of Volunteer
Organizations. London: Earthscan.
5. Clark, Robert F. 2005. Victory Deferred: The War on Global Poverty (1945-
2003). Lanham: University Press of America, Inc.
6. Collier, David, and Steven Levitsky. 1997. \Democracy with Adjectives:
Conceptual Innovation in Comparative Research." World Politics 49(3):
430{451).
7. Collier, Paul. 2007. The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are
Failing and What Can Be Done About It. Oxford: Oxford University Press,
156.
8. Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan. 2011.
Testimony of Michael.
9. G. Carroll, Deputy Inspector General, U.S. Agency for International
Development. Cotton-Betteridge, Stephanie Jonassaint. 2015. \An Emerging
International Norm for Non-Governmental Organizations." Brigham Young
University International Law and Manage-ment Review 11(1): 1{28).
10. Cox, Robert W. 1969. \The Executive Head: An Essay on Leadership in
International Organization." International Organization 23(2): 205{230).
11. Crack, Angela M. 2014. \Reversing the Telescope: Evaluating NGO Peer
Regulation Initiatives."Journal of International Development 28(1): 40{56).
12. World Bank. 2004. World Development Report: Making Services Work for
Poor People.
13. Washington DC: The World Bank. 177
14. World Bank. 2009. World Bank-Civil Society Engagement: Review of Fiscal
Years 2007-2009. Washington DC: The World Bank.
15. World Congress of NGOs. 2007. Toronto Declaration of NGO Core Values.
Technical report World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations.
16. Young, Je_rey. 2015. \Probe of Suspended USAID Contractor Deepens."
Voice of America (February 9). 178.
Talk to a NGO owner about the functioning of NGO in your area and write it in
your personal experience?
18.12 KEYWORDS
Exemption: exclusion
Transnational: worldwide
Campaigning: stir

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LESSON – 19
REGULATORY MECHANISM AT CENTRE AND STATE LEVEL
GOVERNMENT OVER NGO’S
19.1 INTRODUCTION
What is an NGO? The term NGO stands for nongovernmental organization,
and it includes a variety of organizations such as “private voluntary organizations,”
“civil society organizations,” and “nonprofit organization” (McGann & Johnstone,
2006). The term NGO describes a range of groups and organizations from watchdog
activist groups and aid agencies to development and policy organizations. Usually,
NGOs are defined as organizations that pursue a public interest agenda, rather than
commercial interests (Hall-Jones, 2006). It is believed that the first international
NGO was probably the Anti- Slavery Society, formed in 1839. However, the term
NGO originated at the end of World War II when the United Nations sought to
distinguish between private organizations and intergovernmental specialize agencies
(Hall-Jones, 2006). NGOs are a complex mixture comprised of alliances and rivalries;
businesses and charities; conservatives and radicals. The funding comes from various
sources, and though NGOs are usually nonprofit organizations, there are some that
operate for profit (Hall-Jones, 2006). NGOs originate from all over the world and
have access to different levels of resources. Some organizations focus on a single
policy objective of AIDS while others will aim at larger policy goals of poverty
eradication (Hall-Jones, 2006).
19.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the relation between NGO’S and government
 To know the FCRA and FEMA act of government of India
 To understand the healthy state and NGO relations
 To elaborate the potential contribution of NGO’S
19.3 CONTENTS
19.3.1 Foreign contribution regulation Act (FCRA)
19.3.2 Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA)
19.3.3 Issues with the functioning of NGOs
19.3.4 Suggestions
19.3.5 The Relationships between the State and NGOs
19.3.6 Potential Contribution of NGOs
19.3.7 A Healthy State-NGO Relationship
19.3.8 Barriers to a Healthy State-NGO Relationship
19.3.9 Fostering an Enabling Environment
The NGOs focus on the search for alternatives to development thinking and
practice. It creates an atmosphere of participatory research, community capacity
building, and the creation of demonstrable models. Many NGOs have worked hard
to include children with disability in schools, end caste-based stigma and
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discrimination, prevent child labor and promote gender equality resulting in women
receiving equal wages for the same work compared to men.
During natural calamities they have played an active role in relief and
rehabilitation efforts, in particular, providing psycho-social care and support to the
disaster-affected children, women, and men. NGOs have been instrumental in the
formation and capacity building of farmers and producers’ cooperatives and
women’s self-help groups.-NGOs have implemented the Jeevan Dhara programme
for the creation of wells for safe drinking water; promoted community toilets for
total sanitation, and supported the public health programs on immunization and
for eliminating tuberculosis and malaria. -NGOs have significantly influenced the
development of laws and policies on several important social and developmental
issues such as the right to information, juvenile justice, ending corporal
punishment in schools, anti-trafficking, forests and environment, wildlife
conservation, women, elderly people, people with disability, rehabilitation and
resettlement of development induced displaced people to name a few.
-NGOs can and should play the “game changer” to pro-poor development through
leadership on participatory research, community empowerment and search for
development alternatives. Further, the industrial policies have influenced the
formation and relations between the businesses and NGOs.
There are laws for the regulation of the functioning of NGOs in India. Foreign
contribution regulation Act (FCRA) and Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA
Act) are among the most important laws connected with NGOs.
19.3.1 Foreign contribution regulation Act (FCRA) History
Enacted in 1976 by the Indira Gandhi led Government during the emergency.
It regulates all grants, non-Indian gifts, and donations-Indian residents. It also
prohibits electoral candidates, political parties, judges, MPs and even cartoonists
from accepting foreign contributions. The ostensible justification given for the law
was to curb foreign interference in domestic politics.
The amended FCRA Act 2010, barred organizations of ‘political nature’ from
accepting foreign contributions. It also mandated that the organizations receiving
foreign funds should renew their licenses every five years.
19.3.2 Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA)
There are certain NGOs which are registered under FEMA and they disburse
foreign funds to various associations within the country. Nearly 100 international
NGOs and associations receive foreign funds through their liaison offices and
disburse them to NGOs across India.According to the FEMA Act, these NGOs are
regulated by the Finance Ministry. For example, International donors such as the
Ford Foundation, the U.K.’s Department for International Development etc are
registered under FEMA but not the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA)
2010. This makes it difficult to monitor the flow of funds effectively.
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19.3.3 Issues with the functioning of NGOs
Transparency and accountability are key ingredients of Governance in the
NGO Sector as these determine operational efficiencies and risk mitigation. Over
the years, the corporate sector has been able to recognize and implement best
governance practices through an appropriate institutional framework.
Of late, some of the local and national NGOs have been found involved
in malpractices and acting irresponsibly, thus undermining the credibility of civil
society.
There is a huge flow of funds into the non-government organization sector and
this requires prudence and good practices to maintain accountability and
transparency to the benefit of all stakeholders. Although NGOs do internal
auditing but for more accountability and transparency, it is advisable to go through
external auditing also, especially where public funds are involved. Lack of
regulatory frameworks and the fact that India boasts of more than a million NGOs
of different roles, structures, and sizes. In particular, the Indian voluntary sector
urgently needs self-regulatory guidelines and transparency mechanisms to increase
the trust and awareness as to how the philanthropic funds are being utilized.
It is in the self-interest of the NGOs to realize the fact that to implement a
structure of ‘corporate governance ’principles would provide the real value to the
stakeholders. Also, this would enable to track the potentially dubious sources of
funding coming in for the voluntary sector – an aspect which has gained impetus in
the wake of the increased number of terror attacks and extremist activities.
Recently, the Union Home Ministry has identified some NGOs as a security threat
to the country. Such security considerations have underscored the rising need for
improving the governance practices in the Indian NGOs and exercising better
regulatory mechanisms, disclosure norms, and management processes including
financial management and budgeting systems as well.
19.3.4 Suggestions
The government should frame guidelines for their accreditation, the manner in
which these organizations should maintain their accounts and the procedure for
recovery in case they fail to submit their balance sheets.
Avoid tussle between the Home Ministry and Finance Ministry by bringing the
regulation of NGOs under one head.
General Financial Rules, 2005 have mandated a regulatory mechanism for the
NGOs and a comprehensive law in line with these rules should be framed in no
time.
The implementation of a strategic framework is essentially important in the
management of an NGO. The endorsement of such a framework brings in
professionalism and internal control mechanisms, which further makes the
organization’s performance more effective.
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There is a need to bolster public confidence in the voluntary sector by opening

it up to greater public scrutiny.
The Government should encourage Central and State level agencies
to introduce norms for filing basic documents in respect of NGOs, which have been
receiving funding by Government agencies and placing them in the public domain
in order to inculcate a spirit of public oversight.
The Government could simplify and streamline the system for granting income
tax exemption status to charitable projects under the Income Tax Act.
The Government may consider tightening administrative and penal procedures
to ensure that these incentives are not misused by paper charities for private
financial gain.
There must be a formal system for registering complaints, redressing
grievances of NGOs.
The Government should encourage setting up of Joint Consultative Groups /
Forums or Joint Machineries of government and voluntary sector representatives,
by relevant Central Departments and State Governments.
It also needs to encourage district administrations, district planning bodies,
district rural development agencies, zila parishads, and local governments to do so.
These groups could be permanent forums with the explicit mandate to share ideas,
views, and information and to identify opportunities and mechanisms of working
together.
The Government also might introduce suitable mechanisms for involving a
wide cross-section of the voluntary sector in these Groups/Forums.
We are entering into an important phase where there are many targets that the
government intends to achieve with the active collaboration of VOs, in the 12th
plan. Therefore, it is important to conduct an effective review or report card of the
National Policy with specific recommendations.
These recommendations could become an agenda for all Voluntary
Organizations, Planning Commission, state governments and national Ministries.
Efforts are also needed to further disseminate the information about the policy and
its intentions with small VOs as well as government functionaries.
There is a need to solicit commitment from state governments and national
ministries. A systematic intervention is also needed to get National Policy approved
and adopted by the Indian Parliament. The most serious challenge faced by India
today is the conflict between the violent and non-violent approach of development.
The voluntary sector is present in such locations faces the challenge of delivering
the services and even mobilizing people on the development agenda. The need of the
hour is to work closely with each other for the benefit of the marginalized people, as
even today the dream of Mahatma Gandhi has not been achieved.
New Delhi: Non profits are required to register with the Niti Aayog’s portal NGO
Darpan, according to the draft guidelines for regulating non profits and voluntary
187
organizations placed before the Supreme Court by the Centre on Wednesday. “The
existing portal will be strengthened to provide a snapshot of the organization’s
ongoing and past work so that the authority granting funds can check," additional
solicitor general Tushar Mehta told the court. A bench comprising chief justice J.S.
Khehar and justice D.Y. Chandrachud was hearing a public interest litigation filed
by advocate M.L. Sharma seeking regulation of non profits receiving government
funding. Over 3.2 million non profit and voluntary organizations are registered in
India. “This can be a good move to weed out fly-by-night organizations, if
implemented correctly. But our past experience with the government does not give
us hope," said Harsh Jaitli, CEO of Voluntary Action Network of India (VANI), an
umbrella organization for grassroot non profits. Organizations receiving funds from
the government are required to register with the Niti Aayog on the ‘Darpan’
platform, which is an upgraded version of a similar initiative started by the
erstwhile Planning Commission in 2006. However, registering on the Planning
Commission’s platform was not mandatory, while registering on Darpan has been
made mandatory. Darpan also requires a number of new disclosures like the
Aadhaar number and PAN numbers of chief executives of not-for-profit
organizations. Jaitli added that not-for-profit organizations working in the
development sector have been campaigning for a separate law and policy for
themselves since 2001. “At present all kinds of entities from charitable religious
and temple trusts, educational societies, hospitals and even sports clubs are under
law seen as not-for-profit organsiations… There needs to be a clear definition for
these different kinds of entities because their operations and functions are
different.
19.3.5 The Relationships between the State and NGOs
Could the contribution of the voluntary sector to development be more fully
realized, given the current emphasis on poverty reduction and the environment?
Optimal development requires the harnessing of a country's assets its capital,
human and natural resources to meet demand from its population as
comprehensively as possible. The public and private sectors, by themselves, are
imperfect in that they cannot meet all demands. Which interest groups are heeded
or neglected will be determined by a combination of economic and political
considerations. In particular, those whose voice and purchasing power are weak,
and those whose interests are on long term goals rather than immediate needs, are
more likely to be neglected. When a government endeavors to give greater weight to
reducing poverty, to redressing gender or ethnic biases, to combatting
environmental degradation or to strengthening the more vulnerable regions, it is
likely to find the current development mechanisms inadequate. Economic policy,
the provision of services and infrastructure, regulations and market mechanisms
are rarely targeted towards vulnerable groups.
Many argue (OECD 1988, Elliott 1987, Fernandez 1987, Garilao 1987) that the
voluntary sector may be better placed to articulate the needs of the weak, to provide
services and development in remote areas, to encourage the changes in attitudes
188
and practices necessary to curtail discrimination, to identify and redress threats to

the environment, and to nurture the productive capacity of the most vulnerable
groups such as the disabled or the landless.
The strength of the voluntary sector differs among countries. However, a
strong voluntary sector does not guarantee a high degree of interaction among the
various organizations. There can be a rigid divide between voluntary organizations
and the public and private sectors. It appears (Tandon 1991) that where the
interaction is high the climate is most favorable for poverty reduction and other
social priorities though cause and effect may be difficult to separate. Whether a
strong nongovernmental organization (NGO) sector encourages governments to
pursue such priorities, or assists them attain their objectives, this vehicle of civil
society has potential importance which has hitherto been largely neglected.
In many countries the voluntary sector concentrates on operating its own
projects (Fowler 1992, Bratton 1988 and 1990), improving the situation in micro
regions but doing little to bring its experience to bear on the government's service
delivery or policy making. These projects may be laudable, and their worth to the
communities served should not be ignored, but their contribution to the stock of
development know-how is meager. A sizeable voluntary sector which also interacts
with the public and private sector is able to achieve a significant multiplier effect on
its own efforts (Bratton 1988 and 1990).
Such "scaling-up" has been the subject of considerable study in recent years
(see for example, Gordon Drabek 1987 for a report on the London Conference and
ANGOC 1989 for a report on the Manila conference and Hulme and Edwards 1992).
These studies have shown that in addition to increasing its size (in other words,
building up an alternative provider of services or development) the voluntary sector
can influence main-stream development in the following ways (Clark 1991):
 Encouraging official aid agencies and government ministries to adopt
successful approaches developed within the voluntary sector;
 Educating and sensitizing the public as to their rights and entitlements
under state programs;
 Attuning official programs to public needs by acting as a conduit for public
opinion and local experience;
 Operational collaboration with official bodies;
 Influencing local development policies of national and international
institutions; and
 Helping government and donors fashion a more effective development
strategy through strengthening institutions, staff training and improving
management capacity.
Traditional NGO activity has concentrated on the "supply side": delivering
services, providing development programs, or assisting official bodies to increase
the spread of their own programs. Much of the literature and pioneering work of
operational NGOs now concentrates on what could be called the "demand side":
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helping communities articulate their concerns and preferences, maneuvering into a

negotiating position with official bodies in order to amplify that "voice," and mixing
technical operational skills with "information age" communication, advocacy and
networking skills both to give power to and to enhance the existing power of poor
people. The literature which describes this evolution (Tandon 1992, Clark 1991,
Hulme and Edwards 1992) talks of NGOs becoming important agents of the civil
society. This attention to the development demand side is a micro-level reflection of
"governance." The pillars of the latter greater participation in political decision
making, transparency, accountability, freedom of expression, etc. all have their
counterparts at the local level in the grassroots mobilization efforts of NGOs.
Where the voluntary sector has a good record, the objectives listed above can
be clearly beneficial, though there may also be costs. This paper aims to explore
these benefits and costs, to analyze why it is that the potential benefits are
frequently not realized, and to consider ways of enhancing this contribution.
In this paper, we focus on nongovernmental organizations which work in (a)
relief, (b) development, (c) environment, (d) welfare, and (e) human or civil rights.
We will also, for the present, assume definitions offered by Salamon and Anheier
(1991 and 1992) restricting our attention to organizations which are (a) formally
constituted, (b) nongovernmental, (c) self- governing, (d) non-profit (i.e. not
organized chiefly for business purposes), (e) not overly partisan (in a party political
sense), and (f) characterized by some degree of voluntary involvement. This is a
broad base including international, national and grassroots organizations; special
interest organizations, networks, service providers and public service contractors;
funding, operational and advocacy NGOs; professional associations, community
associations, cooperatives and membership organizations of the poor, and many
other categories.
It is important to distinguish between membership and non-membership
NGOs. The former (including organizations which are not formal membership
bodies but which defacto represent a sizeable constituency) may play an important
role in democratization processes. They usually provide a service which is regarded
as a priority by its members. The differences between the two categories of
organization as well as the relationships between them merits study. Similarly, the
difference between characteristics of national level and community-based NGOs is
important. Some countries, such as Paraguay, where national level NGOs have
until recently not been welcomed have a healthy tradition with respect to
community-based NGOs.
The sectoral polarizations of the NGO community will vary considerably from
country to country. NGOs concentrate on issues which are unique to each
individual country, for example, income generation activities, environmental
concerns, or support for and mobilization of the landless. The relationship between
international organizations and national NGOs is also defined by the characteristics
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of the specific country; in some countries, intermediary or umbrella organizations

provide intellectual and operational leadership.
The following sections discuss the potential contribution of NGOs; the
elements of a healthy State-NGO interaction; the barriers to this interaction from
both the government and NGO sides; and the factors that might help foster a more
enabling environment.
19.3.6 Potential Contribution of NGOs
NGOs have become important actors in development assistance for at least
three reasons:
First, because of their scale. In 1989, they contributed US$6.4 billion to
developing countries (including $2.2 billion of official funds), representing some 12
percent of total development assistance (Bebbington and Farrington 1992a and
1992b).
Second, because of their style of work. Many NGOs have demonstrated an
ability to reach poor people, work in inaccessible areas, innovate, or in other ways
achieve things which are difficult for official agencies (Tendler 1982).
Third, many of them represent poorer people. Many NGOs have close links
with poor communities. Some are membership organizations of poor or vulnerable
people. Others are skilled at participatory approaches (Bratton 1988 and 1990).
Moreover, their resources are largely additional, they complement the
development effort of others, and they can help to make the development process
more accountable, transparent and participatory. They not only "fill in the gaps"
but they also act as a response to failures in the public and private sectors (de Tray
1990, Salamon and Anheier 1991 and 1992, Bratton 1990).
The NGO attributes cited above have become increasingly important in recent
years as:
Official aid agencies and many governments seek to give greater attention to
assisting women, the food insecure, indigenous peoples, AIDS sufferers/orphans
and other vulnerable groups, which NGOs are better able to reach (Bebbington and
Farrington 1992a and 1992b).
Long experience of work with communities living in environmentally sensitive
areas (including forests, desert margins, urban slums, etc.) provides NGOs with
certain comparative advantages in dealing with environmental issues.
There is a more clearly recognized need for pluralism and prominent citizens'
voices in national development planning. NGOs can contribute to this in many ways
including, at the local level, by the promotion of grassroots mobilization for social
change (Clark 1991) or participatory development (Bhatnagar and Williams 1992).
There is increasing realization of the need to "roll back the State" in many
countries where it has become over-extended. This gives greater prominence to the
private and voluntary sectors.
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The rapid growth in numbers of NGOs many highly-specialized or localized

which gives donors a wide choice of partners and considerable influence over those
partners in many countries. This proliferation is highly country-specific.
Donors find NGOs attractive for widely differing reasons: they act as a
complement to the state; they respond to failures in both the public and private
sectors; or they may be from the donor's country (or partnered with an NGO which
is), which heightens trust and national interest.
19.3.7 A Healthy State-NGO Relationship
A healthy relationship is only conceivable when both parties share common
objectives. If the government's commitment to poverty reduction is weak, NGOs will
find dialogue and collaboration frustrating or even counter-productive. Likewise,
repressive governments will be wary of NGOs which represent the poor or
victimized. In such situations, NGOs will probably prefer to chart their own course,
giving all instruments of the state as wide a berth as possible.
Where the government has a positive social agenda (or even where individual
ministries do) and where NGOs are effective there is the potential for a strong,
collaborative relationship. As Tandon (1991) clarifies, this does not mean the sub-
contracting of placid NGOs, but a "genuine partnership between NGOs and the
government to work on a problem facing the country or a region... based on mutual
respect, acceptance of autonomy, independence, and pluralism of NGO opinions
and positions."
However, as Tandon points out, such relations are rare, even when the
conditions are met. The mutual distrust and jealousy appears to be deep-rooted.
Government fear that NGOs erode their political power or even threaten national
security (Fowler 1992). And NGOs mistrust the motivation of the government and
its officials.
Though controversial and risky, many of the more strategic NGOs are
overcoming their inhibitions and are seeking closer collaboration with governments
(Fernandez 1987, Tandon 1991, ANGOC 1988, Garilao 1987, Aga Khan Foundation
1988). In this way, NGOs believe they will be better able to achieve the impact
described above, and they will be able to expose the government to a grass-roots
perspective which might otherwise be neglected. However, with closer collaboration
comes increased risk of corruption, reduced independence, and financial
dependency.
The planning of projects and policies can be strongly influenced by inviting
NGO leaders to serve on government commissions or by holding public
consultations in which grassroots organization are able to voice their concern and
experience. As Bratton (1990) commented: "Once the question was 'How can
development agencies reach the poor majority?', now it is 'How can the poor
majority reach the makers of public policy?'"
World Bank experience (Cernea 1988), drawn from a survey of 25 Bank-
financed projects, indicates a strong correlation between project success and the
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participation of grassroots organizations. More recently the Bank has been deriving
important insights from the public consultations included in Environmental
Assessments in which NGOs often play a major role. Such consultations are
effective when all parties are prepared to be objective and to learn from each other.
Where NGOs use selective reportage or distortion in order to heighten criticism of
the government, or where the government is not receptive to outside advice,
"consultations" are likely to be no more than confrontations.
However, even with a largely adversarial relationship, consultation can be a
surprisingly productive process and reduce tensions. The Environmental Congress
a network of NGOs in Sri Lanka initially adopted a fairly confrontational style with
respect to the government. On one issue the government proved receptive to their
concerns, and dropped plans for a major project. After this, the NGOs developed a
more constructive dialogue with the authorities. The government, in turn, invited
five NGO representatives to participate in the National Environmental Council
which reports to the Prime Minister on the environmental ramifications of all major
development projects.
Conversely, dialogue with NGOs may not be very productive when the State-
NGO relationship is too cozy. In such situations NGOs tend to accept uncritically
both the government's information and the government's role in coordinating all
development activities, including those of NGOs. The NGOs are largely content to
fill in gaps as directed by the authorities and rely on such commissions for their
raison d’être. They do not question state activities, and therefore fail to inject the
grassroots perspective. A degree of financial autonomy of the NGO sector is
necessary to ensure their independence.
NGOs are often described as offering "development alternatives" but this is
misleading. The dictionary defines "alternative" as meaning "either of two or more
possible courses; ...mutually exclusive." The population of any country does not
have a choice between the development model offered by government and that by
NGOs. NGOs can play an important role in helping certain population groups, or
filling in the gaps in state services, or in pressing for a change in the national
development strategy, but they do not offer realistic alternative pathways. Their
innovations may test out new approaches, but these only become sustainable or of
significant scale if they influence national development.
When both parties see that their solutions are not competing alternatives but
are complementary contributions, the possibility for a genuine collaboration is
opened. However, even as they do so, they may harbor very different goals. The
government may be keen to harness foreign funds and the NGOs' capacity for
service delivery. The NGOs may seek to reorient development priorities toward
poverty reduction. Such unshared objectives may make for friction but they are not
necessarily incompatible.
Official aid agencies by offering or withholding support can clearly have a
major impact on the NGO sector. In this way, but also through their project and
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policy dialogue with governments, official aid agencies are able to influence the
State-NGO relationship and to enhance the political will necessary for constructive
engagement. Some are realizing, particularly in the context of their concern for
"governance" issues, that supporting the growth of a healthy NGO sector is an
important contribution to development.
The health of the State-NGO relationship (and the features determining the
quality of that relationship) is sector-specific. Steps to improve the quality of
relationship will also, therefore, be sector-specific (see for example Bebbington and
Farrington 1992a, 1992b).
19.3.8 Barriers to a Healthy State-NGO Relationship
The following, identified by a range of commentators, are the major factors
which impair the relationship between governments and NGOs (see especially
Fowler 1988 and 1992, Salamon and Anheier 1991 and 1992, Bratton 1988, Clark
1991, Edwards 1991, Tendler 1982, Tandon 1987, 1991 and 1992, Brown 1988,
Elliott 1987, and Brodhead and Herbert-Copley 1988).
A highly political policy environment. NGOs often fall in the opposition camp
and the government or ruling party may see itself as the sole legitimate voice of the
people. The root cause of such political polarization warrants study.
NGOs preference for isolation hence unwillingness to dialogue with
government, and poor coordination with one another. Some NGOs prefer to keep
well separated from the government orbit to avoid drawing attention, and therefore
outside control, to their activities. However, by keeping a low profile they may
actually be making themselves more vulnerable to government attack, as illustrated
by the case of the Savings Development Movement (SDM) in Zimbabwe an effective
but little known NGO whose operations were temporarily suspended and whose
Board was amended by the government because of alleged corruption (Bratton
1990).
Jealousy of civil servants towards the NGOs' access to resources
Pressure on successful NGOs from major donors to receive more funds,
leading to a decline in performance. For example, the Voluntary Agencies
Development Assistance Organization of Kenya was deflected by donor pressure
from its original institutional development function to acting as a funding
intermediary. This has been at the expense of both its original agenda and its
relationship with NGOs. This has consequently undermined its advocacy
effectiveness towards the government (Bratton 1990).
The NGOs constituency. If as frequently is the case it is a narrow constituency
(such as one kinship group, or even just the poorest farmers) the government may
consider it too selective since it must consider the common good. Similarly, NGOs
have the "luxury" to pick one or two issues which dominate their attention, while
governments must juggle with a multitude of concerns.
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NGOs capacity. NGO projects may not be as effective as claimed, the

professional skill of NGO staff, the accountability of NGOs to the grassroots, and
strategic planning poorly developed.
The public sector's capacity. The government's commitment to improving
services, eradicating discrimination and poverty may be weak; there may be a
shortage of competent staff especially at local level; corruption and nepotism may
be rife. In countries riven by strife there is often a legitimacy issue when much of
the country is not under government control.
Political jealousy. Governments may not want to foster a healthier NGO sector
for fear of bolstering the political opposition. How NGOs survive and operate in an
adverse policy environment is an important issue for study. In some countries they
have been crushed, but elsewhere they have thrived on controversy.
Dependence on foreign donors: A government might be more suspicious of
NGOs which are highly dependent on foreign funds and therefore might impugn
their motives as "guided by a foreign hand." Conversely, an NGO which derives a
considerable proportion of its funding from its members has maximum
authenticity. When the NGO sector is dominated by foreign or international NGOs
as has been documented by Edwards (1991) and Hanlon (1990), there can be
problems between the government and the NGOs. For example, in Mozambique in
1990, 170 foreign NGOs were running programs in complete isolation from the
State. Hanlon describes how these "new missionaries" have divided the country into
"mini-kingdoms." Edwards describes how his own NGO Save the Children Fund
(U.K.) decided to work closely with the government, providing technical assistance
at local and national levels in the fields of health and food security. This has had an
important scaling-up effect; for example SCF has helped devise mitigatory
measures to protect vulnerable groups from the decontrol of prices and economic
liberalization under adjustment programs.
19.3.9 Fostering an Enabling Environment
How can governments construct a policy environment conducive to the
strengthening of the NGO sector? This will depend significantly on the initial
relationship between the two sectors, as described by Tandon (1991).
The first form of relationship is where NGOs are in a dependent-client position
vis-a-vis the government; in which NGOs implement state-prepared programs
and/or receive funding through the State (a dependency of money, ideas and
resources). Examples include, Tanzania (especially during the 1980s) and China.
The second type of relationship is adversarial in which there are no common
starting points and no wish from either side to search out areas of agreement.
Examples include, Zaire, Kenya and Pinochet's Chile. The third and most
constructive relationship emerging in certain liberal democracies is a
collaborationist one; a genuine partnership to tackle mutually agreed problems,
coupled with energetic but constructive debate on areas of disagreement. Examples
include, India and Brazil. Each example that has been offered runs the risk of being
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an over-generalization. As with companies in the private sector, individual NGOs

differ enormously from one another and hence there is a variety of State-NGO
relationships. The illustrations here are of national patterns.
The State has various instruments it can use, for good or ill, to influence the
health of the NGO sector (Brown 1990). The level of response can be non-
interventionist, active encouragement, partnership, co-option or control. And the
policy instruments used can be:
Factors of governance (encouraging public debate and consultation, and the
right to organize interest groups);
NGO regulations and the legal framework (for example, regarding registration
and reporting, auditing and accounting requirements);
NGO incentives (including taxation policies on income or local fund-raising,
duties on imports, subsidies for NGOs, etc.);
Collaboration (use of NGOs in program/project implementation);
Involvement in policy-making (serving on committees, assisting with public
consultations);
Public disclosure of information (NGOs serving as a conduit to inform the
public about development schemes which effect them);
Coordination requirements within the NGO sector; and
Direct expenditure, including official support (grants, contracts, etc.), and
research benefitting the NGO sector.
For individual NGOs the most favorable policy setting is when legal restrictions
are minimized, when they have complete freedom to receive funds from whomsoever
they choose, to speak out as they wish and to associate freely with whoever they
select. In such a setting, the NGO sector is likely to grow most rapidly (in
particular, the number of NGOs is likely to rise rapidly), but "bigger" does not
necessarily mean "better." Growth of the sector can be a mixed blessing.
Loose regulations and reporting open the door for unhealthy and even corrupt
NGO activities which may taint the sector as a whole. Where the expansion of the
sector has been most rapid (e.g. South Asia and certain African countries) there is
considerable concern about the rapid ascension of "bogus" NGOs NGOs which serve
their own interest rather than those of vulnerable groups. An assessment is
required as to which regulations are necessary to ensure that incentives provided
are used for the intended purpose and which merely hamper the contribution of the
NGO sector.
Even if it were possible to curb bogus and corrupt NGO activities, a non-
interventionist policy environment may not make for the healthiest NGO sector. The
individual NGOs may be healthy, but collectively there may be insufficient
coordination, duplication of effort, and important gaps left unaddressed. All these
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problems are illustrated in a forthcoming Bank report on the NGO sector in

Uga(World Bank 1992a and 1992b).
A conducive policy environment can help make the whole greater than the sum
of the parts, through judicious use of policy instruments. Best practice lessons
appear to indicate the following ingredients of an enabling policy environment:
"Good Governance" - social policies which encourage a healthy civil society and
public accountability of state institutions.
Regulations - designed to help, not hinder, NGO growth, but also to root out
corruption and to foster sound management discipline; eliminate restrictive laws
and procedures.
Taxation policies - to provide incentives for activities which conform with State
development priorities; to encourage indigenous philanthropy and income
generation.
Project/Policy implementation - State-NGO collaboration with proven NGOs in
a way which allows the NGOs to remain true to their agenda and accountable to
members or their traditional constituency. This might typically indicate the
following roles for NGOs within government programs (Salmen and Eaves 1989):
articulation of beneficiaries' needs to project authorities, providing information
about the scheme to communities, organizing communities to take advantage of the
scheme's benefits, delivering services to less accessible populations, serving as
intermediaries to other NGOs.
Policy formulation - provision of information to NGOs for dissemination to
their constituencies; offering a role to NGOs in public consultations; invitation to
NGO leaders to serve on official commissions etc. (for example, the Indian NGO,
DISHA, has been an influential member of the Central Government's Commission
on bonded labor). Public access to information is the key to success in this area.
Coordination - where the government fosters but does not dominate
coordination, for example, through having NGO Units in relevant line ministries or
NGO consultative committees; NGOs would be encouraged to attend to geographic
or sectoral gaps, to avoid religious or ethnic bias, to avoid activities which
contradict state programs or which make unrealistic promises; the government
encourages training of NGO staff, for example, by ensuring that its own training
institutions offer courses of relevance to NGOs; the government encourages
improved attention to management skills, strategic planning and sharing of
experience within the sector.
Official support - the government provides funds, contracts and training
opportunities to give special encouragement to NGO activities in priority areas
without undermining NGOs' autonomy and independence; broad agreement is
sought with NGOs on such priorities by establishing formal consultation with NGO
leaders. Fora such as the Council for Advancement of People's Action and Rural
Technology (the body which channels government funds to NGOs in India) and the
197
forthcoming Community Action Program (a local government scheme for financing

NGOs and community initiatives in Uganda) are illustrations.
1. To revise the FCRA and FEMA acts
2. Transparency and accountability are key ingredients of Governance in the
NGO Sector as these determine operational efficiencies and risk mitigation.
Over the years, the corporate sector has been able to recognize and
implement best governance practices through an appropriate institutional
framework.
3. In this paper, we focus on nongovernmental organizations which work in (a)
relief, (b) development, (c) environment, (d) welfare, and (e) human or civil
rights.
1. Write contradiction between NGO’s and state?
2. Discuss the issues of functioning of NGO’s?
3. Explain the Fostering an Enabling Environment for NGO’s?
19.6 SUMMARY
Early sections discussed how the development process is impeded when the
State-NGO relationship is an unhealthy one and identified approaches which could
contribute to improving the environment for NGOs. We now summarize the policy
questions which are relevant to fostering an enabling environment for a healthy
evolution of the NGO sector. A study series is proposed to consider these questions
in a range of developing countries. These case studies will help to identify the
appropriate mix of policy instruments to achieve synergies of impact, through
enabling and encouraging NGOs to contribute more fully to agreed national
development priorities. The policy instruments to be studied under the following
headings:
"Good Governance". How can civil society be strengthened to help the
government be better attuned to popular concerns, to develop public accountability
of state institutions and to improve efficiency? Of relevance are issues of plurality
(rights of association, rights to organize interest groups) and information (public
access to information about development programs). Governments might reduce
implementation problems and enhance public support for their programs by easing
access to information and allowing affected communities the opportunity to voice
their concerns. NGOs can play an important role as interlocutors and facilitators of
public consultations, and can catalyze public debate, and contribute to improving
governance. The Legal Framework Regulating NGOs. Do registration and reporting
requirements hinder NGO growth? How might they become less restrictive while
guarding against corruption and other malpractices within the sector?
Taxation Policies. Do these stifle NGO initiative or provide incentives? Do they
make it difficult for NGOs to receive foreign funds and donated goods? Do they
hamper or encourage local philanthropy or income generating activities of NGOs? Is
there a perceived arbitrariness or bias in the awarding of these incentives? Are
198
there tax exemptions for NGOs operating in priority sectors? Might tax exemptions
increase the risk of corruption?
Collaboration. In what sectors/projects does the government collaborate with
NGOs? What is the attitude of the relevant central and local government officials to
such collaboration? What is the attitude of the major NGOs to collaboration? How
much encouragement, guidance and training is provided for such collaboration?
How are the NGO partners selected? At what stage is collaboration sought (e.g. with
projects: at identification, design, appraisal, implementation, service delivery,
monitoring, or evaluation stages)? What different types of collaboration are
practiced? How does collaboration influence changes within government structures
(e.g. greater openness to the opinion of local communities, increased preparedness
to share information)? How does collaboration influence changes within the NGOs
(e.g. more attention to strategic planning, deflection from their traditional
constituencies and purpose, altering the relative sizes and strengths)? When NGOs
are engaged to make development programs participatory, are they able to
represent a broad cross section of stake-holders or only certain interest groups? As
governments move towards contracting out services that were previously provided
by public employees, it is important to learn from experience what has worked and
where pitfalls lie. What are the public sector management implications of expanded
NGO collaboration, if both the NGO and public sectors are to avoid damage?
Public Information, Education and Consultation. Does the government use
NGOs for these purposes, encourage, permit, or resist such activities? In which
sectors is the informational and educational work of NGOs most valuable (e.g. AIDS
prevention; environmental awareness; combating gender/ethnic/caste bias;
promoting family planning; adult literacy)? In which sectors/projects have NGOs
played an important role in public consultations (e.g. environmental assessments,
assessing social impact of projects, identifying needs for resettlement and
rehabilitation)? In which policy areas have NGOs played a significant role (public
consultation, information, or implementation)? Do NGOs serve on government
commissions or other official bodies? In what capacity do they serve?
Coordination. What structures exist for coordinating NGO activities? What role
does the government play in these? Are there State-NGO consultative or
coordinating committees? What agenda does the government take to these (e.g.
does the government use such fora: simply for informational purposes, to control or
influence NGO programs, to avoid overlap or gaps, to root out bad practices, to
identify needs to which it can respond such as for training, etc.)?
Official Support. Does the government finance NGO activities directly, and if
so, what mechanisms does it use? What impact does this have on the work,
constituency and autonomy of the NGO sector? Are NGO representatives involved
in such funding decisions? Similarly does the government offer contracts directly to
NGOs? Does the government seek to control the funding of NGOs by official aid
agencies or Northern NGOs? What is the role of donors in improving or worsening
199
the State-NGO relationship. Donors can over-fund indigenous NGOs, or cause

international NGOs to start operations and eclipse indigenous ones.
In all of these areas there is potential for conflict: conflict between NGOs and
the government, between different NGOs (because in most countries they are far
from a homogenous group) and even within an individual NGO. Official support for
NGOs involved in service delivery may be resented by those actively seeking reforms
in government policies and practice.
Analysis of the issues listed above needs to be based on an appreciation of the
anatomy of the NGO sector in a given country. What are the distinctive features of
the major NGOs? Are membership NGOs prominent, and if so what constituencies
do they represent? Are "public service contractors" (which rely almost exclusively on
government or aid agency contracts) a significant force? Do NGOs make a major
contribution to political debate or parties? How prominent are international NGOs?
Do national intermediary NGOs play a significant role?
The Bank's emphasis on poverty reduction, human resource development,
popular participation and the environment lead to increasing interaction with
NGOs, particularly at the operational level. This necessitates detailed knowledge of
the NGO sector in a given country, knowledge not just of the NGOs themselves, but
also of how they relate to the government, communities, the private sector and
donors. The proposed country case studies are designed to help provide such
information. They are intended to help strengthen the Bank (and other donors')
programs directly, to indicate issues which could be included in the policy dialogue
with the relevant government and also to feed into a synthesis report (to be
prepared in FY95) which will indicate areas of "best practice" relating to NGOs and
general conclusions concerning the policy environment.
1. Explain the FCRA and FEMA acts?
2. Role of the government in regulating the NGO’s ?
3. Explain the contribution of NGO’s in welfare and development in the society?
4. Evaluate the important actors in development assistance for NGO’s?
Nearly 5,000 NGOs were barred by the government from receiving foreign
funding after cancellation of their licences since April 2017.
Rajnath Singh launches online tool to monitor foreign-funded NGOs
02 Jun, 2018, 03:28AM IST
Follow the environment news
Follow the IAS Shankar book
19.9 ASSIGNMENTS
Visit the NGO’S and analyze the role and functioning on the ground level.
Try to be a member of NGO’S and work at ground level.
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19.10 REFERENCES
1. Europe in a suitcase: Oliver Wardrop Discussions
2. Jarice Hanson (2016). The Social Media Revolution: An Economic Encyclopedia
of Friending, Following, Texting, and Connecting. ABC-CLIO. p. 375. ISBN 978-
1-61069-768-2.
3. The term NGO is so common and its expansion so rare that all dictionaries
have an entry for the abbreviation, but many do not have one for the
expansion, or they even explain it by using the abbreviation, e.g. Collins
English Dictionary
4. Claiborne, N (2004). "Presence of social workers in nongovernment
organizations". Soc Work. 49 (2): 207–218.doi:10.1093/sw49.2.207. PMID
15124961.
5. Horowitz, Jason (2017-08-11). "Ship Monitoring Rescues of Migrants Refuses
to Be Rescued". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-11-22.
6. "NGO", Macmillan Dictionary Because many of the most famous NGOs
are International non-governmental organization, many people believe NGOs
are by definition international, but that is not the way the term is
interpreted by NGOs, the media, governments, or international governmental
organizations. (See the sources at the end of this sentence.)
7. "Nongovernmental Organization (NGO)". United States Institute of Peace.
1. To the various laws about funding of the NGO’S
2. Try to evaluate the budget of NGO’S which is under scanner of government?
19.12 KEYWORDS
Mobilization: enlist
Governance: administration

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LESSON – 20
SOURCE OF FINANCE AND EXPENDITURE OF NGO’S
20.1 INTRODUCTION
A non-governmental organization (NGO) is a non-profit, citizen-based group
that functions independently of government. NGOs are organized on local, national
and international levels to serve specific social or political purposes. As non-profit
organizations, NGOs rely on a variety of sources for funding projects, operations,
salaries and other overhead costs. Because the annual budget of an NGO can be in
the hundreds of millions (or even billions) of dollars, fundraising efforts are
important for the NGO's existence and success. Funding sources include
membership dues, the sale of goods and services, private sector for-profit
companies, philanthropic foundations, grants from local, state and federal
agencies, and private donations. Individual private donors comprise a significant
portion of NGO funding. Some of these donations come from wealthy
individuals, such as Ted Turner's $1 billion donation to the United Nations, or
Warren Buffett's 2006 pledge to give 10 million Berkshire-Hathaway class B
shares to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (valued at more than $31 billion in
June 2006). Many NGOs, however, rely on a large number of small donations,
rather than a small number of large donations. Despite their independence from
government, many NGOs rely heavily on government funding to function. Some
governmental NGO funding may be viewed as controversial because the funding
may support certain political goals rather than a nation's development goals. To
implement projects, non-profit organizations (NPOs) would first and foremost need
funds. There are various methods and venues to acquire funds, thus, non-profits
should be strategic in seeking approaches suitable to their needs and capabilities.
Most if not all NPOs use more than one method to acquire funds, although most of
them focus on the ones where they can gain more. Listed below are a few examples
of the various methods an NPO can use to get started on their projects.
20.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the source of finance and functions of NGO’S
 To know the various sources of income of NGO’S both national and
international.
 After studying this chapter students must know the major sources of NGO’S
20.3 CONTENTS
20.3.1 Grants
20.3.2 Cash donations
20.3.3 Contributions
20.3.4 Membership’s dues
20.3.5 Investment income
20.3.6 Fundraising campaigns
20.3.7 Crowd funding
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20.3.8 Matching grants

20.3.9 Corporate matching programs
20.3.10 Program Service Revenue
20.3.11 In-kind donations
20.3.12 Loan Financing
20.3.13 Giving circles
20.3.14 Unrelated Business Income
20.3.15 Other Income
20.3.16 Other Sources
Non Governmental organizations are organizations independent of any
government. They are usually non-profit, and many NGOs are active in
humanitarian or social areas; however, NGOs can also be lobby groups for
corporations, such as the World Economic Forum NGOs are a subgroup of all
organizations founded by citizens, which include clubs and other associations that
provide services, benefits, and premises only to members. Sometimes the term is
used as a synonym of "civil society organization" to refer to any association founded
by citizens, but this is not how the term is normally used in the media or everyday
language, as recorded by major dictionaries. The explanation of the term by
NGO.org (the non-governmental organizations associated with the United Nations)
is ambivalent: "[an NGO is] any non-profit, voluntary citizens' group which is
organized on a local, national or international level," but then goes on to restrict the
meaning in the sense used by most English speakers and the media: "Task-oriented
information."
NGOs are usually funded by donations, but some avoid formal funding
altogether and are run primarily by volunteers. NGOs are highly diverse groups of
organizations engaged in a wide range of activities, and take different forms in
different parts of the world. Some may have charitable status, while others may be
registered for tax exemption based on recognition of social purposes. Others may be
fronts for political, religious, or other interests. Since the end of World War II, NGOs
have had an increasing role in international development, particularly in the fields
of humanitarian assistance and poverty alleviation.
Russia had about 277,000 NGOs in 2008. India is estimated to have had
around 2 million NGOs in 2009, just over one NGO per 600 Indians, and many
times the number of primary schools and primary health centres in India. The term
"NGO" is not always used consistently. In some countries the term NGO is applied
to an organization that in another country would be called an NPO (non-profit
organization), and vice versa. Political parties and trade unions are considered
NGOs only in some countries. There are many different classifications of NGO in
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use. The most common focus is on "orientation" and "level of operation". An NGO's
orientation refers to the type of activities it takes on. These activities might include
human rights, environmental, improving health, or development work. An NGO's
level of operation indicates the scale at which an organization works, such as local,
regional, national, or international.
independent from government control can be termed an "NGO", provided it is not-
for-profit, non-prevention, but not simply an opposition political party.
Public surveys reveal that NGOs often enjoy a high degree of public trust,
which can make them a useful – but not always sufficient – proxy for the concerns
of society and stakeholders.
20.3.1 Grants
Normally, this is the first thing an NPO would aim for. Grant funding agencies
that provide funding for non-profit organizations are the constant topics of research
for non-profits. Applying for grants can be time-consuming and even stressful
especially when denied. However, to continually fund many of their projects, grants
are usually the biggest contributors. Apart from being the biggest contributors,
applying for a grant, even in the event of rejection, really helps non-profits grow as
an organization. The time dedicated to planning or organizing proposals can only
help implement them more surely, whether they receive grants or not.
20.3.2 Cash donations
One of the easiest ways to acquire funds would be through the donations some
individuals or organizations give in cash. Sometimes, during an event, or even in
the NPOs office, interested parties would hand over their donations. Although this
is an effective and relatively easy way to find capital, most non-profits don't and
shouldn't really rely on this method. Although they're not relied upon, cash
donations are still highly anticipated by non-profits as it often provides a huge relief
to struggling organizations.
20.3.3 Contributions
Cash donations may sound great but incur the problem that they aren't
binding and constant. On the other hand, contributions may be. Partnering with
organizations will often affect them providing annual contributions to particular
NPOs. Contributions are usually given in large amount by board members of
partner organizations. Although not required, it is often times seen as common
courtesy.
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20.3.4 Membership’s Dues
Because acquiring grants on a regular basis can be challenging, some NPOs
have formed memberships with large corporations who in turn will need to pay a
certain fee known as their membership dues. These members are not only
beneficial because of the dues they pay, as they're also often partner institutions for
many projects. Members also help NPOs become more known to the public through
their partnership with big corporations, and in effect will give NPOs the capacity to
receive more donations as well.
20.3.5 Investment income
Investment income, when used and managed properly, can be beneficial to
anyone, NPOs included. Investments can come from bank loans, the stock market,
and many others. Although beneficial, investment incomes can be quite risky and
incur losses as well. Creating accounts and leaving money in the bank to grow,
although can be unsafe, is considerably the venue where there aren't as many
risks. But that practice isn't very often done as the growing process takes really
long and does not really earn a desirable amount. Investing in the stock market is
often done but can incur losses as well because assurance isn't something this
particular practice can provide.
20.3.6 Fundraising campaigns
Fundraising campaigns can be done through various methods. It can be
through a booth, social media campaigns, and partnerships, among others. Booths
can be out up in malls, offices, and even in partnership with some events where
people can hand in their respective donations after learning about the organization.
Another method of fund-raising could be by hosting events. Mostly, profits from the
sale of tickets or other items will go directly to a project organized by NPOs.
20.3.7 Crowd funding
In recent years, NPOs have been using social media as a form of raising funds.
Websites like Go Fund Me have gained popularity where users can read about
NPOs, their advocacies, and projects. Through that, they can donate funds through
the internet. Of all the examples given for fundraising campaigns, the use of social
media is the method used by majority given that it comes with little to no cost to
the organization, and yet can deliver effective results.
20.3.8 Matching grants
Matching grants have been reoccurring in many funding sources for non-profit
organizations. Although not known to many who aren't involved in raising funds,
this practice has been proven to be effective. Basically, a grant funding agency will
only approve a grant if an NPO can prove themselves capable of maintaining the
projects to be funded. To prove themselves, NPOs will need to raise the same
amount of money being offered by the grant funding agency. This way, after the
initial stages of the project, have been fulfilled, there are enough funds to maintain
them. This type of grant is meant for long-term projects that will continually be
monitored.
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An NPO would preferably not want to go through this process and just receive
full funds. But as proven in many instances, NPOs actually have the capacity to
raise funds and this practice not only gives them more confidence to do so but also
opens doors to future opportunities for them.
20.3.9 Corporate matching programs
Although not very common corporate matching gifts are very good
opportunities for NPO’s to raise funds. Basically, a company employee is to donate
funds to your NPO and if he or she successfully submits the proper paperwork to
the company's human resources department, then the company will donate either
the same amount or even more your NPO. With that in mind, it's important to
inform those who make donations to inquire and submit requirements to their
respective human resources department as for NPOs to receive double or even more
donations. Big corporations such as Apple, Pepsi, Johnson and Johnson, are only a
few of the many who participate in this kind of set-up. With such large
corporations’ involved and just a little additional effort to consider, this should
definitely be a practice done more frequently.
20.3.10 Program Service Revenue
Program service revenue is similar to fund-raising. In layman's term, this is
simply a fund-raising event. Often, this could be in the form of plays, film shows,
concerts, parties, and more. Most of the time, the money earned from the sale of
tickets will go to a specific project. Often, through the advertisements, people are
informed that it's an event for a cause, which encourages people all the more to
attend. Although this comes at a cost and can be risky if there won't be many
attendees, successful events not only raise funds but awareness to a great crowd.
Sometimes, individual donations are even given after the event.
20.3.11 In-kind donations
Similar to cash donations, in-kind donations are also just received by the
particular NPO. There's no need to apply for such grants, and although it doesn't
require much work to be done, NPOs cannot simply rely on this. In-kind donations
are usually commodities such as clothing, food, furniture, transportation, and etc.
Supposedly, these donations help NPOs and their projects function more efficiently.
20.3.12 Loan Financing
Because grant receiving funds from grant-funding agencies can be challenging,
NPOs have discovered and have been using loan financing as a method to receive
capital. Loan financing is often easier and a lot quicker to receive, but come with greater
risks. It has to be remembered that a loan needs to be repaid. NPOs who have the
capacity to pay their debts after a period of time can benefit from this but is not
suggested for those who may be unsure.
20.3.13 Giving circles
Giving circles aren't really known to many who don't function as an NPO.
Some giving circles can be formal or even as informal as possible. Essentially,
giving circles are groups of people who want to help charities. Often times,
members would also like to get involved instead of just providing funds, although
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providing funds is what many of them participate in. In some giving circles,
members even need a minimum annual donation, although not all giving circles
actually observe that practice. Unlike grant funding agencies, giving circles are
much more difficult to search for, as they aren't exactly publicly known.
20.3.14 Unrelated Business Income
Unrelated business income (UBI) comes from a variety of undertakings which
isn't allied with the NPOs tax exemption. Examples of this would be sponsorships
and advertising, among other UBIs.
20.3.15 Other income
This is usually something NPOs generally receive given the form of business
they're at. Since they are exempted from taxes, refunds are quite commonly
received by NPOs.
20.3.16 Other Sources
Let us examine the various sources of funding available for NGOs both at the
conventional as well as non-conventional level. Conventional sources are those that
are mostly existing and donor –based and non-conventional sources of funding are
those that also include alternative fundraising for organizations. The bilateral and
multilateral aid is one of the biggest sources of funding we have seen over the past
fifty and more years. These originate either from the foreign offices of the developed
countries or from the multilateral organizations set up by different countries such
as the United Nations, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank. These
organizations have been created to extend international support for alleviating
poverty and reducing the socio-economic gap between the developed and the
developing countries. But their agendas are far more complex and they are not
necessarily focused upon injecting funds into NGOs, but definitely a small part of
their massive programs does include funding support for NGOs in developing
countries. The second important source of funding is the private charities/
foundations/ international organizations that are more privately handled and have
a better focus on equipping local NGOs not just financially but also technically. In
countries where there is some economic growth recorded with a presence of a
wealthy private sector, NGOs can also look upon the corporate agencies as another
major source of funding for them. There are also international corporate groups
that have Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) agenda for enhancing equity, social
justice and development. Besides, in the present times, the corporate agencies are
also partnering with NGOs for joint profit-oriented projects. In some countries, the
local governments are also a major source of funding as they have different
community welfare and development schemes which NGOs can apply and raise
resources and implement projects. Donations and gifts, mostly from individuals or
informal groups are also sources of funding for NGOs. Finally, the non-conventional
resources include the micro-enterprises, microfinance and micro-insurance.
1. Current Funding Challenges for NGOs…….2. NGOs need Resources
for.……3. Major Sources of Funding for NGOs…….4. Unsustainable Funding
Support…….5. The Dangers of Foreign Funding…….6. The Alternatives…….7. Non-
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Financial Resources for NGOs…….8. Communication for Local Fundraising…….9.

Businesses for NGOs…….10. Cost-Recovery for NGOs
Cash donation and its sources
Crowd funding
Loan financing
Contributions
Membership Dues
Investment income
In text questions
1. Find out the major sources of Revenue for NGOs within India
2. List out the major expenditure sectors of NGOs.
20.6 SUMMARY
The term "NGO" is not always used consistently. In some countries the term
NGO is applied to an organization that in another country would be called
an NPO (non-profit organization), and vice versa. Political parties and trade unions
are considered NGOs only in some countries. There are many different
classifications of NGO in use. The most common focus is on "orientation" and "level
of operation". An NGO's orientation refers to the type of activities it takes on. These
activities might include human rights, environmental, improving health, or
development work. An NGO's level of operation indicates the scale at which an
organization works, such as local, regional, national, or international.
1. Define grant
2. Explain cash donations
3. Justify the sources of income of NGO’S
1. http://www.International budget.org.
2. http://www.nid.org.na>ngo_management_training
20.9 ASSIGNMENT
To visit the nearby NGO and know the financial funding and statement of that
funding
20.10 REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. AED. 2010. 2009-2010 Annual Report: Local Ideas. Lasting Solutions.
Washington DC:
2. Audit Quality. 2005. Agency Theory and the Role of the Audit. London: The
Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
3. Avina, Je_rey. 1993. \The Evolutionary Life Cycles of Non-Governmental
Development Organizations." Public Administration & Development 13(5):
453{474.
208
4. Bateson, Melissa, Daniel Nettle, and Gilbert Roberts. 2006. \Cues of being
Watched Enhance Cooperation in a Real-World Setting." Biology Letters 2(3):
412{414.
5. Beam, Christopher. 2011. \Contract Killer: Why did USAID suspend one of
its biggest Contractors without any explanation?" Slate (March).
Evaluate the budget of an NGO with your classmates at your school .
20.12 KEYWORDS
Budget: a budget is a financial plan for a defined period, often a year.
Charities: an organization that collects money to help people who are poor, sick,
etc.
Orientation: the action of orienting someone or something relative to the
points of a compass or other specified positions.

209
LESSON – 21
EXPENDITURE OF NGO’S
21.1 INTRODUCTION
Budget is the most important part of any proposal. The budget depicts a clear
picture of all expenditures involved in carrying out a research project. Any research
project, right from its very inception, requires several activities involving the
financial aspect. Therefore, it becomes necessary to focus on the budget and to
ensure that it is clear and all the expenditures proposed are justified. Though,
developing a budget is not much tedious task, provided the concepts regarding all
expenditures involved are clear.
21.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the budget of NGO’S
 Students after reading this chapter must know the budget formatting.
 To know the various types of cost included in the budget of NGO’S
21.3 CONTENTS
21.3.1 Budget format
21.3.2 Types of costs included in the budget
To develop a budget, is a step by step procedure. A budget is majorly
categorized into four parts viz. Staff, Recurring expenses, non recurring expenses
and institutional overhead. Recurring expenses are those which are variable and
which keep on occurring throughout the entire project duration. Non recurring
expenses are those which are one-time in nature or which do not occur at regular
intervals. Various activities or particulars in a budget are categorized in recurring
or non recurring expenses. At the end of the budget, a particular amount is
provisioned as institutional overhead charges. Changes in the particulars and
break up of the duration of study of the budget can, however, be made as per the
needs of the study.
21.3.1 Budget Format
While initiating to develop a budget, as per the needs of the project, it is first
ascertained how much manpower is needed. The category of personnel i.e. director,
assistant director, project associate, project officer, research associate(s), research
officer/ fellow(s), field investigator(s), supervisor(s), consultant(s), computer
operator, data entry personnel, etc. are to be figured out. It helps in the estimated
expenditure on the remuneration of the overall project human resources. The
category of personnel to be appointed is shown separately under the ‘staff’ head. A
detailed description is also given in terms of their number, tenure of their drawing
the remuneration and the amount of monthly remuneration. This is done for all
categories of staff. The ascertainment of personnel required to be appointed
constitutes a major and most important part of the budget. The number of people
to be appointed should be as specific as possible. The monthly remuneration of the
project personnel for the entire duration of the project is determined this way.
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After the determination of staff, contingencies in terms of recurring and non

recurring expenses are drawn. Recurring expenses, as the name itself indicates, are
periodic or regular in nature. They include expenditure to be incurred on
stationery, telephone, etc. Non recurring expenses frame the next important aspect
of the budget. In non recurring expenses, travel forms an integral part as it is the
next major expenditure after staff compensation. In the determination of travel
expenditure, it is important to calculate the total number of days required for data
collection. The expenditure to be incurred on collection of data is calculated as per
the number of personnel required to be in field for particular number of days. The
travel reimbursements and dearness allowances on per day basis or anything else
admissible as per the rules of the organization is also included. Total travel cost is
calculated keeping in view these aspects.
Training sessions, workshops, meetings, etc. are also proposed in a new
budget. Since such sessions are not a periodic event, they fall in the category of non
recurring expenses. Printing charges are also a part of this category as it usually
deals with final report printing.
Last segment of the budget is institutional overhead. These overhead charges
go directly to the institution carrying out the proposed study. This is provisioned so
as to meet several costs on the part of institution such as furniture, electricity and
other running costs. The institutional overhead ranges between 6 to 16 percent of
the total cost of the project. The range may, however, be flexible on the basis of type
of organization, the funding agency or the total cost of the project.
21.3.2 Types of Costs to be included in the Budget
There are different types of costs that have to be mentioned in the budget.
Most donor agencies prefer to have the costs spread over different heads so as to
get an overview of how the resources have been divided between different types.
Basically, we can divide the overall costs as:
Operational Costs: Operational costs include those expenses that have to be
met for implementing activities for a project or an organization. These are directly
billed to the donor agency because they have a direct impact on the beneficiary
community. Activities such as organizing a village meeting, conducting a training
workshop, running an awareness campaign involve certain expenses. These
expenses are listed under the Operational Costs in a budget.
Staff costs: Staff costs refer to the expenses towards paying salaries and
consultancy fee to the staff of the organization. Staff costs include expenses right
from the recruitment of the staff (interview, orientation etc) to their salaries.
Professionally speaking, it is important to mention how much time a particular staff
will provide for the project and his/her salary has to be calculated accordingly. For
example, the head of organization may be able to give only 25% of the time to a
particular project for which funds are being requested and budgeted. So the salary
will also be fixed towards this time only.
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Core Costs: Core costs are also costs incurred towards the operational
expenses but of the organization. Most donor agencies would like to know how
much money the NGO will spend on the administration of the organization. Costs
here can include staff meetings, stationary and other office maintenance expenses.
In some cases, the expenses towards hiring a receptionist or caretaker who is not
directly contributing to the project can be listed here.
Capital Costs: Although donor agencies are advising NGOs to massively cut
down on capital costs, yet these costs continue to remain essential. These include
expenses for buying computers, office furniture, vehicles, office building etc. Some
donors have even stopped funding capital costs completely. Even if you are
proposing these costs in a budget, ensure that they cover less than 10% of the total
budget.
 To understand operational, staff, core and capital costs
 Budget is the most important part of any proposal. The budget depicts a
clear picture of all expenditures involved in carrying out a research project.
Any research project, right from its very inception, requires several activities
involving the financial aspect. Therefore, it becomes necessary to focus on
the budget and to ensure that it is clear and all the expenditures proposed
are justified. Though, developing a budget is not much tedious task,
provided the concepts regarding all expenditures involved are clear.
21.5 INTEXT QUESTION
1. What is an NGO’S budget?
2. Write a note on capital cost?
3. Discuss staff cost?
21.6 SUMMARY
To develop a budget is not a difficult task. The prime and only matter of
concern is that concepts regarding all expenditures should be clear and it should
define all minute details involved. Detailing of all expenditures not only facilitates
the work on the part of fund seeker but it also lets build a better understanding of
the donor agency. More transparent the budget, fairer will be the chances of it
being accepted. Nonprofits have different budgets for different needs. Given our
focus on foundation grants, most of Candid's budget resources are for proposal
budgets. You can also find information here about other budgeting tools, such as
organizational operating budgets and cash flow forecasts. To learn more about
taking control of your nonprofit's finances, watch our free video, Seven Lessons
Learned from Nonprofit Leaders. The "Fuzzy Math" section includes tips about
better bookkeeping and financial transparency. Proposal project budget Keep in
mind that there's no one-size-fits-all budget for grant proposals. In fact, some
grantmakers have their own budget format.You can use ideas from examples of
nonprofit budgets to create the one that's right for you. Take our free
course, Introduction to Project Budgets, offered as an in-person class or a
live/recorded webinar. Build on those basics with our more in-depth, self-paced
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learning course, Creating a Sound Proposal Budget. Its step-by-step instructions

offer templates and plenty of examples. All budgets have two common elements:
your estimate of the true costs of the project and your anticipated income to meet
those costs. Your expenses will be direct costs -- any personnel and non-personnel
costs that you wouldn't have if you didn't have the project -- and indirect or hidden
costs, also known as administrative costs or overhead. Your income consists of any
grants or contributions plus any earned income earmarked for the project, such as
ticket sales or fees for services.
1. Explain budget formatting?
2. What are the types of budget included in the budget statement?
3. Give a detailed description of expenditure?
 "NGO meaning in the Cambridge English Dictionary". dictionary
cambridge.org.
 "NGO". Oxford Dictionaries. Oxford University Press.
 "Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in the United States
21.9 ASSIGNMENT
Visit an NGO and elucidate ways of expenditure done by that NGO.
21.10 REFERENCES
 Cox, P. N. Shams, G. C. Jahn, P. Erickson, and P. Hicks. 2002. Building
collaboration between NGOs and agricultural research iNGOs – Die
Gewerkschaften in Guinea während der Unruhen 2007 – EPU Research
Papers: Issue 03/07, Stadtschlaining 2007 (in German)
 Lyal S. Sunga, "Dilemmas facing INGOs in coalition-occupied Iraq", in Ethics
in Action: The Ethical Challenges of International Human Rights
Nongovernmental Organizations, edited by Daniel A. Bell and Jean-Marc
Coicaud, Cambridge Univ. and United Nations Univ. Press, 2007.
 Lyal S. Sunga, "NGO Involvement in International Human Rights Monitoring,
International Human Rights Law and Non-Governmental Organizations"
(2005) 41–69.
 Werker & Ahmed (2008): What do Non-Governmental Organizations do?
 Charnovitz, Steve (1997). "Two Centuries of Participation: NGOs and
International Governance". Michigan Journal of International Law. 18: 183–
286.
 Abahlali baseMjondolo Rethinking Public Participation from Below, 'Critical
Dialogue', 2006
 Akpan S. M (2010): Establishment of Non-Governmental Organizations (In
Press).
 Edward A. L. Turner (2010) Why Has the Number of International Non-
Governmental Organizations Exploded since 1960?, Cliodynamics, 1, (1).
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 Eugene Fram & Vicki Brown, How Using the Corporate Model Makes a
Nonprofit Board More Effective & Efficient – Third Edition (2011), Amazon
Books, Create Space Books.
 David Lewis and Nazneen Kanji (2009): Non-Governmental Organizations
and Development. New York: Routledge.
 Issa G. Shivji (2007): Silence in NGO Discourse: The Role and Future of
NGOs in Africa. Nairobi: Fahamu.
 Jens Steffek and Kristina Hahn (2010): Evaluating Transnational NGOs:
Legitimacy, Accountability, Representation. New York: Palgrave, Macmillan.
 Yearbook of International Organizations, produced by the Union of
International Associations.
To prepare the expenditure for a picnic to a health resort, Discuss it with your
friends?
21.12 KEYWORDS
Expenditure: the action of spending funds.
Budget: a budget is a financial plan for a defined period, often a year.
Capital cost: Capital costs are fixed, one-time expenses incurred on the
purchase of land, buildings, construction, and equipment used in the production of
goods or in the rendering of services.

214
LESSON – 22
NGO ACCOUNTING
22.1 INTRODUCTION
Issues of accounting and accountability are prime concerns of accountants,
whether in practice or academe. However, the majority of accounting research is
concerned about the corporate sector where presentation of corporate accounts
display inter alia “profit” or “loss”, and asset, liability and equity elements. This
data enables analysis of such concepts as return on assets or investment.
Nevertheless, a significant percentage of organisations have a social purpose and,
rather than profit, seek to manage their financial and non-financial resources in
order to maximise achievement of that social purpose. It is a sub-set of these
organisations that this special issue focuses on. Specifically, we are concerned
about accounting and accountability issues in non-governmental organisations
(NGOs). This overview paper defines the term “NGO” for the purposes of this issue,
concluding that NGOs’ social purposes and the non-distribution constraint are the
two common characteristics.
As NGOs receive funding from stakeholders that do not necessarily receive
value in return, and work with a range of beneficiaries, including the most
vulnerable people in our society, there are frequent calls for NGOs to discharge
accountability in more targeted ways and to wider sets of stakeholders (Agyemang,
O‘Dwyer, Unerman, & Awumbila, 2017; Dixon, Ritchi, & Siwale, 2006). These
demands have led to tensions in NGOs between balancing different stakeholders’
interests, NGOs’ missions and resource constraints (O’Dwyer & Unerman,
2007, 2008). This paper makes three contributions. First, in discussing the breadth
and depth of the NGO sector, this paper conceptualises NGOs with respect to a
variety of regulations, financing, governance structures, purposes, stakeholders
and activities. Thus, it encourages researchers to cast their net wider when
considering contexts in which to undertake their NGO study. Secondly, we
summarise accountability issues, in particular highlighting the different forms that
can be developed by NGOs to discharge a broad accountability to a wide range of
stakeholders. Thirdly, this paper develops a number of issues that warrant further
research. Therefore, as well as introducing the papers in this issue, the paper
proceeds by first dealing with definitional issues, then accountability and future
research areas. It concludes with a summary of the papers in this issue and
concluding thoughts.
22.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the auditing of nongovernmental organization
 To know the social purpose, accounting and accountability
22.3 CONTENTS
22.3.1 NGOs - Some definitional issues
22.3.2 Highlights
22.3.3 Social purpose, accounting and accountability
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22.3.1 NGOs – some definitional issues
Entities whose prime purpose is social, rather than profit-making could be
called “not-for-profit”. Such entities may be in the public or private sector and thus,
traditionally, the term non-governmental has been applied to those organisations
that are not-for-profit making (have a social purpose) and are private (a de
facto approach). The literature attempting to define this further is diverse and
somewhat contested (for example, appearing in disciplinary journals on
Developmental Studies, Public Administration, Accounting, as well as
interdisciplinary Non-profit Studies and Organisational Studies) and the preferred
terms have changed over time. Here we focus on definitional main themes that
assist in understanding the purposes of this special issue in studying NGOs'
accounting and accountability.
The main definitional themes that have emerged as important in relation to
accounting and accountability are regulation; financing; governance structure;
purpose; stakeholders and activities. Each NGO has a unique configuration of
accounting and accountability practices that is shaped by the contextual
interaction of these six major themes. Therefore, how NGOs are characterised
impacts on any evaluation or interpretation of their accounting and accountability
practices. In this paper, we propose an inclusive definition from our review of the
NGO literature and from the editorial process involved in bringing together this
special issue. Our definition of NGOs incorporates terms such as private social
purpose organisations, charities, not-for-profit organisations, non-profit
organisations, civil society organisations, social enterprises and service clubs.
Early attempts to define the scope of private social purpose organisations by
Salamon and Anheier (1992a, 1992b) noted that many of the terms used have
focused on a particular aspect of organisations, for example, that they may have
volunteers, be tax-exempt, or charitable. They analyse the usefulness of a de
jure (legal) definition, the source of income, and the functions (activities), before
settling on a “structural/operational” definition, which includes organisations that
are: formal, private, non-profit-distributing, self-governing and voluntary (Salamon
& Anheier, 1992a). This definition, which can be seen to incorporate charities, was
used to launch a generation of comparative international research into the “non-
profit” sector (Salamon & Anheier, 1992b) (containing non-profit organisations
(NPOs)) or, as they now term it, the “civil society” sector with civil society
organisations (CSOs) (see, for example, Salamon, Sokolowski, Haddock, & Tice,
2013). This structural/operational distinction is an important starting point for
evaluating NGO accounting and accountabilities.
Nevertheless, Salamon's seminal and ongoing work tends to ignore a
globalised de jure definition of an NGO, leaving such legal specifics to individual
countries. Indeed, it is registered charities that have received the most attention
from the accounting researchers that have considered NGOs. These analyses have
used jurisdictional-specific definitions of charity which enable (and require)
registration of certain entities with a regulator. Registered charities benefit from
216
taxation rebates and increased legitimacy, although regulation is costly,

particularly in terms of reporting requirements (Cordery & Deguchi, 2018). In this
issue, McDonnell and Rutherford (2019) analyse the effectiveness of charities' risk
reporting to the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR). Their work shows
disparity in charities’ sizes and the effects of size on risk reporting. Kemp and
Morgan (2019) find that charities registered with an adjacent regulator (Charity
Commission of England and Wales (CCEW)) are unclear about risk factors, in
particular, regarding the issue of “qualified accounts”. These two regulators (OSCR
and CCEW) are not alone in imposing financial reporting demands on those
registered with them and Cordery et al. (2019) draw on a multi-national survey to
question whether a single international set of NPO financial reporting standards
will arise to reduce the costs of mandated reporting in individual jurisdictions.
How NGOs fund their activities is of interest. First, it is recognised that
although funding is often volatile (see, for example, Theodosopoulos, 2011),
different forms of funding brings the necessity for specific accounting and
accountability requirements. Hansmann (1986) bifurcates NGOs into “donative”,
(those receiving donations), or “commercial” (those charging for goods and services),
however other studies have identified a range of different sources of funds, each
with different accountability demands. These include membership fees, public
sector grants, research grants, project grants, bequests, income from trusts and
many others. The nature of how an NGO funds its activities will have a considerable
impact on how it accounts for its activities, who it accounts to and what it accounts
for (Boomsma & O‘Dwyer, 2019; Edwards & Hulme, 1996). This accountability does
not simply relate to financial expenditure, but extends to other resources used
within the organisation to deliver its purpose. Often the funders will attach specific
forms of accountability as a condition of the NGO funding. This can create the need
for multiple accounting to the different sources of funding or based on the
accounability preferences of funders, including the role of NGOs in resourcing other
NGOs (see, for example, Connolly, Dhanani, & Hyndman, 2013; Cordery &
Sim, 2018; Unerman & O‘Dwyer, 2006). The range of ways that the sources of
funding impact on the formal and informal accounting and accountabilities is a key
dimension of all of the papers in this special issue.
The governance of NGOs is also important and organisational theorists,
including Hansmann (1986), dichotomise CSOs as either mutuals (member-
controlled), or those that are independently managed. Such a bifurcation ignores
the shades along a continuum, as many large NGOs may have members, but cede
real control to an independent governing body. It is not possible to establish a clear
definition of an NGO through its governance structure. Yet, the specific governance
arrangements in an NGO will impact on internal and external accounting practices
and the extent to which they are formalised within institutional practices related to
organisational purpose and regulatory requirements (O‘Leary, 2017). Governance,
purpose, finance, regulation and accountability are reflexively interrelated and need
to be considered in context. In this issue, two studies highlight the member-based
217
end of the governance continuum. Denedo, Thomson, and Yonekura (2019) analyse
the actions of a number of community-connected, small, member-based NGOs, and
the work of Yates, Gebreiter, and Lowe (2019) focuses directly on member-
controlled service clubs. At the other end of the governance continuum, is the large,
independently managed BRAC, the focus of the study by Uddin and Belal (2019).
NGOs are required to produce many different accounts, in different forms, to
regulators and external stakeholders (Boomsma & O‘Dwyer, 2019; Ebrahim, 2003;
O‘Dwyer & Boomsma, 2015; O‘Leary, 2017; Unerman & O‘Dwyer, 2006) particularly
to the resource providers and beneficiaries. The accountability demands on NGOs
are often considered to be greater than those imposed on other organisations
(Unerman & O‘Dwyer, 2006). These accountability requirements are enhanced from
the felt responsibilities by those working in NGOs (Ebrahim, 2003; O‘Dwyer &
Boomsma, 2015). Demonstrating compliance with regulation through the
production of audited formal financial reports is widely considered as necessary,
but insufficient, to discharge NGOs’ accountability responsibilities. Formal financial
reports form an important part of NGOs assemblage of accounts. These reports are
designed by regulators and standard setters to meet assumed needs of powerful
stakeholders (often funders/donors) or to protect weaker, marginalised
stakeholders (such as beneficiaries). However, the effectiveness of these regulated
reports is mediated through the nature, intentionality and operational effectiveness
of the underlying regulations. The extent to which regulations incorporate the felt
responsibilities of an NGO or the full range of stakeholder accountabilities will
impact on the demand and content of alternative, informal accounts.
There is an assumption that within NGOs there is a greater commitment to
genuinely address the interests of a broad range of stakeholders (O’Dwyer &
Unerman, 2007, 2008) with a focus on substantive as opposed to procedural
accountability (Gray, Bebbington, & Collison, 2006). In NGOs, accountability is felt
as “an enabling rather than as a monitoring process” (Fry, 1995, p. 186) in order
“to meet and stay true to the needs of clients, as well as itself” (Dixon et al., 2006,
p. 407). Such accountability is associated with a sense of obligation towards the
NGOs’ purpose rather than the sense of anxiety regarding the power of the
stakeholders or financially-driven motives (O‘Dwyer & Unerman, 2008). This
combination of different factors leads to the provision of customised accounts to
address the interests of the broad range of NGO stakeholders. Such accounts
should be of NGOs’ activity to achieve the stated purpose.
Prior research has identified that certain NGOs prioritise the marginalised,
weaker stakeholders (Roberts, 1991, 2003) (for example, beneficiaries) over those
providing resources. Meeting the accountability requirements of the funders and
beneficiaries is considered a critical dynamic within most NGOs. NGOs depend on
resources provided by others to meet their specific social purposes and NGOs are
subject to external scrutiny as to how they have deployed their portfolio of
resources. The diversity of NGOs’ social purposes challenges the ability of
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accounting standard setters and regulators to design comprehensive, generic

accounting and accountability processes.
The range of activities and social purposes associated with NGOs is extensive.
Unerman and O‘Dwyer (2006) split NGO activities as being “welfare providers” or
“advocacy focused”, whereas Salamon and Anheier (1992b) identified twelve
different categories of activities. In relation to charities, Cordery, Sim, and van Zijl
(2017) empirically categorise five different activities by funding (Classic Charities,
Membership, Infrastructure, Trusts/Grantors, and Service Providers), which was
extended by Cordery and Sim (2018) to include advocacy organisations as a sixth
funded activity. Cordery and Sim (2018) show distinct differences in the
accountability discharged by NGOs undertaking these different types of activities,
which was also linked to how these activities were funded.
Thus, it is apparent there is a contested and, sometimes confused set of
definitions for the NGO sector. Through Salamon's work (Salamon et al., 2013;
Salamon & Anheier, 1992a, 1992b), we note that some terms are fashionable in
certain time periods. We also acknowledge that over the last 25 years, there has
been a rise of different types of private, not-for-profit entities, such as the increase
in social enterprises. Nevertheless, one common definitional NGO characteristic
that takes precedence is a social purpose (for example, Christensen &
Ebrahim, 2006). Kluvers and Tippett (2011) note that it is this purpose, as
expressed in these entities' missions and values, that plays an important role in
organisational performance. A second common characteristic is that any surpluses
made may not be distributed as profit. Our review of NGOs and NGOs’ accounting
and accountability practices suggest it is necessary to avoid bright-line definitions
that will otherwise limit research that can explore these diverse and interesting
organisations and the contexts they inhabit.
The interaction of the six definitional themes in the NGO ecosystem and the
emergence of NGO-related scandals and frauds has a number of specific attributes
that are also necessary to consider in academic research, and these are highlighted
through the papers in this issue. First, the NGO sector is a significant and growing
part of many nations’ economies (Salamon et al., 2013), a matter which has led to
the increase of regulation and reporting requirements (see Cordery et al., 2019;
McDonnell & Rutherford, 2019). Secondly, NGOs within this ecosystem are diverse
in terms of size however measured (O‘Leary, 2017). While most NGOs are small, the
largest NGOs dominate the funding and activities within the sector (Cordery et
al., 2017). Accordingly, much research focuses on the largest of these entities (as do
Uddin & Belal, 2019), yet in this issue we also include research on smaller, less
well-resourced entities (Denedo et al., 2019; Goncharenko, 2019; Kemp &
Morgan, 2019; Yates et al., 2019). Thirdly, NGOs’ work is affected by the context in
which they operate. Hence, papers have been selected for this issue to tease out the
tensions that arise in specific environments. These include analysis of differences
internationally (Cordery et al., 2019), differences in purpose, and in specific
219
contexts which may bring different responses to the challenges of NGO accounting
and accountability (Denedo et al., 2019; Goncharenko, 2019; Uddin & Belal, 2019).
22.3.2 Highlights
The main aim is to introduce key themes of NGO accounting and
accountability and provide an overview of the papers included in this special issue.
These papers deal with formal reporting issues related to the regulatory
requirements as well as various alternative forms of informal accountability
mechanisms which are more related with the core social purpose of the
organisation. This special issue contributes not only to the scholarly debates on
NGO accounting and accountability but also to the various issues facing policy
makers and NGO practitioners. We have provided a robust research agenda for
future researchers.
 We define the term ‘NGO’ for the purposes of this issue, concluding that
NGOs’ social purposes and the constraint on distribution of surpluses are
the two common characteristics.
 This definition encourages researchers to cast their net wider when
considering contexts in which to undertake their NGO study.
 NGO accountability discharge is broadening to a wider range of
stakeholders.
 There are many NGO accounting and accountability issues that warrant
further research.
22.3.3 NGOs, Social purpose, accounting and accountability
As discussed earlier, evaluating or understanding NGO accounting and
accountability practices involves consideration of a number of contextual factors.
NGO accounting and accountability practices are associated with fulfilling a
number of different expectations and, especially those designated as charities, are
often required by regulators to meet enhanced levels of financial accountability
compared to “for-profit organisations” and public sector organisations. Despite this,
often contextual factors intersect to create additional purpose-driven accountability
demands to which NGOs respond by developing social accounting practices. In our
review of the literature and the articles in this special issue, we have identified four,
overlapping, demands associated with NGO accounting and accountability. These
demands include external regulatory compliance; organisational governance and
management; stakeholder engagement; and demonstrating delivery of purpose. The
accounts, formal and informal, produced by NGOs are often used to meet more
than one purpose, which can lead to a mixed evaluation depending on the
perspective taken or theoretical approach taken. For example, an annual financial
report could be considered satisfactory in terms of its full compliance with
regulations, but inadequate from a stakeholder engagement perspective. This
tension is identified in a number of papers in this special issue (for example,
Cordery et al., 2019; Kemp & Morgan, 2019; McDonnell & Rutherford, 2019).
Table 2 provides a structure within which to position the papers in this special
issue. Table 2 places a number of accounting and accountability practices in the
220
context of the six definitional characteristics of NGOs and the four demands
associated with NGO accounting. Table 2 is not an exhaustive mapping of all NGO
accounting and accountability practices, but is suggested as a framework to
understand, interpret and integrate the seven different papers in this special issue.
As mentioned previously, NGOs are required to produce many different
accounts, in different forms, to regulators and external stakeholders (Christensen &
Ebrahim, 2006; Ebrahim, 2003; O’Dwyer & Unerman, 2007, 2008; O’Leary, 2017).
Included in NGO accounts are formal financial reports required by different
regulators to meet minimum levels of financial accountability. The extent to which
these formal reports and associated governance regulations capture the
accountability demands of NGO stakeholders are addressed in three papers –
Cordery et al. (2019), Kemp and Morgan (2019), and McDonnell and Rutherford
(2019). These papers draw out the extent to which the intentions underpinning the
regulations are met as well as critiquing the ability of the regulations to meet
critical elements of effective NGOs accountability.
In their paper, Cordery et al. (2019) position financial reporting as an
important accounting practice for not-for-profit organisations to discharge their
accountability in relation to donations and funding. Their survey uncovers a
tension between the importance of local financial reporting practices and a majority
view that international financial reporting standards are required. Their analysis,
using institutional logics, suggests that existing financial reports are insufficiently
standardised to meet the needs of all stakeholders. However, there were clear
conflicts associated with significant patterns of beliefs in the key stakeholder
groups and that this will likely impact the development of financial reporting
standards and practices.
The starting point of McDonnell and Rutherford (2019) is that financial loss,
fraud and theft, and problematic personal behaviour of those involved with
charities are creating new accountability demands. In their study, they analyse
charities’ responses to a new regulatory requirement to voluntarily disclosing
details of serious incidents that may threaten their organisation. Their analysis
identifies that the lower the risk of organisation demise the more likely the charities
are to disclose these critical incidents. Larger, older organisations that have
previously been subject to a regulatory investigation are more likely to report
serious incidents. However, disclosure is less prevalent in the smaller, younger
charities where there is perceived to be a greater risk to the charity arising from the
incident. Their research identifies a potential problem in relying on compliance with
risk disclosures as a way of governing charities.
Audit and assurance is seen as an important practice in financial reporting in
relation to regulatory compliance, governance and accountability, stakeholder
engagement and legitimating the organisation to funders and beneficiaries. Key to
the practice of financial reporting audit is the concept of qualified accounts. Prior to
Kemp and Morgan's study, (2019) it was assumed that preparers and users of
221
charity accounts understood the importance of account qualification. Since 2014

charities filing accounts with the Charity Commission for England and Wales have
been asked whether their accounts were qualified. However, Kemp and Morgan
(2019) have found that 96% of small charities who have stated that their accounts
are qualified have mis-answered the question. The notion of qualified accounts has
subsequently been found to be misunderstood both by operational charities and
their funders. Given that regulations use qualified reports as a trigger for possible
regulatory investigation, this misunderstanding raises serious questions on the
efficacy of audited financial reports for the regulation, governance and stakeholder
engagement of charities.
The importance of purpose drives the development and implementation of
accountability mechanisms that enable “the art of making judgements and is
moulded around the idea of fairness, which involves doing the right thing in the
community” (Lehman, 1999, p. 230). However, it should be noted that these locally
determined “right things” may not be quantifiable or capturable in formal, financial
accounts and may require to be qualitatively and subjectively accounted for. This
will be part of NGO governing mechanisms that require an NGO to recognise and
take responsibility for the impact of their actions on the community practices in
which they operate if they are to “conduct themselves in a fashion that is seen to be
empathetic, authentic and productive socially as well as financially”
(Lehman, 2007, p. 172) while creating social change. This requires NGO accounting
and accountability practices that not only provide decision-useful information but
also information that critically assesses NGO activities (Schweiker, 1993). In
general, all the papers in this special issue recognise that without an appropriate
recognition of NGOs’ purposes, their accounts can be subverted, intentionally or
unintentionally, to become a tool to maintain and advance individuals’ own
interests, resource accumulation and power.
Yates et al. (2019) explore the nature of internal accountability within social
purpose organisations, focussing on three service clubs. Their paper utilises
Roberts’ framework of individualising/hierarchical and socialising/intelligent forms
of accountability, with socialising forms of accountability dominating accountable
space within service clubs. In their case study of Round Table International, they
observe the development of accounting practices, customised to local needs,
activities and maintaining essential community relationships. The usefulness of
formal management accounting controls was challenged and in some cases actively
subverted in favour of a more intelligent accountability dynamic at the grassroots
level. Their work demonstrates how one organisation used accounting as a way to
deal with the complex governance and management of membership organisation in
order to keep a focus on purpose.
The importance of establishing a balance between donors and beneficiaries
mediated through purpose has been explored by Uddin and Belal (2019). Previous
research identified how the power of donors acted against the development of
accountability to beneficiaries (Agyemang et al., 2017; Ebrahim, 2003; O‘Leary,
222
2017; Uddin & Belal, 2019). Their case study of one of the world's largest NGOs has
demonstrated how powerful stakeholders influenced NGOs to facilitate greater
beneficiary accountability. Beneficiary accounting has been seen as a form of
accounting that served a number of critical accounting functions, including
stakeholder engagement, accounting to donors, organisational governance and
management and demonstrating performance against purpose. They have observed
that donors influenced NGOs directly by controlling critical resources in order to
ensure more effective accounting and accountability strategies.
Advocacy NGOs play an important role in society by keeping in check the
power of corporations and governments and uncovering rights violations, but this
requires these NGOs to maintain their social legitimacy, internally and externally.
Goncharenko (2019) has examined how the accountability agenda of advocacy
NGOs is shaped by the need to maintain independence and preserve values when
faced with financial and legitimacy pressures. Through an analysis of the
discussions taking place in the NGOs’ online community of practice, this study
reveals that the accountability agenda and related practices of advocacy NGOs is
determined by the interrelated threats of financial vulnerability, potential loss of
independence, legitimacy challenges and the high level of public scrutiny. Yates et
al. (2019), Uddin and Belal (2019) and Goncharenko (2019) support our prior
assumption that within NGOs there is a greater commitment to genuinely address
the interests of a broad range of stakeholders (O‘Dwyer & Unerman, 2007, p. 2008)
with a focus on substantive as opposed to procedural accountability (Gray et
al., 2006). In these papers, the authors identified a sense of obligation towards the
NGOs’ purpose, rather than anxiety regarding the power of the stakeholders or
financially-driven motives (O‘Dwyer & Unerman, 2008). Within these organisations
there was evidence of the development of enhanced forms of accountabilities to
address the interests of the broad range of stakeholders (Lehman, 2007). Denedo et
al. (2019) report on the way in which local NGOs use alternative-accounts of others
as a key activity to achieve their purpose, to protect the human, economic and
environmental rights of indigenous communities in the Niger Delta. These
alternative-accounts were considered useful, demanding greater accountability
from others, making visible problematic activities, building capacity and networks
for change, and addressing power imbalances. NGOs and local community
representatives asserted that the production and communication of accounts of
their suffering were making a difference and creating hope for future change. In
Goncharenko (2019), Uddin and Belal (2019) and Yates et al. (2019), we can see the
possibility of circumventing formal power relations and formal accountability
processes in order to provide locally meaningful accounts such as “accounts” in the
form of actions (Munro, 1996). This can also be observed in Denedo et al. (2019),
where alternative accounts were produced with the potential to enable greater
engagement between NGOs and their stakeholders. In these four papers (Denedo et
al., 2019; Goncharenko, 2019; Uddin & Belal, 2019; Yates et al., 2019) there was a
tendency to privilege substantive accounting mechanisms that emphasised ongoing
223
courses of action rather than the reporting of periodic end-result (Ebrahim, 2003;
Gray et al., 2006). These four papers demonstrate how NGOs have developed
additional forms of accountability in the form of actions to meet their specific
purposes (Munro, 1996), which allows us to recognise the possibility and capacity
of NGOs to design different procedures of how accounts should be produced and
exchanged (Roberts, 1991, 2003) with the clients, users, or beneficiaries, members,
communities, partners, staff and supporters (Christensen & Ebrahim, 2006; Dixon
et al., 2006 Edwards & Hulme, 1996). The other papers in this special issue
(Cordery et al., 2019; Kemp & Morgan, 2019; McDonnell & Rutherford, 2019) also
problematise the capacity of formal financial reporting to satisfy all the accounting
and accountability requirements of NGOs. Therefore, NGOs were observed to
complement formal, accounts by producing customised, voluntary accounts
(Christensen & Ebrahim, 2006) that enabled the NGO to “account” for a more
holistic understanding of their responsibilities that extends beyond economic and
legal compliance (Munro, 1996). However, they also note the potential contribution
of well-designed and enforced regulations, comprehensive and audited financial
reports, supplemented with comprehensive, relevant voluntary disclosures. All
accounting and accountability practices, regulated or otherwise, need to be
evaluated and understood with reference to the NGO's original purpose, value or
mission.
These enhanced NGO accounting and accountability practices appear to be
influenced by a desire to empower and educate key stakeholders, creating
awareness over issues that may impact on the rights and needs of marginalised
stakeholders.
As NGOs receive funding from stakeholders that do not necessarily receive
value in return, and work with a range of beneficiaries, including the most
vulnerable people in our society, there are frequent calls for NGOs to discharge
accountability in more targeted ways and to wider sets of stakeholders the NGO
sector is a significant and growing part of many nations’ economies a matter which
has led to the increase of regulation and reporting requirements
Secondly, NGOs within this ecosystem are diverse in terms of size however
measured While most NGOs are small, the largest NGOs dominate the funding and
activities within the sector. Accordingly, much research focuses on the largest of
these entities. yet in this issue we also include research on smaller, less well-
resourced entities
1. Explain accounting?
2. Analyze the social purpose of NGO’s?
3. Write a short note on NGO’s?
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22.6 SUMMARY
In this special issue, we have built on the previous research on NGO
accounting and accountability. We do not claim to have resolved the definitional
issues that many scholars have tackled regarding NGOs and NGO accounting.
However, for the purpose of this special issue, we have clarified the broad definition
of an NGO with reference to the latest scholarly developments in this space. The
type of NGOs examined in this special issue is diverse both in terms of size, nature
and geographic focus. Accordingly, related accounting and accountability practices
have also varied considerably. The papers included in this special issue not only
include large international NGOs like BRAC but also much smaller organisations
such as UK service clubs. The nature of NGOs covered vary from development
NGOs to advocacy NGOs and also some other types of organisations, including
charities. Geographically, while most of the NGOs examined come from the UK, two
studies deal with NGOs in emerging economies – Bangladesh and Nigeria.
There are broadly two groups of papers presented in this special issue. The
first group of papers (Cordery et al., 2019; Kemp & Morgan, 2019; McDonnell &
Rutherford, 2019) highlights challenges in accounting and accountability related
issues in formal financial reporting, auditing and disclosures aimed specifically at
the regulators. The second group of papers (Denedo et al., 2019; Goncharenko,
2019; Uddin & Belal, 2019; Yates et al., 2019) examine more informal type of
accounting and accountability related challenges related to NGOs’ broader mission
or social purpose.
As represented in this special issue NGO accountability is a dynamic subject.
While there has been a longstanding scholarly interest on the subject in
development studies, accounting scholars’ attention to the subject has been of
relatively recent origin. However, the subject is gaining momentum in recent times
with various special issues published in different journals. We urge the future
researchers to pay attention to a number of areas of NGO accountability and
governance by taking a more critical perspective on it.
While this special issue contains a number of case studies we encourage more
critical case studies of governance and accountability practices examining financial
scandals, corruption, misuse of power in NGOs or other governance problems
(Hind, 2017). We need more in-depth case studies, which are able to offer valuable
insights into how accounting was implicated in the often competing accountability
demands within a single NGO. Of particular interest would be studied in NGOs that
were involved in high profile reputational conflicts or existential threats.
Complex accountability relationships between NGOs and their various
stakeholders have been the subject of academic research within the accounting
discipline and beyond. While researchers examining such relationships have paid
significant attention to upward accountability to powerful stakeholders such as
institutional donors and regulators, less attention has been paid to downward
accountability by NGOs to beneficiaries and other less powerful stakeholders
225
(Agyemang et al., 2017; Ebrahim, 2003; O‘Leary, 2017; Uddin & Belal, 2019). We
invite future researchers to undertake critical analysis of forms, processes and
mechanisms of beneficiary accountability by placing beneficiaries at the centre of
the analysis.
Existing research suggests that NGOs have been too preoccupied with
satisfying the requirements of powerful stakeholders to the extent that sometimes
they end up neglecting the core social purpose for which they were established in
the first place. This phenomenon has resulted in what the literature has labelled as
“mission drift” (Epstein & Kristi, 2011; Epstein & Yuthas, 2010). This observation is
particularly relevant in micro finance NGOs in the context of their pursuit of
scalability or self-sustainability (Epstein & Yuthas, 2010). We invite future studies
to examine the implications of such drift for NGO governance and accountability.
There are a number of NGO accountability and governance standards and
guidelines NGOs may choose from in discharging accountability to a broad range of
stakeholders. This often creates dilemma and confusion amongst the NGO
practitioners. There is very little research examining how and why these standards
and guidelines are applied in practice. In this regard, critical analysis via in-depth
case studies would be a useful addition to the literature. This would highlight the
reasons and processes of choosing these standards and how they are made to work
in practice.
NGO governance has been a controversial issue in the sector in recent times
(Hind, 2017). The adequacy of current forms and processes of NGO governance has
been questioned by the media in the light of various financial scandals and safe
guarding issues. Critical analyses are needed to highlight how to overcome these
challenges in the NGO sector and strengthen the NGO governance processes aimed
at improved beneficiary accountability.
In their pursuit of desired social and environmental change, some NGOs have
started to engage in partnerships with businesses around the world. Does this kind
of partnership lead to desired changes? Or does it help businesses legitimise their
activities and maintain the status quo? Is there a danger that in the process of
such partnership NGOs might lose their independence and radical edge? Future
studies could examine the accountability and transparency in business-NGO
partnerships (Burchell & Cook, 2013a, 2013b).
Given the nature of NGOs’ engagement with various social and environmental
challenges, they are well placed to respond to the global challenges articulated in
the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Some NGOs have been
engaging with global challenges (such as poverty alleviation) well before the
declaration of SDGs. Future researchers could examine the implications for NGO
governance and accountability arising from NGOs’ engagement with recent
developments in SDGs.
One of the key conclusions arising from the papers included in this special
issue that should shape future research is that accounting and accountability
226
related challenges in NGOs vary depending on the context and purpose of their
operations. Accordingly, forms of accountability practices vary from formal
reporting to less hierarchical socialising forms of accountability (Roberts, 1991). In
this context, while formal reporting has its own place we could argue that, given the
social purpose of these organisations they would do well by not losing sight of
informal socialising forms of accountability. We also urge the future researchers to
avoid viewing these forms of accountability as dichotomous. In this special issue,
Uddin and Belal (2019) contributes to the longstanding scholarly debate on donor
versus beneficiary accountability by showing that they are not necessarily
dichotomous. Instead, they argue that donor accountability has some inbuilt
beneficiary accountability features which can be mobilised to the advantage of
disadvantaged beneficiaries.
Collectively the papers included in this special issue provide a significant
contribution to NGO accounting and accountability research. We hope that insights
provided here would not only be of benefit to the scholarly communities working in
this area but also to the various NGO practitioners and policy makers. We would
like to ask scholars to engage with the issues raised in this special issue and
connect with the future research agenda suggested above.
1. What do you understand the accounting of NGO’s
2. Enumerate the ways how is accountability in accounting of NGO’s
1. "The Pros and Cons of Financial Efficiency Standards". 2016-06-04.
2. "The Ratings Game (SSIR)".
3. "Department of Defense Directive 3000.05" (PDF). United States Department
of Defense. September 16, 2009. Retrieved 2013-12-24.
4. Davies, Thomas (2014). NGOs: A New History of Transnational Civil Society.
New York: Oxford University Press. p. 23. ISBN 978-0-19-938753-3.
22.9 ASSIGNMENT
To collect the data of an NGO and know how is accounting is done
22.10 REFERENCES
AED. 2010. 2009-2010 Annual Report: Local Ideas. Lasting Solutions.
Washington DC: AED.
Agg, Catherine. 2006. Trends in Government Support for Non-Governmental
Organizations: Is the 'Golden Age' of the NGO Behind Us? United Nations Research
Institute for Social Development, Civil Society and Social Movements Programme
Paper Number 23.
Anders, Molly. 2015. \Does IRD have a case against USAID?" news/does-ird-
have-a-case-against-usaid-86379.
Anders, Molly. 2016. \Blumont: The new face of IRD sponsored/blumont-the-
new-face-of-ird-87638.
227
Antle, Rick. 1982. \The Auditor as an Economic Agent." Journal of Accounting

Research 20(2): 503{527.
Arellano-Lopez, Sonia, and James F. Petras. 1994. \Non-Governmental
Organizations and Poverty Alleviation in Bolivia." Development and Change 25(3):
555{568.
Ashbaugh-Skaife, Hollis, Daniel W. Collins, William R. Kinney Jr, and Ryan
LaFond. 2009. \The E_ect of Internal Control De_ciencies on Firm Risk and Cost of
Equity Capital."
Journal of Accounting Research 47(1): 1{43.
Audit Quality. 2005. Agency Theory and the Role of the Audit. London: The
Avina, Je_rey. 1993. \The Evolutionary Life Cycles of Non-Governmental
Development Organizations." Public Administration & Development 13(5): 453{474.
Bateson, Melissa, Daniel Nettle, and Gilbert Roberts. 2006. \Cues of
beingWatched Enhance Cooperation in a Real-World Setting." Biology Letters 2(3):
412{414.
Beam, Christopher. 2011. \Contract Killer: Why did USAID suspend one of its
biggest contractors without any explanation?" Slate (March).
Beck, Nathaniel, Jonathan N. Katz, and Richard Tucker. 1998. \Taking Time
Seriously: Time-Series-Cross-Section Analysis with a Binary Dependent Variable."
American Journal of Political Science 42(4): 1260{1288.
Behar, Hector, and Peter Oakley. 1995. \From Accountability to Shared
Responsibility: NGO Evaluation in Latin America." In Non-Governmental
Organisations: Performance and Accountability, Beyond the Magic Bullet, ed.
Michael Edwards, and David Hulme. London: Earthscan Publications pp. 73{82.
Maintain accounting of your spending of a financial year for your studies and
try to compare that with how NGO’s maintain their account?
22.12 KEYWORDS
Accounting: the process or work of keeping financial accounts.
Accountability: the fact or condition of being accountable; responsibility.
Organization: an organized group of people with a particular purpose, such as
a business or government department.

228
LESSON – 23
AUDIT OF NON GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS (NGOS)
23.1 INTRODUCTION
Non Governmental organization (NGO) is an organization which is established
by a group of people to render service to the nation and people. NGOS should make
audit of books of accounts every year. An auditor should perform following tasks
while conducting audit of NGOS:
1. NGO has its own memorandum. S, an auditor should study it to know its
activities.
2. NGOS may receive grant from foreign institutions. So, auditor should check
whether it is received as per the provision of financial rules and regulations
of the nation or not.
3. Auditor should check the use of government's grants and proper account is
maintained for the recording of such grants or not.
4. If such institution has received donation from any individual or organization,
an auditor should check accounting of such amount and its use.
5. Auditor should examine the amount received as subscription ratifying with
counterfoils of the receipts.
6. Auditor should study the decisions taken by the executives.
7. Auditor should make physical verification of assets ratifying with store
ledger.
8. Auditor should check the liabilities and also that its assets and its transfer
is proper or not.
23.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand what audit is and the ways how to conduct the audit of
NGO’s
 After reading this unit students must know the single audit and what are
the ways to do single audit in an NGO’s
 To know the deficiencies of audit system of NGO’s.
 To know Various condition of single audit
23.3 CONTENTS
23.3.1 The single audit
23.3.2 Conditions required a single audit
23.3.3 The audit
23.3.1 The Single Audit
The United States has not always required audits of federal monies given
to other organizations (public or private). The Single Audit Act of 1984 requires
audits of states, local governments, and tribal organizations that receive grant
funding to administer federal programs. To assist external auditors in
completing the audits of federal programs, the Office of Management and
Budget (OMB) issued Circular A-128 in 1985. This defines the procedures an
auditor should perform when completing a Single Audit. It was later rescinded
and replaced in 1990 by OMB Circular A-133, “Audits of Institutions of Higher
229
Education and Other Non-Profit Organizations.” This circular expanded the

requirements to non-profit organizations. These A-133 audits, hereafter referred
to as “Single Audits,” provide information for the federal government, auditees,
and citizens to determine how federal money is being spent.
These audits are not intended to conclude how efficiently the recipient
organization has spent federal dollars. Instead, Single Audits only determine if
the money spent was done so in a manner that is allowable under the federal
grant, as well as if all applicable laws were followed. Additionally, not all federal
grants require a Single Audit. There are numerous guidelines set forth that
dictate which federal money gets audited, if at all. This chapter describes the
Single Audit process, beginning with the determination whether a Single Audit
is necessary, describing the audit itself, and the reporting that occurs once the
audit is complete.
23.3.2 Conditions Requiring a Single Audit
When an organization applies for, and receives, a federal grant, the grant
agreement includes a Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number.
It is a five digit number; the first two numbers correspond to a specific agency
or department of the United States followed by a dot and a three digit number.
This three digit number indicates a program administered by the applicable
agency. So, CFDA number 19.345 relates to the Department of State’s (19)
international programs to support democracy, human rights, and labor (345).
At the end of each fiscal year, the recipient organization organizes all of the
federal grant money expended by CFDA number and provides this list to its
auditors. The auditor is an accounting firm or individual practitioner that has
been hired by the recipient organization. If the organization received more than
$500,000 from federal sources, it is required to have a Single Audit. The auditor
examines the listing of federal money drafted by the recipient organization, and
based on the total grant dollar amount received, will classify the grants as
either Type A (large) or Type B (smaller dollar amount) programs. Generally,
Type A programs are audited once every three years. Additionally, for each
Single Audit, auditors must examine at least 50% of total grant expenditures
for the past year.
23.3.3 The Audit
The OMB, with guidance from the federal agencies, provides compliance
supplements for many CFDA numbers to inform auditors of the applicable
audit procedures for grants qualifying for a Single Audit. Although not all
grants require it, there are fourteen compliance topics that may be applicable
during a Single Audit: activities allowed or unallowed, allowable costs, cash
management, Davis-Bacon compliance, eligibility, equipment and real property
management, matching/level of effort/earmarking, period of availability of
federal funds, procurement and suspension and debarment, program income,
real property acquisition and relocation assistance, reporting, subrecipient
monitoring, and special tests and provisions. In addition to these tests, auditors
are to test and conclude upon the internal control structure of the organization.
These test if the organization’s policies and procedures are effective at
230
ensuring compliance with the grant, as well as providing reasonable

preventative measures against fraud and/or a misallocation of funds.
Like financial audits, Single Audits are not intended to provide 100%
assurance the recipient organization adhered to the grant requirements.
However, the auditor develops tests to determine whether there is reasonable
assurance the organization spent grant funds appropriately. Assuming no
transgressions are found within the recipient organization, the auditor will
provide an unqualified audit opinion on the organization’s compliance with
grant requirements. If the auditor determines the organization violated the
grant agreement, an audit finding will be presented. This can then be elevated
to a significant deficiency or material weakness based on the severity of the
finding. The Public Company Accounting Oversight Boards (PCAOB) Auditing
Standard No. 5 defines a material weakness as a “deficiency, or a combination
of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is a
reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the company’s annual or
interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected on a timely basis”
(emphasis is theirs). A significant deficiency is a “deficiency, or a combination of
deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting that is less severe than
a material weakness, yet important enough to merit attention by those
responsible for oversight of the company’s financial reporting” (PCAOB 2014).
A simple example may better illustrate the concept of audit findings.
Assume an organization receives one federal grant, the Food for Peace
Development Assistance Program from USAID, and the amount expended on
the grant during a given year qualifies the organization for a Single Audit.
Based on the compliance supplement, unless otherwise explicitly allowed by
USAID, the organization is not to use the military to distribute, handle, or
allocate food commodities. However, the auditors determine the organization
did use military forces to distribute food. This would result in an audit finding,
which means the auditors found a violation of the grant agreement. The
auditors can choose to elevate this audit finding to a material weakness or a
significant deficiency.
Assume the organization only used military forces to distribute food one
time, but quickly learned of the violation and enacted policies and procedures
to ensure it would not occur again. The auditor reviews this and determines the
audit finding should be elevated to a significant deficiency, but not a material
weakness, because the organization learned of the violation through internal
means and put measures in place to prevent future occurrences. However,
assume the organization used military forces to distribute food multiple times
and when the auditors brought it to the attention of the organization,
management was unaware this was prohibited. The auditor may choose to
elevate the audit finding to a material weakness, indicating the internal control
structure (e.g. policies and procedures) were so lacking that it allowed for a
continual breach of the grant conditions. What is extremely important to note,
and pertinent to the present study, is that it is at the discretion of the auditors
what audit findings remain only findings and which become material
231
weaknesses or significant deficiencies. However, the reporting of all types of

audit findings provides the federal government with information regarding the
activities of an organization who receives grant funding. As such, audit findings
are a type of accountability mechanism for an organization receiving federal
funds. The federal government could use this information to inform future
grant funding decisions. Additionally, if auditors report audit findings, they
must also determine if there are any questioned costs that must also be
reported to the federal government. Returning to the hypothetical organization,
assume the auditors determine management used grant funds to purchase new
cars for all of the board members, totaling $300,000. This would be a violation
of the grant agreement and would result in an audit finding (most likely a
material weakness). Additionally, the auditors would report to the federal
government that there were $300,000 of questioned costs (indicating costs that
do not qualify as acceptable under the grant). This is another piece of
information the United States government can use to hold recipient
organizations accountable for grant funding received. See Figure 4.1 for a logic
model of the Single Audit reporting process.
Figure 4.1: Single Audit Reporting Process Logic Model on next page
232
 Non Governmental organization (NGO) is an organization which is
established by a group of people to render service to the nation and
people. NGOS should make audit of books of accounts every year.
 NGO has its own memorandum. S, an auditor should study it to know its
activities.
 NGOS may receive grant from foreign institutions. So, auditor should check
whether it is received as per the provision of financial rules and regulations
of the nation or not.
 Auditor should check the use of government's grants and proper account is
maintained for the recording of such grants or not.
 If such institution has received donation from any individual or organization,
an auditor should check accounting of such amount and its use.
 Auditor should examine the amount received as subscription ratifying with
counterfoils of the receipts.
 Auditor should study the decisions taken by the executives.
1. Discuss audit?
2. What are the functions of auditor?
3. Write a note on single audit?
23.6 SUMMARY
Non Governmental organization (NGO) is an organization which is established
by a group of people to render service to the nation and people. NGOS should make
audit of books of accounts every year. These audits are not intended to conclude
how efficiently the recipient organization has spent federal dollars. Instead, Single
Audits only determine if the money spent was done so in a manner that is allowable
under the federal grant, as well as if all applicable laws were The Single Audit Act of
1984 listed four main purposes. First, it attempted to improve financial
management of state and local governments as it relates to federal funding. Second,
it established uniform requirements for audits of federal funding provided to state
and local governments. Third, the Act promoted the efficient and effective use of
audit resources. Fi- nally, it sought to ensure federal agencies providing funding to
state and local governments rely upon and use the audit work required under the
Act. The rationale behind the Single Audit is that it is more cost effective than a
grant-by-grant audit. However, this is gained at the expense of a detailed audit of a
majority, or all, of the grants. To overcome this, the intent of the Single Audit was
to replace the audit of each grant with one that emphasizes a review of an
organization’s internal controls (U.S. Government Accountability Office 1982). The
rationale is that if there are strong internal controls (as defined by tests suggested
by the federal government), the likelihood for grant compliance is increased. In
addition to tests of the internal control environment of the auditee, substantive
compliance testing is required for each grant program that is considered major. As
such, each Single Audit includes components of three separate audits within one
233
report: the financial audit, the internal control environment, and compliance testing
of major programs (Broadus and Comtois 1985). Fur- thermore, out of the Act came
a concept of a “dual client” relationship, where independent auditors had to
consider both the audit client and the federal agency(ies) overseeing the audit
(Hardiman et al. 1990). This concept has led to several articles about the role of the
auditor in the principal-agent relationship (Antle 1982; Watts and Zimmerman
1983; Audit Quality 2005; Shapiro 2005).
 What do you understand by auditing of NGO’s?
 Give a detailed description of single audit.
 Write a note on condition on single auditing of NGO’s
1. Baur, Dorothea; Schmitz, Hans Peter (2012). "Corporations and NGOs:
When Accountability Leads to Co-optation" (PDF). Journal of Business
Ethics. 106 (1): 9–21. doi:10.1007/s10551-011-1057-9.
2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2006-12-08. Retrieved 2008-
03-01.
3. "Department of Defense Directive 3000.05" (PDF). United States Department
of Defense. September 16, 2009. Retrieved 2013-12-24.
4. Davies, Thomas (2014). NGOs: A New History of Transnational Civil Society.
New York: Oxford University Press. p. 23. ISBN 978-0-19-938753-3.
23.9 ASSIGNMENT
Collect the various NGO’S data on auditing and analyze it in your own opinion
23.10 REFERENCES
 AED. 2010. 2009-2010 Annual Report: Local Ideas. Lasting Solutions.
Washington DC: AED.
 Agg, Catherine. 2006. Trends in Government Support for Non-Governmental
Organizations: Is the 'Golden Age' of the NGO Behind Us? United Nations
Research Institute for SocialDevelopment, Civil Society and Social
Movements Programme Paper Number 23.
 Anders, Molly. 2015. \Does IRD have a case against USAID?" https://
www.devex.com/ news/does-ird-have-a-case-against-usaid-86379.
 Anders, Molly. 2016. \Blumont: The new face of IRD." https://
www.devex.com/news/ sponsored/blumont-the-new-face-of-ird-87638.
 Antle, Rick. 1982. \The Auditor as an Economic Agent." Journal of
Accounting Research 20(2): 503{527.
 Arellano-Lopez, Sonia, and James F. Petras. 1994. \Non-Governmental
Organizations and Poverty Alleviation in Bolivia." Development and Change
25(3): 555{568.
 Ashbaugh-Skaife, Hollis, Daniel W. Collins, William R. Kinney Jr, and Ryan
LaFond. 2009.
 “The Effect of Internal Control De_ciencies on Firm Risk and Cost of Equity
Capital." Journal of Accounting Research 47(1): 1{43.153
234
 Audit Quality. 2005. Agency Theory and the Role of the Audit. London: The
 Avina, Je_rey. 1993. \The Evolutionary Life Cycles of Non-Governmental
Development Organizations." Public Administration & Development 13(5):
453{474.
 Bateson, Melissa, Daniel Nettle, and Gilbert Roberts. 2006. \Cues of
beingWatched Enhance Cooperation in a Real-World Setting." Biology Letters
2(3): 412{414.
 Beam, Christopher. 2011. \Contract Killer: Why did USAID suspend one of
its biggest contractors without any explanation?" Slate (March).
Collect material related to auditing of an organization or government budget
and compare it with NGO’s auditing
23.12 KEYWORDS
Auditing: conduct an official financial inspection of (a company or its
accounts).
Relocation: the action of moving to a new place and establishing one's home
or business there.
Liabilities: the state of being legally responsible for something.

235
LESSON – 24
SELF-HELP GROUP (SHG)
24.1 INTRODUCTION
Self Help Groups are groups of 10-20 people in a locality formed for any social
or economic purpose. Most of the SHGs are formed for the purpose of better
financial security among its members. SHGs can exist with or without registration.
SHGs in India often work in association with Banks (SHG – Bank Linkage
Programme). The same is basis of Indian Micro finance Model too. SHG – Bank
Linkage was started in India in 1992 under the guidelines of NABARD and Reserve
Bank of India.
24.2 OBJECTIVES
 After reading this lesson students must know meaning, need of self help
group.
 To understand the Origin of the SHG’s
 To understand the role and objectives of self help groups
 To know the SHG- bank linkages programmes
24.3 CONTENTS
24.3.1 Meaning
24.3.2 Origin
24.3.3 Need of SHG
24.3.4 Objectives of SHG
24.3.1 Meaning
SHG is a holistic programme of micro-enterprises covering all aspects of self-
employment, organization of the rural poor into self Help groups and their capacity
building, planning of activity clusters, infrastructure build up, technology, credit
and marketing. It lays emphasis on activity clusters based on the resources and the
occupational skills of the people and availability of markets.
Self-Help Group refers to self-governed, peer controlled, informal group of
people with same socio-economic background and having a desire to collectively
perform common purposes. Here poor people voluntarily come together to save
whatever amount they can save conveniently out of their earnings, to mutually
agree to contribute to a common fund and to lend to the members for meeting their
productive and emergent needs. SHGs have been able to mobilize small savings
either on weekly or monthly basis from persons who were not expected to have any
savings. They have been able to effectively recycle the resources generated among
the members for meeting the emergent credit needs of members of the group.
SHG is a group formed by the community women, which has specific number
of members like 15 or 20. In such a group the poorest women would come together
for emergency, disaster, social reasons, economic support to each other have ease
of conversation, social interaction and economic interaction. A SHG is an informal
association to enhance the member’s financial security as primary focus and other
236
common interest of members such as area development, awareness, motivation,

leadership, training and associating in other social inter-mediation programmes for
the benefit of the entire community.
24.3.2 Origin
Self Help Groups and Their Origin
 All problems cannot be solved alone.
 SHG are a form of enterprise. They perform the role of collective banks. They
mobilize savings from the members and performs both debit and credit
functions.
 For external credit, SHG links with the banks ie. SHG- Bank linkages.
 Now SHGs also links with companies ie. SHG-Corporate linkages.
 For Women SHGs, Government is providing interest subvention scheme.
 Importance of SHGs – Increased incomes of poor through collective
performance.
Statistics of SHGs in India
 80 lakh SHGs with active bank linkages in India.
 Involvement of 10 crore people of India.
 Aggregate bank balance of Rs.6500 crores.
 90% SHGs in India consist exclusively of women.
SHG-Bank Linkage Program in India
SHG Bank Linkage

 Indian Microfinance Model
 Introduced in 1992 – Guidelines by NABARD and RBI.
Role of Self Help Groups
1. Income generation for poor.
2. Access to banks for poor,financial inclusion.
3. Against Dowry, Alcoholism etc.
4. Pressure group in Gram Panchyats.
5. Social Upliftment of marginal sections.
6. Upliftment of women.
237
24.3.3 Need of Self-Help Group (SHG)
The very existence of SHGs is highly relevant to make the people of below
poverty line hopeful and self-reliant. SHGs enable them to Increase their income,
improve their standard of living and status in society. It acts as a catalyst for
bringing this section of society to the main stream.
Ultimately, the nation reaps the advantages of socialism.
The Government of India and various state Governments have been
implementing various programmes for rural upliftment. However, rural poverty and
unemployment still persist in the country. This problem is becoming severe and
acute. The available latest statistics relating to the Indian Economy indicates that
about 26% of the total population in the country belongs to the rural poor.
Considering the gravity and intensity of the problem, many Voluntary
Development Organisations (VDOs) have come forward with different programmes
for the rural poor in the country. These agencies undertake various innovative
programmes and schemes to address the issues of poverty and unemployment
prevailing in our country. Among the various programmes “Swarna Jayanti Grama
Swarojgar Yojana” (SGSY) is an important one. This programme was launched on
1st April, 1999, at 75: 25 costs sharing between Central and State Governments.
The main objective of this programme is to bring the beneficiaries above the poverty
line by providing income generating assets to them through bank credit and
government subsidy. The Self-Help Groups (SHPs) are the major component of this
scheme.
Women are a vital part of the Indian Economy, both at the national and the
household levels. They make one-third of the national labour force. Compared with
their menfolk, Indian women contribute a much larger share of their earnings to
basic family maintenance with the result that women’s earnings positively and
immediately affect the incidence and the security of poverty.
Despite all this, social conventions and gender ideology deprive them of the
access to, and control over, the resources which would enable them to increase
their productivity. Women form the backbone of agricultural operations and
majority of agricultural labourers are woman. Seventy to eighty percent of the field
work is done by women.
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Most post-harvest and processing tasks are their sole responsibility. They are
heavily involved in animal husbandry, particularly small livestock. About 85
percent of persons engaged in dairy production are women. Since independence,
government’s policy on women’s development has taken varying types of emphasis:
from the initial welfare oriented approach to the current focus on development and
empowerment.
The planning commission, with the aim of converging the benefits in the social
and economic development sectors for women in the Ninth plan, envisaged
“inclusion of an identifiable women component plan in the programmes of the
238
respective ministries right from the planning process, and to monitoring and
implementation of programmes to ensure the reach of benefits to women”.
The Ninth Plan Document (1997-2000) also laid emphasis on the participation
of people in the planning process, and the promotion of self-help groups. Self-Help
Group (SHG) is a homogeneous group of poor, women. This group is a voluntary
one formed on areas of common interest so that they can think, organise and
operate for their development.
SHGs function on the basis of co-operative principles and provide a forum for
members to extent support to each other. It is considered is a means of
empowerment. SHGs organise very poor people who do not have access to financial
system in the organised sector. In groups, normally transparency and
accountability are lacking.
However, in a group like SHG, they are ensured through collective action of the
members. This scheme mobilises the poor rural people especially women to form
groups for mutual benefits. SHGs play a crucial role in improving the savings and
credit and also in reducing poverty and social inequalities.
24.3.4 Objectives of SHG
1. To inculcate the savings and banking habits among members.
2. To secure them from financial, technical and moral strengths.
3. To enable availing of loan for productive purposes.
4. To gain economic prosperity through loan/credit.
5. To gain from collective wisdom in organising and managing their own
finance and distributing the benefits among themselves.
6. To sensitize women of target area for the need of SHG and its relevance in
their empowerment.
7. To create group feeling among women.
8. To enhance the confidence and capabilities of women.
9. To develop collective decision making among women.
10. To encourage habit of saving among women and facilitate the accumulation
of their own capital resource base.
11. To motivate women taking up social responsibilities particularly related to
women development.
12. It acts as the forum for members to provide space and support to each other.
 However, in a group like SHG, they are ensured through collective action of
the members. This scheme mobilises the poor rural people especially women
to form groups for mutual benefits. SHGs play a crucial role in improving
the savings and credit and also in reducing poverty and social inequalities.
 SHG is a holistic programme of micro-enterprises covering all aspects of self-
employment, organization of the rural poor into self Help groups and their
capacity building, planning of activity clusters, infrastructure build up,
technology, credit and marketing. It lays emphasis on activity clusters based
on the resources and the occupational skills of the people and availability
239
 Self Help Groups are groups of 10-20 people in a locality formed for any
social or economic purpose. Most of the SHGs are formed for the purpose of
better financial security among its members.
 SHGs in India often work in association with Banks (SHG – Bank Linkage
Programme). The same is basis of Indian Micro finance Model too. SHG –
Bank Linkage was started in India in 1992 under the guidelines of NABARD
and Reserve Bank of India.
1. Give an account of the origin of self help groups?
2. Write a short on SHG-Bank Linkage Program in India?
3. Discuss self help groups in detail?
24.6 SUMMARY
SHGs are considered as one of the most significant tools to adopt participatory
approach for the economic empowerment of women, SHG is a group of people that
meets regularly to discuss issues of interest to them and to look at solutions of
commonly experienced problems. The group may or may not be promoted by
Government or non-Government institutions. The SHG is group of rural poor who
have volunteered to organise themselves into a group for eradication of poverty of
the members. They agree to save regularly and convert their savings into a common
fund known as Group Corpus. The members of the group agree to use this common
fund and such other funds that they may receive as a group through a common
management.
Generally all members of the group should belong to families below the poverty
line (BPL). However, if necessary, a maximum of 20% and in exceptional cases,
where essentially required, upto a maximum of 30% of the members in a group may
be taken from families marginally above the poverty line (APL) living continuously
with BPL families and if they are acceptable to the BPL members of the group. This
will help the families of occupation groups like agricultural labourers, marginal
farmers, and artisans marginally above the poverty line, or who may have been
excluded from the BPL list to become members of the SHG. However, the APL
member will not be eligible for the subsidy under the scheme. The group shall not
consist of more than one member from the same family; a person should not be a
member of more than one group. The BPL families must actively participate in the
management and decision making, which should not ordinarily be entirely in the
hands of AIM, families. Further, APL members of the SHG shall not become office
bearers (Group Leader, Assistance Group leader or Treasurer) of the group.
1. What do you understand by self help groups?
2. Evaluate the role of women in SHG’s?
3. Enumerate the various objectives of self help groups?
4. Evaluate the need of self help groups?
240
 Fouillet C. and Augsburg B. 2007. "Spread of the Self-Help Groups Banking
Linkage Programme in India", International Conference on Rural Finance
Research: Moving Results, held by FAO and IFAD, Rome, March 19-21.
 Kabeer, Naila (2005). "Is Microfinance a 'Magic Bullet' for Women's
Empowerment? Analysis of Findings from South Asia". Economic and Political
Weekly. 40 (44/45): 4709–4718. ISSN 0012-9976. JSTOR 4417357.
 (Reserve Bank of India) Archived 2008-05-12 at the Wayback Machine.
24.9 ASSIGNMENT
Evaluate the schemes of Government of India for self help groups and role of
women in that.
24.10 REFERENCES
1. Kabeer, Naila (2005). "Is Microfinance a 'Magic Bullet' for Women's
Empowerment? Analysis of Findings from South Asia". Economic and
Political Weekly. 40 (44/45): 4709–4718. ISSN 0012-9976. JSTOR 4417357.
(Reserve Bank of India) Archived 2008-05-12 at the Wayback Machine
2. Gugerty, Mary Kay; Biscaye, Pierre; Anderson, C. Leigh (2019). "Delivering
development? Evidence on self-help groups as development intermediaries in
South Asia and Africa". Development Policy Review. 37 (1):129–151. doi:
10.1111/dpr.12381. ISSN 1467-7679.
3. Stuart Rutherford. 'Self-help groups as microfinance providers: how good
can they get?' mimeo, 1999, p. 9
4. Robert Peck Christen, N.Srinivasan and Rodger Voorhies, "Managing to go
down market: regulated financial institutions and the move into
microsaving." In Madeline Hirschland (ed.) Savings Services for the Poor: An
Operational Guide, Kumarian Press, Bloomfield, CT, 2005, p. 106.
5. EDA and APMAS Self-Help Groups in India: A Study of the Lights and
Shades, CARE, CRS, USAID and GTZ, 2006, p. 11
6. Fouillet C. and Augsburg B. 2007. "Spread of the Self-Help Groups Banking
Linkage Programme in India", International Conference on Rural Finance
Research: Moving Results, held by FAO and IFAD, Rome, March 19-21.
Evaluate a local self help group, its functioning?
24.12 KEYWORDS
Corporate: relating to a large company or group.
Empowerment: authority or power given to someone to do something.
Upliftment: Upliftment is defined as to lift up or raise
Accumulation: the acquisition or gradual gathering of something.

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LESSON – 25
WOMEN'S EMPOWERMENT
25.1 INTRODUCTION
Women empowerment is the way or a social action in which women elaborate
and recreate what it is to be in a circumstance that they previously were denied.
Empowerment can be defined in many ways, however, when talking about women's
empowerment, empowerment means accepting and allowing people (women) who
are on the outside of the decision-making process into it. “This puts a strong
emphasis on participation in political structures and formal decision-making and,
in the economic sphere, on the ability to obtain an income that enables
participation in economic decision-making.” Empowerment is the process that
creates power in individuals over their own lives, society, and in their communities.
People are empowered when they are able to access the opportunities available to
them without limitations and restrictions such as in education, profession and
lifestyle. Feeling entitled to make your own decisions creates a sense of
empowerment. Empowerment includes the action of raising the status of women
through education, raising awareness, literacy, and training. Women's
empowerment is all about equipping and allowing women to make life-determining
decisions through the different problems in society. Alternatively, it is the process
for women to redefine gender roles that allows for them to acquire the ability to
choose between known alternatives whom have otherwise been restricted from such
an ability. There are several principles defining women's empowerment such as, for
one to be empowered, they must come from a position of disempowerment.
Furthermore, one must acquire empowerment themselves rather than have it given
to them by an external party. Other studies have found that empowerment
definitions entail people having the capability to make important decisions in their
lives while also being able to act on them. Lastly, empowerment and
disempowerment is relative to other at a previous time; therefore, empowerment is
a process, not a product. Women empowerment has become a significant topic of
discussion in development and economics. It can also point to the approaches
regarding other trivialized genders in a particular political or social context.
Women's economic empowerment refers to the ability for women to enjoy their right
to control and benefit from the resources, assets, income and their own time, as
well as the ability to manage risk and improve their economic status and well being.
While often interchangeably used, the more comprehensive concept of gender
empowerment refers to people of any gender, stressing the distinction between
biological and gender as a role.
Advisor to US President and businesswoman Ivanka Trump (right) and
Japanese PM Shinzo Abe attending the World Assembly for Women in Tokyo to
speak on women's rights and empowerment, 2017 Entire nations, businesses,
communities and groups can benefit from the implementation of programs and
policies that adopt the notion of women empowerment. Empowerment of women is
a necessity for the very development of a society, since it enhances both the quality
and the quantity of human resources available for development. Empowerment is
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one of the main procedural concerns when addressing human rights and
development.
Women's empowerment and achieving gender equality is essential for our
society to ensure the sustainable development of the country. Many world leaders
and scholars have argued that sustainable development is impossible without
gender equality and women's empowerment. Sustainable development accepts
environmental protection, social and economic development, and without women's
empowerment, women wouldn't feel equally important to the process of
development as men. It is widely believed that, the full participation of both men
and women is critical for development. Only acknowledging men's participation will
not be beneficial to sustainable development. In the context of women and
development, empowerment must include more choices for women to make on their
own. Without gender equality and empowerment, the country could not be just, and
social change wouldn't occur. Therefore, scholars agree that women's empowerment
plays a huge role in development and is one of the significant contributions of
development. Without the equal inclusion of women in development, women would
not be able to benefit or contribute to the development of the country.
25.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the women empowerment and its impact on society
 To know the economic and political upliftment of women through women
empowerment
 Role of education in women empowerment
 To understand the Barriers of women empowerment
 To know the women rights and security in India
 Scholars have identified two forms of empowerment, economic empowerment
and political empowerment.
25.3 CONTENTS
25.3.1 Economic empowerment
25.3.2 Political empowerment
25.3.3 Measurements and Assessment
25.3.4 Barriers
25.3.5 Role of education
25.3.6 The Internet use to Empower Women
25.3.7 Ongoing projects
25.3.8 U.S. involvement
25.3.9 Women empowerment in India
25.3.9.1 Women’s Rights and Security in India
25.3.9.2 Women’s Security
25.3.9.3 Trafficking of Women and Girls
25.3.9.4 Women’s Economic Opportunities in India
25.3.9.5 Women’s Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights
25.3.9.6 Women in Politics in India
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25.3.1 Economic empowerment
Economic empowerment increases women's agency, access to formal
government programs, mobility outside the home, economic independence, and
purchasing power. Policy makers are suggested to support job training to aid in
entrance in the formal markets. One recommendation is to provide more formal
education opportunities for women that would allow for higher bargaining power in
the home. They would have more access to higher wages outside the home; and as
a result, make it easier for women to get a job in the market.
Strengthening women's access to property inheritance and land rights is
another method used to economically empower women. This would allow them
better means of asset accumulation, capital, and bargaining power needed to
address gender inequalities. Often, women in developing and underdeveloped
countries are legally restricted from their land on the sole basis of gender. Having a
right to their land gives women a sort of bargaining power that they wouldn't
normally have; in turn, they gain more opportunities for economic independence
and formal financial institutions.
Race has a huge impact on women's empowerment in areas such as
employment. Employment can help create empowerment for women. Many scholars
suggest that when we discuss women's empowerment, discussing the different
barriers that underprivileged women face, which makes it more difficult for them to
obtain empowerment in society, is important when examining the impact of race in
connection to employment. Significantly examining how opportunities are
structured by gender, race, and class can transpire social change. Work
opportunities and the work environment can create empowerment for women.
Empowerment in the workplace can positively affect job satisfaction and
performance, having equality in the work place can greatly increase the sense of
empowerment. However, women of color do not have the same accessibility and
privileges in work settings. They (Women of color) are faced with more
disadvantages in the work place. Patricia Parker argues that African American
women's empowerment is their resistance to control, standing up for themselves
and not conforming to societal norms and expectations. In connection to power,
feminist perspectives look at empowerment as a form of resistance within systems
of unequal power relations. Within the societal setting of race, gender, and class
politics, African American women's empowerment in work environment “can be
seen as resistance to attempts to fix meanings of appropriate identity and behavior,
where such meanings are interpreted as controlling, exploitative, and otherwise
oppressive to African American women.” When talking about women's
empowerment, many scholars suggest examining the social injustices on women in
everyday organizational life that are influenced by race, class, and gender.
Another popular methodology for women's economic empowerment also
includes microcredit. Microfinance institutions aim to empower women in their
community by giving them access to loans that have low interest rates without the
requirement of collateral. More specifically, they (microfinance institutions) aim to
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give microcredit to women who want to be entrepreneurs. The success and

efficiency of microcredit and microloans is controversial and constantly debated.
Some critiques claim that microcredit alone doesn't guarantee women have control
over the way the loan is used. Microfinance institutions don't address cultural
barriers that allow men to still control household finances; as a result, microcredit
may simply be transferred to the husband. Microcredit doesn't relieve women of
household obligations, and even if women have credit, they don't have the time to
be as active in the market as men.
25.3.2 Political empowerment
Political empowerment supports creating policies that would best support
gender equality and agency for women in both the public and private spheres.
Popular methods that have been suggested are to create affirmative action policies
that have a quota for the number of women in policy making and parliament
positions. As of 2017, the global average of women whom hold lower and single
house parliament positions is 23.6 percent. Further recommendations have been to
increase women's rights to vote, voice opinions, and the ability to run for office with
a fair chance of being elected. Because women are typically associated with child
care and domestic responsibilities in the home, they have less time dedicated to
entering the labour market and running their business. Policies that increase
their bargaining power in the household would include policies that account for
cases of divorce, policies for better welfare for women, and policies that give women
control over resources (such as property rights). However, participation is not
limited to the realm of politics. It can include participation in the household, in
schools, and the ability to make choices for oneself. Some theorists believe that
bargaining power and agency in the household must be achieved before one can
move onto broader political participation.
25.3.3 Measurements and Assessment
Women empowerment can be measured through the Gender Empowerment
Measure (GEM), which shows women's participation in a given nation, both
politically and economically. GEM is calculated by tracking "the share of seats
in parliament held by women; of female legislators, senior officials and managers;
and of female profession and technical workers; and the gender disparity in earned
income, reflecting economic independence". It then ranks countries given this
information. Other measures that take into account the importance of female
participation and equality include: the Gender Parity Index or the Gender-related
Development Index (GDI).
Some critiques of GEM is that it is not concerned with factors regarding
society, such as gender, religion, cultural context, legal context, and violations of
women's rights. Gender empowerment measure attempts to makes a consistent
standardized approach to measure women's empowerment; in doing so, it has been
critiqued that the GEM doesn't account for variation in historical factors, female
autonomy, gender segregation, and women's right to vote.
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The Gender-related Development Index (GDI) is a way in which the United

Nations Development Programme (UNDP) measures the inequality between genders
within a country. Some critique of this measurement is that, because GDI
calculations rely solely on the achievement distribution between males and females
of a population, GDI doesn't measure gender inequality; rather, it measures
absolute levels on income, education and health.
A more qualitative form of assessing women's empowerment is to identify
constraints to action. This allows for the identification of power relations between
genders. Because this is a participatory process, it facilitates conversation on
gender discrimination. Comparing constraints on women at a later time also allows
for any changes or expansion to be better identified. The evaluation of the
development of women's agency allows for an evaluation of actions taken. These
assessments must also be based on the action taken by women, and not external
groups. External groups can help facilitate women's empowerment, but cannot
bestow it on them.
25.3.4 Barriers
Many of the barriers to women's empowerment and equity lie ingrained in
cultural norms. Many women feel these pressures, while others have become
accustomed to being treated inferior to men. Even if legislators, NGOs, etc. are
aware of the benefits women's empowerment and participation can have, many are
scared of disrupting the status of the women and continue to let societal norms get
in the way of development.
Research shows that the increasing access to the internet can also result in an
increased exploitation of women. Releasing personal information on websites has
put some women's personal safety at risk. In 2010, Working to Halt Online Abuse
stated that 73% of women were victimized through such sites. Types of
victimization include cyber stalking, harassment, online pornography, and flaming.
Sexual harassment in particular is a large barrier for women in the workplace. It
appears in almost all industries, but is most notable in the following: business,
trade, banking and finance, sales and marketing, hospitality, civil service, and
education, lecturing and teaching. According to the International Labour
Organisation (ILO), sexual harassment is a clear form of gender discrimination
based on sex, a manifestation of unequal power relations between men and women.
Furthermore, the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Women (CEDAW) is urging for increased measures of protection for women
against sexual harassment and violence in the workplace. 54% (272) had
experienced some form of workplace sexual harassment. 79% of the victims are
women; 21% were men.
Recent studies also show that women face more barriers in the workplace than
do men. Gender-related barriers involve sexual harassment, unfair hiring practices,
career progression, and unequal pay where women are paid less than men are for
performing the same job. When taking the median earnings of men and women who
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worked full-time, year-round, government data from 2014 showed that women
made $0.79 for every dollar a man earned. The average earnings for working
mothers came out to even less—$0.71 for every dollar a father made, according to a
2014 study conducted by the National Partnership for Women and Children. While
much of the public discussion of the "wage gap" has focused around women getting
equal pay for the same work as their male peers, many women struggle with what
is called the "pregnancy penalty". The main problem is that it is difficult to
measure, but some experts say that the possibility of having a baby can be enough
for employers to push women back from their line. Therefore, women are put in a
position where they need to make the decision of whether to maintain in the
workforce or have children. This problem has sparked the debate over maternity
leave in the United States and many other countries in the world.
However, despite the struggle for equal pay in the Nepal, the tech industry
[clarification needed] has made progress in helping to encourage equal pay across
gender. In March 2016, tech career website Dice released a study of more than
16,000 tech professionals that found that when you compare equivalent education,
experience and position, there is no pay gap—and hasn't been for the last six
years. This new industry is paving a way for other companies to do the same.
However, this industry also struggles to employ women in executive positions. This
is partially due to the barrier of sexual harassment and pregnancy that was
aforementioned.
Such barriers make it difficult for women to advance in their workplace or
receive fair compensation for the work they provide.
25.3.5 Role of education
It is said that education increases "people's self-confidence and also enables
them to find better jobs and they can work shoulder to shoulder with men". They
engage in public debate and make demands on government for health care, social
security and other entitlements".In particular, education empowers women to make
choices that improve their children's health, their well-being, and chances of
survival. Education informs others of preventing and containing the disease, and it
is an essential element of efforts to reduce malnutrition. Furthermore, it empowers
women to make choices that can improve their welfare, including marrying beyond
childhood and having fewer children. Crucially, education can increase women's
awareness of their rights, boost their self-esteem, and provide them the opportunity
to assert their rights.
Despite significant improvements in recent decades, education is not
universally available and gender inequalities persist. A major concern in many
countries is not only the limited numbers of girls going to school but also the
limited educational pathways for those that step into the classroom. More
specifically, there should be more efforts to address the lower participation and
learning achievement of girls in science, technology, engineering and mathematics
(STEM) education.
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25.3.6 The Internet use to Empower Women
The growing access of the web in the late 20th century has allowed women to
empower themselves by using various tools on the Internet. With the introduction
of the World Wide Web, women have begun to use social networking sites
like Facebook and Twitter for online activism. Through online activism, women are
able to empower themselves by organizing campaigns and voicing their opinions for
equality rights without feeling oppressed by members of society. For example, on
May 29, 2013, an online campaign started by 100 female advocates forced the
leading social networking website, Facebook, to take down various pages that
spread hatred about women. In recent years, blogging has also become a powerful
tool for the educational empowerment of women. According to a study done by the
University of California, Los Angeles, medical patients who read and write about
their disease are often in a much happier mood and more knowledgeable than
those who do not. By reading others' experiences, patients can better educate
themselves and apply strategies that their fellow bloggers suggest.
With the easy accessibility and affordability of e-learning (electronic learning),
women can now study from the comfort of their homes. By empowering themselves
educationally through new technologies like e-learning, women are also learning
new skills that will come in handy in today's advancing globalized world.
Oftentimes, the internet is very useful as source of empowerment for women
through its creation, dispersion, and utilization of hashtags on social media. One
prime example of hashtags supporting women empowerment was in 2017 when the
#AintNoCinderella hashtag came into existence. This hashtag spread like wildfire
on social media after Varnika Kundu (a 29-year-old woman in India) was driving
home past midnight on August 4 when she was followed and harassed by two men
in a SUV. Kundu was blamed for being out late at night, particularly by the BJP
government Vice-President Ramveer Bhatti. This led to women all across India and
the world posting pictures of themselves out late at night with the hashtag
"#AintNoCinderella" to show that women do not have a particular curfew to which
they have to adhere to (like Cinderella did).
25.3.7 Ongoing projects
The UN came out with a set of goals called the Sustainable Development
Goals, or SDGs, to help make the world a better place. Of the 17, the fourth goal
works to allow access to education for all people alike. A large effort has been made
to include women in schools to better their education. Similarly, the fifth goal
focuses on empowering women and girls to achieve gender equality through equal
access to various types of opportunities (health care, education, work, etc.).
There are also some prominent non-profits that help empower women:
 She Should Run
 Girls Not Brides
 The Malala Fund
 Women in Defense
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 Women for Women International

 Every Mother Counts
25.3.8 U.S. involvement
Domestically, the U.S. empowered women through passings of laws such as
allowing women to vote in 1920, banning discrimination based on gender in 1964,
banning discrimination against pregnant women in 1978, etc. Additionally, the
inclusion of women in politics allowed for more gender equality. The first female
speaker of House, the First Lady to run for president, and first women to serve on
the Supreme Court were monumental events that proved socially the acceptance of
"subservient" women.The U.S. provides foreign aid to third world countries in
various forms, one of which is by providing education programs. There are
currently bills in Congress that work to ensure education to girls, one of which is
the Protecting Girls' Access to Education Act. These are enacted with the belief that
proper education will pull them out of poverty and reduce exploitation.
Another action taken on by the U.S is the PEPFAR program, initiated by the
Bush administration in 2003. The U.S. spent more than $1.4 billion in funding
sub-Saharan Africa during the duration of the program. This program was taken
into effect in response to the global HIV/AIDS crisis, and it promoted abstinence
among young girls and women. There was a partnership with DREAMS, and its
main purpose with PEPFAR was to allow both girls and women to develop into
Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe women.
However, there are criticisms that this program did not really do much to reduce
HIV risk behavior, and critics such as John Dietrich worried that the context of aid
enforced Western beliefs of choosing abstinence before marriage. There was and
still is controversy regarding the effectiveness of this program in reducing
HIV/AIDS through advocating abstinence and whether this would actually empower
women in Africa.
25.3.9 Women empowerment in India
Women’s empowerment in India is heavily dependent on many different
variables that include geographical location (urban/rural), educational status,
social status (caste and class), and age. Policies on women’s empowerment exist at
the national, state, and local (Panchayat) levels in many sectors, including health,
education, economic opportunities, gender-based violence, and political
participation. However, there are significant gaps between policy advancements and
actual practice at the community level.
One key factor for the gap in implementation of laws and policies to address
discrimination, economic disadvantages, and violence against women at the
community level is the largely patriarchal structure that governs the community
and households in much of India. As such, women and girls have restricted
mobility, access to education, access to health facilities, and lower decision-making
power, and experience higher rates of violence. Political participation is also
hindered at the Panchayat (local governing bodies) level and at the state and
national levels, despite existing reservations for women.
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The impact of the patriarchal structure can be seen in rural and urban India,
although women’s empowerment in rural India is much less visible than in urban
areas. This is of particular concern, since much of India is rural despite the high
rate of urbanization and expansion of cities. Rural women, as opposed to women in
urban settings, face inequality at much higher rates, and in all spheres of life.
Urban women and, in particular, urban educated women enjoy relatively higher
access to economic opportunities, health and education, and experience less
domestic violence. Women (both urban and rural) who have some level of education
have higher decision- making power in the household and the community.
Furthermore, the level of women’s education also has a direct implication on
maternal mortality rates, and nutrition and health indicators among children.
Among rural women, there are further divisions that hinder women’s
empowerment. The most notable ones are education levels and caste and class
divisions. Women from lower castes (the scheduled castes, other backward castes,
and tribal communities) are particularly vulnerable to maternal mortality and
infant mortality. They are often unable to access health and educational services,
lack decision-making power, and face higher levels of violence. Among women of
lower caste and class, some level of education has shown to have a positive impact
on women’s empowerment indicators.
Social divisions among urban women also have a similar impact on
empowerment indicators. Upper class and educated women have better access to
health, education, and economic opportunities, whereas lower class, less educated
women in urban settings enjoy these rights significantly less. Due to rapid
urbanisation and lack of economic opportunities in other parts of the country, cities
also house sprawling slum areas. Slums are informal sprawls, and most times lack
basic services such as clean water, sanitation, and health facilities. Additionally,
slum dwellers mostly work in unorganized and informal sectors, making them
vulnerable to raids by the state, abuse by employers, and other forms of insecurity.
Women and children in slums are among the most vulnerable to violence and
abuse, and are deprived of their basic human rights.
As a result of a vibrant women’s movement in the last 50 years, policies to
advance human rights for women in India are substantial and forward-thinking,
such as the Domestic Violence Act (2005), and the 73rd and 74 th Amendments to
the Constitution that provide reservations for women to enter politics at the
Panchayat level. There are multiple national and state level governmental and non-
governmental mechanisms such as the Women’s Commission to advance these
policies, and the implementation of these policies is decentralized to state and
district-level authorities and organizations that include local non-governmental
organizations.
The policy/practice gap in India cuts across all sectors and initiatives as a
result of rampant corruption and lack of good governance practices. State-level
governments claim a lack of resources, and the resources they do receive are highly
250
susceptible to corruption. Financial corruption hinders the government’s ability to

invest in social capital, including initiatives to advance women’s empowerment.
Since the 1990’s India has put in place processes and legislative acts such as the
Right to Information Act (2005) for information disclosure to increase transparency
and hold government officials accountable. Mistrust of political institutions and
leaders remains high in the society with corruption and graft allegations often
covering media headlines.
In addition to corruption and inadequate resources for implementation of
initiatives at the community level, women’s empowerment in India is negatively
impacted by the pervasive discrimination of women in the family and the
community. Discrimination against women in most parts of India (particularly the
north) emerges from the social and religious construct of women’s role and their
status. As such, in many parts of India, women are considered to be less than men,
occupying a lower status in the family and community, which consequentially
restricts equal opportunity in women and girls’ access to education, economic
possibilities, and mobility. Discrimination also limits women’s choices and freedom.
These choices are further dependent on structural factors like caste and class.
Empowerment for women in India requires a crosscutting approach and one
which addresses the diversity of social structures that govern women’s lives.
Identity politics in India is a very critical political instrument, which is both used
and abused throughout political and social institutions. There are numerous social
movements fighting for the rights of the marginalized, such as the Dalit rights
movement, the tribal rights movement, etc. These movements have achieved many
gains in assuring representation of the traditionally marginalized communities into
mainstream society. Women’s rights within these movements are largely
unarticulated and thus reinforce inequalities within the very structures from which
they are demanding inclusion. Empowerment approaches for women therefore is
not only about providing services, but also about recognizing their lived realities of
multiple layers of discrimination that hinder their access to services.
Similarly, access to education for girls in some of the northern states like Uttar
Pradesh and Punjab does not only rely on proximity of schools. Access to education
is part of a larger structural concern, including the practice of son preference,
which creates inherent discriminatory practices. Education initiatives therefore
cannot rely solely on building educational infrastructure, but also need to address
some of the root causes of discrimination against women and girls which affect the
decisions made by parents.
Women’s security, decision-making power, and mobility are three indicators
for women’s empowerment. In India, and more so for rural and less educated
women, these three indicators are significantly low. Data from the NFHS-3 survey
on women’s decision-making power shows that only about one third of the women
interviewed took decisions on their own regarding household issues and their
health. Decision-making power among employed urban women was higher than
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among rural and less educated women. The survey also found that older married
women had more decision-making power than the younger married women.
Younger women and girls experience an additional layer of discrimination as a
result of their age. Data on women’s mobility in India indicates the lack of choices
women have, and that urban and educated women have more mobility choices than
rural women. The data shows that about half the women interviewed had the
freedom to go to the market or a health facility alone. Seventy-nine percent of urban
women from the highest education brackets and only about 40 percent of rural
women without education were allowed to go to the market alone.
Mobility restrictions for women are dependent upon how the family and
community view women’s rights. They also, however, are intrinsically dependent on
the prevailing levels of violence against women in the household and the
community. Abuse and violence towards women is predominantly perpetrated
within the household, and marital violence is among the most accepted by both
men and women. Wife beating, slapping, rape, dowry related deaths, feudal violence
towards tribal and lower caste women, trafficking, sexual abuse, and street violence
permeate the Indian social fabric, and create one of the most serious obstacles in
achieving women’s empowerment.
The gap in policy and practice in women’s empowerment is most visible when
it comes to the level and kinds of violence women face in India. Despite the policies,
laws, and initiatives by civil society institutions, violence against women in India is
widespread and the consequences for perpetrators rarely match the crime.
Enforcement of laws and sentencing of perpetrators are long and arduous
processes, and the gaps in these processes are further widened by corruption.
Another gap in implementing laws and policies on violence against women is
the inaccessibility of information on victims' rights among rural and less educated
women. Additionally, social stigma and the fear of abandonment by the family play
a big role in women and girls’ ability or inability to access laws and policies to
address sexual and physical violence.
25.3.9.1 Women's Rights and Security in India
Policies relating to women's rights have had a positive trajectory in the past
few decades with the central government articulating many progressive measures to
advance gender equality in social, economic, and political arenas. The Government
of India (GoI) has two main bodies to advance gender equality: the Ministry of
Women and Child Development and the National Commission for Women, which is
an autonomous organization under the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
Both bodies work on national- and state-level legal and social policies to advance
gender equality. The Ministry has widely implemented local-level micro-finance
schemes to advance economic opportunities for rural women. The National
Commission for Women has been instrumental in creating legislative changes, and
has set up Complaint and Investigate Cells at the state level. The Grievance Cells
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receive complaints of gender-based violence and are mandated to investigate,

provide referrals and counselling, and ultimately report on such cases.
With a vibrant women’s rights movement in India, there are continuous
demands for better laws, provisions, and accountability for implementation. Most
recent examples include the change in India’s rape laws, where in 2006 marital
rape was recognized. Currently, women’s rights activists are demanding better
provisions in Sections 375 and 376 of the Indian Penal Code. Since then, there
have been multiple challenges by the women’s movement leading to small but
significant amendments. The 2005 Domestic Violence Act provides protection from
violence in the household from not only male perpetrators, but also female
perpetrators like mothers-in-law and other female members in extended families.
There also have been gains in women's inheritance rights, yet challenges
remain in implementation. Social biases and lack of enforcement continue to hinder
the full realization of Indian inheritance laws. Inheritance laws and property
distribution fall under the Hindu and Muslim personal laws, both of which exempt
agricultural land. For a country with a predominantly agro-based economy,
women’s inability to inherit agricultural land exacerbates feminization of poverty
and neglects women’s welfare.
Like all other spheres of social change in India, there is an undeniable gap
between policy and practice. More notably, the deeply entrenched social hierarchies
based on class, caste, ethnic, and communal divisions leave many communities on
the margins with little knowledge of their rights and even less protection from local,
state, and national governmental policies.
Inequality between men and women runs across the board, including in
education, economic opportunities, representation in governance, and other state
and private institutions. Additionally, women in India face high rates of violence.
Some recent statistics on women include:
 India ranks 18th among the highest maternal mortality rates in the world
with 540 deaths for every 100,000 births Only 48% of adult Indian women
are literate
 Among rural women, 36.1% have experienced physical violence in their
adult lives 66% of women who have experienced physical violence in their
lifetimes are divorced, widowed, or deserted
 Lower caste and tribal women are among those who experience the highest
levels of physical violence 85.3% of women reporting violence claimed that
their current husbands were the perpetrators
 According to the most recent Demographic and Health Survey analysis, only
43% of currently married women (between ages 15-49) are employed as
compared to 99% of men
25.3.9.2 Women’s Security
The multiple forms of violence experienced in the household, at the community
level, and in some instances by the state, threaten women’s security in India. In
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many parts of North India son preference is a widely practiced phenomenon. Son
preference has direct linkages to sex-selective abortion (illegal across India;
however, enforcement by both police and some doctors is still lacking), and
discrimination of girl children in access to health, nutrition, and education.
Research conducted by the International Centre for Research on Women (ICRW)
found that, although not universal, particularly in households where there is more
than one daughter there are significant differences in nutrition and health levels
between male and female children.
Additionally, at the household level, incest, rape and domestic violence
continue to hinder women’s development across India. Forty percent of all sexual
abuse cases in India are incest, and 94% of the incest cases had a known member
of the household as the perpetrator.
Dowry related deaths, domestic violence, gang rape of lower caste women by
upper caste men, and physical violence by the police towards tribal women all
contribute to women’s insecurity in India. The class and caste structure
inadvertently put poor women from lower class and tribal communities at the most
risk of violence. Class and caste divisions also create grave challenges to poor,
lower caste, and tribal women in accessing justice and retribution as victims and
survivors of violence.
Women and girls in urban India are also at high risk of gender-based violence.
In Delhi, the country’s capital, a scan of daily newspapers reveals shocking
numbers of cases of violence against women. The National Crime Bureau claims
that a woman is raped every 29 minutes in Delhi. Street violence in urban centres
is a growing concern for young women and girls, who are increasingly moving away
from rural areas for economic opportunities and higher education. Particularly
women and girls from the northeast region of India living in urban centres such as
Delhi have reported experiencing social discrimination and marginalization, and
many times physical violence. In 2005, according to the North East Support Centre,
among the 100,000 people from the northeast living in Delhi 86% had reported
racial discrimination and 41% of cases were sexual abuse cases.
The northeast states of India are a volatile region, with a number of active
insurgencies. The GoI has continuously deployed state troops to fight the
insurgents, who predominantly follow the Maoist ideology. This region, because of
its physical and cultural proximity to Myanmar, China, and Bhutan, has for the
most part been ignored by the central government, thereby fuelling the insurgents'
demand for development and autonomy. In the northeast (as in most conflict-
ridden regions) women bear the brunt of war from both sides. There have been
numerous instances of violence perpetrated by state security forces against local
and tribal women.
25.3.9.3 Trafficking of Women and Girls
India is both a source and destination for trafficked women and girls into
prostitution and bonded labour. While exact numbers of trafficked women and girls
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are difficult to ascertain, there have been figures projected by various national and
international NGOs. Anti-trafficking measures in India have increased with India’s
commitment to international human rights protocols, and through strict legal
provisions at the national level. The Immoral Traffic Prevention Act 1956 (ITPA) is
the widely used law to prosecute traffickers, but also is invoked to target
prostitution.
Sex work is a debated subject in the women’s movement in India. The anti-
prostitution law is seen by many to criminalize and further marginalize women who
are in the sex trade. Women’s rights organizations, activists, and organizations
such as the Durbar Mahila Samanway Committee (a nationwide sex workers’
collective) have long supported legalization of the sex trade in India. The debate over
legalization of sex work continues today and sex-work supporters are lobbying to
change the ITPA for better rehabilitation measures for those who have been rescued
during brothel and street raids. The ITPA also does not give adequate measures for
those who are trafficked for purposes other than sex work, and disproportionately
targets women, making them further vulnerable to poverty and exploitation.
25.3.9.4 Women's Economic Opportunities in India
India is one of the world’s fastest growing economies, with women mainly from
the middle class increasingly entering the workforce. Urban centres like Delhi and
Bangalore have seen an influx of young women from semi-urban and rural parts of
the country, living alone and redefining themselves. However, the story of economic
empowerment for women is not a singular narrative; rather it is located in a
complex set of caste, class, religious, and ethnic identities.
The Global Gender Gap Report by the World Economic Forum in 2009 ranked
India 114th out of 134 countries for inequality between men and women in the
economy, politics, health, and education. On equal economic opportunities and
women’s participation in the labour force, India ranked 127th and 122nd
respectively. The number of women in the workforce varies greatly from state to
state: 21% in Delhi; 23% in Punjab; 65% in Manipur; 71% Chhattisgarh; 76% in
Arunachal Pradesh. The diversity of women’s economic opportunities between
states is due to the cultural, religious, and ethnic diversity of each state. Northern
states like Delhi and Punjab lag far behind on gender equality measures, including
the alarming sex ratio between men and women (due to son preference and sex-
selective abortion), low female literacy levels, and high rates of gender-based
violence.
In rural India, women’s economic opportunities remain restricted by social,
cultural, and religious barriers. Most notably inheritance laws embedded in Hindu
and Shariat civil codes continue to marginalize women in the household and the
larger community. Rural women, particularly of lower caste and class, have the
lowest literacy rates, and therefore do not have the capacity to negotiate pay or
contracts and most often engage in the unorganized sector, self- employment, or in
small scale industry. Self-help groups (SHGs) are a widely practiced model for social
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and economic mobility by NGOs and the government. SHGs provide women with
the opportunity to manage loans and savings that can be used by members for
varying needs. SHGs also are used to promote social change among the members
and the community at large. Members of SHGs have used their experiences as
leverage to enter other local institutions such as the Panchayat Khap.
Rural, low caste, and tribal women also make up 70% of domestic workers in
India, a sector which is largely unregulated and unorganized. India’s growing
economy has allowed for many upper and middle-class women to enter the
workforce, and while poor rural women have little access to education and training,
there is a high demand for domestic workers in urban hubs.
Domestic workers are mostly illiterate, with little or no negotiating power for
wage equity, and are highly vulnerable to exploitation and sexual and physical
abuse.
There is a movement at the policy level to organize domestic workers and to
create laws to regulate minimum wage, working hours, and other measures such as
life and health insurance. Currently a national-level Taskforce on Domestic
Workers has been formed that will present recommendations to the central
government on better enforcement of rights for the many undocumented domestic
workers in India.
Women are also very visible in the construction sector in India, and like
domestic workers are largely unorganized and rely on daily wagers. Women
construction workers are mostly poor and illiterate and have little negotiating
power. This sector is also unregulated and highly vulnerable to exploitation. Women
workers also earn significantly less than men, although women are the ones who do
most of the backbreaking work like carrying bricks and other heavy materials on
site.
On the other end of the spectrum, while India has one of the highest
percentages of professional women in the world, those who occupy managerial
positions are under 3%. Most women work in low administrative positions, and
many of the young women migrating to urban centres mostly work in service and
retail industries, although more and more women are entering the IT and other
technical sectors.
25.3.9.5 Women’s Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights
The movement to assure women’s economic, social, and cultural rights (ESCR)
as basic human rights is just emerging in India. The movement aims to locate
women’s rights within the larger human rights framework, and by doing so moves
away from looking at women’s issues only within the framework of violence against
women and reproductive rights. ESCR attempts to look at the broader issues facing
women, namely poverty, housing, unemployment, education, water, food security,
trade, etc.
While the human rights movement on ESCR is largely contained at the
international policy level, there are emerging social movements around the world. In
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the Indian context, projects like the Programme on Women’s Economic, Social, and
Cultural Rights (PWESCR), for example, is creating linkages between the
international human rights movement and the local articulation of women’s rights.
PWESCR aims to build a women’s rights movement in India that creates equality in
all spheres of women’s lives. By empowering women economically and socially,
ESCR provides for a broader discourse on rights that moves women’s rights from a
victim- centered approach to one that cuts across other fundamental human rights
issues.
Women’s economic opportunity in India is a rapidly changing landscape.
Women are increasingly entering the workforce—particularly women
professionals—and are creating change, but there remains a large number of
invisible women workers in unorganized and volatile sectors. However, organizing
at the local level, albeit small, is widespread. Implementation of national and state
level policies lags behind in ensuring that women workers have equal pay and are
free from exploitation.
25.3.9.6 Women in Politics in India
Historical Context
During the independence movement, women were visible and active as
nationalists, and as symbols of “Mother India”. Gandhi, in particular, was
instrumental in creating space for women through his non-violence (and some
would argue feminized) mode of protest. Gandhi’s legendary salt march initially
excluded women, but due to demands from women nationalists he later realized the
power of women organizers at the local level. His inclusion of women, however, was
not located within a gender equality framework, but was a means to achieving a
stronger and unified Indian state. The inclusion of women in the nationalist
movement was also to debunk the British colonial assertion of “needing to save the
poor, vulnerable women” of pre- independence India.
As in many nationalist movements, women in India took part in the struggle,
in turn propelling a women’s rights movement. And, as seen historically in many
post-colonial countries, the nationalist women’s movement in India was confronted
by the rebuilding of a patriarchal nationalist state. Women revolutionaries gave way
to their male counterparts who (as a result of Partition politics) created a strong,
male, and Hindu "New India".
The first post-independence Lok Sabha (the People’s Council or the Parliament)
had 4.4% women. The period between the early 1940’s and late 1970’s saw an
emergence of the Indian women’s movement, but it was not until the 1980s that the
women’s movement gained real momentum.
Reservation at the Panchayat Level
In 1976 the Committee on the Status of Women in India was established and
published a report recommending an increase in elected women at the grassroots
level, which led to the introduction of the 33.3% reservation at the Panchayat level
in 1988. It was only in 1993 that an amendment in the constitution made the
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proposed reservation at the Panchayat (village level governing councils) a reality.In

the last two decades since the reservation for women in elected Panchayats was
passed, many studies have been conducted to look at the impact of this policy. A
survey conducted in 2008 yielded that women made up close to 50% of all the
village councils across the India. The number of women representatives has
certainly increased at the grassroots level; however, questions still remain regarding
their decision-making power within the councils. A study in West Bengal and
Rajasthan by the Institute of Management Studies (Calcutta) and the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) found that where women Panchayat
members were active, there were more robust programs on water, irrigation, and
infrastructure. The study conclusively states that in Panchayats where women were
present policies were more beneficial to the community than in Panchayats where
women were absent. A study by The Accountability Initiative also states that in
Panchayats with female presidents, the participation of women in the larger council
rose close to 3% in one year. The reason for the increase in women’s participation is
correlated to two possible factors: first, women representatives exemplified new
possibilities for change; and second, women leaders took up issues that would have
a positive impact on the community as a whole.
Caste and Class Politics
The complexities of politics in India are embedded in class, caste, and religious
identities. An analysis by International Idea of women in the Indian Parliament
between 1991 and 1996 found that among the small number of women
Parliamentarians, a disproportionate number represented the Brahmin caste (the
higher caste in the Hindu caste system). Most local governments remain largely
patriarchal and caste-based institutions, hindering inclusive governance.
Furthermore, social mobility remains a privilege of members of higher classes and
caste, although this is dramatically changing as a result of reservations for
Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) in politics and education.
For women politicians, class, age, and caste all have significant impact in their
political lives. India is one of the few countries in the world that has elected a
woman leader. Indira Gandhi was among the very few women leaders in the world
during her time in office. However, her role as the Prime Minister was not seen as a
win for the women’s movement in India. She was the granddaughter of Jawaharlal
Nehru and represented the political dynasty of her family. Additionally, her
controversial political moves during the declared period of Emergency (1975- 1977)
suppressed dissent, forcing many of the radical women’s rights movements to go
underground. In 2007 India elected its first female President, Ms. Pratibha Patil.
While the President holds a mostly ceremonial role in Indian politics, Ms. Patil’s
election was deemed a symbolic move towards a more equitable representation of
women at the highest levels of government.
Although representation of women and members of the lower castes in Indian
politics is rapidly changing, complexities of caste politics continue to govern
representation. An interesting casestudy is that of Mayawati, the Chief Minister of
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Utter Pradesh. Mayawati, a woman and a member of the Dalit caste, was the
youngest Chief Minister when first elected, and the only woman Dalit to be elected
as a Chief Minister. Although Mayawati represents transcendence of India's caste
system, her political career is regrettably tainted with corruption charges,
extravagant spending, and little positive impact on the realities of caste and class
barriers for men and women in her State.
33% Reservation for Women
The Women’s Bill in April 2010, which gives 33.3% reservation for women in
all levels of Indian politics, took 14 years after its introduction to finally pass by the
Rajya Sabha (the upper house of parliament). It is yet to be passed by the Lok
Sabha (the lower house of parliament). The reservation bill will ensure 181 out of
the 543 seats at the Parliament level, and 1,370 seats out of the 4,109 seats at the
State Assembly level. This is a historic move in the Indian political landscape, as
currently women occupy less than 10% of seats in the national Parliament.
The Women’s Bill will also significantly change the demographics of class and
caste among women politicians in leadership positions in the Indian political
structure. It will create a path for women from lower classes and castes (who are
currently confined to local-level governance) to enter state and national level
governments. In addition to the existing reservations for scheduled castes and
scheduled tribes, one third of the SC and ST candidates must be women. Other
Backward Class (OBC) members are not included in the reservation due to the wide
disagreement about who constitutes OBC and a lack of existing data on the OBC
population. The two main arguments against the bill are that it will only benefit
elite women (particularly in national level politics) and that there should be
reservations for Dalit, minorities (particularly Muslim women), and OBCs. However,
supporters of the bill do not agree with creating quotas within the existing 33%
women quota in parliament, as SC and ST quotas already exist. The bill mandates
that all political parties reserve one third of their electoral ticket for women,
including in the already mandated reservations for SC and STs. This will
inadvertently create spaces for lower caste and class women to enter state and
national level politics. The passage and implementation of the Women’s Bill, and its
impact on the existing gender, class, and caste barriers, is yet to be realized, but
one thing is clear: India’s politics is moving closer to equitable inclusion than ever
before.
 Empowerment means accepting and allowing people (women) who are on the
outside of the decision-making process into it. “This puts a strong emphasis
on participation in political structures and formal decision-making and, in
the economic sphere, on the ability to obtain an income that enables
participation in economic decision-making.
 The Women’s Bill in April 2010, which gives 33.3% reservation for women in
all levels of Indian politics, took 14 years after its introduction to finally pass
by the Rajya Sabha (the upper house of parliament). It is yet to be passed by
259
the Lok Sabha (the lower house of parliament). The reservation bill will
ensure 181 out of the 543 seats at the Parliament level, and 1,370 seats out
of the 4,109 seats at the State Assembly level. This is a historic move in the
Indian political landscape, as currently women occupy less than 10% of
seats in the national Parliament.
 The multiple forms of violence experienced in the household, at the
community level, and in some instances by the state, threaten women’s
security in India. In many parts of North India son preference is a widely
practiced phenomenon. Son preference has direct linkages to sex-selective
abortion
1. Explain the role of women in politics in India?
2. Write a note on indicators of women indicators in India?
3. Discuss the economic empowerment of the women?
25.6 SUMMARY
Empowerment means accepting and allowing people (women) who are on the
outside of the decision-making process into it. “This puts a strong emphasis on
participation in political structures and formal decision-making and, in the
economic sphere, on the ability to obtain an income that enables participation in
economic decision-making.” Empowerment is the process that creates power in
individuals over their own lives, society, and in their communities. People are
empowered when they are able to access the opportunities available to them
without limitations and restrictions such as in education, profession and lifestyle.
Feeling entitled to make your own decisions creates a sense of empowerment.
Empowerment includes the action of raising the status of women through
education, raising awareness, literacy, and training. As a result of a vibrant
women’s movement in the last 50 years, policies to advance human rights for
women in India are substantial and forward-thinking, such as the Domestic
Violence Act (2005), and the 73rd and 74 th Amendments to the Constitution that
provide reservations for women to enter politics at the Panchayat level. There are
multiple national and state level governmental and non-governmental mechanisms
such as the Women’s Commission to advance these policies, and the
implementation of these policies is decentralized to state and district-level
authorities and organizations that include local non-governmental organizations.
1. What do you understand by women empowerment in political and economic
spheres of life?
2. Describe the reservation policy for women in panchayat seats?
3. Estimate the detail of women empowerment in India?
 Dufla E. (2011) Women’s Empowerment and Economic Development,
National Bureau of Economic Research, Cambridge.
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 India: Women’s Empowerment – IFAD / DE.2000. The Republic of India:

TamilNadu Women’s Development Project : Completion Evaluation, Report
340 – in Rome, April.
 Kishor, S. and Gupta, K. (2009), Gender Equality and Women’s
Empowerment in India, NATIONAL FAMILY HEALTH SURVEY (NFHS-3)
INDIA, 2005-06. International Institute for Population Sciences, Denonar,
Mumbai.
 Vinze, Medha Dubashi (1987) “Women Empowerment of Indian : A Socio
Economic study of Delhi” Mittal Publication, Delhi.
25.9 ASSIGNMENT
Prepare an essay on women empowerment in which put much focus on
economic and political aspect of women empowerment.
25.10 REFERENCES
1. Kabeer, Naila. "Gender equality and women's empowerment: A critical
analysis o the third millennium development goal 1." Gender &
Development 13.1 (2005): 13-24.
2. Jump up to: a b c d Mosedale, Sarah (2005-03-01). "Assessing women's
empowerment: towards a conceptual framework". Journal of International
Development. 17 (2): 243–257. doi:10.1002/jid.1212. ISSN 1099-1328.
3. Rahman, Aminur (2013). "Women's Empowerment: Concept and
Beyond" (PDF). Global Journal of Human Social Science Sociology &
Culture. 13 (6): 9. Archived (PDF)from the original on 10 August 2017.
Retrieved 11 December 2018.
4. Jump up to:a b Bayeh, Endalcachew (January 2016). "The role of
empowering women and achieving gender equality to the sustainable
development of Ethiopia". Pacific Science Review B: Humanities and Social
Sciences. 2 (1): 38.
5. Oxfam (Forthcoming), "Women's Economic Empowerment Conceptual
Framework"
6. Jump up to:a b c d Deneulin, Séverine; Lila Shahani, eds. (2009). "An
Introduction to the Human Development and Capability Approach: Freedom
and Agency" (PDF). Sterling, VA: Earthscan. Archived (PDF) from the original
on 2016-06-16. Retrieved 2016-09-01.
7. Gupta, Kamla; Yesudian, P. Princy (2006). "Evidence of women's
empowerment in India: a study of socio-spatial disparities". GeoJournal.
65 (4): 365–380. doi:10.1007/s10708-006-7556-z.
8. Shah, M.M. "Sustainable Development". Science Direct. Encyclopedia of
Ecology.
9. Mehra, Rekha (November 1997). "Women, Empowerment, and Economic
Development". The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social
Science. 554 (1): 136–149. doi:10.1177/0002716297554001009.
261
To collect the various policies of government to for the empowerment of women
in India?
25.12 KEYWORDS
Sustainable Development: economic development that is conducted without
depletion of natural resources.
Empowerment: authority or power given to someone to do something.
Discrimination: the unjust or prejudicial treatment of different categories of
people, especially on the grounds of race, age, or sex.

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LESSON – 26
RIGHT TO INFORMATION ACT, 2005
26.1 INTRODUCTION
Right to Information (RTI) is act of the Parliament of India to provide for setting
out the practical regime of the right to information for citizens and replaces the
erstwhile Freedom of information Act, 2002. Under the provisions of the Act, any
citizen of India may request information from a "public authority" (a body of
Government or "instrumentality of State") which is required to reply expeditiously
or within thirty days. The Act also requires every public authority to computerise
their records for wide dissemination and to proactively certain categories of
information so that the citizens need minimum recourse to request for information
formally.
This law was passed by Parliament on 15 June 2005 and came fully into force
on 12 October 2005. Every day, over 4800 RTI applications are filed. In the first ten
years of the commencement of the act over 17,500,000 applications had been filed.
In India, the organisation called Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan was
instrumental in the passage of RTI Act. Aruna Roy is the mastermind behind the
RTI Act 2005. RTI is a legal right for every citizen of India. The authorities under
RTI Act 2005 are called quasi-judicial authorities. This act was enacted in order to
consolidate the fundamental right in the Indian constitution 'freedom of speech'.
Since RTI is implicit in the Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression under
Article 19 of Indian Constitution. It is an implied fundamental right because if one
does not know the facts, one cannot speak freely.
Information disclosure in India is restricted by the Official Secrets Act
1923 and various other special laws, which the new RTI Act relaxes. Right to
Information codifies a fundamental right of the citizens of India. RTI has proven to
be very useful, but is counteracted by the Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2011.
26.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the right to information act and its need
 Role of political parties in enacting right to information
 To know the governance, process, activitism related to right to information.
 To known the controversies and attacks on right to information activists
26.3 CONTENTS
26.3.1 Scope
26.3.2 Private bodies
26.3.3 Political parties
26.3.4 Amendment
26.3.5 Governance and process
26.3.6 Fees
26.3.7 Controversies
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26.3.8 Digital right to information systems

26.3.9 Activism around an efficient right to information
26.3.10 Attacks on RTI activists and protection suggestions
26.3.11 Intellectual property rights
26.3.1 Scope
A receipt for payment of fee for collecting information under RTI act
The Act covers the whole of India, including Jammu and Kashmir.
Earlier, J&K Right to Information Act was in force in the state. However, after the
revocation of much of Article 370 of the Constitution of India, the State (and
also Ladakh) was brought under its ambit. It covers all the constitutional
authorities, including executive, legislature and judiciary; any institution or body
established or constituted by an act of Parliament or a state legislature. It is also
defined in the Act that bodies or authorities established or constituted by order or
notification of appropriate government including bodies "owned, controlled or
substantially financed" by government, or non-Government organizations
"substantially financed, directly or indirectly by funds".
26.3.2 Private bodies
Private bodies are not within the Act's ambit directly. In a decision of Sarbjit
roy vs Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission, the Central Information
Commission also reaffirmed that privatised public utility companies fall within the
purview of RTI. As of 2014, private institutions and NGOs receiving over 95% of
their infrastructure funds from the government come under the Act.
26.3.3 Political parties
The Central Information Commission (CIC) held that the political parties are
public authorities and are answerable to citizens under the RTI Act. The CIC said
that six national parties - Congress, BJP, NCP, CPI(M), CPI and BSP and BJD - has
been substantially funded indirectly by the Central Government and have the
character of public authorities under the RTI Act as they perform public functions.
But in August 2013 the government introduced a Right To Information
(Amendment) Bill which would remove political parties from the scope of the law.
Currently no parties are under the RTI Act and there has a case been filed for
bringing all political parties under it.
26.3.4 Amendment
The Right to Information Act 2019 passed on July 25 2019 modified the terms
and conditions of service of the CIC and Information Commissioners at the centre
and in states. It had been criticized as watering down the independence of the
information commissions
Supreme Court judgement
Supreme Court of India on 13 November 2019, upheld the decision of Delhi
High Court bringing the office of Chief Justice of India under the purview of Right to
Information (RTI) Act.
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26.3.5 Governance and process
The Right to information in India is governed by two major bodies:
Central Information Commission (CIC) – Chief Information commissioner who
heads all the central departments and ministries- with their own public Information
officers (PIO)s. CICs are directly under the President of India.
State Information Commissions – State Public Information Officers or SPIOs
head over all the state department and ministries. The SPIO office is directly under
the corresponding State Governor.
State and Central Information Commissions are independent bodies and
Central Information Commission has no jurisdiction over the State Information
Commission.
26.3.6 Fees
A citizen who desires to seek some information from a public authority is
required to send, along with the application (a Postal order or DD (Demand draft) or
a bankers cheque) payable to the Accounts Officer of the public authority as fee
prescribed for seeking information. If the person is from a disadvantaged
community, he/she need not pay. The applicant may also be required to pay
further fee towards the cost of providing the information, details of which shall be
intimated to the applicant by the PIO as prescribed by the RTI ACT
26.3.7 Controversies
The Right to information in India has been mired with controversies ranging
from their use in political battles, asking for educational degrees of political rivals,
or cases of blatant refusals to provide information on high-profile projects to
allegations of misuse by civil society. The backlash giant RTI by the state hampered
the citizen's right to know
26.3.8 Digital right to information systems
A digital portal has been set up, RTI Portal, a gateway to the citizens for quick
search of information on the details of first Appellate Authorities, PIOs etc. amongst
others, besides access to RTI related information / disclosures published on the
web by various Public Authorities under the government of India as well as the
State Governments. It is an initiative taken by Department of Personnel and
Training, Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Though there are
recent efforts on digital governance, Right to Information implementation has seen
a digitalisation neglect even after 14 years of its enactment. A recent research on
'BallotBoxIndia' outlines that though central ministries are covered by a single
Digital window to file Right to Information requests with integrated payment
gateways and tracking mechanism none of the states have, as of yet, come forward
to implement their versions or use the existing Right to Information Digital
Infrastructure. The research report covering 28 states and 9 union territories also
highlights the responses from the SPIOs (State Public Information Officers).
Researchers in the study focussed on the Digital implementation and asked about
plans or timeline to provide such facility. 64% State Public Information failed to
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respond while the rest of the responses merely took cognizance without any hard
timelines. The research also covers in details - the difficulty in filing manual Right
to Information requests with the states with delays ranging many months of wait
time and various follow ups and rejections. Every state in India has different rules
and fee structures to file an application through registered post without any
tracking mechanism as covered in details in the report right to information is a
scheme to provide the individual acts for all citizens of all across in the world.
26.3.9 Activism around an efficient right to information
There have been proposals to change and make the process easier, efficient
and meaningful. One of it demands state and central information systems under
one Digital System to streamline information flow and provide proactive information
backed by streamlined mandatory reporting.
Right to Information (RTI Act 2005) - One RTI campaign flyer started by ballot
box India researchers after doing a survey with 28 states SPIOs and Central CIC.
The Right to information (RTI Act 2005) was touted as one law which would
bring in transparency and eradicate corruption by civil society direct involvement.
Failure to implement it in a thoroughly and efficiently has led to rough loss
estimate of $245 million yearly as per one estimate. The first RTI application was
filed at a police station in Pune by Shahid Raza Burney.India being a federal state
has many items in concurrent list and projects have multiple departments working
on them, and sometimes projects are moved from one department to another. With
Central and State information commissions working in such a disconnect, and
manual transfers of the request for information between departments lead to big
delays, confusion, and loss of traceability. It not only denies timely information,
creates high barriers to information only a few with very strong motivations and
means can cross, but puts a common citizen at the risk by exposing them directly
to the departments and agencies which they are trying to find information on.
Digital RTI Mission was initiated by a policy think tank based in Kochi (CPPR)
to make Kerala the first RTI digital state in India.
26.3.10 Attacks on RTI activists and protection suggestions
Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) data points to over 310
cases across India where people were either attacked, murdered, physically or
mentally harassed or had their property damaged because of the information they
sought under RTI. The data throws up over 50 alleged murders and two suicides
that were directly linked with RTI applications filed.
There is a consensus felt that there is a need to amend the RTI Act to provide
for the protection of those seeking information under the Act. The Asian Centre for
Human Rights recommends that a separate chapter, "Protection of those seeking
information under the(RTI) Act", be inserted into the Act.
Protection measures suggested include
Mandatory, immediate registration of complaints of threats or attacks against
RTI activists on the First Information Report and placing such FIRs before the
266
magistrate or judge of the area within 24 hours for issuance of directions for
protection of those under threats and their family members, and periodic review of
such protection measures
Conducting inquiry into threats or attacks by a police officer not below the
rank of Deputy Superintendent of Police/Assistant Commissioner of Police to be
concluded within 90 days and we also use RTI and get its benefit.
26.3.11 Intellectual property rights
Many civil society members have recently alleged the subversion of the right to
information Act by the invocation of Intellectual Property rights argument by the
government agencies from time to time.
Most notable are
The Right to Information denied by RBI on Demonetization citing Intellectual
Property Laws.
The Right to Information Denied by Uttar Pradesh Irrigation Department after
more than 8 months of a wait on under construction Gomti Riverfront Development
Project. A group of researchers requested for environment Impact and Project
Report on the project which is flagged for negative impacts, tax money wastage by
environmental scientists and research reports.
 Right to Information (RTI) is act of the Parliament of India to provide for
setting out the practical regime of the right to information for citizens and
replaces the erstwhile Freedom of information Act, 2002. Under the
provisions of the Act, any citizen of India may request information from a
"public authority" (a body of Government or "instrumentality of State") which
is required to reply expeditiously or within thirty days.
 In August 2013 the government introduced a Right To Information
(Amendment) Bill which would remove political parties from the scope of the
law. Currently no parties are under the RTI Act and there has a case been
filed for bringing all political parties under it.
 Supreme Court of India on 13 November 2019, upheld the decision of Delhi
High Court bringing the office of Chief Justice of India under the purview of
Right to Information (RTI) Act.
 A citizen who desires to seek some information from a public authority is
required to send, along with the application (a Postal order or DD (Demand
draft) or a bankers cheque) payable to the Accounts Officer of the public
authority as fee prescribed for seeking information
1. What is the background of right to information act?
2. Discuss scope of right to information act 2005?
3. Write a note on digital information related to right to information?
26.6 SUMMARY
RTI is a legal right for every citizen of India. The authorities under RTI Act
2005 are called quasi-judicial authorities. This act was enacted in order to
267
consolidate the fundamental right in the Indian constitution 'freedom of speech'.

Since RTI is implicit in the Right to Freedom of Speech and Expression under
Article 19 of Indian Constitution. It is an implied fundamental right because if one
does not know the facts, one cannot speak freely.
Information disclosure in India is restricted by the Official Secrets Act
1923 and various other special laws, which the new RTI Act relaxes. Right to
Information codifies a fundamental right of the citizens of India. RTI has proven to
be very useful, but is counteracted by the Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2011.
The Right to information (RTI Act 2005) was touted as one law which would bring in
transparency and eradicate corruption by civil society direct involvement.
1. Explain the right to information and its origin India?
2. Evaluate the role of central information commission role in right to
information.
3. Examine the role of supreme court in RTI.
4. Describe the controversies in RTI.
Read the government notification regarding the RTI Act.
http://www.rti.india.gov.in/cic_decisions/Decision_30112006_12.pdf
Changes in RTI Act's privacy clause will allow corrupt babus to escape public
scrutiny: Information Commissioner
26.9 ASSIGNMENTS
Prepare a chart of Right to Information Prevailing in Asian Continent.
26.10 REFERENCES
1. SHARMA, NIDHI (6 October 2016). "1.75 crore RTI applications filed since
2005: Study". The Economic Times. Retrieved 7 April 2018.
2. "PRS|Bill Track| The Whistle Blowers Protection Bill,2011". www.prsindia.org.
Retrieved 16 August 2018.
3. Excelsior, Daily (11 August 2019). "J&K people to face immense difficulties in
obtaining benefits of Central RTI Act". Jammu Kashmir Latest News|
Tourism| Breaking News J&K. Retrieved 12 August 2019.
4. http://www.rti.india.gov.in/cic_decisions/Decision_30112006_12.pdf
5. Changes in RTI Act's privacy clause will allow corrupt babus to escape
public scrutiny: Information Commissioner The Economic Times
6. Nayak, N. Dinesh. "Private institutions, NGOs now come under RTI Act:
Information Commissioner". thehindu.com.
7. PTI. "Khurshid sounds warning note on R.T.I ruling". The Hindu. Archived
from the original on 10 June 2013. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
8. PTI. "Political parties under RTI: Congress rejects CIC order". The Hindu
Newspaper. Archived from the original on 27 October 2013. Retrieved 4
June 2013.
268
9. Subrahmaniam, Vidya (12 August 2013). "First-ever amendment to historic

RTI Act tabled in Lok Sabha". The Hindu. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
10. PIB. "Rajya Sabha passes RTI Amendment Bill, 2019". Press Information
Bureau, Government of India. Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances &
Pensions. Retrieved 12 August 2019.
Make a penal in your class and discuss pros and cons regarding RTI?
26.12 KEYWORDS
Legal right: Legal rights refers to rights according to law. It exists under the
rules of some particular legal system.
Freedom of information: Right to Information Act 2005 mandates timely
response to citizen requests for government information. Right to Information
empowers every citizen to seek any information from the Government, inspect any
Government documents and seek certified photocopies thereof.
Activitism: the policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about
political or social change.

269
LESSON – 27
RIGHT TO EDUCATION
27.1 INTRODUCTION
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act or Right to
Education Act (RTE), is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted on 4 August 2009,
which describes the modalities of the importance of free and compulsory education
for children between 6 and 14 in India under Article 21a of the Indian Constitution.
India became one of 135 countries to make education a fundamental right of every
child when the Act came into force on 1 April 2010.
The Act makes education a fundamental right of every child between the ages
of 6 and 14 and specifies minimum norms in elementary schools. It requires all
private schools to reserve 25% of seats to children (to be reimbursed by the state as
part of the public-private partnership plan). Kids are admitted in to private schools
based on economic status or caste based reservations. It also prohibits all
unrecognised schools from practice, and makes provisions for no donation or
capitation fees and no interview of the child or parent for admission. The Act also
provides that no child shall be held back, expelled, or required to pass a board
examination until the completion of elementary education. There is also a provision
for special training of school drop-outs to bring them up to par with students of the
same age.
The RTE Act requires surveys that will monitor all neighbourhoods, identify
children requiring education, and set up facilities for providing it. The World Bank
education specialist for India, Sam Carlson, has observed: "The RTE Act is the first
legislation in the world that puts the responsibility of ensuring enrolment,
attendance and completion on the Government. It is the parents' responsibility to
send the children to schools in the US and other countries."
The Right to Education of persons with disabilities until 18 years of age is laid
down under a separate legislation - the Persons with Disabilities Act. A number of
other provisions regarding improvement of school infrastructure, teacher-student
ratio and faculty are made in the Act.
Education in the Indian constitution is a concurrent issue and both centre and
states can legislate on the issue. The Act lays down specific responsibilities for the
centre, state and local bodies for its implementation. The states have been
clamouring that they lack financial capacity to deliver education of appropriate
standard in all the schools needed for universal education. Thus it was clear that
the central government (which collects most of the revenue) will be required to
subsidise the states.
A committee set up to study the funds requirement and funding initially
estimated that INR 1710 billion or 1.71 trillion (US$38.2 billion) across five years
was required to implement the Act, and in April 2010 the central government
agreed to sharing the funding for implementing the law in the ratio of 65 to 35
270
between the centre and the states, and a ratio of 90 to 10 for the north-eastern
states. However, in mid 2010, this figure was upgraded to INR 2310 billion, and the
center agreed to raise its share to 68%. There is some confusion on this, with other
media reports stating that the centre's share of the implementation expenses would
now be 70%. At that rate, most states may not need to increase their education
budgets substantially.
A critical development in 2011 has been the decision taken in principle to
extend the right to education till Class X (age 16) and into the preschool age range.
The CABE committee is in the process of looking into the implications of making
these changes.
The Ministry of HRD set up a high-level, 14-member National Advisory Council
(NAC) for implementation of the Act. The members included Kiran Karnik, former
president of NASSCOM; Krishna Kumar, former director of the NCERT; Mrinal Miri,
former vice-chancellor of North-East Hill University; Yogendra Yadav – social
scientist. India
Sajit Krishnan Kutty, Secretary of The Educators Assisting Children's Hopes
(TEACH) India; Annie Namala, an activist and head of Centre for Social Equity and
Inclusion; and Aboobacker Ahmad, vice-president of Muslim Education Society,
Kerala.
A report on the status of implementation of the Act was released by the
Ministry of Human Resource Development on the one year anniversary of the Act.
The report admits that 8.1 million children in the age group six-14 remain out of
school and there’s a shortage of 508,000 teachers country-wide. A shadow report
by the RTE Forum representing the leading education networks in the country,
however, challenging the findings pointing out that several key legal commitments
are falling behind the schedule. The Supreme Court of India has also intervened to
demand implementation of the Act in the Northeast. It has also provided the legal
basis for ensuring pay parity between teachers in government and government
aided schools. Haryana Government has assigned the duties and responsibilities to
Block Elementary Education Officers–cum–Block Resource Coordinators (BEEOs-
cum-BRCs) for effective implementation and continuous monitoring of
implementation of Right to Education Act in the State.
It has been pointed out that the RTE act is not new. Universal adult franchise
in the act was opposed since most of the population was illiterate. Article 45 in the
Constitution of India was set up as an act: The State shall endeavour to provide,
within a period of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution, for free
and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of fourteen
years.
As that deadline was about to be passed many decades ago, the education
minister at the time, MC Chagla, memorably said: "Our Constitution fathers did not
intend that we just set up hovels, put students there, give untrained teachers, give
them bad textbooks, no playgrounds, and say, we have complied with Article 45
271
and primary education is expanding... They meant that real education should be
given to our children between the ages of 6 and 14" - (MC Chagla, 1964).
In the 1990s, the World Bank funded a number of measures to set up schools
within easy reach of rural ommunities. This effort was consolidated in the Sarva
Shiksha Abhiyan model in the 1990s. RTE takes the process further, and makes
the enrolment of children in schools a state prerogative.
27.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the right to free and compulsory education and its legislative
process
 To know the origin of free and compulsory education
 To understand the funding and implementation of right to education
 Students must know the role of advisory council and its implementation
27.3 CONTENTS
27.3.1 History
27.3.2 Passage
27.3.3 Highlights
27.3.4 Implementation and funding
27.3.5 Advisory Council on Implementation
27.3.6 Status of implementation
27.3.7 Precedents
27.3.8 Criticism
27.3.9 Public-private partnership
27.3.10 Infringement on private schools
27.3.11 Barrier for orphans
27.3.1 History
Present Act has its history in the drafting of the Indian constitution at the time
of Independence but is more specifically to the Constitutional Amendment of 2002
that included the Article 21A in the Indian constitution making Education a
fundamental Right. This amendment, however, specified the need for a legislation
to describe the mode of implementation of the same which necessitated the drafting
of a separate Education Bill. It is the 86th amendment in the Indian Constitution.
A rough draft of the bill was prepared in year 2005AD. It caused considerable
controversy due to its mandatory provision to provide 25% reservation for
disadvantaged children in private schools. The sub-committee of the Central
Advisory Board of Education which prepared the draft Bill held this provision as a
significant prerequisite for creating a democratic and egalitarian society. Indian Law
commission had initially proposed 50% reservation for disadvantaged students in
private schools. On 7 May 2014, The Supreme Court of India ruled that Right to
Education Act is not applicable to Minority institutions.
272
27.3.2 Passage
The bill was approved by the cabinet on 2 July 2009. Rajya Sabha passed the
bill on 20 July 2009 and the Lok Sabha on 4 August 2009. It received Presidential
assent and was notified as law on 26 August 2009 as The Children's Right to Free
and Compulsory Education Act. The law came into effect in the whole of India
except the state of Jammu and Kashmir from 1 April 2010, the first time in the
history of India a law was brought into force by a speech by the then Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh. In his speech, Dr. Singh stated, "We are committed to
ensuring that all children, irrespective of gender and social category, have access to
education. An education that enables them to acquire the skills, knowledge, values
and attitudes necessary to become responsible and active citizens of India." It now
came into act in Kashmir after it turned into a Union Territory of India in 2019.
The RTE Act provides for the right of children to free and compulsory
education till completion of elementary education in a neighbourhood school. It
clarifies that ‘compulsory education’ means obligation of the appropriate
government to provide free elementary education and ensure compulsory
admission, attendance and completion of elementary education to every child in the
six to fourteen age group. ‘Free’ means that no child shall be liable to pay any kind
of fee or charges or expenses which may prevent him or her from pursuing and
completing elementary education.
It makes provisions for a non-admitted child to be admitted to an age
appropriate class.
It specifies the duties and responsibilities of appropriate Governments, local
authority and parents in providing free and compulsory education, and sharing of
financial and other responsibilities between the Central and State Governments.
It lays down the norms and standards relating inter alia to pupil teacher ratios
(PTRs), buildings and infrastructure, school-working days, teacher-working hours.
It provides for rational deployment of teachers by ensuring that the specified
pupil teacher ratio is maintained for each school, rather than just as an average for
the State or District or Block, thus ensuring that there is no urban-rural imbalance
in teacher postings. It also provides for prohibition of deployment of teachers for
non-educational work, other than decennial census, elections to local authority,
state legislatures and parliament, and disaster relief.
It provides for appointment of appropriately trained teachers, i.e. teachers with
the requisite entry and academic qualifications.
It prohibits (a) physical punishment and mental harassment; (b) screening
procedures for admission of children; (c) capitation fee; (d) private tuition by
teachers and (e) running of schools without recognition.
It provides for development of curriculum in consonance with the values
enshrined in the Constitution, and which would ensure the all-round development
of the child, building on the child’s knowledge, potentiality and talent and making
273
the child free of fear, trauma and anxiety through a system of child friendly and
child centered learning.
27.3.3 Highlights
private schools (except the minority institutions) to reserve 25% of seats for the
poor and other categories of children (to be reimbursed by the state as part of the
public-private partnership plan). Children are admitted in to private schools based
on caste-based reservations. It also prohibits all unrecognised schools from
practice, and makes provisions for no donation or capitation fees and no interview
of the child or parent for admission. The Act also provides that no child shall be
held back, expelled, or required to pass a board examination until the completion of
elementary education. There is also a provision for special training of school drop-
outs to bring them up to par with students of the same age.
The RTE act requires surveys that will monitor all neighbourhood, identify
children requiring education, and set up facilities for providing it. The World
Bank education specialist for India, Sam Carlson, has observed:
The RTE Act is the first legislation in the world that puts the responsibility of
ensuring enrolment, attendance and completion on the Government. It is the
parents' responsibility to send the children to schools in the US and other
countries.
The Right to Education of persons with disabilities until 18 years of age is laid
down under a separate legislation- the Persons with Disabilities Act. A number of
other provisions regarding improvement of school infrastructure, teacher-student
ratio and faculty are made in the Act.
27.3.4 Implementation and funding
Education in the Indian constitution is a concurrent issue and both centre and
states can legislate on the issue. The Act lays down specific responsibilities for the
centre, state and local bodies for its implementation. The states have been
clamouring that they lack financial capacity to deliver education of appropriate
standard in all the schools needed for universal education. Thus it is clear that the
central government (which collects most of the revenue) will be required to
subsidise the states.
A committee set up to study the funds requirement and funding initially
estimated that Rs 1710 billion or 1.71 trillion (US$38.2 billion) across five years
was required to implement the Act, and in April 2010 the central government
agreed to sharing the funding for implementing the law in the ratio of 65 to 35
between the centre and the states, and a ratio of 90 to 10 for the north-
eastern states. However, in mid 2010, this figure was upgraded to Rs. 2310 billion,
and the center agreed to raise its share to 68%. There is some confusion on this,
with other media reports stating that the centre's share of the implementation
274
expenses would now be 70%. At that rate, most states may not need to increase
their education budgets substantially.
A critical development in 2011 has been the decision taken in principle to
extend the right to education till Class X (age 16) and into the preschool age
range. The CABE committee is in the process of looking into the implications of
making these changes.
27.3.5 Advisory Council on Implementation
The Ministry of HRD set up a high-level, 14-member National Advisory Council
(NAC) for implementation of the Act. The members include
Kiran Karnik, former president of NASSCOM
Krishna Kumar, former director of the NCERT
Mrinal Miri, former vice-chancellor of North-East Hill University
Yogendra Yadav – social scientist. India
Sajit Krishnan Kutty Secretary of The Educators Assisting Children's Hopes
(TEACH)India.
Annie Namala, an activist and head of Centre for Social Equity and Inclusion
Sheikh Abubakr Ahmad, vice-president of Muslim Education Society, Kerala.
27.3.6 Status of implementation
A report on the status of implementation of the Act was released by the
Ministry of Human Resource Development on the one-year anniversary of the Act.
The report admits that 8.1 million children in the age group 6-14 remain out of
school and there’s a shortage of 508,000 teachers country-wide. A shadow report
by the RTE Forum, representing the leading education networks in the country led
by Ambarish Rai (a prominent activist), however, challenging the findings pointing
out that several key legal commitments are falling behind the schedule. The
Supreme Court of India has also intervened to demand implementation of the Act in
the Northeast. It has also provided the legal basis for ensuring pay parity between
teachers in government and government aided schools.Haryana Government has
assigned the duties and responsibilities to Block Elementary Education Officers–
cum–Block Resource Coordinators (BEEOs-cum-BRCs) for effective implementation
and continuous monitoring of implementation of Right to Education Act in the
State.
27.3.7 Precedents
It has been pointed out that the RTE act is not new. Universal adult franchise
in the act was opposed since most of the population was illiterate. Article 45 in
the Constitution of India was set up as an act:
The State shall endeavour to provide, within a period of ten years from the
commencement of this Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all
children until they complete the age of fourteen years.
275
As that deadline was about to be passed many decades ago, the education
minister at the time, M C Chagla, memorably said:
Our Constitution fathers did not intend that we just set up hovels, put
students there, give untrained teachers, give them bad textbooks, no playgrounds,
and say, we have complied with Article 45 and primary education is expanding...
They meant that real education should be given to our children between the ages of
6 and 14 – M.C. Chagla, 1964.
In the 1990s, the World Bank funded a number of measures to set up schools
within easy reach of rural communities. This effort was consolidated in the Sarva
Shiksha Abhiyan model in the 1990s. RTE takes the process further, and makes
the enrolment of children in schools a state prerogative.
27.3.8 Criticism
The act has been criticised for being hastily drafted, not consulting many
groups active in education, not considering the quality of education, infringing on
the rights of private and religious minority schools to administer their system, and
for excluding children under six years of age. Many of the ideas are seen as
continuing the policies of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan of the last decade, and the World
Bank funded District Primary Education Programme DPEP of the '90s, both of
which, while having set up a number of schools in rural areas, have been criticised
for being ineffective and corruption-ridden.
The quality of education provided by the government school system is not
good. While it remains the largest provider of elementary education in the country,
forming 80% of all recognised schools, it suffers from shortage of teachers and
infrastructural gaps. Several habitations lack schools altogether. There are also
frequent allegations of government schools being riddled with absenteeism and
mismanagement and of appointments made on political convenience. Despite the
allure of free lunch in the government schools, many parents send their children to
private schools. Average schoolteacher salaries in private rural schools in some
States (about Rs. 4,000 per month) are considerably lower than those in
government schools. As a result, the proponents of low-cost private schools critique
the government schools as being poor value for money.
Children attending the private schools are seen to be at an advantage, forming
a discrimination against the weakest sections who are forced to go to government
schools. Furthermore, the system has been criticised as catering to the rural elites
who are able to afford school fees in a country where a large number of families live
in absolute poverty. The act has been criticised as discriminatory for not addressing
these issues. Well-known educationist Anil Sadgopal said of the hurriedly drafted
act:
It is a fraud on our children. It gives neither free education nor compulsory
education. In fact, it only legitimises the present multi-layered, inferior quality
school education system where discrimination shall continue to prevail.
276
Entrepreneur Gurcharan Das noted that 54% of urban children attend private
schools, and this rate is growing at 3% per year. "Even the poor children are
abandoning the government schools. They are leaving because the teachers are not
showing up." However, other researchers have countered the argument by saying
that the evidence for higher standard of quality in private schools often disappears
when other factors (like family income and parental literacy) are accounted for.
27.3.9 Public-private partnership
To address these quality issues, the Act has provisions for compensating
private schools for admission of children under the 25% quota which has been
compared to school vouchers, whereby parents may "send" their children in any
school, private or public. This measure, along with the increase in PPP (Public
Private Partnership) has been viewed by some organisations such as the All-India
Forum for Right to Education (AIF-RTE), as the state abdicating its "constitutional
obligation towards providing elementary education".
27.3.10 Infringement on private schools
The Society for Un-aided Private Schools, Rajasthan (in Writ Petition (Civil) No.
95 of 2010) and as many as 31 others petitioned the Supreme Court of
India claiming that the act violates the constitutional right of private managements
to run their institutions without governmental interference. The parties claimed
that providing 25 percent reservation for disadvantaged children in government and
private unaided schools is "unconstitutional."
Forcing unaided schools to admit 25% disadvantaged students has also been
criticized on the grounds that the government has partly transferred its
constitutional obligation to provide free and compulsory elementary education to
children on “non-state actors,” like private schools, while collecting a 2% cess on
the total tax payable for primary education.
On 12 April 2012, a three judge bench of the Supreme Court delivered its
judgement by a majority of 2-1. Chief Justice SH Kapadia and Justice Swatanter
Kumar held that providing such reservation is not unconstitutional, but stated that
the Act will not be applicable to private minority schools and boarding schools.
However, Justice K. S. Panicker Radhakrishnan dissented with the majority view
and held that the Act cannot apply to both minority and non-minority private
schools that do not receive aid from the government.
In September 2012, the Supreme Court subsequently declined a review
petition on the Act.
In May 2016, the Chetpet-based CBSE school Maharishi Vidya Mandir became
embroiled in a scandal over its circumvention of the 25% quota rule. During its
admissions cycle, the school told economically weaker parents "the RTE does not
exist," and, "we do not take these [government RTE] applications." The senior
principal also informed the Tamil Nadu Regional Director of the CBSE that he
intended to "reject applicants without an email address," thereby excluding
technically illiterate parents from seeking admissions. In addition, school officials
277
falsified the distance figures of several poorer candidates in attempts to disqualify

them from availing of the scheme.
27.3.11 Barrier for orphans
The Act provides for admission of children without any certification. However,
several states have continued pre-existing procedures insisting that children
produce income and caste certificates, BPL cards and birth certificates. Orphan
children are often unable to produce such documents, even though they are willing
to do so. As a result, schools are not admitting them, as they require the
documents as a condition to admission.
 The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act or Right to
Education Act (RTE), is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted on 4
August 2009, which describes the modalities of the importance of free and
compulsory education for children between 6 and 14 in India under Article
21a of the Indian Constitution. India became one of 135 countries to make
education a fundamental right of every child when the Act came into force
on 1 April 2010.
 Education in the Indian constitution is a concurrent issue and both centre
and states can legislate on the issue. The Act lays down specific
responsibilities for the centre, state and local bodies for its implementation
 Sam Carlson, has observed: "The RTE Act is the first legislation in the world
that puts the responsibility of ensuring enrolment, attendance and
completion on the Government. It is the parents' responsibility to send the
children to schools in the US and other countries."
1. Give a detailed description on right to education?
2. Write a short note on 21A?
3. Bring out the related criticism on right to education?
27.6 SUMMARY
private schools to reserve 25% of seats to children (to be reimbursed by the state as
part of the public-private partnership plan). It specifies the duties and
responsibilities of appropriate Governments, local authority and parents in
providing free and compulsory education, and sharing of financial and other
responsibilities between the Central and State Governments. Children attending the
private schools are seen to be at an advantage, forming a discrimination against the
weakest sections who are forced to go to government schools. Furthermore, the
system has been criticised as catering to the rural elites who are able to afford
school fees in a country where a large number of families live in absolute poverty.
The act has been criticised as discriminatory for not addressing these issues.
278
1. Explain the right to education as per the constitution of India?
2. Evaluate the role of Ministry of Human Resources Development?
3. Criticize the right to education?
4. Examine implementation of right to education
 Right to education – What is it? Education and the 4 As". Right to Education
project. Retrieved 2009-02-21.
 Right to education – What is it? Availability". Right to Education project.
Retrieved 2010-09-11.
 A Human Rights-Based Approach to Education for All (PDF).
UNESCO/UNICEF. 2007. p. 7.
27.9 ASSIGNMENT
Role of M C Chagla in implementation of right to education?
27.10 REFERENCES
1. "What is HRBAP? | Human Rights-based Approach to Programming |
UNICEF". UNICEF. Retrieved 2016-09-28.
2. "UN Treaty Collection: International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights". UN. 3 January 1976. Retrieved 21 November 2016.
3. Jump up to:a b Article 26, Universal Declaration of Human Rights
4. Article 13, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights Archived2012-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
5. Article 14, International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural
Rights Archived2012-03-03 at the Wayback Machine
6. "Article 26". claiminghumanrights.org. Retrieved 2016-10-05.
7. Jump up to:a b A Human Rights-Based Approach to Education for All (PDF).
UNESCO/UNICEF. 2007. p. 7.
Assemble in class and discuss how right to education is beneficial for children
age group 6-14 and evaluate its impact?
27.12 KEYWORDS
Inter alia: among other things.
Public-private partnership: is a cooperative arrangement between two or
more public and private sectors, typically of a long-term nature.
Infringement: the action of breaking the terms of a law, agreement, etc.;
violation.

279
LESSON – 28
RIGHT TO EMPLOYMENT
28.1 INTRODUCTION
Leaving aside the factors which make life livable, it is the practical truth of the
economic world that one must earn a living to be able to live. In other words, work
to maintain an adequate standard of living. Leave aside the labour power, economic
assets are unevenly distributed therefore making each one of us interdependent.
Consequently, one must work otherwise the basic necessities of life shall remain
unfulfilled. The world has been moving forward based on the policy of give and
take. And as we have come a long way from the barter system, the present-day
medium which enables such exchange of resources, for which one must ‘work’, is
money. The ‘right to work’ hence is the most essential element of life to be able to
live. To enable the fulfilment of the basic need for food, water, clothing and shelter
and also something more than just the basic requirements of life one must work to
earn.
28.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the right to unemployment and right to work in India
 To know the right to work in part 3rd of the constitution
 To understand the link between right to work and directive principles of
state policy
 To understand various acts of the government
28.3 CONTENTS
28.3.1 Right to Work and Part IV of the Indian Constitution
28.3.2 The Judgment- Right to Work
28.3.3 Right to work is a Fundamental Right
28.3.4 DPSP and Fundamental Right
28.3.5 Right to work vs. Right to demand Employment from the government
28.3.6 Labour and Employment Laws
28.3.7 The Factories Act, 1948
28.3.8 Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946
28.3.9 The Minimum Wages Act, 1948
28.3.10 Payment of Wages Act, 1936
28.3.11 The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947
28.3.12 Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952
28.3.13 Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972
28.3.14 The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965
28.3.15 Maternity Benefit Act, 1961
28.3.16 Workmen Compensation Act, 1923
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28.3.17 Equal Remuneration Act, 1976

28.3.18 Shop & Establishments Act (State wise)
28.3.19 Decoding the Supreme Court ruling in Olga Tellis case right to work is
violated
28.3.1 Right to Work and Part IV of the Indian Constitution
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, both of which were acceded by India, in
Article 23 and Article 6 respectively, recognise the right to work in an employment
of one’s choice and the State’s responsibility to safeguard this right.
However, the Indian Constitution does not explicitly recognise the ‘right to
work’ as a fundamental right. It is placed in Part IV (Directive Principles of State
Policy) of the Constitution under Article 41, which hence makes it unenforceable in
the court of law. Despite the absence of an express wording of the ‘right to work’ in
Part III (Fundamental Rights) of the Constitution, it became a ‘fundamental right’
through a judicial interpretation. All thanks to the wider interpretation of Article 21
made by the Honble Supreme Court through its judgement in Olga Tellis & Ors. v
Bombay Municipal Corporation & Ors.- ‘right to work’ was recognised as a
fundamental right inherent in the ‘right to life’. Olga Tellis & Ors. v Bombay
Municipal Corporation & Ors. (AIR 1986 SC 18) The case came about through a
writ petition filed by the petitioners under Article 32 before the Supreme Court of
India challenging the decision of the Respondents- State of Maharashtra and the
Bombay Municipal Corporation, to demolish pavement dwellings and slums.
The Hon’ble Bench which decided the case consisted of C.J., Y.V.
Chandrachud, J., A.V. Varadarajan, J., O. Chinnappa Reddy, J., S. Murtaza Fazal
Ali and J., V.D. Tulzapurkar.
Arguments Raised
Arguments of the petitioners
1. That such demolition amounted to a violation of the right to livelihood,
which could be read under Article 21 along with the right to life.
2. That the action of the respondents would violate the right of the petitioners
under Article 19(e) and(g).
3. That S. 314 of the Bombay Municipal Corporation Act, 1888 was arbitrary
as it enabled the Municipal Commissioner to cause the removal of
encroachments without giving a notice to the parties who would be affected.
4. That the petitioners’ act of encroaching the pavement rose out of an
economic compulsion and thus calling them trespassers would be
constitutionally not permissible.
Arguments of the respondent
1. That as the petitioners had accepted before the High Court that they did not
claim any fundamental right to put up huts on public passage routes and
had given an undertaking to the High Court that they would not obstruct the
demolition of the huts after October 15, 1981, they should be estopped from
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claiming that the demolition of slums and pavement dwellings violated their
right to livelihood.
2. That no person has the right to put a public property to private use. That
the right conferred under Article 19(e) to reside and settle in any part of the
territory of India cannot be read as a right to encroach/trespass public
property.
3. That S. 312, S. 313 and s. 314 of the Bombay Municipal Corporation Act do
not violate the Constitution but are legislated in public interest.
4. That the slum hutments near the Western Express Highway, Vile Parle were
constructed on an accessory road, which was part of the Highway itself, and
were neither regularised by the Corporation nor registration numbers were
assigned to them.
5. That no deprivation of life, directly or indirectly is involved in the eviction of
the slum and pavement dweller from public places. That the Municipal
Corporation is under an obligation under S. 314 of the Bombay Municipal
Corporation Act to remove obstructions on public streets and other public
places.
28.3.2 The Judgement- Right to Work
Having paid heed to the arguments of all the parties the Court gave its
judgement. At the very outset, the Court dismissed the argument of the respondent
which stated that by the operation of the doctrine of estoppel, the petitioner could
not claim the fundamental right- the right to livelihood. The Court held that there
could be no estoppel against the Constitution. That, it was to fulfil the vision in the
Preamble that Fundamental Rights were conferred and no person could barter away
the rights thus conferred by way of Fundamental Rights.
With respect to the case at hand, the Court observed that persons in the
position of the petitioners lived in slums and on pavements because they had small
jobs in the city. That they chose to live on pavements or in slums in the vicinity of
their place of work to avoid the commuting costs which cost them way too much
when compared to their meagre earnings. Losing the sheds hence meant losing a
job.
The Court also observed that though the petitioners were using public
property for private use, they had no intention of committing an offence, intimidate,
insult or annoy any person, which is the gist of the offence of ‘Criminal Trespass’ as
defined under S.441 of the Indian Penal Code. That they lived there due to
economic compulsion
28.3.3 Right to work is a Fundamental Right
Coming on to the question of the ‘right to livelihood’ as claimed by the
petitioners the Court had observed that to make living life meaningful there had to
be a means of living, i.e. the means of livelihood. That, if the right to livelihood was
not treated as a part of the right to life, the easiest way of depriving a person of his
right to life would be to deprive him of his means of earning a living. The Court
held- that, which makes life possible to live, must be deemed to be an integral
component of the right to life. For if a person is deprived of his right to livelihood he
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shall be consequently deprived of his right to life, for life- as enshrined under
Article 21, meant more than mere animal existence.
28.3.4 DPSP and Fundamental Right
‘Right to work’ was recognised in light of the supplementary and
complementary characteristic of the Fundamental rights and DPSP with respect to
each other. Right to life must include the right to work as has already been
explained above as per the judicial interpretation. The DPSP, on the other hand,
provides for the state’s responsibility to ensure that all citizens have the right to an
adequate means of livelihood. Keeping in mind the non-enforceable nature of the
DPSPs the Court had held that DPSPs reflect the vision of the State and thus
possible steps should be taken in furtherance of it.
Hence, ‘Right to work’ is an outcome of a harmonious interpretation of both
the fundamental rights and directive principles of state policy.
28.3.5 Right to work vs Right to demand Employment from the government
It should, however, be understood that the State cannot be compelled to
provide adequate means of livelihood or work to the citizens by acting affirmatively.
In others words, no person can sue the State for not providing him with a job. But
if any person is deprived of his right to livelihood except according to just and fair
procedure established by law, he can challenge the deprivation as offending the
right to life conferred by Article 21.
The landmark judgement of the Supreme Court in the Olga Tellis case thus
recognised the right as being inherent in Article 21. Though ‘right to work’ is not a
fundamental right explicitly mentioned in Part III of the Constitution of India, it is
now read along with the ‘right to life’ under Article 21.
Invoking Olga Tellis case- State of Uttar Pradesh v Charan Singh
State of U.P. v Charan Singh is a 2015 case where an appeal against the order
of the High Court of Allahabad was filed. In this case, emphasis was again laid on
the importance of including ‘right to work’ in ‘right to life’ under Article 21 of the
Constitution of India.
The respondent who was a permanent employee was terminated from his job
as a tube-well operator. Terming his termination as illegal the Industrial Tribunal
had ordered for his reinstatement. The appellant however appealed against the
order of the Industrial Tribunal and subsequently of that of the High Court of
Allahabad, thereby spending 4 decades in litigation.
In light of the facts of the case, the Supreme Court held that the appellant
unnecessarily litigated the matter for so long. The Court observed that keeping a
person out of job for years was arbitrary and unreasonable. Reiterating the ruling of
Olga Tellis case, the court held right to work to be a fundamental right. The
employer, the state of U.P., was held liable for its arbitrary and unreasonable action
of terminating the service of the respondent and depriving him of his livelihood for a
long period.
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28.3.6 Labour and Employment Laws
As one goes in search of employment it is important that he/she is aware of
their rights and liabilities pertaining to such employment.
The labour laws attempt to regulate employment. These laws contain
provisions with respect to working conditions, wages, welfare, social security and
employer-employee relation. There a number of Centre and State made laws which
aim to protect and safeguard the rights of employees/labours. It is hence
mandatory that the contract between the employer and employee adhere to the
provisions of the law of contract as well as the prevalent labour laws.
The central laws which address the labour issues are-
Legislating
Legislation
authority
 The Factories Act, 1948.
 Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946.
 The Minimum Wages Act, 1948.
 Payment of Wages Act, 1936.
 The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
 Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous
Central law
Provisions Act, 1952.
 Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972.
 The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965.
 Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.
 Workmen Compensation Act, 1923.
 Equal Remuneration Act, 1976.
State law Shop & Establishments Act.
28.3.7 The Factories Act, 1948
The Act regulates the employment of workers in factories. It lays down
provisions for the health, safety, welfare, working hours and leaves of workers in
factories and the standards which are to be complied with by the Employer.
The Act empowers State Governments to frame rules so that the local
conditions prevailing in the State are suitably addressed.
28.3.8 Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946.
The Act applies to all industrial establishments having one hundred or more
workmen employed. It requires the industrial establishment to define and explain
the conditions of employment to the workmen employed. The conditions of
employment which the employer proposes to adopt are to be issued in form of
standing orders which shall be applicable only on being duly certified as per the
provisions given under the Act. The standing orders must state the following-
1. Classification of workmen, e.g., whether permanent, temporary, apprentices,
probationers, or badlis.
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2. The manner of intimating to workmen periods and hours of work, holidays,

pay-days and wage rates.
3. Shift working.
4. Attendance and late coming.
5. Conditions of, the procedure of applying for, and the authority which may
grant, leave and holidays.
6. The requirement to enter premises by certain gates, and liability to search.
7. Closing and re-opening of sections of the industrial establishment, and
temporary stoppages of work and the rights and liabilities of the employer
and workmen arising there from.
8. Termination of employment, and the notice thereof to be given by employer
and workmen.
9. Suspension or dismissal for misconduct, and acts or omissions which
constitute misconduct.
10. Means of redress for workmen against unfair treatment or wrongful
exactions by the employer or his agents or servants.
11. Any other matter which may be prescribed.
28.3.9 The Minimum Wages Act, 1948
Key provisions of the Act are-
The Act has classified workers into four categories- unskilled, semi-skilled,
skilled and highly killed.
 The Act prescribes for fixing of minimum wage rates of workers in all
establishments.
 The Act also provides for fixing of working hours, that there should be
intervals during the day and at least one holiday in a week.
 The minimum wage rates fixed under the Act are to be revised by the Central
and respective State governments periodically.
 The employer must maintain a record of the employees pertaining to the
number of hours worked, wages and its receipts.
28.3.10 Payment of Wages Act, 1936
Key provisions of the payment of wages are-
Every Employer shall make timely payment of wages to the Employee without
any unlawful deductions from the wages.
The Employer must fix a wage period for which the salary shall be fixed and
within which it shall become payable, however, such wage period should not exceed
a period of one month.
The Act requires that the wages should be paid in currency notes or current
coins. Wages can be paid by cheque or credited to the employee’s bank account
only receiving a written consent for the same by the employee.
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28.3.11 The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947
Key provisions of the Act are-
The Act provides for the payment of compensation to the workmen on account
of closure or lay off or retrenchment.
The Act lays down the procedure for obtaining prior permission of appropriate
Government for laying off or retrenching the workers or closing down the industrial
establishment.
 The Act aims to stop unfair labour practices on part of employers and
workers.
 The Act also provides for investigation and amicable settlement of industrial
disputes in relation to lockouts, layoffs, retrenchment etc.
28.3.12 Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952
The Act seeks to provide financial security to the employees in an
establishment by providing for a system of compulsory savings. The Act establishes
a contributory Provident Fund to which both the employees and the employer shall
contribute. Minimum contribution by the employees is 12% of the basic
salary+Dearness Allowance.
This amount becomes payable to the employee after retirement, however, it
could also be withdrawn partly for certain specified purposes by the employee.
28.3.13 Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972
The Act provides for the payment of gratuity to all types of employees/workers
in all establishments having ten or more employees, on retirement/resignation of
the employee/worker. It is calculated at the rate of 15 days salary of the employee
for each completed year of service subject to a maximum of Rs. 3,50,000.
28.3.14 The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965
The Act provides for the payment of bonus to employees in certain
establishments (as have been listed in the Act) on the basis of profits/ production/
productivity. The Act is applicable to establishments having 20 or more employees.
The Act further provides that even if losses are suffered by the Employer in an
accounting year, he shall pay a bonus equivalent to 8.33% of the salary to the
employees.
28.3.15 Maternity Benefit Act, 1961
The Act regulates the employment of women during and after pregnancy.
The employer is required to pay maternity benefits and/or medical bonus and
allow maternity leave and nursing breaks. As per the Act, only a woman who
worked in the establishment for a period of 80 days during the 12 months
immediately preceding the date of her expected delivery will be entitled to receive
such maternity benefits.
The Act, however, does not apply to an establishment governed by the
Employees State Insurance Act, 1948.
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28.3.16 Workmen Compensation Act, 1923
The Act states that in event of an accident if any injury or death is caused of
an Employee during the course of employment when the Employee was on-duty,
the Employer shall pay compensation to the employee or his legal representatives in
accordance with the Act.
28.3.17 Equal Remuneration Act, 1976
The Act applies to all corporations established by or under a Central Act. As
the name suggests, the Act provides equal pay for equal work, aiming to curb
gender discrimination in workplace.
28.3.18 Shop & Establishments Act (State wise)
The act is a state wise legislation wherein each State has made its own rules.
The Act aims to regulate the payment of wages, terms of service, holidays, leaves,
working conditions, working hours, etc for persons employed in shops and other
commercial establishments i.e. unorganised sector.
The labour laws ensure that the workers/employees do not suffer due to the
unethical practices of the employer, and hence act as a safeguard against
victimisation of the employee/worker.
Know your right
It has been a few decades since ‘right to work’ was recognised, yet many of us
still struggle with its practical aspects.
How does one know that his right to work has been violated? How can one
approach the Court to seek remedy for such violation? Is unemployment a violation
of the right to work? What are the reasonable restrictions on the right to work? This
article shall now make an attempt to answer these questions. When is the ‘right to
work’ violated? The first and foremost thing to be kept in mind is, leave alone the
exceptions, since it is the State which enforces the existence of fundamental rights,
the same can only be claimed against the State and not against any private
institution. In other words, the right to work can only be claimed against the State
and not against any private institution.
28.3.19 Decoding the Supreme Court ruling in Olga Tellis case right to work is violated
1. When a person is terminated from his job against the terms of his
employment. For instance, as in the Charan Singh case (above), if a
permanent employee is terminated from his job without a reasonable cause
it amounts to the violation of the ‘right to work’.
2. When a person is terminated from his job in violation of the already laid
down Central or State laws.
3. When a person is excluded from being employed based on unfair and
unreasonable classification.
4. When a person is deprived of his livelihood in violation of the just and fair
procedure established by law, as was the case in Olga Tellis & Ors. v
Bombay Municipal Corporation & Ors.
It is important to note that voluntary unemployment or unemployment due to
lack of jobs or lack of skills shall not amount to a violation of the Right to Work.
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How to approach the Court to seek a remedy?
In event of violation of the ‘right to work,’ a writ petition can be filed- In the
High Court of the respective State under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, or
In the Supreme Court of India under Article 32 of the Constitution of India. As
opposed to the other fundamental rights which are suspended for the period during
which the Proclamation of Emergency is in force, Article 21 and 22 of the
Constitution continue to operate. Thus, ‘right to work’ which is included in ‘right to
life’ under Article 21 can be claimed even during the period of Emergency and the
aggrieved can seek remedy from the Court in event of its violation.
However, a person pursuing an occupation/ trade/ business prohibited by law
cannot claim the ‘right to work’ when the State takes measures to curb it. For
instance, living on the gains of prostitution, gambling and the likewise is not
protected under the ‘right to work’.
 The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant
on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, both of which were acceded by
India, in Article 23 and Article 6 respectively, recognise the right to work in
an employment of one’s choice and the State’s responsibility to safeguard
this right.
 The landmark judgement of the Supreme Court in the Olga Tellis case thus
recognised the right as being inherent in Article 21. Though ‘right to work’ is
not a fundamental right explicitly mentioned in Part III of the Constitution of
India, it is now read along with the ‘right to life’ under Article 21.
 The Factories Act, 1948.
 Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946.
 The Minimum Wages Act, 1948.
 Payment of Wages Act, 1936.
 The Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
 Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952.
 Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972.
 The Payment of Bonus Act, 1965.
 Maternity Benefit Act, 1961.
 Workmen Compensation Act, 1923.
 Equal Remuneration act, 1976
1. Write a short note on the factories act 1948?
2. Discuss the payment of gratuity act, 1972?
3. Evaluate the equal remuneration act, 1976?
4. Explain the rights given in the part iv of the constitution?
28.6 SUMMARY
To what started as a struggle to stop the demolition of pavement dwellings and
slum hutments ended with the Supreme Court recognising ‘right to work’ as a
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fundamental right. Henceforth, providing every person within the Indian territory
with the right to be employed in an employment of their choice, subject to lawful
restrictions, to protect them from being deprived of their life. Furthermore, the
Right prevents the removal of any person from employment or deprivation of a
person from being employed except as per procedure established by law. Coming on
to the question of the ‘right to livelihood’ as claimed by the petitioners the Court
had observed that to make living life meaningful there had to be a means of living,
i.e. the means of livelihood. That, if the right to livelihood was not treated as a part
of the right to life, the easiest way of depriving a person of his right to life would be
to deprive him of his means of earning a living. The Court held- that, which makes
life possible to live, must be deemed to be an integral component of the right to life.
For if a person is deprived of his right to livelihood he shall be consequently
deprived of his right to life, for life- as enshrined under Article 21, meant more than
mere animal existence
1. Explain right to work as fundamental right?
2. Evaluate factories act 1948?
3. Write a note on maternity benefited act, 1961?
4. Explain the Equal remuneration act, 1976?
28.8 ASSIGNMENTS
To collect the various schemes of government about the right to employment in
India.
Labor rights
Job guarantee
Protestant Work Ethic
Refusal of work
Right-to-work law
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act
Youth suffrage
28.10 REFERENCES
1. "Universal Declaration of Human Rights : English". Ohchr.org. Retrieved
2016-02-03.
2. "International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights". Office of
the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. 1966.
3. "African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights". www.achpr.org.
Retrieved 2018-04-09.
4. Robertson, Priscilla Smith (1952). Revolutions of 1848: A Social History.
Princeton University Press. p. 69. ISBN 9780691007564.
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5. Alfredsson, Gudmundur; Eide, Asbjorn (1999). The Universal Declaration of

Human Rights: a common standard of achievement. Martinus Nijhoff
Publishers. p. 533. ISBN 978-90-411-1168-5
Write an essay on the government policies and programmes for acquiring the
right to employment in india and discuss in detail in your class group discussion.
28.12 KEYWORDS
Remuneration: money paid for work or a service
Encroaching: advance gradually beyond usual or acceptable limits
Estoppels: the principle which precludes a person from asserting something
contrary to what is implied by a previous action or statement of that person or by a
previous pertinent judicial determination.
Gratuity: a sum of money paid to an employee at the end of a period of
employment.

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LESSON – 29
NATIONAL RURAL EMPLOYMENT GUARANTEE ACT, 2005
29.1 INTRODUCTION
National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 (or, NREGA No 42, later
renamed as the "Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act",
MGNREGA), is an Indian labour law and social security measure that aims to
guarantee the 'right to work'. This act was passed in September 2005
It aims to enhance livelihood security in rural areas by providing at least 100
days of wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult
members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. The act was first proposed in
1991 by P.V. Narasimha Rao. It was finally accepted in the parliament and
commenced implementation in 625 districts of India. Based on this pilot
experience, NREGA was scoped up to cover all the districts of India from 1 April
2008. The statute is hailed by the government as "the largest and most ambitious
social security and public works programme in the world". In its World
Development Report 2014, the World Bank termed it a "stellar example of rural
development".
The MGNREGA was initiated with the objective of "enhancing livelihood
security in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of guaranteed wage
employment in a financial year, to every household whose adult members volunteer
to do unskilled manual work". Another aim of MGNREGA is to create durable assets
(such as roads, canals, ponds and wells). Employment is to be provided within
5 km of an applicant's residence, and minimum wages are to be paid. If work is not
provided within 15 days of applying, applicants are entitled to an unemployment
allowance. Thus, employment under MGNREGA is a legal entitlement.
MGNREGA is to be implemented mainly by gram panchayats (GPs). The
involvement of contractors is banned.
Apart from providing economic security and creating rural assets, NREGA can
help in protecting the environment, empowering rural women, reducing rural-urban
migration and fostering social equity, among others."
The law provides many safeguards to promote its effective management and
implementation. The act explicitly mentions the principles and agencies for
implementation, list of allowed works, financing pattern, monitoring and
evaluation, and most importantly the detailed measures to ensure transparency
and accountability
29.2 OBJECTIVES
 To understand the MGNREGA its benefits
 To know the history of MGNRGA
 To know the overall assessment on the people
 To understand the role of the law and constitution of India in MGNREGA
 To understand the social audit and corruption in MGNREGA
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29.3 CONTENTS
29.3.1 History
29.3.2 Overview
29.3.3 The law and the constitution of India
29.3.4 Independent academic research
29.3.5 Assessment of the act by the constitutional auditor
29.3.6 Evaluation of the law by the government
29.3.7 Social audit
29.3.8 New amendment proposal 2014 and 2017
29.3.9 Corruption
29.3.1 History
From 1960, the first 30 years of experimentation with employment schemes in
rural areas taught few important lessons to the government like the ‘Rural
Manpower Programme’ taught the lesson of financial management, the ‘Crash
Scheme for Rural Employment’ of planning for outcomes, a ‘Pilot Intensive Rural
Employment Programme’ of labour-intensive works, the ‘Drought Prone Area
Programme’ of integrated rural development, ‘Marginal Farmers and Agricultural
Labourers Scheme’ of rural economic development, the ‘Food for Work Programme’
(FWP) of holistic development and better coordination with the states, the ‘National
Rural Employment Programme’ (NREP) of community development, and the ‘Rural
Landless Employment Guarantee Programme’ of focus on landless households. The
Planning Commission later approved the scheme and the same was adopted on
national scale.
On 1 st April 1989, to converge employment generation, infrastructure
development and food security in rural areas, the government integrated NREP and
RLEG into a new scheme JRY. The most significant change was the decentralization
of implementation by involving local people through PRIs and hence a decreasing
role of bureaucracy.
On 2nd October 1993, the Employment Assurance Scheme (EAS) was initiated
by the then prime minister P.V.Narasimha Rao to provide employment to
agricultural hands during the lean agricultural season. Rao had started discussions
on this act in 1991. The role of PRIs was reinforced with the local self-government
at the district level called the ‘Zilla Parishad’ as the main implementing authority.
Later, EAS was merged with SGRY in 2001.
On 1st April 1999, the JRY was revamped and renamed to JGSY with a similar
objective. The role of PRIs was further reinforced with the local self-government at
the village level called the ‘Village Panchayats’ as the sole implementing authority.
In 2001, it was merged with SGRY. In January 2001, the government introduced
FWP(Food for Work Programme) similar to the one initiated in 1977. Once NREGA
was enacted, the two were merged in 2006.
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On 25th September 2001 to converge employment generation, infrastructure

development and food security in rural areas, the government integrated EAS and
JGSY into a new scheme SGRY. The role of PRIs was retained with the ‘Village
Panchayats’ as the sole implementing authority. Yet again due to implementation
issues, it was merged with Mahatma Gandhi NREGA in 2006. The total government
allocation to these precursors of Mahatma Gandhi NREGA had been about three-
quarters of ₹1 trillion (US$14 billion.
29.3.2 Overview
According to the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007–12), the number of Indians
living on less than $1 a day, called Below Poverty Line (BPL), was 300 million that
barely declined over the last three decades ranging from 1973 to 2004, although
their proportion in the total population decreased from 36 per cent (1993–94) to 28
percent (2004–05), and the rural working class dependent on agriculture was
unemployed for nearly 3 months per year. The union Government had planned to
increase the number of working days from 100 to 150 before the 2014 Lok Sabha
Elections in the country but failed.
The NDA government has decided to provide 150 days for rain hit areas. The
registration process involves an application to the Gram Panchayat and issue of job
cards. The wage employment must be provided within 15 days of the date of
application. The work entitlement of ‘120 days per household per year’ may be
shared between different adult members of the same household.
The law also lists permissible works: water conservation and water harvesting;
drought proofing including afforestation; irrigation works; restoration of traditional
water bodies; land development; flood control; rural connectivity; and works
notified by the government. The Act sets a minimum limit to the wage-material ratio
as 60:40. The provision of accredited engineers, worksite facilities and a weekly
report on worksites is also mandated by the Act.
Furthermore, the Act sets a minimum limit to the wages, to be paid
with gender equality, either on a time-rate basis or on a piece-rate basis. The states
are required to evolve a set of norms for the measurement of works and schedule of
rates. Unemployment allowance must be paid if the work is not provided within the
statutory limit of 15 days.
The law stipulates Gram Panchayats to have a single bank account for NREGA
works which shall be subjected to public scrutiny. To promote transparency and
accountability, the act mandates ‘monthly squaring of accounts’. To ensure public
accountability through public vigilance, the NREGA designates ‘social audits’ as key
to its implementation. The most detailed part of the Act (chapter 10 and 11) deals
with transparency and accountability that lays out role of the state, the public
vigilance and, above all, the social audits. For evaluation of outcomes, the law also
requires management of data and maintenance of records, like registers related to
employment, job cards, assets, muster rolls and complaints, by the implementing
agencies at the village, block and state level. The legislation specifies the role of the
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state in ensuring transparency and accountability through upholding the right to

information and disclosing information proactively, preparation of annual reports
by CEGC for Parliament and SEGCs for state legislatures, undertaking mandatory
financial audit by each district along with physical audit, taking action on audit
reports, developing a Citizen's Charter, establishing vigilance and monitoring
committees, and developing grievance redressal system. The Act recommends
establishment of ‘Technical Resource Support Groups’ at district, state and central
level and active use of Information Technology, like creation of a ‘Monitoring and
Information System (MIS)’ and a NREGA website, to assure quality in
implementation of NREGA through technical support. The law allows convergence
of NREGA with other programmes. As NREGA intends to create ‘additional’
employment, the convergence should not affect employment provided by other
programmes.
29.3.3 The law and the Constitution of India
The Act aims to follow the Directive Principles of State Policy enunciated in
Part IV of the Constitution of India. The law by providing a 'right to work' is
consistent with Article 41 that directs the State to secure to all citizens the right to
work. The statute also seeks to protect the environment through rural workswhich
is consistent with Article 48A that directs the State to protect the environment.
In accordance with the Article 21 of the Constitution of India that guarantees
the right to life with dignity to every citizen of India, this act imparts dignity to the
rural people through an assurance of livelihood security. The Fundamental
Right enshrined in Article 16 of the Constitution of India guarantees equality of
opportunity in matters of public employment and prevents the State from
discriminating against anyone in matters of employment on the grounds only of
religion, race, caste, sex, descent, place of birth, place of residence or any of them.
NREGA also follows Article 46 that requires the State to promote the interests of
and work for the economic uplift of the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes and
protect them from discrimination and exploitation. Article 40 mandates the State to
organise village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as
may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government.
Conferring the primary responsibility of implementation on Gram Panchayats, the
Act adheres to this constitutional principle. Also the process of decentralization
initiated by 73rd Amendment to the Constitution of India that granted a
constitutional status to the Panchayatsis further reinforced by the Mahatma
Gandhi NREGA that endowed these rural self-government institutions with
authority to implement the law.
29.3.4 Independent Academic Research
Academic research has focused on many dimensions of the NREGA: economic
security, self-targeting, women's empowerment, asset creation, corruption, how the
scheme impacts agricultural wages. An early overall assessment in the north India
states suggested that NREGA was "making a difference to the lives of the rural poor,
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slowly but surely." The evidence on self-targeting suggests that works though there
is a lot of unmet demand for work.
One of the objectives of NREGA was to improve the bargaining power of labour
who often faced exploitative market conditions. Several studies have found that
agricultural wages have increased significantly, especially for women since the
inception of the scheme. This indicates that overall wage levels have increased due
to the act, however, further research highlights that the key benefit of the scheme
lies in the reduction of wage volatility. This highlights that NREGA may be an
effective insurance scheme. Ongoing research efforts try to evaluate the overall
welfare effects of the scheme; a particular focus has been to understand whether
the scheme has reduced migration into urban centers for casual work.
Another important aspect of NREGA is the potential for women's empowerment
by providing them opportunities for paid work. One third of all employment is
reserved for women, there is a provision for equal wages to men and women,
provision for child care facilities at the worksite - these are three important
provisions for women in the Act. More recent studies have suggested that women's
participation has remained high, though there are inter-state variations. One study
in border villages of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat studied the effect on
short term migration and child welfare and found that among children who do not
migrate, grade completed is higher. The same study found that demand for NREGA
work is higher, even though migrant wages are higher. Over the last decade it has
been observed that more than half the NREGA funds have been spent on water
related projects. This was very much needed because water bodies have been
shrinking especially in rural India. India became a water deficient nation 5 years
ago and every year since then the water level has been shrinking. Though over Rs
20,000 crores under MGNREGA has been spent each year during the last decade
on developing rural water bodies, wells, aquifers, catchment areas they were not
permanent assets.
On asset creation, there have not been too many detailed studies. A few
focusing on the potential for asset creation under NREGA suggest that (a) the
potential is substantial and (b) in some places it is being realized and (c) lack of
staff, especially technical staff rather than lack of material are to blame for poor
realization of this potential. Others have pointed out that water harvesting and soil
conservation works promoted through NREGA "could have high positive results on
environment security and biodiversity and environment conservation” A study
conducted by researchers at the Indian Institute of Science and other collaborators
attempts to quantify the environmental and socio-economic benefits of works done
through the NREGA Corruption in government programmes has remained a serious
concern, and NREGA has been no exception. According to recent estimates, wage
corruption in NREGA has declined from about 50% in 2007-8 to between 4-30% in
2009-10. Much of this improvement is attributable to the move to pay NREGA
wages through bank and post office accounts. Some of the success in battling
corruption can also be attributed to the strong provisions for community
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monitoring. Others find that "the overall social audit effects on reducing easy-to-
detect malpractices were mostly absent".A few papers also study the link between
electoral gains and implementation of NREGA. One studies the effect in Andhra
Pradesh - the authors find that "while politics may influence programme
expenditure in some places and to a small extent, this is not universally true and
does not undermine the effective targeting and good work of the scheme at large."
The two other studies focus on these links in Rajasthan and West Bengal. Several
local case studies are also being conducted to identify the regional impacts of
NREGA.
29.3.5 Assessment of the act by the constitutional auditor
The second performance audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG)
of India covered 3,848 gram panchayats (GPs) in 28 states and 4 union territories
(UTs) from April 2007 to March 2012. This comprehensive survey by the CAG
documents lapses in implementation of the act. The main problems identified in the
audit included: a fall in the level of employment, low rates of completion of works
(only 30.3 per cent of planned works had been completed), poor planning (in one-
third of Gram Panchayats, the planning process mandated by the act had not been
followed), lack of public awareness partly due to poor information, education and
communication IEC) by the state governments, shortage of staff (e.g., Gram Rozgar
Sewaks had not been appointed in some states) and so on. Notwithstanding the
statutory requirement of notification, yet five states had not even notified the eight-
years-old scheme. The comprehensive assessment of the performance of the law by
the constitutional auditor revealed serious lapses arising mainly due to lack of
public awareness, mismanagement and institutional incapacity. The CAG also
suggested some corrective measures.
Major recommendations of the CAG audit on MGNREGA

Even though the mass social audits have a statutory mandate of Section 17
(as outlined in Chapter 11 of the NREGA Operational Guidelines), only seven states
have the institutional capacity to facilitate the social audits as per prescribed
norms. Although the Central Council is mandated to establish a central evaluation
and monitoring system as per the NREGA Operational Guidelines, even after six
years it is yet to fulfill the NREGA directive. Further, the CAG audit reports
discrepancies in the maintenance of prescribed basic records in up to half of
the gram panchayats (GPs) which inhibits the critical evaluation of the NREGA
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outcomes. The unreliability of Management Information System (MIS), due to

significant disparity between the data in the MIS and the actual official documents,
is also reported.
To increase public awareness, the intensification of the Information, Education
and Communication (IEC) activities is recommended. To improve management of
outcomes, it recommended proper maintenance of records at the gram panchayat
(GP) level. Further the Central Council is recommended to establish a central
evaluation and monitoring system for "a national level, comprehensive and
independent evaluation of the scheme". The CAG also recommends a timely
payment of unemployment allowance to the rural poor and a wage material ratio of
60:40 in the NREGA works. Moreover, for effective financial management, the CAG
recommends proper maintenance of accounts, in a uniform format, on a monthly
basis and also enforcing the statutory guidelines to ensure transparency in the
disposal of funds. For capacity building, the CAG recommends an increase in staff
hiring to fill the large number of vacancies.
For the first time, the CAG also included a survey of more than 38,000 NREGA
beneficiaries. An earlier evaluation of the NREGA by the CAG was criticized for its
methodology.
29.3.6 Evaluation of the law by the government
Ex-Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh released an anthologys of
research studies on the MGNREGA called "MGNREGA Sameeksha" in New Delhi on
14 July 2012, about a year before the CAG report. Aruna Roy and Nikhil Dey said
that "the MGNREGA Sameeksha is a significant innovation to evaluate policy and
delivery".The anthology draws on independent assessments of MGNREGA
conducted by Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), Indian Institutes of
Technology (IITs) and others in collaboration with United Nations Development
Programme (UNDP) published from 2008 to 2012. The Prime Minister said:
The Mahatma Gandhi NREGA story in numbers is a story worth telling... the
scheme scores high on inclusivness...no welfare scheme in recent memory has
caught the imagination of the people as much as NREGA has ... under
which ₹1,10,000 crore (about USD$25 billion) have been spent to pay wages to
1,200 crore (12 billion) people.
Minister of Rural Development Jairam Ramesh says in the 'MGNREGA
Sameeksha':
It is perhaps the largest and most ambitious social security and public works
programme in the world. ... soundness and high potential of the MGNREGA are well
established ... . That, at any rate, is one of the main messages emerging from this
extensive review of research on MGNREGA. It is also a message that comes loud
and clear from the resounding popularity of MGNREGA—today, about one-fourth of
all rural households participate in the programme every year.
Meanwhile, the social audits in two Indian states highlight the potential of the
law if implemented effectively.
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Further the Minister says:

MGNREGA’s other quantitative achievements have been striking as well:
1. Since its inception in 2006, around ₹1, 10,000 crore (about USD$25 billion)
has gone directly as wage payment to rural households and 1200 crore (12
billion) person-days of employment has been generated. On an average, 5
crore (50 million) households have been provided employment every year
since 2008.
2. Eighty per cent of households are being paid directly through bank/post
office accounts, and 10 crore (100 million) new bank/post office accounts
have been opened.
3. The average wage per person-day has gone up by 81 per cent since the
Scheme’s inception, with state-level variations. The notified wage today
varies from a minimum of ₹122 (USD$1.76) in Bihar, Jharkhand to ₹191
(USD$2.76) in Haryana.
4. Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) have accounted for 51
per cent of the total person-days generated and women for 47 per cent, well
above the mandatory 33 per cent as required by the Act.
5. 146 lakh (14.6 million) works have been taken up since the beginning of the
programme, of which about 60 per cent have been completed.
6. 12 crore (120 million) Job Cards (JCs) have been given and these along with
the 9 crore (90 million) muster rolls have been uploaded on the Management
Information System (MIS), available for public scrutiny. Since 2010–11, all
details with regard to the expenditure of the MGNREGA are available on the
MIS in the public domain.
29.3.7 Social audit
Civil society organisations (CSOs), nongovernmental organisations (NGOs),
political representatives, civil servants and workers of Rajasthan and Andhra
Pradesh collectively organise social audits to prevent corruption under the NREGA.
As the corruption is attributed to the secrecy in governance, the 'Jansunwai' or
public hearing and the right to information (RTI), enacted in 2005, are used to fight
this secrecyGoetz 1999 Official records obtained using RTI are read out at the
public hearing to identify and rectify irregularities. "This process of reviewing official
records and determining whether state reported expenditures reflect the actual
monies spent on the ground is referred to as a social audit."Aiyar 2009, pp. 8–9
Participation of informed citizens promotes collective responsibility and awareness
about entitlements.Chandoke 2007.
The process of a social audit

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A continuous process of social audit on NREGA works involves public vigilance

and verification at the stipulated 11 stages of implementation: registration of
families; distribution of job cards; receipt of work applications; selection of suitable
public works; preparation of technical estimates; work allocation; implementation
and supervision; payment of wages; payment of unemployment allowance;
evaluation of outcomes; and mandatory social audit in the Gram Sabha or Social
Audit Forum. The Gram Panchayat Secretary is designated as the authority
responsible for carrying out the social audit at all stages. For some stages, the
programme officer and the junior engineer is also responsible along with Sarpanch.
The statute designates the Gram Sabha meetings held to conduct social audit
as the ‘Social Audit Forums’ and spells out three steps to make them effective:
publicity and preparation of documents; organizational and procedural aspects;
and the mandatory agenda involving questions verifying compliance with norms
specified at each of the 11 stages of implementation. An application under
the RTI to access relevant official documents is the first step of the social audit.
Then the management personnel of the social audit verify these official records by
conducting field visits. Finally, the 'Jansunwai' or public hearing is organised at
two levels: the Panchayat or village level and the Mandal level. The direct public
debate involving the beneficiaries, political representatives, civil servants and,
above all, the government officers responsible for implementing the NREGA works
highlights corruption like the practice of rigging muster rolls (attendance registers)
and also generates public awareness about the scheme. These social audits on
NREGA works in Rajasthan highlight: a significant demand for the scheme, less
that 2 per cent corruption in the form of fudging of muster rolls, building the water
harvesting infrastructure as the first priority in the drought-prone district,
reduction of out-migration, and above all the women participation of more than 80
per cent in the employment guarantee scheme. The need for effective management
of tasks, timely payment of wages and provision of support facilities at work sites is
also emphasised.
To assess the effectiveness of the mass social audits on NREGA works in
Andhra Pradesh, a World Bank study investigated the effect of the social audit on
the level of public awareness about NREGA, its effect on the NREGA
implementation, and its efficacy as a grievance redressal mechanism. The study
found that the public awareness about the NREGA increased from about 30 per
cent before the social audit to about 99 per cent after the social audit. Further, the
efficacy of NREGA implementation increased from an average of about 60 per cent
to about 97 per cent.
Views of the critics of MGNREGA
The critics claim that the scheme leads to wastefulness and contributes to
fiscal deficit of the Government of India. Critics argue that employment should be
seen as a privilege rather than a right.
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Views of the proponents of MGNREGA
Proponents of the scheme enumerate number of benefits. For example, Rejaul
Karim Laskar, an ideologue of the Congress party- the largest constituent of
the UPA Government which introduced the scheme, claims that the scheme has
multifarious benefits including "reduction in poverty, reduction in migration,
women empowerment, improvement of productivity of agricultural land and
regeneration of water resources".
Save MGNREGA
'Save MGNREGA' is a set of demands proposed during the joint meeting of the
national leadership of CITU, AIAWU, AIDWA and AIKS in New Delhi.
The agenda was to discuss the dilution of MGNREGA scheme by the new
government. Following demands were proposed:
1. Government of India should increase the Central allocation for the scheme
so that number of workdays can be increased to 200 and per day wage can
be increased to Rs.300.
2. Job card to be issued for everyone who demands job, failing which, after 15
days employment benefits should be given.
3. Minimum 150 days of work should be ensured to all card holders
4. Minimum wage act should be strictly implemented. Delay in wage payment
should be resolved.
5. MGNREGA should be extended to urban areas.
6. Gram Sabhas should be strengthened to monitor proper implementation of
the scheme and also to check corruption.
29.3.8 New Amendments Proposed in 2014 and 2017
Union Rural Development Minister, Nitin Gadkari, proposed to limit
MGNREGA programmes within tribal and poor areas. He also proposed to change
the labour: material ratio from 60:40 to 51:49. As per the new proposal, the
programme will be implemented in 2,500 backward blocks coming under Intensive
Participatory Planning Exercise.These blocks are identified per the Planning
Commission Estimate of 2013 and a Backwardness Index prepared by Planning
Commission using 2011 census. This backwardness index consists of following five
parameters - percentage of households primarily depended on agriculture, female
literacy rates, households without access to electricity, households without access
to drinking water and sanitation within the premises and households without
access to banking facilities.
Both proposals came in for sharp criticism. A number of economists with
diverse views opposed the idea of restricting or "focussing" implementation in a few
districts or blocks.
In the November 2014 cabinet expansion, Birender Singh replaced Nitin
Gadkari as rural development minister. Among the first statements made by the
new minister was an assurance that NREGA would continue in all districts. Around
the same time, however, NREGA budget saw a sharp cut and in the name of
'focusing' on a few blocks the programme has been limited to those blocks.
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New Amendments Proposed in 2017
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced Rs.48,000 crore to be allocated to
the MGNREGA as a part of 2017 Union budget of India.
Composition of Youth Workforce
In 2013-14, the ratio of young workers among total MGNREGA workers was
13.64 per cent which came down to 7.73 percent in 2017-18 before rising to 9.1
percent in 2018-19 and 10.06 percent in 2019-20.The trend shows that a steady
decline in the proportion of young workers, those between 18 and 30, under the Act
has halted and has begun to rise in the wake of demonetisation and the rollout
of GST. This has been projected by a section of analysts as a reflection of rural
distress intensifying.
Controversies and criticisms
A major criticism of the MGNREGA is that a lot of money disbursed by the
government gets siphoned off by middlemen, thus leaving a number of MGNREGA
workers either with unpaid wages or less than standard wages. In Mahuadand,
Jharkhand, most of the people who had worked under the MGNREGA did not get
paid, while some either got paid less than stipulated or were given 5 kg of rice by
private contractors instead. Another criticism of NREGA is that it is making
agriculture less profitable. Landholders often oppose it on these grounds. The big
farmer's point of view can be summed up as follows: landless labourers are lazy and
they don't want to work on farms as they can get money without doing anything at
NREGA worksites; farmers may have to sell their land, thereby laying foundation
for the corporate farming. Economists like Jagdish Bhagwati and Arvind Panagariya
have described NREGA as “an inefficient instrument of shifting income to the poor”
– the general notion being that it takes five rupees to transfer one rupee to NREGA
workers. Economists including Surjit Bhalla have termed it as unsuccessful
suggesting that schemes such as the NREGA need to be junked, saying that any
scheme with 85 percent leakages can't be proclaimed to be “working successfully”.
The workers points of view can be summed up as: labourers do not get more than
Rs. 80 in the private agricultural labour market, there is no farm work for several
months; few old age people who are jobless for at least 8 months a year; when farm
work is available they go there first; farmers employ only young and strong persons
to work in their farms and reject the others and hence many go jobless most of the
time.
29.3.9 Corruption
NREGA has been criticised for leakages and corruption implementation. It has
been alleged that individuals have received benefits and work payments for work
that they have not done, or have done only on paper, or are not poor. But with the
introduction of the Direct Beneficiary Transfer (DBT) system introduced by the NDA
- II government, wherein, the workers get their payment directly into the bank
account, the chances of corruption has gone down to great extent.
Furthermore, Shri Arun Jaitley has committed that the central government
would spend INR 6000 crores into the scheme in order to provide an impetus to the
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scheme. Although in 2014-15, only 28% of the payments were made on time to
workers. Following the allegations of corruption in the scheme, NDA government
ordered a re-evaluation of the scheme in 2015 and a budget allocation of ₹60,000
crore has been set aside for MNREGA in Interim Budget for 2019-2020.
 "Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act", MGNREGA),
is an Indian labour law and social security measure that aims to guarantee
the 'right to work'. This act was passed in September 2005
 The Act aims to follow the Directive Principles of State Policy enunciated in
Part IV of the Constitution of India. The law by providing a 'right to work' is
consistent with Article 41 that directs the State to secure to all citizens the
right to work. The statute also seeks to protect the environment through
rural workswhich is consistent with Article 48A that directs the State to
protect the environment.
 Proponents of the scheme enumerate number of benefits. For
example, Rejaul Karim Laskar, an ideologue of the Congress party- the
largest constituent of the UPA Government which introduced the scheme,
claims that the scheme has multifarious benefits including "reduction in
poverty, reduction in migration, women empowerment, improvement of
productivity of agricultural land and regeneration of water resources".
1. Write a detailed note on new Amendments Proposed in 2017?
2. Discuss how to Save MGNREGA?
3. Bring out the origin of MGNREGA?
29.6 SUMMARY
It aims to enhance livelihood security in rural areas by providing at least 100
days of wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult
members volunteer to do unskilled manual work. The act was first proposed in
1991 by P.V. Narasimha Rao. It was finally accepted in the parliament and
commenced implementation in 625 districts of India. the Act sets a minimum limit
to the wages, to be paid with gender equality, either on a time-rate basis or on
a piece-rate basis. The states are required to evolve a set of norms for the
measurement of works and schedule of rates. Unemployment allowance must be
paid if the work is not provided within the statutory limit of 15 days. A major
criticism of the MGNREGA is that a lot of money disbursed by the government gets
siphoned off by middlemen, thus leaving a number of MGNREGA workers either
with unpaid wages or less than standard wages.
1. What do you understand by MGNREGA?
2. Evaluate the role of government in MGNREGA?
3. What is the major recommendation of MGNREGA?
4. What are the quantitative achievements of MGNREGA?
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 Ministry of Rural Development 2005, pp. 14–20
 The Hindu 2001
 Planning Commission 2001, p. 20
 Ministry of Rural Development 2002, pp. 1–3
 The Hindu 2006
 Centre for Science and Environment 2007
29.9 ASSIGNMENT
Visit the local sarpanch or contract who deals with the workers of the
MGNREGA collects the first hand report at ground level of both workers and
contractors how they work?
29.10 REFERENCES
1. Ministry of Rural Development 2005, p. 1
2. Jump up to:a b Nationwide review of rural job scheme NREGS ordered by
government, archived from the original on 6 April 2016.
3. Seetapati, Vinay (1 February 2015). Half - Lion: How P.V Narasimha Rao
Transformed India (1 ed.). New Delhi: Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0670088225.
4. Ministry of Rural Development 2005, p.10.
5. Jump up to:a b Ministry of Rural Development 2012, p. ix
6. Economic Times, retrieved from http://articles.economictimes.
indiatimes.com/2013-10-10/news/42902947_1_world-bank-world-
development-report-safety-net
7. Comptroller and Auditor General of India 2013, p.i
8. Ministry of Rural Development 2005, pp.1–2
9. Planning Commission 2001, pp.12–20
10. Mukherjee, Pranab. "President Mukherje pays tribute to former Maharashtra
CM Vasantrao Naik". ANI. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
11. Planning Commission 2001, pp.15.
12. Planning Commission 2001, pp.16, 24–27
Visit a class group to place where MGNREGA work is taking place and collect
the information regarding their work and wages and discuss in your class?
29.12 KEYWORDS
Social audit: A social audit is a formal review of a company's endeavors,
procedures, and code of conduct regarding social responsibility and the company's
impact on society. A social audit is an assessment of how well the company is
achieving its goals or benchmarks for social responsibility.
Transparency: the condition of being transparent.
Accountability: the fact or condition of being accountable; responsibility.

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LESSON – 30
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
30.1 INTRODUCTION
Entrepreneurship is the process of designing, launching and running a new
business, which is often initially a small business. The people who create these
businesses are called entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurship has been described as the "capacity and willingness to
develop, organize and manage a business venture along with any of its risks to
make a profit." While definitions of entrepreneurship typically focus on the
launching and running of businesses, due to the high risks involved in launching
a start-up, a significant proportion of start-up businesses have to close due to "lack
of funding, bad business decisions, an economic crisis, lack of market demand, or a
combination of all of these."
A broader definition of the term is sometimes used, especially in the field
of economics. In this usage, an Entrepreneur is an entity which has the ability to
find and act upon opportunities to translate inventions or technologies into
products and services: "The entrepreneur is able to recognize the commercial
potential of the invention and organize the capital, talent, and other resources that
turn an invention into a commercially viable innovation." In this sense, the term
"Entrepreneurship" also captures innovative activities on the part of established
firms, in addition to similar activities on the part of new businesses.
30.2 OBJECTIVES
 To familiarize the students about the Entrepreneurship
 To make the students aware history of entrepreneurship
 To understand the relationship between small business and
entrepreneurship
 To inculcate the need of communication in entrepreneurship
30.3 CONTENTS
30.3.1 Elements
30.3.2 History
30.3.3 Relationship between small business and entrepreneurship
30.3.4 Types of entrepreneurs
30.3.5 Entrepreneurial behaviors
30.3.6 Communication
30.3.7 Psychological makeup
30.3.8 Strategic
30.3.9 Leadership
30.3.10 Global leadership
30.3.11 Entrepreneurship training and education
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30.3.12 Resources and financing

30.3.13 Additional financing
30.3.14 Predictors of success
30.3.1 Elements
Entrepreneurship is act of being an entrepreneur, or "the owner or manager of
a business enterprise who, by risk and initiative, attempts to make profits".
Entrepreneurs act as managers and oversee the launch and growth of an
enterprise. Entrepreneurship is the process by which either an individual or a team
identifies a business opportunity and acquires and deploys the necessary resources
required for its exploitation. Early-19th-century French economist Jean-Baptiste
Say provided a broad definition of entrepreneurship, saying that it "shifts economic
resources out of an area of lower and into an area of higher productivity and greater
yield". Entrepreneurs create something new, something different—they change or
transmute values. Regardless of the firm size, big or small, they can partake in
entrepreneurship opportunities. The opportunity to become an entrepreneur
requires four criteria. First, there must be opportunities or situations to recombine
resources to generate profit. Second, entrepreneurship requires differences between
people, such as preferential access to certain individuals or the ability to recognize
information about opportunities. Third, taking on risk is a necessity. Fourth, the
entrepreneurial process requires the organization of people and resources.
The entrepreneur is a factor in and the study of entrepreneurship reaches
back to the work of Richard Cantillon and Adam Smith in the late 17th and early
18th centuries. However, entrepreneurship was largely ignored theoretically until
the late 19th and early 20th centuries and empirically until a profound resurgence
in business and economics since the late 1970s. In the 20th century, the
understanding of entrepreneurship owes much to the work of economist Joseph
Schumpeter in the 1930s and other Austrian economists such as Carl
Menger, Ludwig von Mises and Friedrich von Hayek. According to Schumpeter, an
entrepreneur is a person who is willing and able to convert a new idea or invention
into a successful innovation. Entrepreneurship employs what Schumpeter called
"the gale of creative destruction" to replace in whole or in part inferior innovations
across markets and industries, simultaneously creating new products including
new business models. In this way, creative destruction is largely responsible for the
dynamism of industries and long-run economic growth. The supposition that
entrepreneurship leads to economic growth is an interpretation of the residual in
endogenous growth theory and as such is hotly debated in academic economics. An
alternative description posited by Israel Kirzner suggests that the majority of
innovations may be much more incremental improvements such as the replacement
of paper with plastic in the making of drinking straws.
The exploitation of entrepreneurial opportunities may include:
 Developing a business plan
 Hiring the human resources
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 Acquiring financial and material resources

 Providing leadership
 Being responsible for both the venture's success or failure
 Risk aversion
Economist Joseph Schumpeter (1883–1950) saw the role of the entrepreneur
in the economy as "creative destruction"–launching innovations that
simultaneously destroy old industries while ushering in new industries and
approaches. For Schumpeter, the changes and "dynamic disequilibrium brought on
by the innovating entrepreneur [were] the norm of a healthy economy". While
entrepreneurship is often associated with new, small, for-profit start-ups,
entrepreneurial behavior can be seen in small-, medium- and large-sized firms, new
and established firms and in for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, including
voluntary-sector groups, charitable organizations and government.
Entrepreneurship may operate within an entrepreneurship ecosystem which
often includes: Government programs and services that promote entrepreneurship
and support entrepreneurs and start-ups Non-governmental organizations such as
small-business associations and organizations that offer advice and mentoring to
entrepreneurs (e.g. through entrepreneurship centers or websites) Small-business
advocacy organizations that lobby governments for increased support for
entrepreneurship programs and more small business-friendly laws and regulations
Entrepreneurship resources and facilities (e.g. business incubators and seed
accelerators) Entrepreneurship education and training programs offered by schools,
colleges and universities
Financing (e.g. bank loans, venture capital financing, angel investing and
government and private foundation grants) In the 2000s, usage of the term
"entrepreneurship" expanded to include how and why some individuals (or teams)
identify opportunities, evaluate them as viable, and then decide to exploit
them. The term has also been used to discuss how people might use these
opportunities to develop new products or services, launch new firms or industries,
and create wealth. The entrepreneurial process is uncertain because opportunities
can only be identified after they have been exploited.
Entrepreneurs exhibit positive biases towards finding new possibilities and
seeing unmet market needs, and a tendency towards risk-taking that makes them
more likely to exploit business opportunities.
30.3.2 History
Historical usage
"Entrepreneur" is a loanword from French. The word first appeared in the
French dictionary entitled Dictionnaire Universel de Commerce compiled by Jacques
des Bruslons and published in 1723. Especially in Britain, the term "adventurer"
was often used to denote the same meaning. The study of entrepreneurship reaches
back to the work in the late 17th and early 18th centuries of Irish-French
economist Richard Cantillon, which was foundational to classical economics.
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Cantillon defined the term first in his Essai sur la Nature du Commerce en Général,
or Essay on the Nature of Trade in General, a book William Stanley Jevons
considered the "cradle of political economy".Cantillon defined the term as a person
who pays a certain price for a product and resells it at an uncertain price, "making
decisions about obtaining and using the resources while consequently admitting
the risk of enterprise". Cantillon considered the entrepreneur to be a risk taker who
deliberately allocates resources to exploit opportunities to maximize the financial
return. Cantillon emphasized the willingness of the entrepreneur to assume the risk
and to deal with uncertainty, thus he drew attention to the function of the
entrepreneur and distinguished between the function of the entrepreneur and the
owner who provided the money. Jean-Baptiste Say also identified entrepreneurs as
a driver for economic development, emphasizing their role as one of the collecting
factors of production allocating resources from less to fields that are more
productive. Both Say and Cantillon belonged to French school of thought and
known as the physiocrats.
Dating back to the time of the medieval guilds in Germany, a craftsperson
required special permission to operate as an entrepreneur, the small proof of
competence (Kleiner Befähigungsnachweis), which restricted training of apprentices
to craftspeople who held a Meister certificate. This institution was introduced in
1908 after a period of so-called freedom of trade (Gewerbefreiheit, introduced in
1871) in the German Reich. However, proof of competence was not required to start
a business. In 1935 and in 1953, greater proof of competence was reintroduced
(Großer Befähigungsnachweis Kuhlenbeck), which required craftspeople to obtain a
Meister apprentice-training certificate before being permitted to set up a new
business.
20th century
In the 20th century, entrepreneurship was studied by Joseph Schumpeter in
the 1930s and other Austrian economists such as Carl Menger, Ludwig von
Mises and Friedrich von Hayek. While the loan from French of the word
"entrepreneur" dates to the 1850, the term "entrepreneurship" was coined around
the 1920s. According to Schumpeter, an entrepreneur is willing and able to convert
a new idea or invention into a successful innovation. Entrepreneurship employs
what Schumpeter called "the gale of creative destruction" to replace in whole or in
part inferior offerings across markets and industries, simultaneously creating new
products and new business models, thus creative destruction is largely responsible
for long-term economic growth. The idea that entrepreneurship leads to economic
growth is an interpretation of the residual in endogenous growth theory[clarification
needed] and as such continues to be debated in academic economics. An alternative
description by Israel Kirzner suggests that the majority of innovations may be

incremental improvements such as the replacement of paper with plastic in the
construction of a drinking straw that require no special qualities.
For Schumpeter, entrepreneurship resulted in new industries and in new
combinations of currently existing inputs. Schumpeter's initial example of this was
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the combination of a steam engine and then current wagon making technologies to
produce the horseless carriage. In this case, the innovation (i.e. the car) was
transformational, but did not require the development of dramatic new technology.
It did not immediately replace the horse-drawn carriage, but in time incremental
improvements reduced the cost and improved the technology, leading to the
modern auto industry. Despite Schumpeter's early 20th-century contributions, the
traditional microeconomic theory did not formally consider the entrepreneur in its
theoretical frameworks (instead of assuming that resources would find each other
through a price system). In this treatment, the entrepreneur was an implied but
unspecified actor, consistent with the concept of the entrepreneur being the agent
of x-efficiency.
For Schumpeter, the entrepreneur did not bear risk: the capitalist did.
Schumpeter believed that the equilibrium was imperfect. Schumpeter (1934)
demonstrated that the changing environment continuously provides new
information about the optimum allocation of resources to enhance profitability.
Some individuals acquire the new information before others and recombine the
resources to gain an entrepreneurial profit. Schumpeter was of the opinion that
entrepreneurs shift the production possibility curve to a higher level using
innovations.
Initially, economists made the first attempt to study the entrepreneurship
concept in depth. Alfred Marshall viewed the entrepreneur as a multi-tasking
capitalist and observed that in the equilibrium of a completely competitive market
there was no spot for "entrepreneurs" as an economic activity creator.
21st century
In 2012, Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues Melanne Verveer
greets participants in an African Women's Entrepreneurship Program at the State
Department in Washington, D.C.
In the 2000s, entrepreneurship has been extended from its origins in for-profit
businesses to include social entrepreneurship, in which business goals are sought
alongside social, environmental or humanitarian goals and even the concept of
the political entrepreneur Entrepreneurship within an existing firm or large
organization has been referred to as intrapreneurship and may include corporate
ventures where large entities "spin-off" subsidiary organizations.
Entrepreneurs are leaders willing to take risk and exercise initiative, taking
advantage of market opportunities by planning, organizing and deploying
resources, often by innovating to create new or improving existing products or
services. In the 2000s, the term "entrepreneurship" has been extended to include a
specific mindset resulting in entrepreneurial initiatives, e.g. in the form of social
entrepreneurship, political entrepreneurship or knowledge entrepreneurship.
According to Paul Reynolds, founder of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor,
"by the time they reach their retirement years, half of all working men in the United
States probably have a period of self-employment of one or more years; one in four
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may have engaged in self-employment for six or more years. Participating in a new
business creation is a common activity among U.S. workers over the course of their
careers". In recent years, entrepreneurship has been claimed as a major driver
of economic growth in both the United States and Western Europe.
Entrepreneurial activities differ substantially depending on the type of
organization and creativity involved. Entrepreneurship ranges in scale from solo,
part-time projects to large-scale undertakings that involve a team and which may
create many jobs. Many "high value" entrepreneurial ventures seek venture
capital or angel funding (seed money) to raise capital for building and expanding
the business. Many organizations exist to support would-be entrepreneurs,
including specialized government agencies, business incubators (which may be for-
profit, non-profit, or operated by a college or university), science parks and non-
governmental organizations, which include a range of organizations including not-
for-profits, charities, foundations and business advocacy groups (e.g. Chambers of
commerce). Beginning in 2008, an annual "Global Entrepreneurship Week" event
aimed at "exposing people to the benefits of entrepreneurship" and getting them to
"participate in entrepreneurial-related activities" was launched.
30.3.3 Relationship between small business and entrepreneurship
The term "entrepreneur" is often conflated with the term "small business" or
used interchangeably with this term. While most entrepreneurial ventures start out
as a small business, not all small businesses are entrepreneurial in the strict sense
of the term. Many small businesses are sole proprietor operations consisting solely
of the owner—or they have a small number of employees—and many of these small
businesses offer an existing product, process or service and they do not aim at
growth. In contrast, entrepreneurial ventures offer an innovative product, process
or service and the entrepreneur typically aims to scale up the company by adding
employees, seeking international sales and so on, a process which is financed
by venture capital and angel investments. In this way, the term "entrepreneur" may
be more closely associated with the term "startup". Successful entrepreneurs have
the ability to lead a business in a positive direction by proper planning, to adapt to
changing environments and understand their own strengths and weakness.
Historians' ranking
A 2002 survey of 58 business history professors gave the top spots in
American business history to Henry Ford, followed by Bill Gates; John D.
Rockefeller; Andrew Carnegie, and Thomas Edison. They were followed by Sam
Walton; J. P. Morgan; Alfred P. Sloan; Walt Disney; Ray Kroc; Thomas J. Watson;
Alexander Graham Bell; Eli Whitney; James J. Hill; Jack Welch; Cyrus McCormick;
David Packard; Bill Hewlett; Cornelius Vanderbilt; and George Westinghouse. A
1977 survey of management scholars reported the top five pioneers in management
ideas were: Frederick Winslow Taylor; Chester Barnard; Frank Bunker Gilbreth
Sr.; Elton Mayo; and Lillian Moller Gilbreth.
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30.3.4 Types of entrepreneurs
Ethnic
The term "ethnic entrepreneurship" refers to self-employed business owners
who belong to racial or ethnic minority groups in the United States and Europe. A
long tradition of academic research explores the experiences and strategies of
ethnic entrepreneurs as they strive to integrate economically into mainstream U.S.
or European society. Classic cases include Jewish merchants and tradespeople in
large U.S. cities in the 19th and early 20th centuries as well as Chinese and
Japanese small business owners (restaurants, farmers, shop owners) on the West
Coast. In the 2010s, ethnic entrepreneurship has been studied in the case of
Cuban business owners in Miami, Indian motel owners of the U.S. and Chinese
business owners in Chinatowns across the United States. While entrepreneurship
offers these groups many opportunities for economic advancement, self-
employment and business ownership in the United States remain unevenly
distributed along racial/ethnic lines. Despite numerous success stories of Asian
entrepreneurs, a recent statistical analysis of U.S. census data shows that whites
are more likely than Asians, African-Americans and Latinos to be self-employed in
high prestige, lucrative industries.
Institutional
The American-born British economist Edith Penrose has highlighted the
collective nature of entrepreneurship. She mentions that in modern organizations,
human resources need to be combined to better capture and create business
opportunities. The sociologist Paul DiMaggio (1988:14) has expanded this view to
say that "new institutions arise when organized actors with sufficient resources
[institutional entrepreneurs] see in them an opportunity to realize interests that
they value highly". The notion has been widely applied.
Cultural
According to Christopher Rea and Nicolai Volland, cultural entrepreneurship is
"practices of individual and collective agency characterized by mobility between
cultural professions and modes of cultural production", which refers to creative
industry activities and sectors. In their book The Business of Culture (2015), Rea
and Volland identify three types of cultural entrepreneur: "cultural personalities",
defined as "individuals who buil[d] their own personal brand of creativity as a
cultural authority and leverage it to create and sustain various cultural
enterprises"; "tycoons", defined as "entrepreneurs who buil[d] substantial clout in
the cultural sphere by forging synergies between their industrial, cultural, political,
and philanthropic interests"; and "collective enterprises", organizations which may
engage in cultural production for profit or not-for-profit purposes.
Feminist
A feminist entrepreneur is an individual who applies feminist values and
approaches through entrepreneurship, with the goal of improving the quality of life
and well-being of girls and women. Many are doing so by creating "for women, by
women" enterprises. Feminist entrepreneurs are motivated to enter commercial
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markets by desire to create wealth and social change, based on the ethics of
cooperation, equality and mutual respect.
Social
Social entrepreneurship is the use of the by start up companies and other
entrepreneurs to develop, fund and implement solutions to social, cultural, or
environmental issues. This concept may be applied to a variety of organizations
with different sizes, aims, and beliefs. For-profit entrepreneurs typically measure
performance using business metrics like profit, revenues and increases in stock
prices, but social entrepreneurs are either non-profits or blend for-profit goals with
generating a positive "return to society" and therefore must use different metrics.
Social entrepreneurship typically attempts to further broad social, cultural, and
environmental goals often associated with the voluntary sector in areas such as
poverty alleviation, health care and community development. At times, profit-
making social enterprises may be established to support the social or cultural goals
of the organization but not as an end in itself. For example, an organization that
aims to provide housing and employment to the homeless may operate
a restaurant, both to raise money and to provide employment for the homeless
people.
Nascent
A nascent entrepreneur is someone in the process of establishing a business
venture. In this observation, the nascent entrepreneur can be seen as pursuing
an opportunity, i.e. a possibility to introduce new services or products, serve new
markets, or develop more efficient production methods in a profitable manner. But
before such a venture is actually established, the opportunity is just a venture
idea. In other words, the pursued opportunity is perceptual in nature, propped by
the nascent entrepreneur's personal beliefs about the feasibility of the venturing
outcomes the nascent entrepreneur seeks to achieve. Its prescience and value
cannot be confirmed ex ante but only gradually, in the context of the actions that
the nascent entrepreneur undertakes towards establishing the venture, Ultimately,
these actions can lead to a path that the nascent entrepreneur deems no longer
attractive or feasible, or result in the emergence of a (viable) business. In this sense,
over time, the nascent venture can move towards being discontinued or towards
emerging successfully as an operating entity.
The distinction between the novice, serial and portfolio entrepreneurs is an
example of behavior-based categorization. Other examples are the (related) studies
by, on start-up event sequences. Nascent entrepreneurship that emphasizes the
series of activities involved in new venture emergence, rather than the solitary act
of exploiting an opportunity. Such research will help separate entrepreneurial
action into its basic sub-activities and elucidate the inter- relationships between
activities, between an activity (or sequence of activities) and an individual's
motivation to form an opportunity belief, and between an activity (or sequence of
activities) and the knowledge needed to form an opportunity belief. With this
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research, scholars will be able to begin constructing a theory of the micro-

foundations of entrepreneurial action.
Scholars interested in nascent entrepreneurship tend to focus less on the
single act of opportunity exploitation and more on the series of actions in new
venture emergence, Indeed, nascent entrepreneurs undertake numerous
entrepreneurial activities, including actions that make their businesses more
concrete to themselves and others. For instance, nascent entrepreneurs often look
for and purchase facilities and equipment; seek and obtain financial backing,
form legal entities, organize teams; and dedicate all their time and energy to their
business.
Project-based
Project entrepreneurs are individuals who are engaged in the repeated
assembly or creation of temporary organizations. These are organizations that have
limited lifespans which are devoted to producing a singular objective or goal and get
disbanded rapidly when the project ends. Industries where project-based
enterprises are widespread include: sound recording, film production, software
development, television production, new media and construction. What makes
project-entrepreneurs distinctive from a theoretical standpoint is that they have to
"rewire" these temporary ventures and modify them to suit the needs of new project
opportunities that emerge. A project entrepreneur who used a certain approach and
team for one project may have to modify the business model or team for a
subsequent project.
Project entrepreneurs are exposed repeatedly to problems and tasks typical of
the entrepreneurial process. Indeed, project-entrepreneurs face two critical
challenges that invariably characterize the creation of a new venture: locating the
right opportunity to launch the project venture and assembling the most
appropriate team to exploit that opportunity. Resolving the first challenge requires
project-entrepreneurs to access an extensive range of information needed to seize
new investment opportunities. Resolving the second challenge requires assembling
a collaborative team that has to fit well with the particular challenges of the project
and has to function almost immediately to reduce the risk that performance might
be adversely affected. Another type of project entrepreneurship involves
entrepreneurs working with business students to get analytical work done on their
ideas.
Millennial
The term "millennial entrepreneur" refers to a business owner who is affiliated
with the generation that was brought up using digital technology and mass media—
the products of Baby Boomers, those people born during the 1980s and early
1990s. Also known as Generation Y, these business owners are well equipped with
knowledge of new technology and new business models and have a strong grasp of
its business applications. There have been many breakthrough businesses that
have come from millennial entrepreneurs such as Mark Zuckerberg, who
created Facebook. Despite the expectation of millennial success, there have been
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recent studies that have proven this to not be the case. The comparison between
millennials who are self-employed and those who are not self-employed shows that
the latter is higher. The reason for this is because they have grown up in a different
generation and attitude than their elders. Some of the barriers to entry for
entrepreneurs are the economy, debt from schooling and the challenges of
regulatory compliance.
30.3.5 Entrepreneurial behaviors
The entrepreneur is commonly seen as an innovator—a designer of new ideas
and business processes. Management skills and strong team building abilities are
often perceived as essential leadership attributes for successful entrepreneurs.
Political economist Robert Reich considers leadership, management ability and
team-building to be essential qualities of an entrepreneur.
Uncertainty perception and risk-taking
Theorists Frank Knight and Peter Drucker defined entrepreneurship in terms
of risk-taking. The entrepreneur is willing to put his or her career and financial
security on the line and take risks in the name of an idea, spending time as well as
capital on an uncertain venture. However, entrepreneurs often do not believe that
they have taken an enormous amount of risks because they do not perceive the
level of uncertainty to be as high as other people do. Knight classified three types of
uncertainty:
Risk, which is measurable statistically (such as the probability of drawing a
red color ball from a jar containing five red balls and five white balls)
Ambiguity, which is hard to measure statistically (such as the probability of
drawing a red ball from a jar containing five red balls but an unknown number of
white balls)
True uncertainty or Knightian uncertainty, which is impossible to estimate or
predict statistically (such as the probability of drawing a red ball from a jar whose
contents, in terms of numbers of coloured balls, are entirely unknown)
Entrepreneurship is often associated with true uncertainty, particularly when
it involves the creation of a novel good or service, for a market that did not
previously exist, rather than when a venture creates an incremental improvement
to an existing product or service. A 2014 study at ETH Zürich found that compared
with typical managers, entrepreneurs showed higher decision-making efficiency and
a stronger activation in regions of frontopolar cortex (FPC) previously associated
with explorative choice.
"Coachability" and advice taking
The ability of entrepreneurs to work closely with and take advice from early
investors and other partners (i.e. their coachability) has long been considered a
critical factor in entrepreneurial success. At the same time, economists have argued
that entrepreneurs should not simply act on all advice given to them, even when
that advice comes from well-informed sources, because entrepreneurs possess far
deeper and richer local knowledge about their own firm than any outsider. Indeed,
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measures of coachability are not actually predictive of entrepreneurial success (e.g.

measured as success in subsequent funding rounds, acquisitions, pivots and firm
survival). This research also shows that older and larger founding teams,
presumably those with more subject expertise, are less coachable than younger and
smaller founding teams.
Strategies
Strategies that entrepreneurs may use include:
 Innovation of new products, services or processes
 Continuous process improvement (CPI)
 Exploration of new business models
 Use of technology
 Use of business intelligence
 Use of economical strategics
 Development of future products and services
 Optimized talent management
Designing individual/opportunity nexus
According to Shane and Venkataraman, entrepreneurship comprises both
"enterprising individuals" and "entrepreneurial opportunities", so researchers
should study the nature of the individuals who identify opportunities when others
do not, the opportunities themselves and the nexus between individuals and
opportunities. On the other hand, Reynolds et al. argue that individuals are
motivated to engage in entrepreneurial endeavors driven mainly by necessity or
opportunity, that is individuals pursue entrepreneurship primarily owing to
survival needs, or because they identify business opportunities that satisfy their
need for achievement. For example, higher economic inequality tends to increase
necessity-based entrepreneurship rates at the individual level.
Opportunity perception and biases
One study has found that certain genes affecting personality may influence the
income of self-employed people. Some people may be able to use [weasel words] "an
innate ability" or quasi-statistical sense to gauge public opinion and market
demand for new products or services. Entrepreneurs tend to have the ability to see
unmet market needs and underserved markets. While some entrepreneurs assume
they can sense and figure out what others are thinking, the mass media plays a
crucial role in shaping views and demand. Ramoglou argues that entrepreneurs are
not that distinctive and that it is essentially poor conceptualizations of "non-
entrepreneurs" that maintain laudatory portraits of "entrepreneurs" as exceptional
innovators or leaders Entrepreneurs are often overconfident, exhibit illusion of
control, when they are opening/expanding business or new products/services.
Styles
Differences in entrepreneurial organizations often partially reflect their
founders' heterogenous identities. Fauchart and Gruber have classified
entrepreneurs into three main types: Darwinians, communitarians and
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missionaries. These types of entrepreneurs diverge in fundamental ways in their

self-views, social motivations and patterns of new firm creation.
30.3.6 Communication
Entrepreneurs need to practice effective communication both within their firm
and with external partners and investors to launch and grow a venture and enable
it to survive. An entrepreneur needs a communication system that links the staff of
her firm and connects the firm to outside firms and clients. Entrepreneurs should
be charismatic leaders, so they can communicate a vision effectively to their team
and help to create a strong team. Communicating a vision to followers may be well
the most important act of the transformational leader. Compelling visions provide
employees with a sense of purpose and encourage commitment. According to Baum
et al. and Kouzes and Posner, the vision must be communicated through written
statements and through in-person communication. Entrepreneurial leaders must
speak and listen to articulate their vision to others.
Communication is pivotal in the role of entrepreneurship because it enables
leaders to convince potential investors, partners and employees about the feasibility
of a venture. Entrepreneurs need to communicate effectively to shareholders.
Nonverbal elements in speech such as the tone of voice, the look in the sender's
eyes, body language, hand gestures and state of emotions are also important
communication tools. The Communication Accommodation Theory posits that
throughout communication people will attempt to accommodate or adjust their
method of speaking to others. Face Negotiation Theory describes how people from
different cultures manage conflict negotiation to maintain "face". Hugh Rank's
"intensify and downplay" communications model can be used by entrepreneurs who
are developing a new product or service. Rank argues that entrepreneurs need to be
able to intensify the advantages of their new product or service and downplay the
disadvantages to persuade others to support their venture.
Links to sea piracy
Research from 2014 found links between entrepreneurship and historical
sea piracy. In this context, the claim is made for a non-moral approach to looking
at the history of piracy as a source of inspiration for entrepreneurship educationas
well as for research in entrepreneurship and business model generation.
30.3.7 Psychological makeup
Stanford University economist Edward Lazear found in a 2005 study that
variety in education and work experience was the most important trait that
distinguished entrepreneurs from non-entrepreneurs A 2013 study by Uschi
Backes-Gellner of the University of Zurich and Petra Moog of the University of
Siegen in Germany found that a diverse social network was also important in
distinguishing students that would go on to become entrepreneurs.
Studies show that the psychological propensities for male and female
entrepreneurs are more similar than different. Empirical studies suggest that
female entrepreneurs possess strong negotiating skills and consensus-forming
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abilities. Asa Hansson, who looked at empirical evidence from Sweden, found that
the probability of becoming self-employed decreases with age for women, but
increases with age for men. She also found that marriage increased the probability
of a person becoming an entrepreneur.
Jesper Sørensen wrote that significant influences on the decision to become an
entrepreneur are workplace peers and social composition. Sørensen discovered a
correlation between working with former entrepreneurs and how often these
individuals become entrepreneurs themselves, compared to those who did not work
with entrepreneurs. Social composition can influence entrepreneurialism in peers
by demonstrating the possibility for success, stimulating a "He can do it, why can't
I?" attitude. As Sørensen stated: "When you meet others who have gone out on their
own, it doesn't seem that crazy".
Entrepreneurs may also be driven to entrepreneurship by past experiences. If
they have faced multiple work stoppages or have been unemployed in the past, the
probability of them becoming an entrepreneur increases Per Cattell's personality
framework, both personality traits and attitudes are thoroughly investigated by
psychologists. However, in case of entrepreneurship research these notions are
employed by academics too, but vaguely. According to Cattell, personality is a
system that is related to the environment and further adds that the system seeks
explanation to the complex transactions conducted by both—traits and attitudes.
This is because both of them bring about change and growth in a person.
Personality is that which informs what an individual will do when faced with a
given situation. A person's response is triggered by his/her personality and the
situation that is faced.
Innovative entrepreneurs may be more likely to experience what psychologist
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi calls "flow". "Flow" occurs when an individual forgets
about the outside world due to being thoroughly engaged in a process or activity.
Csikszentmihalyi suggested that breakthrough innovations tend to occur at the
hands of individuals in that state. Other research has concluded that a strong
internal motivation is a vital ingredient for breakthrough innovation. Flow can be
compared to Maria Montessori's concept of normalization, a state that includes a
child's capacity for joyful and lengthy periods of intense concentration.
Csikszentmihalyi acknowledged that Montessori's prepared environment offers
children opportunities to achieve flow. Thus quality and type of early education may
influence entrepreneurial capability.
Research on high-risk settings such as oil platforms, investment banking,
medical surgery, aircraft piloting and nuclear power plants has related distrust to
failure avoidance. When non-routine strategies are needed, distrusting persons
perform better while when routine strategies are needed trusting persons perform
better. This research was extended to entrepreneurial firms by Gudmundsson and
Lechner. They argued that in entrepreneurial firms the threat of failure is ever
present resembling non-routine situations in high-risk settings. They found that
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the firms of distrusting entrepreneurs were more likely to survive than the firms of
optimistic or overconfident entrepreneurs. The reasons were that distrusting
entrepreneurs would emphasize failure avoidance through sensible task selection
and more analysis. Kets de Vries has pointed out that distrusting entrepreneurs are
more alert about their external environment. He concluded that distrusting
entrepreneurs are less likely to discount negative events and are more likely to
engage control mechanisms. Similarly, Gudmundsson and Lechner found that
distrust leads to higher precaution and therefore increases chances of
entrepreneurial firm survival.
Researchers Schoon and Duckworth completed a study in 2012 that could
potentially help identify who may become an entrepreneur at an early age. They
determined that the best measures to identify a young entrepreneur are family and
social status, parental role modeling, entrepreneurial competencies at age 10,
academic attainment at age 10, generalized self-efficacy, social skills,
entrepreneurial intention and experience of unemployment.
30.3.8 Strategic
Some scholars have constructed an operational definition of a more specific
subcategory called "Strategic Entrepreneurship". Closely tied with principles of
strategic management, this form of entrepreneurship is "concerned about growth,
creating value for customers and subsequently creating wealth for owners". A 2011
article for the Academy of Management provided a three-step, "Input-Process-
Output" model of strategic entrepreneurship. The model's three steps entail the
collection of different resources, the process of orchestrating them in the necessary
manner and the subsequent creation of competitive advantage, value for customers,
wealth and other benefits. Through the proper use of strategic management/
leadership techniques and the implementation of risk-bearing entrepreneurial
thinking, the strategic entrepreneur is therefore able to align resources to create
value and wealth.
30.3.9 Leadership
Leadership in entrepreneurship can be defined as "process of social influence
in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment
of a common task" in "one who undertakes innovations, finance and business
acumen in an effort to transform innovations into economic goods". This refers to
not only the act of entrepreneurship as managing or starting a business, but how
one manages to do so by these social processes, or leadership skills.
Entrepreneurship in itself can be defined as "the process by which individuals,
teams, or organizations identify and pursue entrepreneurial opportunities without
being immediately constrained by the resources they currently control". An
entrepreneur typically has a mindset that seeks out potential opportunities during
uncertain times. An entrepreneur must have leadership skills or qualities to see
potential opportunities and act upon them. At the core, an entrepreneur is a
decision maker. Such decisions often affect an organization as a whole, which is
representative of their leadership amongst the organization.
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With the growing global market and increasing technology use throughout all
industries, the core of entrepreneurship and the decision-making has become an
ongoing process rather than isolated incidents. This becomes knowledge
management which is "identifying and harnessing intellectual assets" for
organizations to "build on past experiences and create new mechanisms for
exchanging and creating knowledge". This belief draws upon a leader's past
experiences that may prove useful. It is a common mantra for one to learn from
their past mistakes, so leaders should take advantage of their failures for their
benefit. This is how one may take their experiences as a leader for the use in the
core of entrepreneurship-decision making.
30.3.10 Global leadership
The majority of scholarly research done on these topics have been from North
America. Words like "leadership" and "entrepreneurship" do not always translate
well into other cultures and languages. For example, in North America a leader is
often thought to be charismatic, but German culture frowns on such charisma due
to the charisma of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. Other cultures, like some European
countries, view the term "leader" negatively, like the French. The participative
leadership style that is encouraged in the United States is considered disrespectful
in many other parts of the world due to the differences in power distance. Many
Asian and Middle Eastern countries do not have "open door" policies for
subordinates and would never informally approach their managers/bosses. For
countries like that, an authoritarian approach to management and leadership is
more customary.
Despite cultural differences, the successes and failures of entrepreneurs can
be traced to how leaders adapt to local conditions. With the increasingly global
business environment a successful leader must be able to adapt and have insight
into other cultures. To respond to the environment, corporate visions are becoming
transnational in nature, to enable the organization to operate in or provide
services/goods for other cultures.
30.3.11 Entrepreneurship training and education
Michelacci and Schivardi are a pair of researchers who believe that identifying
and comparing the relationships between an entrepreneur's earnings and education
level would determine the rate and level of success. Their study focused on two
education levels, college degree and post-graduate degree. While Michelacci and
Schivardi do not specifically determine characteristics or traits for successful
entrepreneurs, they do believe that there is a direct relationship between education
and success, noting that having a college knowledge does contribute to
advancement in the workforce.
Michelacci and Schivardi state there has been a rise in the number of self-
employed people with a baccalaureate degree. However, their findings also show
that those who are self-employed and possess a graduate degree has remained
consistent throughout time at about 33 percent. They briefly mention those famous
entrepreneurs like Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg who were college dropouts, but
318
they call these cases all but exceptional as it is a pattern that many entrepreneurs
view formal education as costly, mainly because of the time that needs to be spent
on it. Michelacci and Schivardi believe that in order for an individual to reach the
full success they need to have education beyond high school. Their research shows
that the higher the education level the greater the success. The reason is that
college gives people additional skills that can be used within their business and to
operate on a higher level than someone who only "runs" it.
30.3.12 Resources and financing
Entrepreneurial resources
An entrepreneurial resource is any company-owned asset that has economic
value creating capabilities. Economic value creating both tangible and intangible
sources is considered as entrepreneurial resources. Their economic value is
generating activities or services through mobilization by entrepreneurs.
Entrepreneurial resources can be divided into two fundamental categories: tangible
and intangible resources.
Tangible resources are material sources such as equipment, building,
furniture, land, vehicle, machinery, stock, cash, bond and inventory that has a
physical form and can be quantified. On the contrary, intangible resources are
nonphysical or more challenging to identify and evaluate, and they possess more
value creating capacity such as human resources including skills and experience in
a particular field, organizational structure of the company, brand name, reputation,
entrepreneurial networks that contribute to promotion and financial support,
know-how, intellectual property including both copyrights, trademarks and patents.
Bootstrapping
At least early on, entrepreneurs often "bootstrap-finance" their start-up rather
than seeking external investors from the start. One of the reasons that some
entrepreneurs prefer to "bootstrap" is that obtaining equity financing requires the
entrepreneur to provide ownership shares to the investors. If the start-up becomes
successful later on, these early equity financing deals could provide a windfall for
the investors and a huge loss for the entrepreneur. If investors have a significant
stake in the company, they may as well be able to exert influence on company
strategy, chief executive officer (CEO) choice and other important decisions. This is
often problematic since the investor and the founder might have different incentives
regarding the long-term goal of the company. An investor will generally aim for a
profitable exit and therefore promotes a high-valuation sale of the company or IPO
to sell their shares. Whereas the entrepreneur might have philanthropic intentions
as their main driving force. Soft values like this might not go well with the short-
term pressure on yearly and quarterly profits that publicly traded companies often
experience from their owners.
One consensus definition of bootstrapping sees it as "a collection of methods
used to minimize the amount of outside debt and equity financing needed from
banks and investors". The majority of businesses require less than $10,000 to
launch, which means that personal savings are most often used to start. In
319
addition, bootstrapping entrepreneurs often incur personal credit-card debt, but

they also can utilize a wide variety of methods. While bootstrapping involves
increased personal financial risk for entrepreneurs, the absence of any
other stakeholder gives the entrepreneur more freedom to develop the company.
Bootstrapping methods include:
 Owner financing, including savings, personal loans and credit card debt
 Working capital management that minimizes accounts receivable
 Joint utilization, such as reducing overhead by coworking or using
independent contractors
 Increasing accounts payable by delaying payment, or leasing rather than
buying equipment.
 Lean manufacturing strategies such as minimizing inventory and lean
startup to reduce product development costs.
30.3.13 Additional financing
Many businesses need more capital than can be provided by the owners
themselves. In this case, a range of options is available including a wide variety
of private and public equity, debt and grants. Private equity options include:
 Startup accelerators.
 Angel investors.
 Venture capital investors.
 Equity crowdfunding.
 Hedge funds.
 Debt options open to entrepreneurs include:
 Loans from banks, financial technology companies and economic
development organizations.
 Line of credit also from banks and financial technology companies.
 Microcredit also known as microloans.
 Merchant cash advance.
 Revenue-based financing.
 Grant options open to entrepreneurs include:
 Equity-free accelerators.
 Business plan/business pitch competitions for college entrepreneurs and
others.
 Small Business Innovation Research grants from the U.S. government.
Effect of taxes
Entrepreneurs are faced with liquidity constraints and often lack the
necessary credit needed to borrow large amounts of money to finance their
venture. Because of this, many studies have been done on the effects of taxes on
entrepreneurs. The studies fall into two camps: the first camp finds that taxes help
and the second argues that taxes hurt entrepreneurship.
320
Cesaire Assah Meh found that corporate taxes create an incentive to become
an entrepreneur to avoid double taxation. Donald Bruce and John Deskins found
literature suggesting that a higher corporate tax rate may reduce a state's share of
entrepreneurs. They also found that states with an inheritance or estate tax tend to
have lower entrepreneurship rates when using a tax-based measure. However,
another study found that states with a more progressive personal income tax have
a higher percentage of sole proprietors in their workforce. Ultimately, many studies
find that the effect of taxes on the probability of becoming an entrepreneur is small.
Donald Bruce and Mohammed Mohsin found that it would take a 50 percentage
point drop in the top tax rate to produce a one percent change in entrepreneurial
activity.
30.3.14 Predictors of success
Factors that may predict entrepreneurial success include the following:
Methods
 Establishing strategies for the firm, including growth and survival strategies
 Maintaining the human resources (recruiting and retaining talented
employees and executives)
 Ensuring the availability of required materials (e.g. raw resources used in
manufacturing, computer chips, etc.).
 Ensuring that the firm has one or more unique competitive advantages
 Ensuring good organizational design, sound governance and organizational
coordination
 Congruency with the culture of the society
Market
 Business-to-business (B2B) or business-to-consumer (B2C) models can be
used
 High growth market
 Target customers or markets that are untapped or missed by others
Industry
 Growing industry
 High technology impact on the industry
 High capital intensity
 Small average incumbent firm size
Team
 Large, gender-diverse and racially diverse team with a range of talents,
rather than an individual entrepreneur
 Graduate degrees
 Management experience prior to start-up
 Work experience in the start-up industry
 Employed full-time prior to new venture as opposed to unemployed
 Prior entrepreneurial experience
 Full-time involvement in the new venture
321
 Motivated by a range of goals, not just profit

 Number and diversity of team members' social ties and breadth of
their business networks
Company
 Written business plan
 Focus on a unified, connected product line or service line
 Competition based on a dimension other than price (e.g. quality or service)
 Early, frequent intense and well-targeted marketing
 Tight financial controls
 Sufficient start-up and growth capital
 Corporation model, not sole proprietorship
Status
 Wealth can enable an entrepreneur to cover start-up costs and deal
with cash flow challenges
 Dominant race, ethnicity or gender in a socially stratified culture
 Entrepreneurship is the process of designing, launching and running a new
business, which is often initially a small business. The people who create
these businesses are called entrepreneurs.
 An entrepreneurial resource is any company-owned asset that has economic
value creating capabilities. Economic value creating both tangible and
intangible sources is considered as entrepreneurial resources. Their
economic value is generating activities or services through mobilization by
entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurial resources can be divided into two
fundamental categories: tangible and intangible resources.
 Entrepreneurship is act of being an entrepreneur, or "the owner or manager
of a business enterprise who, by risk and initiative, attempts to make
profits". Entrepreneurs act as managers and oversee the launch and growth
of an enterprise. Entrepreneurship is the process by which either an
individual or a team identifies a business opportunity and acquires and
deploys the necessary resources required for its exploitation. Early-19th-
century French economist Jean-Baptiste Say provided a broad definition of
entrepreneurship, saying that it "shifts economic resources out of an area of
lower and into an area of higher productivity and greater yield".
1. Define entrepreneurship?
2. Evaluate the financial resources of a company?
3. Discuss tax effect of entrepreneurship?
30.6 SUMMARY
The entrepreneur is able to recognize the commercial potential of the invention
and organize the capital, talent, and other resources that turn an invention into a
commercially viable innovation." In this sense, the term "Entrepreneurship" also
captures innovative activities on the part of established firms, in addition to similar
322
activities on the part of new businesses. Entrepreneurship employs what

Schumpeter called "the gale of creative destruction" to replace in whole or in part
inferior innovations across markets and industries, simultaneously creating new
products including new business models Despite cultural differences, the successes
and failures of entrepreneurs can be traced to how leaders adapt to local
conditions. With the increasingly global business environment a successful leader
must be able to adapt and have insight into other cultures. To respond to the
environment, corporate visions are becoming transnational in nature, to enable the
organization to operate in or provide services/goods for other cultures.
1. Evaluate the role of Communication in Entrepreneurship?
2. Bring out the elements of entrepreneurship?
3. What do you understand by company?
4. Enumerate the role of Leadership in entrepreneurship?
 Qureshi, Hamid (3 September 2015). "Decoding Right Strategies for
Entrepreneurship". Greater Kashmir. Retrieved 30 March 2016.
 The 10 Richest Millennial Entrepreneurs in America". Inc.com. 12 December
2016. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
 Wilmouth, Daniel. "The Missing Millennial Entrepreneurs" (PDF). U.S. Small
Business Administration. Retrieved 2 June
 Corporate social entrepreneurship
 Entrepreneurship ecosystem
 Small Business Administration
30.9 ASSIGNMENT
1. Write an essay on the entreprenship in India and government policies on it?
30.10 REFERENCES
 AK Yetisen; LR Volpatti; AF Coskun; S Cho; E Kamrani; H Butt; A
Khademhos\\seini; SH Yun (2015). "Entrepreneurship". Lab Chip. 15 (18):
3638–3660. doi:10.1039/c5lc00577a. PMID 26245815.
 Katila, Riitta; Chen, Eric L.; Piezunka, Henning (7 June 2012). "All the right
moves: How entrepreneurial firms compete effectively" (PDF). Strategic
Entrepreneurship JNL. 6 (2): 116–132. doi:10.1002/sej.1130. Retrieved 18
May 2017.
 "Business Dictionary definition". Business Dictionary.
 Belicove, Mikal E. (2 August 2012). "How to Properly Close Your Business".
 Audretsch, David B.; Bozeman, Barry; Combs, Kathryn L.; Feldman,
Maryann; Link, Albert N.; Siegel, Donald S.; Stephan, Paula; Tassey,
Gregory; Wessner, Charles (2002). "The Economics of Science and
Technology". The Journal of Technology Transfer. 27 (2):
157. doi:10.1023/A:1014382532639.
 "entrepreneur". Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House. Retrieved 4
April 2018.
323
 Drucker, P. F. (1993). Innovation and entrepreneurship: practice and

principles. New York: HarperBusiness.
To collect the related to the
30.12 KEYWORDS
Nascent: (especially of a process or organization) just coming into existence
and beginning to display signs of future potential.
Entrepreneurs: a person who sets up a business or businesses, taking on
financial risks in the hope of profit.
Philanthropic: (of a person or organization) seeking to promote the welfare of
others; generous and benevolent.

324
159E1230
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Annamalai University: M.A. Political Science

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M.A. Political Science

CITIZEN AND CIVIL AWARENESS

Dr. C. Subramanian Dr. J. Subramaniyan

Dr. D. Ramakrishnan Dr. R. Srinivasan

M.A. Political Science

active citizenship rights versus responsibilities. If companies give rights of the

Structure of society (right)

dimensions of politics. A political culture is the product of both the collective

political culture of people of Manipur as it advances itself from the status of a

5.4 REVISION POINTS

through economic planning, thus securing to the Indian citizens justice—social,

8. "ministry document on PMKVY". Retrieved 6 July 2016.

a technological solution, will identify a beneficiary through biometric authentication

settlement of inheritance and property rights, and obtaining Government-issued

authority. Certificates can also be issued under special provisions to adopted

Enrollment only at ordinary place of residence.

Deletion of name or Correction, if required

Arunachal Pradesh Assam

Chhattisgarh Dadra & Nagar Haveli

Daman & Diu NCT of Delhi

Jammu & Kashmir Jharkhand

Lakshadweep Madhya Pradesh

Tamil Nadu Tripura

Uttarakhand Uttar Pradesh

West Bengal Telangana

Detailed addresses are available on the websites of the CEOs of respective

at motor vehicle departments (driver's license offices) as well as disability

 First Option – Write and submit the application number or EPIC

relevant supporting documents to the Electoral Registration Officer (ERO) of your

 Card holder’s parent’s Name.

It is also issued to foreign nationals (such as investors) subject to a valid visa,

Embassy or High Commission or Consulate in the country where the

 Download forms of schemes for care of older persons

Sl. Initial Deposit Maturity payable after

1 Scheme-I 50,000 Rs.3,00,232

2 Scheme-II 25,000 Rs.1,50,117

“TamilNaduArasu” (Tamilnadu Government) to prevent pilferage and

Days First and Third Week Second and Fourth Week

1. Primary 450 12 557.00 18.92

2. Upper Primary 700 20 735.00 22.77

Primary 4.13 2.48 1.65 2.81 6.94

Upper 6.18 3.71 2.47 0.86 7.04

9th & 10th 100% contribution by State Government 8.61

In your locality help deserved persons to enroll in these schemes and

Employment Exchanges have been renamed as "Employment Guidance and

 Certificate from Municipal Councilor/Sarpanch.

in the respective States to pre-register for impending job vacancies occurring in

At the national level, It is called the National Consumer Disputes Redressal

Issue corrective advertisement for any earlier misrepresentation

2 Right to Redress 1. Ignoring the loss suffered on purchase of defective goods

3 Right to Safety 1. While purchasing the goods or services, Consumer must

4 Right to 1. Do not get carried away by advertisements only or believe

5 Right to Choose 1. Access the information available on various alternatives

 Consumer Protection Act

Workflow for Grievance Redressal as handled by sites such as ActPlease.com

 Nature of cases received

2 Right to 1. Ignoring the loss suffered on purchase of defective goods

3 Right to Safety 1. While purchasing the goods or services, Consumer must

4 Right to 1. Do not get carried away by advertisements only or believe

5 Right to Choose 1. Access the information available on various alternatives

14.4 REVISION POINTS

 The Prevention of Black Marketing and Maintenance of Supplies of Essential