Metamorphosis of Public Policy - Issues and Options *Jit Kumar Gupta

Metamorphosis of Public Policy - Issues and Options

??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? *Jit Kumar Gupta

Context

Policies and planning? form integral part of ?development, management and governance of any nation, state and community. Accordingly, all statutory authorities constituted/ put in place, are engaged in? making policies addressing different issues and aspects of growth and development of? a given society, community, state and nation. One can clearly see large number of policies being? formulated/announced on day to day basis at all level of governance. In nations, which have a federal structure ?or multi-level ?governance , such policies come in plurality. In some cases , when parties with different political ideologies are in position at different level of governance, policies framed at different level are often seen to be in contradictions, both in intent and contents.

Looking at the role, relevance and importance, every state, region and city claim to have an overarching policy ?framework dedicated to promoting universal good, prosperity, equity and quality of life of both existing and future population going to live in the given geographical area. Policies ?formulated invariably are the outcome ?of the vision and approach adopted/stated/declared by the group governing any geographical entity. In the political/democratic system of governance, it is invariably the ruling party/parties in power , which remains, primarily and essentially, involved in? formulation ?and implementation of policies. In a democratic system of governance, ?policy formulation falls within the domain of party elected/voted to power? through the process of election. In the other systems , it is the entity/people who exercise power and authority, by virtue of the system put in place for governing the state/nation.

In majority of cases, basic agenda , aims and objective of any policy framed by the governance structure, is to ensure that ruling entity remains perpetually in power. Against this objective, all policies? put in place focus on

?

?

empowering people in power and ?intend to make ordinary citizens happy and supportive of the policies put in place. Framing such policies has invariably led the nations in crisis- crisis of growth and development, making nations suffer? perpetually. Current policies of?? giving freebees in electricity, water, waiver from property tax, free foodgrains etc, to the people? by? various states in India, to create vote bank and remain in power, have invariably? created? situations and landed state/local institutions making available such services into virtual bankruptcy, adversely impacting the availability of such essential services, both in quantity and quality.?? ?Looking at the global scenario, majority of nations and communities are suffering from the malaise of? irrational policies formulation at the state and the local level, which are embedded with distortions. However, there exist many? communities , nations and states which suffer from policy paralysis also by virtue of no policy framed for ?the growth and development of communities.

Looking at the entire context, policy formulation needs to be considered rationally and realistically? along with ?evaluating its possible impact on community? and society. Policy formulation must clearly define, its intent, contents, scope, specify goals and objectives to be achieved; communities to be addressed; process of implementation, time-frame? for implementation and? expected outcome; for evaluation etc. Each policy needs to be evaluated periodically, by an independent agency, to understand its impact and bring out the its success and failure in achieving the defined objectives, based on the study made of the ground conditions and? impact made on the communities? targeted.

?Does? in Rational Public? Making

Policy formulation remains the foray of experts or the beaurucrats and the professionals, which has a duty cast on them to ensure that policies framed should remain people centric and not authority centric . Policies framed? for public purpose, should ?invariably focus on empowering people, communities and states; making value addition and ensuring equitable distribution of available resources to all the citizens residing in the area, based on equity and social justice. Policies should ?primarily and essentially aim at making optimum use of? available state resources for promoting public good.

?

?

Removing, addressing and marginalizing ?poverty? and empowering poor should remain the central theme? of ?all the state policies framed/put in operation.

Policies framed at the local, regional and? state levels must? remain in line and should invariably avoid dualities and contradictions. These policies must take into account? prevailing regional disparities. Any policy, which focusses merely on vesting economic and financial gain, will always hurt majority and prove to be counter-productive to? the society at large. For promoting universal good, all policies framed should leverage the strength of existing parastatal agencies to promote public good and good of disadvantaged ?group or community.? Policies should identify, quantify and ?aim at reducing the prevailing gaps and bridging them with empowering lower strata of society. All aspects of human living and making them qualitative, must be brought under policy framework.

Policy framework defined, ?should invariably? focus on preserving the vital, valuable? and scarce state resources, essentially needed for? preserving environment, ecology, identity, culture and economy of any place, area, community and state. Policies lacking local contexts have invariably done more damage than good to the society at large. Policies copied from outside, without looking at the local context? have ??invariably failed to achieve the defined agenda. Policies formulated for any community and area, must? address?? both short-term and long-term objectives of promoting? the welfare of the society, facing various challenges. Policies framed must not only ?focus ?on curative but also looking at preventive strategies? to overcome perpetual problems faced by communities.

In? order to put policy formulation on a professional platform, it would be critical and vital to make it ?integral part of governance structure. All elected representatives in a democratic structure? representing various levels of governance ?along with state officials, must be trained in the art and science of rational policy formulation. Majority of nations have suffered for the reason that, elected representatives at various level of governance , have? limited understanding of the role, relevance, importance and knitty-gritty of? formulation of rational policies ?with ?large dependence on bureaucracy for

?

?

policy making. In order to? bring? more rationality? and objectivity , conceptualizing and?? preparing? policies must be made more broad- based. Accordingly, NGOs , CBOs? and civil society should be made integral part of policy formulation, implementation, review and? redefinition

All good policies should/must remain people/community centric and not individual centric and should invariably focus on promoting public good and not good of ?selected? individuals/groups.? Good policies? invariably? lead to good governance. Good, rational and realistic policies should be based on the principles of openness, participation, accountability, effectiveness, coherence and subsidiarity. Good policy formulation ?must include and involve good implementation as integral part of policy formulation. ?Any policy which fails at the altar of implementation and is opposed by majority of people must be discarded ,avoided, reviewed, revised and redefined on priority. For assuring the successful implementation of public policies, a more efficient and effective allocation of public resources and increasing citizen’s direct participation, involvement, engagement and empowerment must be embedded? in the policy. A well-formulated policy with clear articulation of goals, targets and strategies for achieving them, should also include a clear view of the set of implementation mechanism. Evaluating impact of policies ??is easier? when the expected outcomes are clearly defined.

All policies for becoming a distinct reality, must be supported by allocation of adequate resources for? effective implementation. Funding mechanism should have budgetary provisions for individual policy areas. Periodic monitoring of results and fine-tuning of policy approaches and delivery modalities are essential and critical for success of any policy. Policies ?formulation? should invariably be based on? detailed data,? facts and figure related to the area of policy, which should be? sourced before the policy is framed. It has been observed that policies framed based on the wide ranging consultation with all impacted stakeholders and communities , have large success rate as compared to policies framed without any? prior consultation. Studies made ?and learning ?sourced of earlier policies, made on the same subject , have invariably helped in? preparing realistic policies by avoiding ?pitfalls and bringing rationality.

?

?

?

Don’ts in Rational Public? Policy Making

As briefed earlier,? formulation of ?rational and effective policy would need skill, understanding, knowledge and appreciation of the ground conditions and prevailing socio, economic, physical and environmental contexts of the area , community and section of society proposed to be addressed within the framework of the proposed policy. In addition, ethics, principles and ground rules? for framing the policies? must also need precise definition. Accordingly,? good , realistic, and rational policies must be formulated with care , caution and commitment based on pre-defined principles and principles enunciated.it has been observed that, policies? which generally look for options of making a section of society ??happy at the cost of others, based on wasting/destroying? state resources, as? doles for bribing people to gain their confidence and goodwill to remain in power, ?have invariably failed in the longer run? and? should ?invariably/ always be avoided. In? this era of petty politics prevailing today, in the so called democratic system, where politics have become more of a business/profession, rather than a public service,? ?majority of? policies remain embedded with? more of subjectivity and less of objectivity which leads to ?emergence of large number of ?disruptions and distortions. Many of such policies ?have damaged the social fabric / basic structure of the society and ?have proved? ?to be counterproductive to society and nation at large. Policies must?? be fine-tuned? to remain objective in description. Ambiguities in policy formulation and possibility of misinterpretation ?has created havoc? and must ?invariably be avoided.

Policies leading to creating conflict , creating division and dissensions between various communities and groups must invariably be avoided. Policies which are not followed and opposed by majority of population should invariably be modified/avoided. All policies based on negativities remain counter-productive and should ?invariably be avoided. All policies borrowed and copied from? different social, economic and physical structures/systems, have more chances of? failure than success.? Any policy which widens the social, physical and economic gap; ?invariably remains counter-productive

?

?

and needs to be avoided .Prevailing contradictions in policies? formulated? by various agencies and institutions ?have? mixed reaction of positivity and negativity and should invariably be avoided.

Accountability;

Looking at the role and importance of policy in regulating the growth, development and management of human settlements, it can be safely assumed that policies have? great impact on every human being, living in any area. This stresses the need of? framing? policies? with lot of study, analysis, care and caution. Knowing fully well that policy has great role in governance, growth and development, it? should not be left to whims and fancies of few individuals, to create havoc and abuse the state resources. Since state has ?vested the authority to frame policies to elected head, accordingly ?they should ?also be made accountable and? responsible for any policy, which?? is patently wrong; ?which goes against the?? public interest ; ?which create dissensions among people and communities; which promotes political interest; based on subjectivity; misuse state resources and?? play havoc with human dignity, growth and development. Despite ?the fact policies impact ??both positively/negatively having major repercussions on living/livability/employment/economy of any area, still there exists on accountability of the people involved in formulation of ?wrong policies. ??All policies framed beyond the? scope of promoting public interest should be negated in the policy making . In this context, it will be essential? that author, formulator, definer and approver ?of? each policy must be? clearly identified and? must be held accountable for any distortions coming out of the implementation of the policy. If? a policy is framed by the group of people, like cabinet, then entire cabinet along with the secretaries and concerned? departmental head? must be made accountable for the wrong done. In first of such cases , Government of Punjab,? recently suspended two? senior officers; Secretary and Director, belonging to the IAS cadre posted in Punjab Rural Development Department,? in a case involving? dissolution of? all Panchayati Raj Institutions? in the state for holding fresh elections before the expiry of the stipulated time, based on the decision of the ?Hon’ble Punjab & Haryana High Court on? a Public Interest litigation filed against state decision.

?

?

?However,? the case represents first example where departmental officers/bureaucrats? have been held accountable for such a case, but accountability of the? minister-in-charge of the department, has not been fixed , who? in a democratic process? invariably remains the authority/ integral part of decision making process. Delhi case of the? framing subjective excise policy has also been questioned in the court of law for favoring few individuals. Numerous such cases of framing policies are being now put under close scrutiny of courts and investigating agencies. ?Looking at the repercussion of the cases, bureaucrats are likely to be ?more ?careful and cautious, ?in future than before , while framing policies, which are against the provision of the constitution, law of land and against the? operation/existence of democratic institutions.

Looking at the existing framework, role of courts become very critical. When policies of the state ?are put to test in any court of law, it will be appropriate for judiciary to? name the officers and? elected representatives , responsible for framing policies when they are found? patently wrong. In number of cases pertaining to corruption; while granting contracts/leases or making purchases for and on behalf of state; both Ministers ,? Secretaries and concerned officers ?have? been charged for wrong policies , with the change of governments. But this could have been? easily avoided if there existed? a mechanism? of checks and balances when such policies were ?framed, approved and made operational. In fact many policies remain embedded in the official files and are never made public with the result veracity/legality of such policies is never tested? on ground. Accordingly, in addition to making accountability integral part of ?formulating policies, there is need to create? an independent agency in the state to look at the intent and content? of various policies framed and ensure these policies follow the basic tenant of promoting public good and not promoting personal goods of? a particular community.??

Conclusion;

Looking at the entire context it can be seen and visualized that , policy formulation remains a distinct, ?difficult, cumbersome ,complex ,professional ?and a specialized field; gravity, role and importance? of which has not been

?

?

fully understood and appreciated by the stakeholders and accordingly, ?the process/ products have ?been grossly misused, abused, and manipulated ?by people in power ?to? serve their ?personal and political interest at the cost of common people ?. Policy formulation remains a? double edged weapon which when wielded, rationally and objectively,? can usher an era of inclusivity, prosperity, happiness , growth and development ; but can also be used for promoting corruption, serving personal/ political interests and? destroying the basic fabric of communities and its resources ?when wielded irrationally, illogically ignoring all cannons of justice and transparency. However, in a democratic system , ?option of policies has been and ?shall ??continue to be used, misused and abused by the political system in power, to serve their ?personal and political interests ,unless and until an effective and efficient system of checks and balanced is ?put in place, at various levels of urban governance ?for making such political parties accountable / liable ?to make good all the losses ?accruing to the state ?for all the wrong policies put in place by them. Looking at the entire context of policy formulation holistically, it can be? safely concluded that success ?of any state and nation?? will ??largely depends upon its ?capacity, capability, ability, ?commitment, efficacy /efficiency in preparing , formulating and successfully implementing quality? policy framework leading to ?promoting larger public and universal? good

Author;

???????? Ar Jit Kumar Gupta

???????????? #344/40-a, Chandigarh-160036

????????????????? Former, Director, College of Architecture IET Bhaddal (Pb)

???????????? [email protected]

?

??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? *Jit Kumar Gupta

Context

Policies and planning? form integral part of ?development, management and governance of any nation, state and community. Accordingly, all statutory authorities constituted/ put in place, are engaged in? making policies addressing different issues and aspects of growth and development of? a given society, community, state and nation. One can clearly see large number of policies being? formulated/announced on day to day basis at all level of governance. In nations, which have a federal structure ?or multi-level ?governance , such policies come in plurality. In some cases , when parties with different political ideologies are in position at different level of governance, policies framed at different level are often seen to be in contradictions, both in intent and contents.

Looking at the role, relevance and importance, every state, region and city claim to have an overarching policy ?framework dedicated to promoting universal good, prosperity, equity and quality of life of both existing and future population going to live in the given geographical area. Policies ?formulated invariably are the outcome ?of the vision and approach adopted/stated/declared by the group governing any geographical entity. In the political/democratic system of governance, it is invariably the ruling party/parties in power , which remains, primarily and essentially, involved in? formulation ?and implementation of policies. In a democratic system of governance, ?policy formulation falls within the domain of party elected/voted to power? through the process of election. In the other systems , it is the entity/people who exercise power and authority, by virtue of the system put in place for governing the state/nation.

In majority of cases, basic agenda , aims and objective of any policy framed by the governance structure, is to ensure that ruling entity remains perpetually in power. Against this objective, all policies? put in place focus on empowering people in power and ?intend to make ordinary citizens happy and supportive of the policies put in place. Framing such policies has invariably led the nations in crisis- crisis of growth and development, making nations suffer? perpetually. Current policies of?? giving freebees in electricity, water, waiver from property tax, free foodgrains etc, to the people? by? various states in India, to create vote bank and remain in power, have invariably? created? situations and landed state/local institutions making available such services into virtual bankruptcy, adversely impacting the availability of such essential services, both in quantity and quality.?? ?Looking at the global scenario, majority of nations and communities are suffering from the malaise of? irrational policies formulation at the state and the local level, which are embedded with distortions. However, there exist many? communities , nations and states which suffer from policy paralysis also by virtue of no policy framed for ?the growth and development of communities.

Looking at the entire context, policy formulation needs to be considered rationally and realistically? along with ?evaluating its possible impact on community? and society. Policy formulation must clearly define, its intent, contents, scope, specify goals and objectives to be achieved; communities to be addressed; process of implementation, time-frame? for implementation and? expected outcome; for evaluation etc. Each policy needs to be evaluated periodically, by an independent agency, to understand its impact and bring out the its success and failure in achieving the defined objectives, based on the study made of the ground conditions and? impact made on the communities? targeted.

?Does? in Rational Public? Making

Policy formulation remains the foray of experts or the beaurucrats and the professionals, which has a duty cast on them to ensure that policies framed should remain people centric and not authority centric . Policies framed? for public purpose, should ?invariably focus on empowering people, communities and states; making value addition and ensuring equitable distribution of available resources to all the citizens residing in the area, based on equity and social justice. Policies should ?primarily and essentially aim at making optimum use of? available state resources for promoting public good.

Removing, addressing and marginalizing ?poverty? and empowering poor should remain the central theme? of ?all the state policies framed/put in operation.

Policies framed at the local, regional and? state levels must? remain in line and should invariably avoid dualities and contradictions. These policies must take into account? prevailing regional disparities. Any policy, which focusses merely on vesting economic and financial gain, will always hurt majority and prove to be counter-productive to? the society at large. For promoting universal good, all policies framed should leverage the strength of existing parastatal agencies to promote public good and good of disadvantaged ?group or community.? Policies should identify, quantify and ?aim at reducing the prevailing gaps and bridging them with empowering lower strata of society. All aspects of human living and making them qualitative, must be brought under policy framework.

Policy framework defined, ?should invariably? focus on preserving the vital, valuable? and scarce state resources, essentially needed for? preserving environment, ecology, identity, culture and economy of any place, area, community and state. Policies lacking local contexts have invariably done more damage than good to the society at large. Policies copied from outside, without looking at the local context? have ??invariably failed to achieve the defined agenda. Policies formulated for any community and area, must? address?? both short-term and long-term objectives of promoting? the welfare of the society, facing various challenges. Policies framed must not only ?focus ?on curative but also looking at preventive strategies? to overcome perpetual problems faced by communities.

In? order to put policy formulation on a professional platform, it would be critical and vital to make it ?integral part of governance structure. All elected representatives in a democratic structure? representing various levels of governance ?along with state officials, must be trained in the art and science of rational policy formulation. Majority of nations have suffered for the reason that, elected representatives at various level of governance , have? limited understanding of the role, relevance, importance and knitty-gritty of? formulation of rational policies ?with ?large dependence on bureaucracy for

?

?

policy making. In order to? bring? more rationality? and objectivity , conceptualizing and?? preparing? policies must be made more broad- based. Accordingly, NGOs , CBOs? and civil society should be made integral part of policy formulation, implementation, review and? redefinition

All good policies should/must remain people/community centric and not individual centric and should invariably focus on promoting public good and not good of ?selected? individuals/groups.? Good policies? invariably? lead to good governance. Good, rational and realistic policies should be based on the principles of openness, participation, accountability, effectiveness, coherence and subsidiarity. Good policy formulation ?must include and involve good implementation as integral part of policy formulation. ?Any policy which fails at the altar of implementation and is opposed by majority of people must be discarded ,avoided, reviewed, revised and redefined on priority. For assuring the successful implementation of public policies, a more efficient and effective allocation of public resources and increasing citizen’s direct participation, involvement, engagement and empowerment must be embedded? in the policy. A well-formulated policy with clear articulation of goals, targets and strategies for achieving them, should also include a clear view of the set of implementation mechanism. Evaluating impact of policies ??is easier? when the expected outcomes are clearly defined.

All policies for becoming a distinct reality, must be supported by allocation of adequate resources for? effective implementation. Funding mechanism should have budgetary provisions for individual policy areas. Periodic monitoring of results and fine-tuning of policy approaches and delivery modalities are essential and critical for success of any policy. Policies ?formulation? should invariably be based on? detailed data,? facts and figure related to the area of policy, which should be? sourced before the policy is framed. It has been observed that policies framed based on the wide ranging consultation with all impacted stakeholders and communities , have large success rate as compared to policies framed without any? prior consultation. Studies made ?and learning ?sourced of earlier policies, made on the same subject , have invariably helped in? preparing realistic policies by avoiding ?pitfalls and bringing rationality.

?

?

?

Don’ts in Rational Public? Policy Making

As briefed earlier,? formulation of ?rational and effective policy would need skill, understanding, knowledge and appreciation of the ground conditions and prevailing socio, economic, physical and environmental contexts of the area , community and section of society proposed to be addressed within the framework of the proposed policy. In addition, ethics, principles and ground rules? for framing the policies? must also need precise definition. Accordingly,? good , realistic, and rational policies must be formulated with care , caution and commitment based on pre-defined principles and principles enunciated.it has been observed that, policies? which generally look for options of making a section of society ??happy at the cost of others, based on wasting/destroying? state resources, as? doles for bribing people to gain their confidence and goodwill to remain in power, ?have invariably failed in the longer run? and? should ?invariably/ always be avoided. In? this era of petty politics prevailing today, in the so called democratic system, where politics have become more of a business/profession, rather than a public service,? ?majority of? policies remain embedded with? more of subjectivity and less of objectivity which leads to ?emergence of large number of ?disruptions and distortions. Many of such policies ?have damaged the social fabric / basic structure of the society and ?have proved? ?to be counterproductive to society and nation at large. Policies must?? be fine-tuned? to remain objective in description. Ambiguities in policy formulation and possibility of misinterpretation ?has created havoc? and must ?invariably be avoided.

Policies leading to creating conflict , creating division and dissensions between various communities and groups must invariably be avoided. Policies which are not followed and opposed by majority of population should invariably be modified/avoided. All policies based on negativities remain counter-productive and should ?invariably be avoided. All policies borrowed and copied from? different social, economic and physical structures/systems, have more chances of? failure than success.? Any policy which widens the social, physical and economic gap; ?invariably remains counter-productive

?

?

and needs to be avoided .Prevailing contradictions in policies? formulated? by various agencies and institutions ?have? mixed reaction of positivity and negativity and should invariably be avoided.

Accountability;

Looking at the role and importance of policy in regulating the growth, development and management of human settlements, it can be safely assumed that policies have? great impact on every human being, living in any area. This stresses the need of? framing? policies? with lot of study, analysis, care and caution. Knowing fully well that policy has great role in governance, growth and development, it? should not be left to whims and fancies of few individuals, to create havoc and abuse the state resources. Since state has ?vested the authority to frame policies to elected head, accordingly ?they should ?also be made accountable and? responsible for any policy, which?? is patently wrong; ?which goes against the?? public interest ; ?which create dissensions among people and communities; which promotes political interest; based on subjectivity; misuse state resources and?? play havoc with human dignity, growth and development. Despite ?the fact policies impact ??both positively/negatively having major repercussions on living/livability/employment/economy of any area, still there exists on accountability of the people involved in formulation of ?wrong policies. ??All policies framed beyond the? scope of promoting public interest should be negated in the policy making . In this context, it will be essential? that author, formulator, definer and approver ?of? each policy must be? clearly identified and? must be held accountable for any distortions coming out of the implementation of the policy. If? a policy is framed by the group of people, like cabinet, then entire cabinet along with the secretaries and concerned? departmental head? must be made accountable for the wrong done. In first of such cases , Government of Punjab,? recently suspended two? senior officers; Secretary and Director, belonging to the IAS cadre posted in Punjab Rural Development Department,? in a case involving? dissolution of? all Panchayati Raj Institutions? in the state for holding fresh elections before the expiry of the stipulated time, based on the decision of the ?Hon’ble Punjab & Haryana High Court on? a Public Interest litigation filed against state decision.

?

?

?However,? the case represents first example where departmental officers/bureaucrats? have been held accountable for such a case, but accountability of the? minister-in-charge of the department, has not been fixed , who? in a democratic process? invariably remains the authority/ integral part of decision making process. Delhi case of the? framing subjective excise policy has also been questioned in the court of law for favoring few individuals. Numerous such cases of framing policies are being now put under close scrutiny of courts and investigating agencies. ?Looking at the repercussion of the cases, bureaucrats are likely to be ?more ?careful and cautious, ?in future than before , while framing policies, which are against the provision of the constitution, law of land and against the? operation/existence of democratic institutions.

Looking at the existing framework, role of courts become very critical. When policies of the state ?are put to test in any court of law, it will be appropriate for judiciary to? name the officers and? elected representatives , responsible for framing policies when they are found? patently wrong. In number of cases pertaining to corruption; while granting contracts/leases or making purchases for and on behalf of state; both Ministers ,? Secretaries and concerned officers ?have? been charged for wrong policies , with the change of governments. But this could have been? easily avoided if there existed? a mechanism? of checks and balances when such policies were ?framed, approved and made operational. In fact many policies remain embedded in the official files and are never made public with the result veracity/legality of such policies is never tested? on ground. Accordingly, in addition to making accountability integral part of ?formulating policies, there is need to create? an independent agency in the state to look at the intent and content? of various policies framed and ensure these policies follow the basic tenant of promoting public good and not promoting personal goods of? a particular community.??

Conclusion;

Looking at the entire context it can be seen and visualized that , policy formulation remains a distinct, ?difficult, cumbersome ,complex ,professional ?and a specialized field; gravity, role and importance? of which has not been

?

?

fully understood and appreciated by the stakeholders and accordingly, ?the process/ products have ?been grossly misused, abused, and manipulated ?by people in power ?to? serve their ?personal and political interest at the cost of common people ?. Policy formulation remains a? double edged weapon which when wielded, rationally and objectively,? can usher an era of inclusivity, prosperity, happiness , growth and development ; but can also be used for promoting corruption, serving personal/ political interests and? destroying the basic fabric of communities and its resources ?when wielded irrationally, illogically ignoring all cannons of justice and transparency. However, in a democratic system , ?option of policies has been and ?shall ??continue to be used, misused and abused by the political system in power, to serve their ?personal and political interests ,unless and until an effective and efficient system of checks and balanced is ?put in place, at various levels of urban governance ?for making such political parties accountable / liable ?to make good all the losses ?accruing to the state ?for all the wrong policies put in place by them. Looking at the entire context of policy formulation holistically, it can be? safely concluded that success ?of any state and nation?? will ??largely depends upon its ?capacity, capability, ability, ?commitment, efficacy /efficiency in preparing , formulating and successfully implementing quality? policy framework leading to ?promoting larger public and universal? good

Author;

???????? Ar Jit Kumar Gupta

???????????? #344/40-a, Chandigarh-160036

????????????????? Former, Director, College of Architecture IET Bhaddal (Pb)

???????????? [email protected]

?