UPSC Mains 2016 GS4 Q14 — NGO and Bureaucracy
Saraswati was a successful IT professional in USA. Moved by the patriotic sense of doing something for the country she returned to India. Together with some other like-minded friends, she formed an NGO to build a school for a poor rural community. The objective of the school was to provide the best quality modern education at a nominal cost. She soon discovered that she has to seek permission from a number of Government agencies. The rules and procedures were quite confusing and cumbersome. What frustrated her most was the delays, callous attitude of officials and constant demand for bribes. Her experience and the experience of many others like her has deterred people from taking up social service projects. A measure of Government control over voluntary social work is necessary. But it should not be exercised in a coercive or corrupt manner. What measures can you suggest to ensure that due control is exercised but well meaning, honest NGO efforts are not thwarted ? (300 words) 25
Question Decoded — examiner's intent
- Directive verbs
- suggest
- Scope keywords
- Saraswati was a successful IT professionalmodern education at a nominal costdelays, callous attitude of officials and constant demand for bribesdeterred people from taking up social service projectsGovernment control over voluntary social work is necessarycoercive or corrupt mannerhonest NGO efforts are not thwarted
- Implicit sub-parts
- Justification for government regulation of NGOs (Accountability, Security, Transparency).
- Identification of specific systemic bottlenecks causing 'regulatory cholesterol' for social entrepreneurs.
- Structural reforms to simplify compliance (Digital/Single-window systems).
- Attitudinal and ethical reforms for civil servants to act as facilitators rather than gatekeepers.
- Mechanisms to distinguish between shell NGOs and genuine social enterprises.
- Common pitfalls
- Spending too much time narrating Saraswati's backstory instead of focusing on the 'measures'.
- Focusing only on corruption (bribes) while ignoring the 'cumbersome rules and procedures' aspect.
- Proposing the total removal of government control, which contradicts the prompt's premise that control is necessary.
- Failing to address the 'brain drain' vs 'brain gain' element of NRIs returning to India to contribute.
- Suggesting vague solutions like 'honesty should be promoted' without specific administrative or technological fixes.
- Dimensions required
- Ethical (Public service values)Administrative (Ease of Doing Social Work)Technological (e-Governance)Legal/Regulatory (FCRA and State Acts)Economic (Social capital and Philanthropy)
- Marks allocation hint
Dedicate approximately 50 words to the ethical dilemma and the need for a balance between regulation and facilitation. Use 150 words for specific, multi-dimensional measures (legal, digital, and behavioral) to streamline NGO operations. Spend the final 50 words on the larger impact of these reforms on national development and the 'patriotic sense' of the diaspora.
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