Ideas at Work

In government, there has been a historical fear that private contractors will take public funds for a ride. And among the public, there is a historical fear that governments will award contracts to their preferred bidders, and make money through kickbacks. Both of these fears are quite genuine. To address this, many governments have passed laws on how public procurement should be carried out. Karnataka also has passed such a law, the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurements Act, (KTPP). There are three broad rules under this act, which should provide the basis for better procurement, but as we will see…

In government, there has been a historical fear that private contractors will take public funds for a ride. And among the public, there is a historical fear that governments will award contracts to their preferred bidders, and make money through kickbacks. Both of these fears are quite genuine. To address this, many governments have passed laws on how public procurement should be carried out. Karnataka also has passed such a law, the Karnataka Transparency in Public Procurements Act, (KTPP). There are three broad rules under this act, which should provide the basis for better procurement, but as we will see…

So far, I have received expressions of interest from people in about 25 wards to work on local solutions for civic improvement and better governance. I'll reach out to each of you individually and see how to help you get going, but meanwhile, here is a list of things to get started with, in thinking about the local area. This is from the work of CiFoS in Sanjay Nagar (thanks, Sathya Sankaran, Subbaiah T.S. and others). Later this week, we'll organise a small workshop for the first few wards to begin to replicate this work in other areas. Meanwhile, if…

So far, I have received expressions of interest from people in about 25 wards to work on local solutions for civic improvement and better governance. I'll reach out to each of you individually and see how to help you get going, but meanwhile, here is a list of things to get started with, in thinking about the local area. This is from the work of CiFoS in Sanjay Nagar (thanks, Sathya Sankaran, Subbaiah T.S. and others). Later this week, we'll organise a small workshop for the first few wards to begin to replicate this work in other areas. Meanwhile, if…

Here is an extract from my proposals to the government on things to include in the State Budget, 2016-17: (a) The Master Plan for Bengaluru and other cities being statutory, the State Budget each year should mandatorily allocate monies to proposals within these plans. That is essential to retaining their statutory nature, and also to ensure that development during a Plan period is annually guided by such allocations. A beginning may be made in this, by an explicit reference in this year's Budget to financing proposals under the Master Plan. This would also give the newly appointed Minister for Bengaluru…

Here is an extract from my proposals to the government on things to include in the State Budget, 2016-17: (a) The Master Plan for Bengaluru and other cities being statutory, the State Budget each year should mandatorily allocate monies to proposals within these plans. That is essential to retaining their statutory nature, and also to ensure that development during a Plan period is annually guided by such allocations. A beginning may be made in this, by an explicit reference in this year's Budget to financing proposals under the Master Plan. This would also give the newly appointed Minister for Bengaluru…

For the first time, I feel that the long-sought Commuter Rail System is within reach. The state government appears willing to fund this in the Budget, and an initial round of money should help create the momentum for building out the solution in the next 3-4 years. And the national government too appears broadly ok with the plan. With this, the frustrating cycle of each waiting for the other to act will hopefully come to an end. Many people have been part of trying to make this happen, and if it does - as seems likely - we should count…

For the first time, I feel that the long-sought Commuter Rail System is within reach. The state government appears willing to fund this in the Budget, and an initial round of money should help create the momentum for building out the solution in the next 3-4 years. And the national government too appears broadly ok with the plan. With this, the frustrating cycle of each waiting for the other to act will hopefully come to an end. Many people have been part of trying to make this happen, and if it does - as seems likely - we should count…

1) Think like it's 1947 A very large part of the deficits that we live with are because we do not have properly structured governance and accountability. We need to be reimagining these constantly, and adapting to current needs and realities. 2) Increase the number of problem solving people While it is important to pursue solutions, it's actually more important to create a society in which there are many problem solvers. That's what brings scale. 3) Help each other succeed Social enterprises almost always begin by trying to solve others' problems, but once their institutions take shape, they start to look…

1) Think like it's 1947 A very large part of the deficits that we live with are because we do not have properly structured governance and accountability. We need to be reimagining these constantly, and adapting to current needs and realities. 2) Increase the number of problem solving people While it is important to pursue solutions, it's actually more important to create a society in which there are many problem solvers. That's what brings scale. 3) Help each other succeed Social enterprises almost always begin by trying to solve others' problems, but once their institutions take shape, they start to look…