ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVISM VERSUS INDIFFERENCE TOWARDS DEVELOPMENT, WHEN WILL THE SYSTEM WAKE UP

ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVISM VERSUS INDIFFERENCE TOWARDS DEVELOPMENT, WHEN WILL THE SYSTEM WAKE UP

8-JULY-ENG 47

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

ARA---------------------------These days, a special bustle is visible on the roads of Bihar, in the alleys of villages and in the courtyards of panchayat buildings. There is a movement of administrative officials everywhere - some are checking the polling booths, while others are knocking at the doors of houses to get their names added to the voter list. Such an environment was rarely seen earlier, but this time the way the administration is active regarding the election process is definitely commendable - but it also gives rise to an important question:

From the District Officer to the BDO and Panchayat Secretary, all the officials these days are looking very alert and ready in their respective areas. Revision of voter list, booth verification, enrollment of new voters, removal of names of the dead, all this is being done with such speed and transparency that it will seem as if the Bihar administration has fully woken up.

Photos, press notes and videos of these tours are becoming increasingly viral on social media platforms. Photos of the activism of the officials are being prominently printed in newspapers. But when we measure this awareness and readiness on the scale of development, the scene changes completely.

If you go out on any rural road in Bihar, you will be greeted by broken roads, mud-filled potholes and dusty air. Neither doctors nor medicines are available in health sub-centres. Teachers are absent in schools, and where there are teachers, there are no children.

The officials who are checking the voter list at the ward level, have they ever gone to see whether the children of that village are getting mid-day meal in the school or not? Is drinking water available there? Is any government scheme being implemented properly?

No one is saying that cleaning the voter list is not necessary. The foundation of democracy rests on transparency, and it is the responsibility of a responsible administration to make the voting process fair. But is it only the election that awakens the activity of the administration?

Are Panchayat Bhawans decorated only at the time of voting? Are the officials only interested in counting votes and not in the needs of the voters?

Elections are a process that comes at intervals of some time. But development, education, health, roads, employment are all everyday demands. Then why is there no such promptness on these important aspects?

The job of the administrative machinery is not only to conduct elections but also to provide every citizen his basic rights. If this energy and working style of bureaucracy continues throughout the year, then the picture of development in Bihar can change to a great extent.

But the irony is that the ground reality of most government schemes is still limited to papers. Schemes are made, funds also come, but they are not used properly. There is no monitoring, accountability is not fixed.

It is equally important that the common citizens should not be aware only on the day of voting. They will have to ask questions to the administration, monitor development works, participate in panchayat meetings and play their role in the implementation of government schemes.