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UPSC MainsGeneral Studies Paper IIGovernancePractice question

Transparency and Grievance Redressal in Good Governance

Why are transparency and grievance redressal mechanisms essential for good governance? Discuss the challenges associated with their effective implementation.

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How to approach

Introduce by linking transparency and grievance redressal to constitutional values and judicial precedents. Highlight their vital role in achieving good governance through accountability, citizen trust, and feedback loops. Examine the core challenges impeding their effective implementation, and conclude with actionable reforms guided by the 2nd ARC and Sevottam Model.

Model answer

320 words

Introduction

Transparency, rooted in Article 19(1)(a), and grievance redressal, anchored in Article 350, constitute the twin pillars of citizen-centric governance. In State of UP v. Raj Narain, the Supreme Court affirmed that citizens possess a fundamental right to know every public act, reinforcing the principle that openness and responsiveness are vital prerequisites for a mature democracy.

Significance for Good Governance

Transparency and grievance redressal bridge the citizen-state divide by transforming passive administration into responsive public management.

  • Ensuring Accountability and Integrity: Proactive disclosures (such as Rajasthan’s Jan Soochna Portal) and digital public procurement (such as the Government e-Marketplace / GeM) curtail bureaucratic arbitrariness, curb corrupt practices, and optimize public resource allocation.
  • Feedback-Driven Service Delivery: Effective grievance redressal identifies systemic failures and policy design gaps. Reforms under CPGRAMS, mapping over one lakh officers, helped compress the average resolution duration to 13 days in 2024.
  • Fostering Public Trust: A prompt and transparent administrative machinery diminishes citizen alienation and enriches participatory democracy.

Challenges in Effective Implementation

Despite progressive legal frameworks, several systemic and operational bottlenecks hinder optimal functioning:

  • Statutory Friction (Privacy vs. Transparency): Section 44(3) of the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023 amended Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act, 2005, removing the 'larger public interest' override and creating blanket personal information exemptions that impede public scrutiny.
  • Superficial and Mechanical Redressal: Administrative apathy often prompts bureaucratic 'tick-box' closures of grievances on grievance portals without addressing systemic, root-cause failures.
  • Persistent Digital Divide: An overwhelming reliance on digital avenues (such as CPGRAMS or e-Daakhil) marginalizes rural, digitally illiterate, and socio-economically disadvantaged citizens.
  • Institutional Deficits: Persistent vacancies across Central and State Information Commissions, combined with suboptimal implementation of the Whistle Blowers Protection Act, compromise institutional efficacy.

Conclusion

To institutionalize genuine accountability, governance must transition from reactive compliance to proactive excellence by adopting the 2nd ARC-recommended Sevottam Model. Scaling institutionalized social audits and enforcing time-bound resolution guidelines will ensure that transparency mechanisms empower citizens rather than remaining administrative formalities.

Key facts to remember

case study
State of UP v. Raj Narain (1975)

The Supreme Court recognized that the right to know is derived from the freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1)(a), establishing that public officials must remain transparent in public acts.

statistic

Administrative reforms and the mapping of over 1 lakh grievance officers reduced the average grievance disposal time on the CPGRAMS platform to 13 days in 2024.

— Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG)
scheme
Sevottam Model

An administrative assessment framework recommended by the 2nd Administrative Reforms Commission focusing on citizen charters, public grievance redressal, and service delivery excellence.

Frequently asked questions

How does the DPDP Act 2023 affect the RTI Act 2005?

Section 44(3) of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 amended Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act by removing the provision that allowed disclosure of personal information if justified by a larger public interest.

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