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Over the past decade, Indian government has adopted a strategy of creating a number of regulators for taking policy decisions with respect to different sectors of Indian economy. Regulators in the field of education and health did exist for decades, because private sector was already participating in these sectors of Indian economy. AICTE is the regulator for technical and professional education; Distance Education Council regulates distance education in the country. The Central Drugs Standards Control Organisation has been monitoring quality of drugs in the country.
As economic liberalization progressed over the past two decades, several other types of regulators have been appointedâhydrocarbon (for oil and gas), insurance, telecom, financial services, etc. With multiplicity of regulators operating to make policies on issues involving billions of dollars worth of business, the overall performance of regulators has been rather pathetic. Instead of transparent and accountable regulation based on long-term principles for larger public good, most regulators have been caught in corruption, favouritism and sacrificing of public good for private gains.
The former secretary-general of AICTE was imprisoned for corruption involving grant of approvals to hundreds of technical colleges without adequate infrastructure. The recent penalty on Ranbaxy Industries by US government and hundreds of cases of deaths through sub-standard drugs are manifestation of weak, inefficient, politically motivated and corrupt regulation. Since one former Minister for Telecom has served years in jail for corruption and another one is being charged by CBI, less said about this regulator the better. Food adulteration is rampant in the country while its regulator looks aghast. Even the appointment of Central Vigilance Commission by none other than the Prime Minister of this country had to be set aside by the Supreme Court because of absence of a âcleanâ track record of the appointee. What further mockery of regulation can be when the chief of vigilance is âuncleanâ himself!
This pattern across most regulators has several common features. First, the meaning of âindependentâ regulator---independent of the line ministries and implementing agenciesâis not quite understood and respected in the country. Second, technical and professional competence required to undertake systematic regulation in todaysâ complex global order is never adequately provided for. In fact, most regulators come from the fraternity of retired (or retiring) government officials with generalist backgrounds. Third, there is hardly any sensitivity to the principles of conflicts-of-interests; in several cases, a secretary to the government in the same line department/ministry is sent as regulator after retirement, thereby reducing the possibility of independent and objective professional judgment on policy matters.
It is not surprising, therefore, that a recent appointee on Competition Commission of India (set up to promote fair business competition in the country) has resigned since the CBI is pressing charges against him for malafide allocation of coal blocks to different vested interest groups.
The current disaster in Uttarakhand once again shows the inadequacy of functioning of another regulator--- National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) mandated with the responsibility to devise policies and monitor their effective implementation in the country. Headed by the Prime Minister, the current members of its national council are all men with political and beauracratic careers. The disaster in Uttarakhand is the direct consequence of mindless, unregulated and profit-seeking approach to religious tourism. Indiscriminate construction of guest houses, restaurants and shops was allowed without concern for the fragile ecology of the Himalayas. Those responsible for regulation own these same facilities and tour operators, thereby resulting in serious conflict of interest. The third eye of Lord Shiva has opened at Kedarnath and his âtandavaâ dance is bringing the destruction.
How long will this theatre of the absurd continue? How long will democratically transparent and accountable governance of various sectors of Indian economy be undermined through this façade of âindependentâ regulators and commissions? How long will citizens of India take to assert their rights to accountable governance of regulators in the country?
Rajesh Tandon
June 25, 2013
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