It has been a much debated topic that a nation ought to be run like a business. No doubt there are plausible reasons in favour of such a notion but we should remember that a business is all about making profits whereas a government cannot be run on such a parochial dictum. What is needed is an amalgamation of sound politics with astute business sense.
Indian government has recently announced a meeting with the chief secretaries of all states in early July, where drastic changes in the way the Government and the public interact will be incorporated. [Coming soon: CEO, Government Inc] This is easier said than done. I don't want to cast aspersions on government's motive behind this initiative, but lot of sincerity is needed before such an effort fructifies. It is high time that our leaders realize that beneath a thin veneer of India's economic marvel lies a cesspool of corruption, poverty, and callousness. It is their bounden duty to help extricate Indian masses from this cesspool. Sooner the government implements policies to ensure efficiency, transparency and accountability in administration, better it would be for democracy to flourish in India.
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www.indianeconomy.org contains some very good essays on the policies of the Indian Govt. Historically, the government has been very good at formulating policies. It's the execution that's flawed and I am sure that this initiative too will go the same way.
It's not the people who are to be blamed entirely, its the combination of faulty structure and incentives that should take part of the blame.
As with all other things in a maturing democracies, this change will take time and painfully, it's common people like us who will bear the brunt of faulty executions.
Dear AK: Rules/laws not implemented effectively are redundant and useless. It's the hallmark of a progressive society that rules and norms: formal & informal, undergo change with passage of time. Institutions---social, administrative & religious, are built to provide framework for effective formulation, implementation & enforcement of these rules & norms. Societies that are too smug or too parochial or too timid to change eventually have to suffer.
I'm a sanguine idealist and believe that good sense will eventually prevail not only in India but elsewhere too. So, without being judgemental of our political leaders' intentions or their track record, I still welcome any initiative taken by them in the right direction. And the right direction, according to me, is one which leads to peace and prosperity of the nation.
I would strongly recommend you to go through Douglass C. North's Nobel Prize lecture: http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/economics/laureates/1993/north-lecture.html
Cheers!
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