Opinion A case for fewer heroes

Evidently — in the perception of our politicians,including the UPA chairperson — there are so many officers who are not taking similar action to uphold the law of the land that Nagpal’s conduct should seem so extraordinary,when it is nothing of the sort. Nagpal is merely a good officer who was doing the job she was taught to do at the Mussoorie Academy and which the Constitution and the people of India expect her to do.

A fact that most seem to forget is that citizens of the modern state are completely dependent on the government and the law for practically every routine act that is part of normal living. The fact that you take it for granted most of the time only suggests that the government is doing its job properly. Getting educated,walking on good roads,breathing clean unpolluted air,not being run over by a speeding vehicle,living in a house for which the contractor has followed building by-laws so the house will not collapse in a few years and much more,are routine services that are part of the unstated governance contract that civil society has with the government. You need people to do these things. A large number of them.

Yet we have the spectacle of responsible people who constantly talk of downsizing government,almost as if there were some fairy godmother ensuring that things happen correctly. The inability of government to check adulteration in food,reach adequate healthcare to people,ensure quality education for the masses,enforce tax laws and suchlike,is mostly because of the paucity of bureaucrats,judges and other personnel required to ensure proper and fair delivery of governance services to people.

Unfortunately,for all of us in India,there were enough bureaucrats in the recent past who got seduced by the image of a fairy godmother delivering services,who began to advocate lesser governance and to ignore taking decisions,actions against those who violate the law.

Yet,for each officer who does not discharge his duties adequately,there are many who do. Why should this be so? Perhaps the answer lies in the quality of the institutions they work in. Two examples would suffice. The Election Commission of India and the Comptroller and Auditor General’s office have,in recent years,strengthened their respective organisations and reiterated the importance of rule-bound behaviour. The impact on the quality of elections on the one hand,and the quality of audit on the other,has been visible and remarkable. It is this that is the key to our problem.

The strength of the bureaucracy does not lie in individual action; it never did. It lies in an entire network of individuals acting separately to enforce the law. Where such a network does not exist,the officer is out on a limb much like any private individual. The case of Durga Shakti Nagpal is far more a comment on the state of bureaucracy in Uttar Pradesh than anything else.

It is for this reason that many state governments have made systematic efforts to upgrade their institutional and decision-making structures. Maharashtra,for instance,has enacted a law to regulate the transfers of all officials. Ten years ago,the idea would have been unthinkable. Today,the law does not raise a single eyebrow. Recently,the police establishment in Maharashtra won back much of its authority to transfer officers.

These things take time. Ten years ago,officers going on election duty,who took their job seriously,were heroes venturing into dark and dangerous waters. Today,with the EC reforming itself,they are normal bureaucrats,doing a routine task. Let us then strengthen our institutions so that quotidian acts lose their heroic patina.

The sand mafia and sundry others get empowered only after we as a people have ensured that no regulation really takes place. Otherwise,it is the bounden duty of politicians to bring to the notice of the civil servant the concerns of the people,including any harm being caused by a mindless implementation of the law. Just as it is the bounden duty of civil servants to ensure that politicians are correctly advised on how to work within the parameters of the law.

The writer,a 1990 batch IAS officer,is currently secretary,health,Maharashtra. Views are personal express@expressindia.com