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Democracy is the government
Of the
people
For the people
and
By the
people.
In western countries, all the three
components are active.
Specially the 3rd one. People take
part in governance through various means and they can feel that they are
controlling the government through NGOs, or public opinions, volunteer work
and other means.
In developing countries, where the very
concept of democracy is new, the 3rd component is not yet matured or
active.
People are satisfied thinking that the
Government is for the people and of the people, and people simply want to demand
good governmece from the government. This is a medieval mentality accustomed to
be ruled by a king. The concept of volunteer work or public welfare is
almoist unheard of. Evrybody wait for the goverment as if the government is a
king.
For the government to be 'by the people',
people are happy to elect a guy and forget about it, and then complain. As a
result, we have created a class of 'professional politicians' in India whose
profession is to get elected year after year.
Only way people can actively
participate in governance is thorugh such NGOs, questing local reps,
news papers, public opinions, and others. In India, and particularly
in Assam, this 3rd component is entirely missing. People always rely of
local political parties.
The problem in Assam is not the illiterate
people. The problem is the educated people who need to be educated to
participate in governance. Most of the time, these are the people who want
to save Assam from India without actually knowing what the problem
is.
Rajen Barua
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Wednesday, May 04, 2005 6:54
PM
Subject: Re: [Assam] Oh, What A
Racket!
C-da,
You questioned the role of public in taking up tasks which are
supposed to provided by the govt - I called it NGO -as a broad name. However,
eve when the governments are 'highly effective' - as USA or UK ---there is a
definite role of the public.
The technical term is community participation. The participation can be
at various levels - the most effective is when the local community has an
active say in decision making and goal setting. The most wide spread
application is in the field of education and health.
As you were mentioning about my consulting people at Harvard - I have
taken and completed already a 2 and a half month module on this topic - taught
by a practitioner working at World Education, which has ongoing projects in
Africa, Asia and Latin America. We had many guest speakers from USAID and
other NGOs - who also highlighted the role communities can -do-must play in
ensuring effective governance.
Evolving partnerships: the role of NGOs in basic education in
Africa
Umesh
Chan Mahanta <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
wrote:
At
1:56 PM -0400 5/4/05, Prasenjit Chetia wrote:
>Yes, the Wild West Law
enforcement was effective as well as merciless.
>All were volunteers
and a few are legends. But they were tough and
>devoted to the job
they were supposed to do, a rare trait in present
>day
NGOs.
Prasenjit:
I don't know where you learn about
governance or
history from, but 1950's comic books are not a
great
source.
Anyway even the Wild West had its government.
People
made it up to suit local needs, to the
best of their abilities.
Eventhere were law
courts and judges and even lawyers. Those were
not NGOs, but GOs. Just because the central
territorial authorities
could not exercise its
influence in the far-flung outlying territories,
does not mean that these were NGOs.
Of necessity the local govts.
and laws! did not
have any uniformity. What was acceptable in one
locale might have been criminal in the next
settlement. But when the
states for organized,
uniform state laws applied.
Being ruthless
or merciless does not speak of the
quality of justice. If you are the
victim of
being framed for something you did not commit and
ruthless
justice was imposed on you, you may
think of it
differently.
> >But they were tough and
>devoted to
the job they were supposed to do, a rare trait in present
>day
NGOs.
*** Why do you think they were tough and devoted
to
duty? Religious like Texans?
or could survival have anything to do with
it?
If the sheriff could not do the job of protecting
the
settlement, he would be out of a job in a
hurry. There would be no
languishing in
suspension with pay for or decades, pending a
hearing
in a court. THAT IS LOCAL CONTROL, as
opposed to a REMOTE, all powe!
rful central
authority that cannot perform its duties.
>
>rare trait in present
>day NGOs.
Did you mean GOs here? I
did not know that NGOs
are not devoted to their jobs
either.
cm
>
>Prasenjit
>
>On
5/4/05, umesh sharma <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>wrote:
>>
>>
The sherrif and deputies system of law enforcement in the Wild West days
was
>> an NGO system? Invovling the local public in catching
criminals?
>>
>>
Umesh
>>
>>
>> Rajen Barua
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>wrote:
>>
>> >But it cannot be a
replacement for effective governance.
>>
>> And who says
that? Nobody. So the statement is irrelevant.
>> Rajen
>>
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message
-----
>> Fro! m: Chan Mahanta
>> To: Dilip/Dil Deka ;
Anjan K. Nath ; ASSAMNETCOLORADO
>> Sent: Wednesday, May 04, 2005
8:14 AM
>> Subject: Re: [Assam] Oh, What A
Racket!
>>
>> Citizen participation, NGOs, are good for
democracy. Even essential to make
>> govt. responsive. But it
cannot be a replacement for effective governance.
>>
>>
You can have the best NGOs in the world, but with a govt. like Indian
govt.
>> things will still not change. Because the Indian govt.
controls the powers,
>> the resources and holds the legitimate
authority. NGO's don't. All they can
>> do is cry and scream. It
helps, but is NOT a SUBSTITUTE.
>>
>> The absurdity
involved in these arguments is that we are proposing to resort
>>
to NGOs because the govt. is dysfunctional.
>>
>> If NGOs
are all we need, why do we need government?
>>
>> Thought
about
that?
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
At 5:50 AM -0700 5/4/05, Dilip/Dil Deka wrote:
>> Never know. That
idea may be in incubation already.
>>
>> "Anjan K. Nath"
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]>wrote:
>> BLOCKQUOTE { PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px;
PADDING-TOP: 0px } DL {
>> PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px }
UL { PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px;
>> PADDING-TOP: 0px } OL {
PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px } LI {
>> PADDING-BOTTOM:
0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px }
>> Tsk again tsk!
>> Why not send
a few GOOD NRAs back home on retirement and set a good example.
>>
>> AKN
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From:
Chan Mahanta
>> To: Dilip/Dil Deka ; ASSAMNETCOLORADO
>>
Sent: Tuesday, May 03, 2005 10:31 PM
>> Subject: ! Re: [Assam] Oh,
What A Racket!
>>
>> Tsk!
> >
>> But we
are talking about GOOD NGOs. Not all these corrupt garbage. Why
can't
>> you understand that? All we need are a few GOOD
ones.
>>
>> Let us look for a few good folks and maybe we
NRAs can incubate them :-).
>>
>> It would be a riot if
not for the fact that our best are driven to act so
>>
clueless.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
At 6:57 AM -0700 5/3/05, Dilip/Dil Deka wrote:
>> Want to know how
NGO's function in India? Below is an article written by
> >
Anupreeta Das, who was a journalist with
>Outlook India and who
happens to be
>> my niece. Many NGO's in India thrive on government
grants and serve as
&g! t;> employment or source of income to the
founder/s.
>>
>> Dilip
>>
>>
>> P.S. If you liked Anupreeta's writing, type in "Anupreeta Das"
in Google
>> search and you will find many other articles written
by her.
>>
===============================================================
>>
Oh, What A Racket!
>> Author: Anupreeta Das
>>
Publication: Outlook
>> Date: September 22, 2003
>>
Introduction: The hills are alive with the buzz of self-seeking NGOs,
many
>> existing only in name
>> Lush forests are not the
only bounty that Uttaranchal got in its kitty after
>> it became a
state in November 2000. It also got close to 45,000 NGOs�
>>
mind-boggling for a state so tiny, with a population of only 84.7
lakh.
>> Records from the offices of the chief commissioner of
income tax and the
>> registrar of societies confirm this huge N!
GO presence. What has also come as
>> a surprise to the authorities
is the unusually high density of NGOs in a
>> state with 13
districts. That's nearly 4,000 NGOs per district!
>> When
Uttaranchal's IT commissioner Ashwini Luthra initiated a survey of
NGOs
>> in May, he did not expect to chance upon a fraud that runs
into crores of
>> rupees. "When the IT department started
collecting data, we found that many
>> NGOs did not actually exist
or were non-functional," says Luthra. "Yet,
>> money is being
pumped into trusts, educational societies, NGOs and ashrams
>> all
over Uttaranchal."
>> While the IT office lists a total 44,824
groups, the office of the registrar
>> puts the figure at
41,826.
>> No wonder then that Uttaranchal's NGO community is rife
with allegations of
>> corruption and diversion of funds. Amidst
the profusion, one can find
>> registered NGOs ! such as the Mahila
Vikas Sansthan and Priyadarshini
>> Himalayan Seva Institute that
don't exist at their addresses, educational
>> societies that have
run up huge accounting discrepancies, and blacklisted
>> NGOs that
are ostensibly unaware of their disrepute.
>> Take, for instance,
the Bal Evam Mahila Kalyan Sansthan in Dehradun's Nehru
>> Nagar.
This NGO has been blacklisted by the Central Social Welfare
Board
>> (CSWB) for "non-refund of loans and non-submission of
accounts", but its
>> founder-director Parmanand Agarwal denies it
outright. "In the past, we have
>> run a tailoring centre, training
sessions for making incense sticks and
>> health relief camps with
funds from CAPART. Who says we have been
>> blacklisted?" asks
Agarwal. He took voluntary retirement from the army to
>> pursue
his "mission", which is to provide "literacy, health and
employment
>> for the peopl! e of Uttaranchal". His tiny one-room
office, which sits atop
>> his residence, houses the meagre tools
of his mission: a computer, a
>> typewriter, two desks, government
pamphlets and a telephone.
>>
>> Since 2001, Agarwal's NGO
has been running a tele- counselling centre for
>> HIV/AIDS under a
Rs 2.74 lakh grant from the National AIDS Control
>> Organisation.
"People call every few minutes asking about HIV/ AIDS," he
>>
informs us and opens a register to show calls recorded at two-minute
and
>> three- minute intervals. However, in the one hour we sat in
his office,
>> there was not a single call. Agarwal insists it is
because it's "lunch
>> break", presumably for callers too. Neither
he nor his colleague Dinesh
>> Chand seem to know much about HIV/
AIDS. "Hum pamphlet se padh ke batate
>> hain (We read out answers
to queries from the pamphlets)," explains Chand.
>&! gt; Faced
with reports and allegations of such misconduct, Dehradun's district
>
> magistrate ordered a survey of registered NGOs and societies in June
last
>> year. Dehradun district is home to 7,469 NGOs, the largest
concentration in
>> the state. The initial results of the survey
show that of 223 organisations
>> checked so far, 139 NGOs and
societies are fraudulent or registered only on
>> paper. "It is
quite evident that barely 10 per cent of the NGOs in Dehradun
>>
district are functional. The rest just sit there, waiting for funds to
come
> > by," says chief development officer P.S.
>Jangpangi. He says the situation in
>> the rest of
Uttaranchal is "even worse".
>>
>> Examination of bank
accounts has yielded irregularities in the funds of many
>> NGOs.
The Van Karamchari Welfare Society, for instance, could not
identify
>> the source of Rs 4.6 lakh in its bank acc! ount when
questioned by officials
>> of the District Programmes Office
(DPO).Setting up schools appears to be
>> another racket. In
October last year, a survey of educational societies by
>> the IT
department showed unaccounted funds to the "tune of several
crores",
>> says an IT official. However, Devender Mann, chairman
of the Doon
>> International School Education Society (not to be
confused with the renowned
>> Doon School), which is one of the
schools surveyed, dismisses it as
>> "baseless". "We are a no
profit, no loss society. All the money we earn from
>> students is
spent on improving school facilities," he says.
>> Furthermore, a
rough estimate by the registrar's office shows that nearly
>>
10,000 NGOs and societies have been registered since Uttaranchal
was
>> created. "After schools, NGOs are the sunrise industry,"
says Geetanjali, a
>> social worker with the develo! pment NGO
Rural Litigation and Entitlement
>> Kendra (RLEK).
>>
"Many paratroopers, lured by the funds on offer for a newborn state,
have
>> come in and set up NGOs," alleges RLEK chairman Avdhesh
Kaushal. Uttaranchal
>> is one of the few states that enjoys
special status with regard to central
>> government development
funds. Besides, several international aid agencies
>> too have
pitched their tents here. "There is money to be had, respect to
be
>> earned and very little work to be done. No wonder, starting
an NGO is a very
>> attractive option," says Kadambari Gosain, who
helps her husband S.S. Gosain
>> run the Kunwari Human Development
Institute in Dehradun.
>> The Gosains, however, have run into
financial difficulties and now run
>> private vocational training
courses even though their institute is
>> registered as a 'no
profit, no loss' one. "We are poor and honest. Why don't
>> you
talk to all those relatives of government officials who have
also
>> started their own NGOs?" asks Gosain.
>> There is
much speculation among the NGO community about the wives of
>>
Uttaranchal's bureaucrats running NGOs to line their pockets. But in
the
>> absence of any proof, the suspicion is mostly based on
observation and
>> hearsay. "These NGOs never participate in
workshops and meetings, so we
>> don't know what they do. They say
they have no sources of funds but they
>> bring out glossy
calendars and stationery every year," says J.M. Singh of
>> NGO
Mamta Samajik Kendra, which works on health- related issues in
the
>> Chakrata region.
>> The government policy itself
may be a reason for the mushrooming of NGOs.
>> Says Sushil Sharma
of Aarohi, which has been working in the Nainital-Almora
>> region
for 15 years, "Top government officials h! ave been mindlessly
>>
promoting development through the creation of women's self-help
groups,
>> which are registered as societies." At present,
registered mahila and yuva
>> mandals, which are intended as
grassroots empowerment groups for women and
>> the youth under a
CSWB scheme, number 20,401. Meanwhile, Singh argues that
>>
development NGOs should be registered separately from religious,
cultural
>> and educational societies in order to bring the number
down to "manageable"
>> levels.
>>
>> Uttaranchal
is not the only state in the country with such a large number of
>>
registered NGOs and societies�Maharashtra has approximately 50,000.But
the
>> number is suspect because of the state's size. According to
Sanjay Bapat of
> > the website www.indianngos.com, which
>maintains a database of NGOs in India,
>> of the 20 lakh
registered NGOs and societies in the ! country, only 30,000 or
>>
so are actually doing developmental work. How many of these are
in
>> Uttaranchal is anybody's guess.
>>
>>
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>
>
>--
>Prasenjit
Chetia
>Atlanta,
GA
>
>_______________________________________________
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