Good Governance Practices and the DARPG

The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) primarily carries out the many activities of documentation, and dissemination of good governance practices of Centre, State/Union Territory Governments with a view to share experiences and replication elsewhere. 

Besides, it maintains a repository of reference materials concerning public administration, management, information technology, human resource development in the shape of a rich and well equipped library. 

Financial Assistance for Professional Documentation of Good Governance Initiatives to State Governments/UTs 

The objective of the scheme is to provide financial assistance upto 3.00 lakh to support professional documentation and dissemination of good governance initiatives by the state/union territory governments with a view to sharing experience with each other and replicate elsewhere. 

So far seventy-two projects have been sanctioned. 

As per the revised scheme of providing financial assistance to the state government/UT administrations, the professional documentation report will now be in e-book form instead of paper documentation and a short documentary film shall also be made by the State/ UT Govt. with the financial assistance of 3.00 lakh. 

Production of Documentary Films on Best Practices 

The Department is engaged in producing documentary films on best practices across the country. These films are useful for the administrations and the dissemination of success stories would facilitate replication of the same elsewhere. 

Seventy-eight such documentary films have already been produced. These documentary films are available on the website of the Department as well as You Tube. 

Two panel discussions on excellence in implementation of four priority programme of the Government were organized and telecasted on DD National Channel on May 21-22, 2016. 

Research and Evaluation Studies on Good Governance Initiatives 

The objective of the initiative is to assess the present status of implementation of select good governance initiatives in view of technical advancements and to suggest changes to be incorporated for improving the initiative. 

It also provides suggestions on sustainability, scalability and replicability of these initiatives. 

In FY 2015-16, Research and Evaluation Study on 12 select good governance initiatives is being conducted through Indian Institute of Development Management, Bhopal. 

Regional Conferences 

Regional Conferences are organised on specific themes in association with various State/Union Territory Governments with a view to bring National and State level organizations along with other stakeholders including NGOs, intelligentsia, media, etc. on the same platform to share experiences in the formulation and implementation of good governance practices. 

During 2015-16, one regional conference on the theme ‘Minimum Government-Maximum Governance’ as part of Gati: Governance with Accountability, Transparency and Innovation was held in the month of December, 2015 at Bengaluru, Karnataka. 

Till date, 23 regional conferences were organized. 

Presentations on Best Practices 

In order to facilitate replication of the successful good governance initiatives in other states, presentations on best practices are being organised in New Delhi. 

During 2015- 16, the Department of AR&PG organised National Workshop on Best Practices in Citizen Centric Governance on September, 10-11, 2015 in New Delhi. 

Book on Best Practices 

This Division publishes a book containing articles on select award winning good governance practices. These articles are on the initiatives that have been conferred Prime Minister’s Award or National e-Governance Awards. 

This compilation is immensely useful for the administrators as the dissemination of success stories facilitates replication of the same elsewhere also. 

The Division has already published a series of books on the subject. These are:

1. Ideas that have Worked, 

2. Vichar Jo Kamyab Huye  

3. Learn from them, 

4. Inse Se ekhe 

5. Splendour in the Grass, 

6. Roofless Towers, 

7. Management by Listening, 

8. In Search of Light, 

9. People First, 

10. Some Gems Some Pearls, 

11. Thinking out of the Box, 

12. Lighted Windows

13. Tomorrow is Here. 

In 2016, two books namely The Change Makers and Re-creating Excellence has been published and released on the occasion of Civil Services Day, 2016. 

Minimum Government-Maximum Governance 

The Departmental quarterly Journal - Minimum Government Maximum Governance- earlier known as Management in Government provides a forum for frank exchange of views and opinions among administrators, academicians, scholars and others interested in public administration and public sector management. 

The Department has been bringing out this quarterly journal since 1969. 

Earlier the journal was a priced publication with subscribers from all over the country as well as overseas too. 

Towing the line of e-Governance, the journal has been transformed in e-Book format which is uploaded on the Department’s website and is free for all. 

e-Office Project 

e-Office is one of the 31 Mission Mode Projects (MMPs) identified in the erstwhile national e-Governance Plan-2006 

NeGP 1.0 and its implementation is being steered by the DAR&PG. 

The e-Office has been subsumed in the current Digital India Programme (NeGP 2.0). e-Office MMP Programme is being monitored on a regular basis by an apex committee headed by Cabinet Secretary.