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1. The context for the preparation of the proposed Governance and Accountability Action
Plan (GAAP) is the recognition by the state government and the Bank the need to improve
accountability arrangement with a view to reducing the chances of corruption and enhance
transparency of the road sector. The GAAP is prepared based on Orissa’s state-level Anti-
Corruption Action Plan (approved in 2005) and India’s 2005 Rights to Information Act (RTI),
and integrates the lessons learned in the implementation o f Bank-financed road projects in India. |
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2. Orissa Anti-Corruption Action Plan. Orissa is the first state in India to articulate a
comprehensive medium-tern, anti-corruption action plan to improve institutional transparency
and accountability. The Action Plan is divided along three broad categories of governance
reforms for
(a) Preventing Corruption by developing better systems and procedures that improve
transparency and accountably. These include procurement reforms and business process reengineering
in corruption prone sectors and service delivery institutions;
(b) enforcement actions
to deter corruption, including a major expansion o f enforcement machinery both at the state level
and within departments through the establishment o f internal vigilance units and new special
courts to try corruption offences;
(c) citizen “voice ” and public awareness to support prevention
and enforcement activities, including providing information to communities about their service
delivery rights. The action plan also includes establishing better information management
systems to facilitate the implementation of the Right to Information Act (RTI). It i s expected that
Orissa’s anti-corruption action plan will be piloted in four government departments, including
the Orissa Works Department (OWD).
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3.Right to Information Act (RTI). India passed the Right to Information Act, in 2005 and
the Act became operational across India from 12 October 2005. The Act mandates the disclosure
of and universal access to information wherever in the public interest. Compliance to the Act is
required for all public entities. Implementation of RTI requires systems for on demand and suo
moto disclosure of information, and for each government department to develop a disclosure
policy, automated systems for record and document management, and information handling, and
appointment of trained staff, programs for citizens’ awareness, and annual progress reporting.
The State of Orissa acting on the directions given in the RTI Act has promulgated the Orissa
State RTI Rules 2005, and has adopted RTI Manual Template (first developed for the state of
Uttaranchal). Both Orissa State RTI Rules and Manual Template, as well as the disclosures o f
some GOO departments are already available on the state’s RTI website:
http://orissagov.nic.in/rti. |
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Key GAAP Features:- |
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4. Taking the above two enabling environments, a Governance and Accountability
Action Plan (GAAP) has been prepared to improve the transparency and accountably
arrangement with which the proposed OSRP will be implemented with a view to reducing
the chances of corruption. The idea is for the OSRP to make project resources (both
financial and expert advice) available to the Government of Orissa (GOO) to comply
with the RTI provisions and implement the state’s anti-corruption action plan, as
inadequate resources could delay and stifle implementation o f these important initiatives.
Accordingly, through several consultations with the OWD and various GOO officials
involved in the Orissa’s anti-corruption plan and RTI implementation in the state,
the GAAP has been prepared. The GAAP is primarily focused on the OSRP implementation,
but would have implications for the entire department and could be scaled up once
its efficacy is proven.
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Implementation of RTI to increase transparency and accountability :- |
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5. Full compliance to the act has the potential of enhancing transparency and accountability
and reducing chances of corruption. For the OSRP, complying with the RTI will involve
several activities, listed below. |
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