Governance

After undergoing numerous social, political, and geological changes, human society has emerged as an organised state. For the smooth functioning of the society and country, an engagement is required that involves laws, a set of rules, power and a correct mindset.

The term ‘Governance’ has primarily been used to refer to political governance, which traces back to the works of William Tyndale and Charles Plummer. They associated this word politically while talking about the governance of England.

This topic comes under the subject of Indian Polity and governance in General Studies paper 2 of the UPSC Syllabus.

What is Governance?

What is governance UPSC often questions the norms involved in the functioning of a governing body. To broadly state a system of managing a tribe, class, family or organisation keeping in view the wellness of that particular group can be termed governance.

The system does not restrict itself to a set of laws executed to govern a country or a politically bound region. Still, it can be a body that regulates and guides a formal or an informal organisation too. The modern use of the word has only been made in the 1990s. Several sociological thinkers and economists have deemed the word to have a wider implication.

Governance UPSC and its related studies try to understand the intricate working of such bodies and forces at various levels of society.

Governance and its Categories

An integral part of the UPSC Syllabus is understanding the various categories and types of governance. To broadly categorize governance can be divided into the following types:

Governance of the Public Sector

There has been an age-long debate about whether governance and politics are interrelated or distinct, as often discussed in Current Affairs. In politics, a group of people try to come to a collective agreement on a particular topic and then later reach a common policy for the betterment of society. Governance, on the other hand, deals with administrative processes and their related elements.

Governance of the Private Sector

When non-government organisations, especially private organisations, make rules for the betterment of a larger group of people, it is deemed a public policy largely operational and freely accepted. The term government policy would be befitting, and public policies should not be solely related to the government as they also affect private organisations.

Governance on the Global Level

When a set of rules or processes is designed keeping in mind the global need-based scenario and aims at coming to a collective agreement that works for the global upbringing, it is said to perform at a global level. It goes beyond the particular interest of a class, society, country, state, government or non-government organisations.

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Governance in India

The studies of Governance in India UPSC talk about India as a secular, sovereign, democratic and socialist Republic. The government of India is of parliamentary form with a federal structure and other essentially unitary features. A specific council of ministers is vested with the power of the country’s governance.

The Prime Minister heads this council. The Prime Minister, in turn, suggests the required measures and advises the President, the constitutional head of India. The states are headed similarly by a council of ministers. Here, the council is headed by the Chief Minister.

The Indian government is divided into three branches, namely,

• The Legislature: The part that makes the laws)
• The Executive: The part that primarily looks into the formulation and execution of government policies and laws)
• The Judiciary: The part that primarily looks into the working of the judicial system consisting of the Supreme Court, High court, District and Sessions courts.

One of the major fields of discussion for the civil services exam is how the governance of a particular country is executed. Therefore, candidates can learn the topic as has been discussed in this article.

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