An informed citizenry is vital for maintaining a vibrant and dynamic liberal democracy. Studying, understanding and reforming the institutions of democracy are essential for its survival and growth. This requires constant and concerted efforts on the part of citizens, civil society organizations, and governments. Citizens often do not know how their taxes have been used and lack access to feedback mechanisms to have a say in their own governance. In 2003, CCS developed the concept of Citizen Handbook that makes sense of the complex and previously undocumented information on government’s budgets, management and program delivery and provides innovative ideas to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of governance.

These Handbooks study agencies, boards, corporations, departments, schemes and programs of the state governments and Municipal Corporations. The criteria for evaluation of existing systems and the basis of policy recommendations are the universal yet rarely understood concepts of New Public Management and the principle of subsidiarity. These concepts challenge conventional wisdom and advocate government provision and private production, increased choice and competition, ward level and result oriented management as the means for introducing long-term and sustained improvements in the governance structures.

With the successful response to the Delhi Citizen Handbook 2003, CCS has used the same methodology to create Handbooks for Mumbai, Jharkhand State and of course Delhi as well (2006). Not only have these Handbooks provided well-researched information on governance but also have inspired hope that a little effort in the right direction can in fact lead to positive change. Some of this positive change attributed to the Handbooks can be seen in the fields of agricultural marketing reforms and introduction of private markets; flexible shop timings and privatisation of garbage collection. Widely discussed in the media, bureaucracy and political circuits, the Handbooks have been endorsed by prominent thinkers including Swaminathan Aiyar (The Times of India), Sunil Jain and Professor Deepak Lal (Business Standard), Dr Ashok V Desai (The Outlook) and Pratap Bhanu Mehta (Centre for Policy Research).

As with the previous Handbooks, the Delhi Citizen Handbook 2009 hopes to further citizens’ understanding of the workings of the government and encourage greater independent fact-based qualitative and quantitative research so that the next time citizens demand better governance, they can back their claims. Apart from focussing on public services, infrastructure and development, revenues and finance, mechanisms of accountability, the Handbook 2009 also focuses on governance for underserved groups including refugees, street children, children with special needs and minorities. Given the importance of Commonwealth Games 2010 and their impact on the city, the Handbook addresses issues of displacement and future use of these facilities.

What makes these Handbooks unique and different from all the other similar publications, you would ask? One is recommendations based on principles of sound public policy and the second is the creators of the Handbook being the majority segment of the Indian population—Youth. With India racing towards development (which some accuse as being non-inclusive), Indian citizenry is also transforming itself from being apathetic, cynical and ignorant to being concerned and informed about what is going on around them. Bollywood movies increasingly inspire citizens particularly youth to share the responsibility of changing the destiny of their country. India being the country with largest youth population in the world gives us the optimism about their potential to create change. However, youth need to be armed with not just the inspiration, passion and concern but also information and the ability to critically analyse that information for long-term desired change. Instead of morchas and dharnas, in this information age, youth need to “protest” constructively through their well-formulated questions and informed debates.

To read State of Governance: Delhi Citizen Handbook 2009 please click here.