Journal Press India^®

Seven years of Governance at the Central Government in India under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi since 2014 till the end of 2021 without any scam or charges of corruption is in itself a testimony of good governance. Good Governance Day was established in 2014 on December 25, the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihar Vajpayee. “Good Governance Index 2021 was launched on Good Governance Day, December 25, 2021 by Union Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah where 20 States have improved their composite GGI scores in 2021. Gujarat tops the composite ranking in the 58-indicator index followed by Maharashtra and Goa. Uttar Pradesh registers 8.9 percent improvement in GGI indicators in the period 2019 to 2021. Jammu and Kashmir registers 3.7 percent improvement in GGI indicators in the period 2019 to 2021. Delhi tops the Union Territories category composite ranking.

Good Governance Index, (GGI) 2021 Framework covered ten sectors for GGI 2020-21:
1) Agriculture and Allied Sectors, 2) Commerce & Industries, 3) Human Resource Development, 4) Public Health, 5.) Public Infrastructure & Utilities, 6) Economic Governance, 7) Social Welfare & Development, 8) Judicial & Public Security, 9) Environment, and 10) Citizen-Centric Governance. The GGI 2020-21 categorises States and UTs into four categories, i.e., (i) Other States – Group A; (ii) Other States – Group B; (iii) North-East and Hill States; and (iv) Union Territories.

The GGI 2021 says that 20 States have improved their composite GGI scores over the GGI 2019 index scores. The sector-wise scores attained by the States and UTs indicates that strong performance in one or the other sector. Analysis of scoring also suggests that there is a very marginal difference among the States in their composite governance scores. This indicates that overall governance in the States of India is moving in the positive direction.”
https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1785140

It is said that if you cannot measure then you cannot manage. Hence, it is important to measure the indicator which constitute good governance to ensure economic develop which is inclusive. “Economic growth is about increasing the size of the pie, while equity ensures that everybody has a piece of it. The quality of governance can affect both these outcomes, positively or adversely. A total of 123 indicators have been included in the framework. This includes 22 indicators on political dimension, 24 on the legal‐judicial dimension, 42 on the administrative dimension, 18 on the economic dimension and 17 on the social‐environmental dimension. Out of the 123 indicators, 48 indicators pertain to secondary data and 75 indicators pertain to primary data.”

It is important to understand the values upon which good governance should be based. “Drawing on the governance literature and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the following six principles that are closest to ‘universal’ values have been identified:
1. Participation
2. Fairness
3. Decency
4. Accountability
5. Transparency
6. Efficiency
The last three principles refer specifically to how the officials behave in public office and the first three principles to the way they interact with citizens.” https://darpg.gov.in/sites/default/files/sogr_framework.pdf
The fruits of good governance can be seen from the macro-economic indicators and other indicators such as rank of ease of doing business which has improved consistently from 134 in 2014 to 63 in 2020 as reported by the World Bank report on doing business 2020 which is available on: https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/32436/9781464814402.pdf
 

It is expected that Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) also provide good governance so that future generations are developed in a holistic manner. Accreditation and rankings provide framework for measuring quality of HEIs. As per National Education Policy 2020 there are reforms which will take place in due course of time with respect to governance in education at all levels. The NEP 2020 provides for “a ‘light but tight’ regulatory framework to ensure integrity, transparency, and resource efficiency of the educational system through audit and public disclosure while encouraging innovation and out-of-the-box ideas through autonomy, good governance, and empowerment” https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf

It is clear from the above that governance is very high on the agenda not only at the level of Central Government and State Government but also at the level of educational institutions, companies, and other forms of organisations. It is the responsibility of HEIs to create an enabling environment through good governance where the young minds are developed in a manner where creativity and innovation is nurtured with ethics and values. NEP 2020 provides enabling policy framework for student centric education along with the freedom of designing their own degree. Good Governance in all organisations can help India to move on the journey to become super power and Vishwa Guru.

Professor Ajay Kumar Singh
Editor-in-Chief
Vice Chancellor – Sri Sri University