{"id":19187,"date":"2023-12-02T18:44:43","date_gmt":"2023-12-02T13:14:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/current_affairs\/?p=19187"},"modified":"2023-12-18T11:42:41","modified_gmt":"2023-12-18T06:12:41","slug":"improving-the-capability-of-the-indian-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/editorial-analysis\/02-12-2023\/improving-the-capability-of-the-indian-state","title":{"rendered":"Improving the Capability of the Indian State\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS2\/ Polity and Governance&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">In Context<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The states&#8217; role and political and policy trajectories are critical for India\u2019s governance.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Position of Indian states &amp; Civil governance&nbsp;<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>With 28 states and eight union territories, 22 official languages, and 54 recognized state-based political parties, it becomes significant to improving the capability of the Indian states.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Shortcomings:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>In the G-20 group, the country has the<strong> smallest number of civil servants <\/strong>per capita.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The<strong> public sector share in total employment<\/strong> in India (at 5.77%) is half the corresponding figures for Indonesia and China, and just about a third of that in the United Kingdom.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>With approximately 1,600 per million, the <strong>number of central government personnel in India <\/strong>pales compared to 7,500 in the United States.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Similarly, the<strong> per capita number <\/strong>of doctors, teachers, town planners, police, judges, firefighters, inspectors for food and drugs, and regulators is the lowest even among countries at a similar stage of development.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The Indian state is relatively small on the other metrics, such as the<strong> tax-GDP ratio<\/strong> and <strong>public expenditure-GDP ratio<\/strong>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Challenges<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Scarcity on all grounds:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Be it public goods provisions, welfare payments, or the justice system, it is a story of scarcity rather than surplus.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Due to an <strong>inadequate state capability<\/strong>, governments at the Centre and States end up outsourcing services that are better provided by the public sector, such as primary health.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Low on performance:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The unwieldy state\u2019s performance is disappointing on all fronts be it students\u2019 learning outcomes, child and maternal mortalities, farm and firm productivity, traffic conditions, and crime rates, among others.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Limitation of civil &amp; political servants:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>One of the significant problems is the <strong>perverse incentives<\/strong> created by public institutions and the <strong>skill gap<\/strong> among officials.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>These factors have<strong> eroded the ability of the political executive<\/strong> and civil services to make and implement sound policies.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Extreme concentration within departments:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>There is an extreme concentration of policy-making and implementation powers within departments.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The technocratic gap:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The top policymakers need more<strong> technocratic skills <\/strong>to govern an increasingly complex economy.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>In the<strong> absence of adequate capability<\/strong> to deal with economic, financial, contract and other technical matters, the Centre and the States hire consultancy firms.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Suggestions<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Separating policymaking and implementation:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Experiences of countries such as Australia, Malaysia and the United Kingdom show that separating policymaking and implementation responsibilities<strong> expedites execution and encourages innovations<\/strong>, making the programmes<strong> better suited to local contexts.<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Indian case in point is the National Highways Authority of India, which is tasked with executing national highway projects, while policy decisions are made at the ministry level.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>This arrangement has <strong>drastically reduced delays <\/strong>and <strong>cost <\/strong>overruns.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Delegating power to frontline functionaries:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Restrictions on the frontline personnel to decide on implementation-related issues foster a <strong>culture of mistrust<\/strong> and <strong>lack of accountability<\/strong> for poor implementation.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The vicious cycle wherein poor delegation and a deficient state capability feed each other can be broken by <strong>delegating financial and administrative powers<\/strong> to the frontline functionaries, with clearly defined processes for using them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Filling the technocratic gap:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>An<strong> institutionalised and regular lateral entry<\/strong> at the mid and senior levels can help fill the <strong>civil services\u2019 size and technocratic gap<\/strong>.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Qualified officers in<strong> non-IAS services <\/strong>(such as the Indian Revenue, Economic and Statistical Services) <strong>should get a fair shot<\/strong> at<strong> high-level positions<\/strong> if they have the talent and the expertise required.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Civil servants at different levels can be provided<strong> subject-specific training under Mission Karmayogi <\/strong>(National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Providing professional strength to SEBI &amp; RBI:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>There is a need to augment the strength of professional staff with market watchdogs, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The first has just about 800 professionals, whereas its counterpart in the U.S., the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, has more than 4,500 experts to govern the corporates.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Similarly, the professional staff strength of the RBI, less than 7,000, is tiny when compared to the US Federal Reserve which is assisted by 22,000 odd professionals.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Role of oversight agencies:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The oversight agencies must be sensitised to appreciate the context of policy decisions.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>They should factor in the costs associated with the actual decisions as well as their alternatives.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Need of motivated personnel:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It is well known that performance-linked pay and incentive schemes such as bonuses, which work well in the private sector, are not very effective in the public sector.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The public sector <strong>must attract intrinsically motivated individuals<\/strong> to contribute to the social good.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Cutting the breeding ground of corruption:<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Except at the top, for most of the skill spectrum, public sector salaries are much higher than private wages.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It breeds corruption in appointments as it makes government jobs very <strong>lucrative for all, socially driven or not.<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The solution lies in <strong>moderate pay raises<\/strong> by the future Pay Commission and a <strong>reduction in the upper age limit for government jobs<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Way Ahead<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Indian state is a paradox of too big and yet too small. There is a need for a bigger role for the state\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Increased public spending on health, education, social security and&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>A larger officialdom to go with it.&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table is-style-regular\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#d0d6f5\"><tbody><tr><td><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><strong>Daily Mains Question<\/strong><br><\/span><strong>[Q] <\/strong>Analyse the role of Indian states in the development trajectory of India. What are the limitations &amp; challenges for the states at the political and policy level?<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-layout-flex wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/2_12_Improving-the-capability-of-the-Indian-state-.pdf\">Download PDF<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Syllabus: GS2\/ Polity and Governance&nbsp; In Context Position of Indian states &amp; Civil governance&nbsp; Challenges Suggestions Way Ahead Daily Mains Question[Q] Analyse the role of Indian states in the development trajectory of India. What are the limitations &amp; challenges for the states at the political and policy level?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-editorial-analysis"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19187"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19187\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19705,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19187\/revisions\/19705"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}