or hand pump is to be fixed?
Where is the government
when a fused light bulb is
to be changed? Who will
empty the tens of thousands
of new septic tanks as a
consequence of Swachch
Bharat?
As a matter of fact, in
most of our villages there is
no government presence at
all, save for the occasional
school teacher in the
village school. If Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
contemplates filling this
vacuum he must begin with
the tier of bureaucracy that
interacts with people the
most. This is India’s district
administration.
India, as one state, has
never been larger. With 1.3
billion people under its flag,
today’s India, a fractious
and youthful democracy
with a billion unsatisfied
aspirations would easily
be the toughest public
administration challenge in
the world.
Its system of public
administration evolved over
the millennia as a system of
exercising imperial authority,
maintaining law and order,
and raising revenues. In
return, the state offered
security and stability, leaving
the myriad communities
to manage their everyday
affairs in the traditional
www.smartgovernance.in | February 2020 25