2nd ARC Recommendations

1. RTI
a. Official Secrets Act, 1923 should be repealed, and substituted by a chapter in the
National Security Act
b. Enforcement of a Manual of Office Procedure through all the administrative lines
c. GOI should ensure the constitution of SICs in all States within 3 months
d. Estd. Public Records Offices within 6 months by integrating and restructuring record
keeping
e. Setup a National Coordination Cmtee for the effective enforcement and the
management of the Act
f. Lowest office in any organisation which is the custodian of records should be
recognised by the senior-most authority
g. Extend act to legislature and the judiciary: open public the working of Legislative
Cmtees
2. Human Capital
a. Include ‘households’ in MGNREGA with proper definition
b. Job cards be issued via National Citizen Identification Number (NCIN)
c. Rigorous evaluation to assess the socio-economic impact
d. Baseline performance indicators be worked out especially for health and education
e. Fixed wage prescription under MGNREGA and Minimum Wages Act 1948
f. Payments be made on a piece rate system
g. State governments ensure an inter-district variation of rates
h. Eliminate leakages by templating general works and the worker’s profile
3. Crisis Management
a. A new entry, “Management of Disasters and Emergencies, natural or man-made,”
may be included in List III (Concurrent List) of the Seventh Schedule of the
Constitution.
b. Creation of Legal and Institutional Framework for Managing Floods in Inter-State
Rivers
c. Enunciating a National Policy on Disaster Mgmt. which emphasizes risk reduction
d. Create district disaster management plans based on a) long term development plan
b) long term enforcement plan
e. Structural prevention measures be a part of long-term disaster management plan
for an area
f. Ensure unity of command for rescue operations: agencies of Union and State govts
work under District Collector
g. Adequate training of policemen, home guards and fire services who are the first
respondents towards the disaster
h. Setup Integrated Emergency Operations Centre (IEOCs)
i. Inclusion and enforcement of ‘epidemics and pandemics’ in the Disaster
Management Act 2005 and the Public Health Emergency Bill
4. Ethics
a. Encouraging efforts to improve India’s rank on the Transparency International
Corruption Index
b. Anti-defection- Disqualification of members on grounds of defection should be
decided by the President/Governor on the advice of the Election Commission.
 c. Disqualification- Section 8 of the RPA, 1951 needs to be amended to disqualify all
persons facing heinous charges suggested by the Election Commission.
d. Special Election Tribunals should be constituted at the regional level under Article
323B of the Constitution to ensure speedy disposal of election petitions and disputes
within a stipulated period of six months.
e. Grounds of Disqualification for Membership by Appropriate legislation under Article
102(e) of the Constitution with conditions for disqualification. States may also
legislate under Article 198(e).
f. Prevention of Corruption Act needs to be amended to provide for a special offence
of ‘collusive bribery’ and along with fast-track trials
g. Legislation should be enacted immediately to provide protection to whistle-blowers
on the following lines proposed by the Law Commission
h. Constitution should be amended to provide for a national ombudsman to be called
the Rashtriya Lokayukta. States’ Ombudsman aka Lokayuktas can be constituted on
similar lines
i. Legislation on the lines of the US False Claims Act should be enacted, providing for
citizens and civil society groups to seek legal relief against fraudulent claims against
the government.
5. Public Order
a. ‘Obstruction of justice’ should also be defined as an offence under the Draft Model
Police Act
b. Crime Investigation Agency for non-policing functions be constituted for each state
c. Estd. State Police Establishment Commission along with a performance and
accountability commission
d. Task force by Ministry of Home Affairs to identify those laws whose implementation,
including investigation of traffic violations could be transferred to the implementing
departments.
e. Adequate training, welfare measures and rational working hours should be strictly
followed for all police personnel.
f. The representation of women be increased to 33% through affirmative action
g. The intelligence gathering machinery in the field needs to be strengthened and at
the same time, made more accountable.
h. Fresh guidelines may be drawn up for regulation of processions, protest marches
and morchas on the lines of Article 19(1)(b) of the Constitution
i. A system of local courts should be introduced as an integral part of the judiciary to
try all the criminal cases
j. Re-examine certain offences which have inter-state or national scope and include
them in a new law.
6. Local Governance
a. Encourage local bodies to run/ manage utilities such as transport, water supply and
power distribution on a sound financial basis and viability.
b. State Panchayat Acts and the Urban local Bodies Acts should be amended to include
provisions pertaining to the local body Ombudsman.
c. Space technology should be harnessed by the local bodies to create an information
base and for providing services.
d. Parliament may by law provide for constitution of a Legislative Council in each State,
consisting of members elected by the local governments.
 e. Delimitation and reservation of constituencies should be entrusted to the State
Election Commissions (SECs)
f. State Finance Commission should evolve objective and transparent norms for
devolution and distribution of funds.
g. District Council be constituted in all districts with representation from rural and
urban areas.
h. States must undertake comprehensive activity mapping for the matters mentioned
in the Eleventh Schedule.
i. Effective Implementation of the Tribal Sub-Plan (TSP)
j. Union and State legislations be modified as per PESA for compliance with Fifth
Schedule areas.
7. Capacity Building
a. Special task forces like the Greyhounds in Andhra Pradesh for tackling left
extremism.
b. Breaking the nexus between illegal mining/forest contractors and transporters and
extremists which provides the financial support for the extremist movement
c. For SEZs, comprehensive land use plans should be prepared and finalised after wide
public consultations.
d. Appreciate Article 262 of the Constitution provides that neither the Supreme Court
nor any other Court shall exercise jurisdiction in respect of inter-State River disputes
e. For communal violence, existing provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the
Criminal Procedure Code need to be strengthened.
f. NEC Act, 1971 may be suitably amended to restore the original ‘conflict resolution
provision’
g. Implementation of a ‘Look East’ policy though relevant for the country, is especially
important for the long-term growth of the Northeast.
8. Terrorism
a. Need to define more clearly those criminal acts which can be construed as being
terrorist in nature.
b. Review Committee should be constituted to examine each Prima facie case
registered, within 30 days of its registration
c. Provisions for constitution of Special Fast Track Courts exclusively for trial of
terrorism related cases may be incorporated in the law on terrorism
d. Provision for penalizing unauthorized possession of certain specified arms including
WMDs may be incorporated in the law on terrorism
e. Financial transaction reporting regime under the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU-IND)
may be extended to cover high risk sectors
f. Amend PMLA to expand the list of predicate offences to widen its scope and
outreach.
9. Social Capital
a. Accreditation of voluntary organisations which seek funding from government
agencies
b. Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Bill, 2006 needs to be amended for (a) speedy
disposal of registration / prior permission petitions received from organisations, (b)
effective monitoring of their activities
c. State Governments, NABARD and commercial Banks should join to prepare a
directory of activities and financial products towards SHGs
 d. Micro-finance institutions should be kept out of the purview of the State laws on
moneylending
e. Implement Short-term Rural Cooperative Credit Structure (STCCS) on the lines of
Vaidyanathan Committee Report should be completed immediately.
10. Civil Services
a. Composition of governing bodies of the national training institutions should be
broadened by inducting eminent experts.
b. Central Civil Services Authority should be constituted under the proposed Civil
Services Bill
c. CCSA fixes tenure for all civil service positions
d. ‘Civil Services Values’ and the ‘Code of Ethics’ should be incorporated in the
proposed Civil Services Bill.
e. Officers from the organized services should not be given ‘non-fi eld’ assignments in
the first 8-10 years of their career.
f. Recognise outstanding work of serving civil servants including through National
awards
g. Setup an effective performance appraisal system
h. A system of two intensive reviews – one on completion of 14 years of service, and
another on completion of 20 years of service - should be established for all
government servants
11. eGovernance
a. Congenial environment is a sine qua non for successful implementation of e-
Governance initiatives
b. Implementation of e-Governance projects would involve a detailed ‘project
management’ exercise
c. Develop a national e-Governance ‘enterprise architecture’ framework as has been
done in some countries.
d. Institutional Framework for Coordination and Sharing of Resources/ Information
e. Allocation of Business Rules, 1961 may be suitably amended to incorporate these
elements regarding ‘e-Governance’.
f. Gram Panchayats should be involved in monitoring the operation of the Common
Services Centres
g. Definition of e-Governance, its objectives and role must include a Parliamentary
oversight mechanism
12. Citizens’ Charter
a. Principle of subsidiarity should be followed while deciding on the implementation
machinery for any programme
(Principle of Subsidiary holds that a larger and greater body should not exercise
functions which can be carried out efficiently by one smaller and lesser)
b. Seven-Step Model for Citizen Centricity
c. Internal processes and structure should be reformed to meet the commitments
given in the Charter.
d. Regular citizens’ feedback and survey and citizens’ report cards for all government
organisations to gauge citizens’ responses to their services.
e. Proactive approach for detection and registration of the physically challenged
persons
f. Lok Adalat would be effective in settling many consumers disputes
 g. For smaller States, a single ‘multi-role’ Commission may be constituted which would
carry out the specific functions of all the constitutional and statutory Commissions at
the State level.
13. Organisational Structure of Government of India
a. First or Coordinating Minister for the purpose of providing overall leadership and
coordination be laid down in the Allocation of Business Rules.
b. Allocation of Business Rules provides the mission of the department followed by a
list of subjects and functions
c. Number of levels through which a file passes for a decision should not exceed three.
d. Manual of Office Procedure should be recast based on the principles on which the
Ministry functions
e. Setup Regulator for a detailed review towards the policy regime in the concerned
sector.
f. Parliamentary oversight of regulators should be ensured through the respective
Departmentally Related Standing Parliamentary Committees.
14. Strengthening Financial Management Systems
a. Top-down technique on broader resource allocations as well as on outcomes rather
than processes has also been recommended
b. Minimise the budget gap between the ‘estimates’ and ‘actuals’
c. Synergy between the audit and auditees for enhanced public accountability and
consequently better audit impact.
d. Office of the Chief Internal Auditor (CIA) should be established in select
Ministries/departments to carry out the functions related to internal audit
e. Standards for internal audit should be prescribed by the Office of the CAG.
f. Robust financial information system, like Brazil, needs to be created in the
government in a time bound manner
15. State and District Administration
a. Role of Chief Secretaries be redefined via executive work and larger delegation of
power to the executive departments/agencies
b. State Administrative Training Institutes (ATIs) should be embedded as Centres of
Good Governance
c. PSCs should handle recruitment of candidates for higher level posts under the State
Government and teachers’ recruitment in govt colleges and universities
d. Setup District Council through an integrated governing structure at the district level
by representing both, urban and rural.
e. MCD including appointment of the Commissioner and other functionaries should lie
in the domain of the GNCT through suitable amendments
f. NCR Planning Board should remain a planning, monitoring and advisory body for
NCR
g. Separate wing for the North-East Division of the Ministry of Home Affairs under an
Additional/Special Secretary
h. Linking Sixth Schedule and the 73rd Amendment