57
DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION IN URBAN GOVERNANCE Vijayendra. K M2013CODP035 A project report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Social Work (Community Organisation and Development Practices) Centre of Community Organisation and Development Practices School of Social Work Tata Institute of Social Sciences Mumbai 2015

Vijayendra K_MA Theses

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Page 1: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

DEMOCRATIC PARTICIPATION IN

URBAN GOVERNANCE

Vijayendra K

M2013CODP035

A project report submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of

Master of Arts in Social Work (Community Organisation and Development Practices)

Centre of Community Organisation and Development Practices

School of Social Work

Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Mumbai

2015

i

DECLARATION

I Vijayendra K hereby declare that this dissertation entitled lsquoDemocratic Participation in

Urban Governancersquo is the outcome of my own study undertaken under the guidance of Dr

Janki Andharia Professor Jamsetji Tata Centre for Disaster Management Tata Institute of

Social Sciences Mumbai It has not previously formed the basis for the award of any degree

diploma or certificate of this Institute or of any other institute or university I have duly

acknowledged all the sources used by me in the preparation of this dissertation

4 March 2015 Vijayendra K

ii

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the dissertation entitled lsquoDemocratic Participation in Urban

Governancersquo is the record of the original work done by Vijayendra K under my guidance and

supervision The results of the research presented in this dissertationthesis have not previously

formed the basis for the award of any degree diploma or certificate of this Institute or any

other institute or university

Dr Janki Andharia

Professor

Jamsetji Tata Centre for Disaster Management

Tata Institute of Social Sciences

4 March 2015 Mumbai

iii

CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE NO

Declarationhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip i

Certificatehelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip ii

Contentshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip iii

List of figureshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip iv

Acknowledgment helliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip v

Chapters

1 Introduction and Literature Reviewhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 1

2 Objectives Methodology and Field Engagementhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 12

3 Participation through Structures ndash As seen in Vidyaranyapurahelliphellip 23

4 Understanding Informality and its Contribution to Participationhellip 32

5 Conclusionhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 42

Appendix Interview schedulehelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 45

Referenceshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 48

iv

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure No Title of figure Page No

Figure 11 Ladder of Participation 3

Figure 21 Representation of respondents 13

Figure 31 Ward Committee Gazette 29

Figure 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures 37

Figure 42 Map of Governance 39

Figure 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship 40

v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This research would not have been possible without the support of the following individuals

and I wish to thank them wholeheartedly

I would like to thank Dr Janki Andharia for her continuous support patience and valuable

guidance without which I could not even have imagined this research in its current form

My family members are my pillar of strength and I would like to thank them for all their

blessings support and wishes This journey would not have been possible without the support

of you people

My friends are the biggest asset I have I would like to thank each one of you who have been

there for me and have contributed directly or indirectly in making me what I am today

Last but not the least the people without whom this research is nothing I would like to thank

all the respondents who took out time from their busy schedules to participate in the study

Vijayendra K

4 March 2015

vi

बलनदियोन को छन की खवानिश रखता ि निी

खवाब बस इतना िखता ि की रासत ढढ़त िव गनििश निल जाए किी

- नवजयदर क

I donrsquot dream of reaching the heights

All I dream of is in the quest of a path I stumble upon the skyhellip

- Vijayendra K

Dare to Dreamhellip

1

Chapter 1

Introduction and Literature Review

11 Introduction

In Community Organisation Social Action Legislative Action and Political

Action are discussed as three approaches to social change (Mandros 2005)

Commonality between these three approaches are that all the three talk about transfer

of power and resources to improve conditions for people and there is the assumption of

an organisation that tries to bring about the change and only the change actors differ in

their roles but the objective of social change is intact While social action talks about

targets of change being the people who are responsible for the problem legislative and

political action speak of ensuring necessary legal provisions and ensuring that capable

people who will deliver the necessary goods for the society are elected

There are change actors who play an important role in all the three approaches to bring

about the change Some actors might adopt lsquoinsider strategiesrsquo while others might opt

for the lsquooutsider strategyrsquo depending on whether they are trying to work within the

system or they are pushing for action from outside In most cases both the strategies

have to work in tandem to ensure best results for the society In all these processes one

of the key aspect is of community participation be it in form of agents who adopt

insider strategy and catalyse change or through collective action from outside which

force the people with power to bring about change The way the change agents here

perceive their role as participants and how the people with power perceive the change

agents participation goes a long way in determining the way these two interact and also

bring about the change

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 2: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

i

DECLARATION

I Vijayendra K hereby declare that this dissertation entitled lsquoDemocratic Participation in

Urban Governancersquo is the outcome of my own study undertaken under the guidance of Dr

Janki Andharia Professor Jamsetji Tata Centre for Disaster Management Tata Institute of

Social Sciences Mumbai It has not previously formed the basis for the award of any degree

diploma or certificate of this Institute or of any other institute or university I have duly

acknowledged all the sources used by me in the preparation of this dissertation

4 March 2015 Vijayendra K

ii

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the dissertation entitled lsquoDemocratic Participation in Urban

Governancersquo is the record of the original work done by Vijayendra K under my guidance and

supervision The results of the research presented in this dissertationthesis have not previously

formed the basis for the award of any degree diploma or certificate of this Institute or any

other institute or university

Dr Janki Andharia

Professor

Jamsetji Tata Centre for Disaster Management

Tata Institute of Social Sciences

4 March 2015 Mumbai

iii

CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE NO

Declarationhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip i

Certificatehelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip ii

Contentshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip iii

List of figureshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip iv

Acknowledgment helliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip v

Chapters

1 Introduction and Literature Reviewhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 1

2 Objectives Methodology and Field Engagementhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 12

3 Participation through Structures ndash As seen in Vidyaranyapurahelliphellip 23

4 Understanding Informality and its Contribution to Participationhellip 32

5 Conclusionhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 42

Appendix Interview schedulehelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 45

Referenceshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 48

iv

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure No Title of figure Page No

Figure 11 Ladder of Participation 3

Figure 21 Representation of respondents 13

Figure 31 Ward Committee Gazette 29

Figure 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures 37

Figure 42 Map of Governance 39

Figure 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship 40

v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This research would not have been possible without the support of the following individuals

and I wish to thank them wholeheartedly

I would like to thank Dr Janki Andharia for her continuous support patience and valuable

guidance without which I could not even have imagined this research in its current form

My family members are my pillar of strength and I would like to thank them for all their

blessings support and wishes This journey would not have been possible without the support

of you people

My friends are the biggest asset I have I would like to thank each one of you who have been

there for me and have contributed directly or indirectly in making me what I am today

Last but not the least the people without whom this research is nothing I would like to thank

all the respondents who took out time from their busy schedules to participate in the study

Vijayendra K

4 March 2015

vi

बलनदियोन को छन की खवानिश रखता ि निी

खवाब बस इतना िखता ि की रासत ढढ़त िव गनििश निल जाए किी

- नवजयदर क

I donrsquot dream of reaching the heights

All I dream of is in the quest of a path I stumble upon the skyhellip

- Vijayendra K

Dare to Dreamhellip

1

Chapter 1

Introduction and Literature Review

11 Introduction

In Community Organisation Social Action Legislative Action and Political

Action are discussed as three approaches to social change (Mandros 2005)

Commonality between these three approaches are that all the three talk about transfer

of power and resources to improve conditions for people and there is the assumption of

an organisation that tries to bring about the change and only the change actors differ in

their roles but the objective of social change is intact While social action talks about

targets of change being the people who are responsible for the problem legislative and

political action speak of ensuring necessary legal provisions and ensuring that capable

people who will deliver the necessary goods for the society are elected

There are change actors who play an important role in all the three approaches to bring

about the change Some actors might adopt lsquoinsider strategiesrsquo while others might opt

for the lsquooutsider strategyrsquo depending on whether they are trying to work within the

system or they are pushing for action from outside In most cases both the strategies

have to work in tandem to ensure best results for the society In all these processes one

of the key aspect is of community participation be it in form of agents who adopt

insider strategy and catalyse change or through collective action from outside which

force the people with power to bring about change The way the change agents here

perceive their role as participants and how the people with power perceive the change

agents participation goes a long way in determining the way these two interact and also

bring about the change

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 3: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

ii

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the dissertation entitled lsquoDemocratic Participation in Urban

Governancersquo is the record of the original work done by Vijayendra K under my guidance and

supervision The results of the research presented in this dissertationthesis have not previously

formed the basis for the award of any degree diploma or certificate of this Institute or any

other institute or university

Dr Janki Andharia

Professor

Jamsetji Tata Centre for Disaster Management

Tata Institute of Social Sciences

4 March 2015 Mumbai

iii

CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE NO

Declarationhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip i

Certificatehelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip ii

Contentshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip iii

List of figureshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip iv

Acknowledgment helliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip v

Chapters

1 Introduction and Literature Reviewhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 1

2 Objectives Methodology and Field Engagementhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 12

3 Participation through Structures ndash As seen in Vidyaranyapurahelliphellip 23

4 Understanding Informality and its Contribution to Participationhellip 32

5 Conclusionhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 42

Appendix Interview schedulehelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 45

Referenceshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 48

iv

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure No Title of figure Page No

Figure 11 Ladder of Participation 3

Figure 21 Representation of respondents 13

Figure 31 Ward Committee Gazette 29

Figure 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures 37

Figure 42 Map of Governance 39

Figure 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship 40

v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This research would not have been possible without the support of the following individuals

and I wish to thank them wholeheartedly

I would like to thank Dr Janki Andharia for her continuous support patience and valuable

guidance without which I could not even have imagined this research in its current form

My family members are my pillar of strength and I would like to thank them for all their

blessings support and wishes This journey would not have been possible without the support

of you people

My friends are the biggest asset I have I would like to thank each one of you who have been

there for me and have contributed directly or indirectly in making me what I am today

Last but not the least the people without whom this research is nothing I would like to thank

all the respondents who took out time from their busy schedules to participate in the study

Vijayendra K

4 March 2015

vi

बलनदियोन को छन की खवानिश रखता ि निी

खवाब बस इतना िखता ि की रासत ढढ़त िव गनििश निल जाए किी

- नवजयदर क

I donrsquot dream of reaching the heights

All I dream of is in the quest of a path I stumble upon the skyhellip

- Vijayendra K

Dare to Dreamhellip

1

Chapter 1

Introduction and Literature Review

11 Introduction

In Community Organisation Social Action Legislative Action and Political

Action are discussed as three approaches to social change (Mandros 2005)

Commonality between these three approaches are that all the three talk about transfer

of power and resources to improve conditions for people and there is the assumption of

an organisation that tries to bring about the change and only the change actors differ in

their roles but the objective of social change is intact While social action talks about

targets of change being the people who are responsible for the problem legislative and

political action speak of ensuring necessary legal provisions and ensuring that capable

people who will deliver the necessary goods for the society are elected

There are change actors who play an important role in all the three approaches to bring

about the change Some actors might adopt lsquoinsider strategiesrsquo while others might opt

for the lsquooutsider strategyrsquo depending on whether they are trying to work within the

system or they are pushing for action from outside In most cases both the strategies

have to work in tandem to ensure best results for the society In all these processes one

of the key aspect is of community participation be it in form of agents who adopt

insider strategy and catalyse change or through collective action from outside which

force the people with power to bring about change The way the change agents here

perceive their role as participants and how the people with power perceive the change

agents participation goes a long way in determining the way these two interact and also

bring about the change

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 4: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

iii

CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE NO

Declarationhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip i

Certificatehelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip ii

Contentshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip iii

List of figureshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip iv

Acknowledgment helliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip v

Chapters

1 Introduction and Literature Reviewhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 1

2 Objectives Methodology and Field Engagementhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 12

3 Participation through Structures ndash As seen in Vidyaranyapurahelliphellip 23

4 Understanding Informality and its Contribution to Participationhellip 32

5 Conclusionhelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 42

Appendix Interview schedulehelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 45

Referenceshelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphelliphellip 48

iv

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure No Title of figure Page No

Figure 11 Ladder of Participation 3

Figure 21 Representation of respondents 13

Figure 31 Ward Committee Gazette 29

Figure 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures 37

Figure 42 Map of Governance 39

Figure 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship 40

v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This research would not have been possible without the support of the following individuals

and I wish to thank them wholeheartedly

I would like to thank Dr Janki Andharia for her continuous support patience and valuable

guidance without which I could not even have imagined this research in its current form

My family members are my pillar of strength and I would like to thank them for all their

blessings support and wishes This journey would not have been possible without the support

of you people

My friends are the biggest asset I have I would like to thank each one of you who have been

there for me and have contributed directly or indirectly in making me what I am today

Last but not the least the people without whom this research is nothing I would like to thank

all the respondents who took out time from their busy schedules to participate in the study

Vijayendra K

4 March 2015

vi

बलनदियोन को छन की खवानिश रखता ि निी

खवाब बस इतना िखता ि की रासत ढढ़त िव गनििश निल जाए किी

- नवजयदर क

I donrsquot dream of reaching the heights

All I dream of is in the quest of a path I stumble upon the skyhellip

- Vijayendra K

Dare to Dreamhellip

1

Chapter 1

Introduction and Literature Review

11 Introduction

In Community Organisation Social Action Legislative Action and Political

Action are discussed as three approaches to social change (Mandros 2005)

Commonality between these three approaches are that all the three talk about transfer

of power and resources to improve conditions for people and there is the assumption of

an organisation that tries to bring about the change and only the change actors differ in

their roles but the objective of social change is intact While social action talks about

targets of change being the people who are responsible for the problem legislative and

political action speak of ensuring necessary legal provisions and ensuring that capable

people who will deliver the necessary goods for the society are elected

There are change actors who play an important role in all the three approaches to bring

about the change Some actors might adopt lsquoinsider strategiesrsquo while others might opt

for the lsquooutsider strategyrsquo depending on whether they are trying to work within the

system or they are pushing for action from outside In most cases both the strategies

have to work in tandem to ensure best results for the society In all these processes one

of the key aspect is of community participation be it in form of agents who adopt

insider strategy and catalyse change or through collective action from outside which

force the people with power to bring about change The way the change agents here

perceive their role as participants and how the people with power perceive the change

agents participation goes a long way in determining the way these two interact and also

bring about the change

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 5: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

iv

LIST OF FIGURES

Figure No Title of figure Page No

Figure 11 Ladder of Participation 3

Figure 21 Representation of respondents 13

Figure 31 Ward Committee Gazette 29

Figure 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures 37

Figure 42 Map of Governance 39

Figure 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship 40

v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This research would not have been possible without the support of the following individuals

and I wish to thank them wholeheartedly

I would like to thank Dr Janki Andharia for her continuous support patience and valuable

guidance without which I could not even have imagined this research in its current form

My family members are my pillar of strength and I would like to thank them for all their

blessings support and wishes This journey would not have been possible without the support

of you people

My friends are the biggest asset I have I would like to thank each one of you who have been

there for me and have contributed directly or indirectly in making me what I am today

Last but not the least the people without whom this research is nothing I would like to thank

all the respondents who took out time from their busy schedules to participate in the study

Vijayendra K

4 March 2015

vi

बलनदियोन को छन की खवानिश रखता ि निी

खवाब बस इतना िखता ि की रासत ढढ़त िव गनििश निल जाए किी

- नवजयदर क

I donrsquot dream of reaching the heights

All I dream of is in the quest of a path I stumble upon the skyhellip

- Vijayendra K

Dare to Dreamhellip

1

Chapter 1

Introduction and Literature Review

11 Introduction

In Community Organisation Social Action Legislative Action and Political

Action are discussed as three approaches to social change (Mandros 2005)

Commonality between these three approaches are that all the three talk about transfer

of power and resources to improve conditions for people and there is the assumption of

an organisation that tries to bring about the change and only the change actors differ in

their roles but the objective of social change is intact While social action talks about

targets of change being the people who are responsible for the problem legislative and

political action speak of ensuring necessary legal provisions and ensuring that capable

people who will deliver the necessary goods for the society are elected

There are change actors who play an important role in all the three approaches to bring

about the change Some actors might adopt lsquoinsider strategiesrsquo while others might opt

for the lsquooutsider strategyrsquo depending on whether they are trying to work within the

system or they are pushing for action from outside In most cases both the strategies

have to work in tandem to ensure best results for the society In all these processes one

of the key aspect is of community participation be it in form of agents who adopt

insider strategy and catalyse change or through collective action from outside which

force the people with power to bring about change The way the change agents here

perceive their role as participants and how the people with power perceive the change

agents participation goes a long way in determining the way these two interact and also

bring about the change

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 6: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

v

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This research would not have been possible without the support of the following individuals

and I wish to thank them wholeheartedly

I would like to thank Dr Janki Andharia for her continuous support patience and valuable

guidance without which I could not even have imagined this research in its current form

My family members are my pillar of strength and I would like to thank them for all their

blessings support and wishes This journey would not have been possible without the support

of you people

My friends are the biggest asset I have I would like to thank each one of you who have been

there for me and have contributed directly or indirectly in making me what I am today

Last but not the least the people without whom this research is nothing I would like to thank

all the respondents who took out time from their busy schedules to participate in the study

Vijayendra K

4 March 2015

vi

बलनदियोन को छन की खवानिश रखता ि निी

खवाब बस इतना िखता ि की रासत ढढ़त िव गनििश निल जाए किी

- नवजयदर क

I donrsquot dream of reaching the heights

All I dream of is in the quest of a path I stumble upon the skyhellip

- Vijayendra K

Dare to Dreamhellip

1

Chapter 1

Introduction and Literature Review

11 Introduction

In Community Organisation Social Action Legislative Action and Political

Action are discussed as three approaches to social change (Mandros 2005)

Commonality between these three approaches are that all the three talk about transfer

of power and resources to improve conditions for people and there is the assumption of

an organisation that tries to bring about the change and only the change actors differ in

their roles but the objective of social change is intact While social action talks about

targets of change being the people who are responsible for the problem legislative and

political action speak of ensuring necessary legal provisions and ensuring that capable

people who will deliver the necessary goods for the society are elected

There are change actors who play an important role in all the three approaches to bring

about the change Some actors might adopt lsquoinsider strategiesrsquo while others might opt

for the lsquooutsider strategyrsquo depending on whether they are trying to work within the

system or they are pushing for action from outside In most cases both the strategies

have to work in tandem to ensure best results for the society In all these processes one

of the key aspect is of community participation be it in form of agents who adopt

insider strategy and catalyse change or through collective action from outside which

force the people with power to bring about change The way the change agents here

perceive their role as participants and how the people with power perceive the change

agents participation goes a long way in determining the way these two interact and also

bring about the change

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

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httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 7: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

vi

बलनदियोन को छन की खवानिश रखता ि निी

खवाब बस इतना िखता ि की रासत ढढ़त िव गनििश निल जाए किी

- नवजयदर क

I donrsquot dream of reaching the heights

All I dream of is in the quest of a path I stumble upon the skyhellip

- Vijayendra K

Dare to Dreamhellip

1

Chapter 1

Introduction and Literature Review

11 Introduction

In Community Organisation Social Action Legislative Action and Political

Action are discussed as three approaches to social change (Mandros 2005)

Commonality between these three approaches are that all the three talk about transfer

of power and resources to improve conditions for people and there is the assumption of

an organisation that tries to bring about the change and only the change actors differ in

their roles but the objective of social change is intact While social action talks about

targets of change being the people who are responsible for the problem legislative and

political action speak of ensuring necessary legal provisions and ensuring that capable

people who will deliver the necessary goods for the society are elected

There are change actors who play an important role in all the three approaches to bring

about the change Some actors might adopt lsquoinsider strategiesrsquo while others might opt

for the lsquooutsider strategyrsquo depending on whether they are trying to work within the

system or they are pushing for action from outside In most cases both the strategies

have to work in tandem to ensure best results for the society In all these processes one

of the key aspect is of community participation be it in form of agents who adopt

insider strategy and catalyse change or through collective action from outside which

force the people with power to bring about change The way the change agents here

perceive their role as participants and how the people with power perceive the change

agents participation goes a long way in determining the way these two interact and also

bring about the change

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 8: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

1

Chapter 1

Introduction and Literature Review

11 Introduction

In Community Organisation Social Action Legislative Action and Political

Action are discussed as three approaches to social change (Mandros 2005)

Commonality between these three approaches are that all the three talk about transfer

of power and resources to improve conditions for people and there is the assumption of

an organisation that tries to bring about the change and only the change actors differ in

their roles but the objective of social change is intact While social action talks about

targets of change being the people who are responsible for the problem legislative and

political action speak of ensuring necessary legal provisions and ensuring that capable

people who will deliver the necessary goods for the society are elected

There are change actors who play an important role in all the three approaches to bring

about the change Some actors might adopt lsquoinsider strategiesrsquo while others might opt

for the lsquooutsider strategyrsquo depending on whether they are trying to work within the

system or they are pushing for action from outside In most cases both the strategies

have to work in tandem to ensure best results for the society In all these processes one

of the key aspect is of community participation be it in form of agents who adopt

insider strategy and catalyse change or through collective action from outside which

force the people with power to bring about change The way the change agents here

perceive their role as participants and how the people with power perceive the change

agents participation goes a long way in determining the way these two interact and also

bring about the change

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 9: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

2

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the southern states in India

111 Definitions of Participation

While many scholars have argued that it is not possible to have a universal definition

of participation some interpretations of it are available

According to Lele (1975) ldquoParticipation means in its broadest sense to sensitize people

and thus increase the receptivity and ability of people to respond to development

programmes as well as to encourage local initiativesrdquo On the other hand Uphoff and

Cohen (1979) suggest that ldquoPopular Participation in development should be broadly

understood as the active involvement of people in the decision-making process in so far

as it affects themrdquo

These two definitions highlight different approaches to participation in practice One is

participation as a means essentially describing a state or an input into a development

programme while the second approach is that of participation as an end which refers to

a process the outcome of which is meaningful participation (Oakley amp Marsden 1984)

It is clear that while the first definition sees participation as a mean which is an

instrumental approach the second definition sees it as an end which is an empowerment

approach The empowerment approach of participation is an interpretation in which

participation is seen as a process to achieve power The power here might connote

access and control of resources

The significance of participation can be envisioned from the origin of the idea of

lsquodemocracyrsquo which emphasizes power in the hands of the people It has always been

advocated that better participation is necessary in order to improve the working of the

democracy as a political system Participation here definitely goes beyond just casting

onersquos vote during election and calls for involvement at various levels be it as a lsquomeansrsquo

to ensure better working of various systems or as an lsquoendsrsquo approach to empower the

basic units of democracy

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 10: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

3

There are various challenges to participation which differ according to the perception

of participation one is referring to There are three major areas of obstruction mentioned

by Oakley and Marsden (1984) - Operational Cultural and Structural which might not

be mutually exclusive While operational difficulties are with respect to the ldquomeansrdquo

perspective the cultural and structural challenges refer to challenges with respect to the

ldquoends perspectiverdquo In the absence of a universal definition one can examine various

perceptions of participation from people who experience it in order to get a better

understanding

112 Levels of Participation

One of the typology of lsquoCitizen Participationrsquo (Arnstein 1969) has 8 different grades

of participation arranged in a ladder pattern with the lower rungs of the ladder denoting

non-participation evolving to degrees of citizen power as we move up the ladder These

typologies are explained using examples from three federal social programs ndash Urban

Renewal Anti-Poverty and Model Cities The classification in ascending order of the

ladder rungs are as follows Manipulation Therapy Informing Consultation

Placation Partnership Delegated Power amp Citizen Control

Fig11 Ladder of Participation

Source Arnstein 1969

The first two categories lsquomanipulationrsquo and lsquotherapyrsquo are placed as non-participative

provisions where the author claims the real objective is not to enable participation but

to enable power holders to ldquoeducaterdquo or cure the participants The next three rungs ndash

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 11: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

4

lsquoinformingrsquo lsquoconsultationrsquo and lsquoplacationrsquo are said to be a progress from

nonparticipation to tokenism which facilitates the participants to voice their concerns

But the participation is limited and has no assurance of desired impact as there is no

direct transfer of lsquopowerrsquo at any level Placation is the highest level of tokenism which

allows participants to advice but the power lies with the authorities The last three rungs

ndash lsquopartnershiprsquo lsquodelegated powerrsquo and lsquocitizen controlrsquo are the ones that empower the

citizens to negotiate and share the power of decision making with the authorities

making it the highest form of participation on the ladder

The limitations of these typologies are that they assume the powerful and powerless as

homogeneous groups ignoring the different perceptions and perspectives of both the

groups from their standpoint Further the typology does not go on to analyse the

hindrances (to both the power holders and the power seekers) that exist in achieving

these levels of participation There are also arguments against community control such

as accusition of supporting separatism balkanisation of public services cost inducing

but less efficient etc

113 Perceptions on participation

Participation might connote different significance and meanings to different sets of

people One of the ways to explain and understand might be through shared experiences

of lsquoparticipationrsquo which have derived positive results to communities across the

geographical boundaries which is what some scholars (Morse Rahman amp Johnson

1995) tried to evolve out of a workshop where they tried to connect individuals engaged

in participatory organisations across nations The workshop titled Peoplersquos Initiaitives

to Overcome Poverty connected 15 individuals working with various communities from

countries like India Phillipines United States Canada Thailand and Bangladesh What

is interesting to note here is that each of these participants talk of certain attributes of

participation that they perceived and utilised in their respective communities

Through their varied experiences participants speak of self-discipline and how

organising responsibilities can go on to form the core of the struggle against structural

factors They see participation as a process of becoming independent (move away from

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 12: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

5

dependency) self-reliant and accountable which they experienced by co-operation

enhancing their knowledge through education choosing local political representation

amongst themselves empowering themselves with financial resources and accessing

information We thereby have a wide range of perceptions of participation (not

exhaustive by any means) which these individuals and their communities have These

forms of participation has resulted in them experiencing benefits as a community and

enhancing their resource utilisation Space for participation is also seen as one of the

key aspects in determining the quality of governance We shall therefore examine the

concept of governance and quality of governance next and try to see how participation

is viewed by different scholars within the ambit of governance

114 Governance and Quality of Governance

Governance is defined (Fukuyama 2013) as a governmentrsquos ability to make and enforce

rules and to deliver services regardless of whether the government is democratic or

not The argument is that good governance and democracy need not be mutually

supportive as they have not been empirically demonstrated One significant point to

note is that there is an effort to delink two concepts lsquogovernancersquo and lsquoquality of

governancersquo from one another While seeing governance as a principal agent

relationship it is more of performance of agent and not about the goals that the

principles set Thus governance here relates to the execution of the planning and not

the planning itself This definition plays an important role of generalising governance

to both authoritarian and democratic regimes Since lately use of terminologies like

lsquogood governancersquo are on the rise Good governance might refer to the quality of

governance

However it is useful to examine how certain institutions popularise concepts like ldquogood

governancerdquo with specific consequences The term lsquogood governancersquo was coined by

the World Bank in 1990s (Nanda 2006) International aid providers like International

Monetary Fund (IMF) World Bank and the United States started insisting upon

performance and good governance before providing aid They call this practice

ldquoselectivityrdquo The recipient state is expected to demonstrate its seriousness to commit

for economic and social reforms Though there are no objective standard for good

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 13: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

6

governance some aspects to determine good governance are political stability the rule

of law control of corruption and accountability The conclusion provided here is that

for the success of governance reforms there is a need to reform and strengthen the state

and governing institutions effective democratic institutions established effective

participation ensuring strengthened accountability and enhanced rule of law to ensure

that the good governance is sustainable It would be interesting to look at the various

kinds of participation that exists and the extent of its influence on governance

Peoplersquos participation is central in a democracy and it takes place in a context Who

participates and why What is the quality of that participation What kind of outcomes

are envisaged These questions are sought to be explored in this study The answers to

these questions also depend in a large measure on spaces available to participate within

a democracy What are these structures of democracy What are the forms of

governance Do they encourage or thwart participation These questions inform this

study which is being undertaken in Karnataka One of the four southern states in India

12 Rationale

Peoplersquos participation is subsumed under citizen engagement which is a much

narrower understanding In a democracy participation needs to be viewed within the

institutional perspective of the ability to influence policies that effect lives of people

In a large country like India and US decentralisation is seen as an important aspect of

enhancing peoplersquos participation This provides insights into how participative

democracy functions

121 Participative Democracy in India

In India there has been attempt at participative democracy in rural governance One

interesting case has been the operationalization of Gram Swaraj in Madhya Pradesh In

January 2001 The Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj Adhiniyam (Act) 1993 was

renamed as Madhya Pradesh Panchayat Raj (Sanshodhan) Adhiniyam 2001 This

evolved as a result of replication of political system distortion that existed at state and

union levels at the gram panchayat level which the state government went on to

recognised Gram Swaraj is a new level of local self-governance which moves from

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 14: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

7

indirect to direct democracy by giving the power to the people and not their

representatives The operationalization was done by strengthening the gram sabhas by

giving them power of decision making and also constituted eight standing committees

and additional ad hoc committees which were supposed to look into implementation

So the gram sabhas had additional power apart from those of gram panchayats

Thereby we can see the difference in the functioning of gram panchayat and gram

sabhas lied in the powers that each of them enjoyed with gram sabha being the more

empowered one To negate the hierarchical social order and balance the power

equations certain provisions were provided It was mandatory to have at least one fifth

of the total members of the gram sabha (out of which at least one third should be women

and SC and STs should represent according to their population proportion of gram

sabha) for the quora of the gram sabha to function Without this minimum requirement

fulfilled the gram sabha was not empowered to take any decisions Decisions were

expected to be unanimous but in case of differences in opinions a provision for a secret

voting was provided Women and marginalised community representation in ad hoc

and standing committees was ensured via reservation Also a provision to appeal against

any decision to a three member committee was made Also while gram panchayats in

Madhya Pradesh usually constituted more than one village gram sabhas were made

separate for each village but at the same time provision for a joint gram sabha was also

made if required to take necessary decisions affecting the entire gram panchayat

What was interesting in the evolution of this model based on Gandhian Ideology was

a deliberated refinement and dialogue based approach On one hand there were

extremely noted Gandhians on the task force like Anna Hazare Nirmala Deshpande

Subba Rao B D Sharma etc and also the model was shared with people and civil

society at divisional headquarters and their queries and suggestions were incorporated

into the final model In that sense participation started from the way this model

evolved Critiques claim that gram swaraj is an attempt to dilute and disempower the

panchayat raj institutions on account of political reasons and the threat the panchayat

system posed to political class However the task force members defend by stating that

the gram swaraj is operationalized with a sole purpose of giving the power to the hands

of the people and not due to any political class concerns (Beher 2001) A reappraisal

of the gram swaraj model tells us that the potential space for change has been

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 15: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

8

underutilised due to lack of proper communicational channels from the state

irregularity in functioning of gram sabhas due to non-fulfilment of minimum criteria

failure of the government machinery and the bureaucracy to internalise the restructuring

of the government system etc (Behar 2003) However the slow and cautious

beginning is attributed to non-sustainability of the strong political will which was

instrumental in operationalizing the model

This is a case where the state government responding to a popular demand identified

the need and created space for direct empowerment through participation of people in

rural governance Following this example what is the space available for people to

participate in urban governance is what this study seeks to explore

122 Space for Participation in Urban Governance

The 74th Constitution Amendment Act (CAA) paved way for Urban Local Bodies

(ULBs) as the decentralized form of local self-governance in India According to the

CAA1 depending on the size and area municipalities can be of 3 types

Nagar Panchayat for an area in transition from rural to urban area

Municipal Council for smaller urban area and

Municipal Corporation for larger urban areas

These municipalities have elected representatives expected to govern the city The act

also made provision for the constitution of ward committees in all municipalities which

had minimum 3 lakhs population (74th CAA) But this does not provide adequate

representation for people in cities whose needs and demands vary greatly Moreover

the enforcement of this provision cannot be seen in majority of the cases As a result

citizens have to look at other avenues for participation to ensure their interests

adequately represented in the governance of the city and the affairs that influence them

One of the popular avenues for citizen participation in urban governance for the middle

class are the neighbourhood associations of which Resident Welfare Associations

(RWA) form a major part RWAs and other neighbourhood associations are seen as

1 httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 16: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

9

actors who can stake claims as institutions that represent peoplersquos voices In an attempt

to study the institutional limitations of local democracy (Lama-Rewal 2007) it is found

that lsquoneighbourhood associationsrsquo (RWAs cooperative housing societies etc) as an

activism of the middle class for the middle class The author further goes on to state

that the vocal demands of these neighbourhood associations for transparency

accountability and participation does open up some avenues to improve the functioning

of representative democracy However these remain voluntary associations and does

often do not represent the need or voices of the marginalised in the city such as slum

dwellers migrant workers and others

Scholars have pointed out various limitations and scope that exists with respect to the

RWAs In a study (Kamath amp Vijayabaskar 2009) which focuses on the limitations and

possibilities of middle class associations as urban collective actors the varied nature of

the participants of RWAs that arise due to various factors like diverse geographical and

economical positioning of their localities non-homogenous nature of middle class etc

are highlighted They evolve a typology of middle class RWAs by classifying them

into segments such as Elite middle class RWAs upwardly mobile middle and lower

middle class RWAs Traditional middle class RWAs amp New Elites They bring out the

varied priorities and issues identified by these different segments of RWAs which is a

result of various factors like job profile of members varied locations of these

associations etc The varied priorities can be underlined by an example The elite

RWAs concerns are around the property value and ownership Upwardly mobile and

lower middle class RWAs are concerned with enhancing the exchange value of their

property Traditional middle class RWAs are interested in conserving local culture and

organising religious programs and finally New elites who are insulated from problems

as they live in lsquogated communitiesrsquo Not just identifying the problems but the kind of

access to policy makers that these RWAs have also are different Differences in

interactions between RWAs at core (in Malleshwaram for example) and at Peripheries

are also pointed out The elites may establish informal contact with a formal mayor

while playing golf while for an upwardly mobile RWA the point of contact with the

bureaucracy might be a mid lower or a field level officer

While there are possibilities as well as limitations for citizen participation through

spaces like RWAs the participants are majorly the middle class section of the society

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 17: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

10

The marginalised section of the societies hardly find space for direct participation

through associations like RWAs and have to rely on the NGOs and other organisations

who are willing to represent their voices Thus it would be worthwhile looking at how

the existing spaces for participation are utilised by the middle class and the challenges

that they face and compare it with the space available for the marginalised section of

the urban spaces Therefore we would be looking at Bangalore as a case study and

examining the space for participation of people (middle class and the marginalised) and

see how they utilise them and also see the functioning of Ward Committee which is the

latest step in decentralisation in Bangalore

123 Area of Study - Bangalore

Bangalore came on the global map after the advent of the Information Technology (IT)

sector since the 2000rsquos has seen a population growth of 4668 from 20012 and is the

second fastest growing city in India after Delhi It is the IT capital of India which is

also known as Silicon Valley of India3 As per Indian Institute of Science while 30

of Indiarsquos IT sector workforce lives in Bangalore around 25 of its entire population

lives in Slums which tells the other side of the story On one hand the city hosts a range

of IT giants like Infosys Wipro etc creating wealth for many and on the other hand

still 2 million people live in poverty in the city (The Guardian 2012) The city has the

presence of various active organisations like Janaagraha CIVIC (Citizenrsquos Voluntary

Initiative for the City) and Bangalore Transportation Projects Impacted Communities

(BATPIC) Network that try to work with citizens and the government to better the

quality of life of the citizens With the changing dynamics of the city how do the citizens

experience participation would be interesting to look at

Bangalore city has been divided into 198 wards and Vidyaranyapura (Ward 9) falls

under the Assembly Constituency of Byatarayanapura and Parliamentary Constituency

of Bangalore North Its vicinity to public sector enterprises like Bharat Eectronics Ltd

(BEL) and Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT) private sector establishments like the

Manyata Tech Park in Nagawara and its accessibility to the new International Airport

2 (censusindiagovin 2011) 3 (The New York Times 2006)

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 18: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

11

has made it one of the sought after residential areas around this part of the city With

an area of 979 Sq Kms and a population of 57195 (Male ndash 29382 Female ndash 27813)4

the ward has seen a population growth of 147 against the city population growth of

45 between 2001 and 20115 With such surge in population and a residential area

which is sought after it would be interesting to examine the kind of participation

various sections of people experience here The entire research would be conducted in

Vidyaranyapura Ward In addition to the unique characteristics mentioned above

factors like the ease of access knowledge about the area (being a resident here) and

time constraint also played a role in selecting this particular ward

4 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapura 5 httpwwwichangemycitycomwardsvidyaranyapurabudget

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 19: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

12

Chapter 2

Objectives Methodology and Field Engagement

21 Research Objectives

It is clear that participation as a concept when put into practice empowers people

at various levels and results in a better functioning of the political system and its

interaction with other systems The objective of this research will be to

Explore the ways and means of how citizens participate in urban

governance ndash In order to understand what structures are available and how

people identify them it is important to explore the ways and means of how

citizens participate The existing structures available to participate and its forms

needs to be looked into

Understand the perceptions on participation and see if they are related to

processes andor outcomes - Participation can be best understood by

understanding how people experience and perceive it to be The perceptions

might also indicate the willingness of the people to actually participate Having

a space to participate does not guarantee participation because if an individual

is not willing to participate this space will remain as a gap and yield no results

At the same time perceptions might change depending on the space available

Explore the working of a participatory model if any exists ndash Based on the

experience in the field try to understand the working model of participation if

at all there exists one The existing structures and participants

22 Research Methodology

Research Design

The research is Exploratory in nature and will be using Qualitative Methodology to

address the research objectives The tool used were semi-structured interviews (three

sets of questionnaire were prepared keeping in mind the objectives of the study and the

varied background of respondents) and being a non-participant observer

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 20: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

13

Selection of Sample

The sample used throughout is Purposive Non-probabilistic Snowball Sampling

Initially a set of individuals and organisations were identified through secondary

research who might be probable respondents Further respondents was identified with

the help of these respondents thereby making it snowball The respondents were mainly

divided under three categories of people -

Ward Committee MembersElected Representatives

Civil Society Organisation members (Formal and Informal) and

People from Marginalised Communities

Fig

21 Representation of respondents

Ward committee of Vidyaranypura consists of 10 members who are residents of the

ward (representation of RWAs Women and Backward Communities are taken care

of) Some of the Ward Committee members were approached for an interview to

understand the functioning of the committee and the members view on participation

and decentralisation

A list of probable civil society organisations (formal as well informal) were identified

and contacted Further Snowball method was used to interview probable respondents

through the contact of these members leading from one respondent to another

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 21: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

14

With the help of individuals and some organisations that work in the area some

individuals from the marginalised communities were interviewed to get their perception

and understand their space to participate This included both males and females

Secondary Data

Secondary data was collected from various sources which included scholarly articles

newspaper articles and the internet to gather information about the area of study and

also some of the organisations

23 Overall Experience on Field

The time spent on the field for data collection were one of those learning phases

which provided me an opportunity to interact with people from various fields be it

individuals representing various associations the Ward Committee Members or the

individuals from the marginalised communities in the ward From the early morning

cycling rides hoping to find a respondent to the Sunday weekly engagement to clean

up the lakes and witnessing some citizen initiatives yielding results from the visit to

the Jakkur Lake along with one of the corporator to visiting homes of the ward

committee members hoping for an interview each of these engagements was a unique

experience in itself

There were days when one respondent would lead me to couple of more respondents

and there were days when I could not tap anyone for almost two weeks Even after

spending weeks trying to engage with some of the potential respondents when they

back off as soon as they get to know you seek some information from them amidst the

disappointment of losing out on a respondent after investing so much time it also was

an opportunity to see the issue from the stand point of that individual and try to

understand why they are so scared to even talk to people who might not exactly be

strangers but still not close enough to reveal any detail As a normal day to day

conversation with a stranger they may reveal many things because they are not

conscious about what they talk but the moment you state that you want to know about

their life a little in detail in order to understand their lives they may completely restrict

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 22: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

15

your vicinity possibly fearing that you are one of those media reporters who just wants

a news item which they might not be willing to be a part of

On the other hand the three hours spent at the MLAs office was a unique experience

altogether Seeing the wide range of people from parents coming to seek the MLAs

lsquoblessingsrsquo as well as career guidance as their son had fared well in exams to the

brothers who wanted to invite the MLA to their sisters marriage and not to forget all

those party workers moving in and out continuously I witnessed a very diverse crowd

Amidst all these people were some who had come to address their grievances of various

kinds (bad roads water shortage etc) to the MLA Even though I was disappointed

that I got just 3 minutes after waiting for 3 hours the point to note was that the elected

representative made effort to meet each of those 60 odd individuals who had been

waiting since the morning Even though I have still not received any response from his

office to the questions I mailed them which he had agreed to answer one significant

factor was that his office is accessible to the people in need

231 Initial Engagement Struggle

The first challenge faced during data collection was in getting the first couple of

interviews Initial few days went in cycling around trying to find out the location of the

Resident Welfare Associations the Ward Committee members and keeping an open

eye for any organisation that works with the marginalised communities in the area I

was also on the lookout for any potential respondents from the marginalised

communities be it street vendors auto drivers or construction workers

Though this phase made me see many changes in terms of well-built government

schools primary health care centres parks and lakes in the area I could also witness

the effect of a dispute between the lsquoPaurakarmikarsquo workers who were not paid their

dues by the contractor who is in charge of cleaning the garbage in the ward when the

streets in the area were filled with stinking garbage as the workers went on a strike

Online options were also explored in trying to get a breakthrough of some sort which

materialised with the first RWA member interview which was obtained via active social

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 23: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

16

media presence of the association The first interview was with one of the Ward

Committee member which resulted after multiple visits to his home These initial

respondents further paved way for other respondents and the data collection eventually

gained some momentum

232 Experience with the associations

The first interview was with a new RWA called lsquoNamma Vidyaranyapura Residents

Welfare Associationrsquo The interaction with the President of the RWA brought to the

fore front many aspects most important of them being the emergence of groups like

BPAC (Bangalore Political Action Committee) which was building leadership skills

and equipping the individuals to handle governance issues in their wards The

respondent further directed me to a group which was working to revamp the 3 lakes

(names being Narsipura 1 Narsipura 2 and Dodda Bommasandra)

This lsquoinformal group of friendsrsquo as they refer themselves to and have a social media

presence in the name of ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo was one of the significant discoveries of

this field work The conception of the idea of informal groups and the way it is

functioning on the field raised a lot of curiosity in me as a researcher How an informal

group with people from various expertise can act as a pressure group and derive the

support of the elected representatives at the same time was a very interesting case to

look at The fact that they got the corporator to join them to visit the Jakkur Lake to see

how they could revamp the lakes here on the same lines showed the kind support and

the attention the group had managed to get despite not being any formal association

Also what was interesting was the way in which they used the social media for their

cause Interaction with the members of this informal group put forward some views as

to how RWAs can become a vehicle of vote bank for a political party compromising on

the issues to address Also what was interesting was the way in which the group had so

far managed to keep its focus on the issue at hand despite differences of opinions which

will also be the challenge it faces in the days ahead

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 24: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

17

Interaction with a member of the same group who is also the member of an RWA put

forth the importance of both formal and informal groups and how in some sense both

kinds if associations have a role to play Another association was the Hiriya Nagarikara

Vedike (Association for the senior citizens) Interaction with one of the senior members

of this association highlighted the importance of the space that is required for the senior

citizens to spend some time with each other and also the role that they played in guiding

some groups on various issues with their experience The senior citizens were one of

those advisors who advised the ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo to remain as an informal group on

the ground that the political and other groups will find it difficult to disrupt their agenda

of lake development as they cannot track them since they are not a formal association

It is clear that the associations represented a majorly middle class participation

however there were individuals who were willing to be the voice of the marginalised

(which was evident by the active participation of some individuals during the

negotiations between the paurakarmika workers (garbage collectors) and the

contractor)

Apart of the organisation Swachha that works in partnership with the municipality to

segregate the garbage in the ward I could not see the presence of any other organisation

actively working for the marginalised in the ward nor could any of the respondents refer

me to one as it seemed that even they were not aware of any organisation working

actively in the area

233 Experience with marginalised communities

The most difficult part of the data collection process was to manage interaction with

the marginalised people The experience exposed me to the challenges of data collection

and how the amount of time you spend in trying to build rapport with the probable

respondents may go in vain It was definitely easier to talk to the association members

and even to the ward committee members to an extent but not the deprived section of

people I spent weeks trying to build rapport with many individuals like tender coconut

vendor construction worker tea vendor but all of them backed off significantly the

moment I asked them if they I could know something more in detail about their lives

Some individuals would tell me they will speak to me on a particular day at a particular

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 25: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

18

time and would never turn up It was a disappointment when they would not turn up but

at the same time I sometimes used to wonder if I were in their position would I be

willing to talk about my life to a stranger whom I had known via casual talks The

absence of organisations like the NGOs in the dominantly residential ward of

Vidyaranyapura is a point to examine and I have been thinking of probable reasons for

the same during my data collection but have not been able to answer the question

satisfactorily

During the two interactions I managed in April-May (A Scrap Dealer and a garbage

segregator) and the three interactions in November I could sense that these people are

very open once they get to know that you are not someone who intend to harm them

Both the individuals had a series of questions to ask me before agreeing to talk to me

They also told me that their friends would not talk to me as they fear I would be a media

person and they might lose their livelihood if their bosses got to know about it They

also were not aware of any NGO or similar organisation working in the area The kind

of awareness the scrap dealer had about politics amused me and made me admire him

and his family as they were aware of the happenings One the other hand the other

women I interviewed believed in the philosophy of ldquome and my familyrdquo and her

confession that ldquoI get scared inside a polling booth and run out of the room as soon as

I press some random button on the EVM but I vote as my husband asks me tordquo Her

confession in the end that she agreed to talk to me as I did not mind sitting down with

her and converse and did not demand a chair in their garbage segregation center made

me think about how much our actions as interviewers mattered to create a perception

of us in the eyes of the respondent

But managing just two interviews in this section was a disappointment But the time I

spent trying to build rapport with the street vendors and my limited interaction with

them also made me see their perspective and struggles with day to day chores Also

observing the kind of customers the tender coconut seller attracted (I spent considerable

amount of time there as it was a meeting point for a lot of daily labourers auto drivers

and tea vendors) some regular customers and some new visitors every day and listening

to the kind of discussions they have with each other was a very fascinating experience

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 26: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

19

234 Experience with ward committee members

The three ward committee members I spoke to give a unanimous answer regarding the

limited powers that the ward committee enjoyed and more or less the corporator made

all the calls They also unanimously agreed that the ward committee should enjoy more

power in decision making However they had different versions when it came to the

number of meetings that had taken place Some of them were clearly trying to defend

the corporator and also told me that the meetings happened every single month but some

were very honest with the number of meetings that happened There was also lack of

awareness about the guidelines given to the ward committee in the gazette I was told

that public is ldquonot allowedrdquo to attend the meetings and only the nominated members of

the ward committee and the corporator were allowed while the gazette clearly mentions

that all the ward committee meetings were open to public But all the members were

very clear that they would not talk to any random person and agreed to interact with me

only after I showed them my ID card and the letter provided by the institute One of the

members who was initially very sceptical to allow me inside spent considerable amount

of time talking to me about my education and also forced me to have a cup of tea before

leaving While it was understandable that they would not allow some random person in

their house it was also evident that they were trying to avoid the interaction when

consulted via telephone At the same time some would talk at length once they agree to

give an interview I could clearly sense some very frank answers and some diplomatic

answers depending on the kind of relation the members enjoyed with the corporator

During the additional round of data collection the interview with the Corporator of

Vidyaranyapura ward was possible Though not before a number of visits to the home

cum office of the lady Corporator the interaction was indeed an experience

235 Challenges during Data Collection

Finding respondents was the major challenge undoubtedly Identifying potential

respondents building rapport with the individuals trying to convince them to spend

some of their valuable time dealing with hostility and finally documenting the

interviews taken the data collection period was not just challenging but also

demanding Trying to reconstruct the conversations (which were sometimes in

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 27: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

20

Kannada) on the same day so as to not to lose out on important aspects of information

making short notes while interviewing so as to capture pointers which would help me

reconstruct the statements was very challenging indeed The biggest challenge was

probably in making the initial break through (as many later interviews were derived

from snowball method) and managing the two interviews with the marginalised

community

236 Resident Welfare Associations

The findings here was a mixed bag as there were cases of some active RWAs which

came across like they were doing decent amount of work by engaging with the

government structures and acting as a facilitator for governance mechanisms and there

were also RWAs which functioned as a source point for political parties Some

respondents had the view that apart from organising some basic annual events like

festival celebrations the RWAs were virtually invisible But with effective functioning

the space for middle class participation does exist

237 On Decentralisation and Ward Committee (Formal Structures)

Other side of the study which was directed at looking at the functioning of ward

committees and exploring the possibility of further decentralisation has exposed me to

the following realities

The current functioning of ward committee (at least in the ward that my study

was restricted to) does not have a great scope for participation and is rather more

like a formality that needs to be completed to satisfy the court orders

Even though the existing ward committees were set up mainly to deal with the

solid waste management and decentralize its management so that the garbage is

taken care of at ward level itself there is provision and scope for extending the

functions beyond this issue But for various reasons the ward committee is not

even able to function the existing minimum functions

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 28: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

21

The awareness of a Ward Committee being formed is very minimal and the

public is not even aware of its composition and functions Further though the

gazette clearly mentions that the meetings are open to public the committee

members (at least some of them) seem to think otherwise This captures the lack

of awareness of its functions among the committee members itself

There are some members who represent the interest of the common public and

have an issue with the inadequate functioning of the committee but their small

number and limited power does not give them enough scope to make any

effective contribution

There was consensus among all the committee members interviewed regarding

the issue of scope of functioning of the committee and the lack of power

currently in the hands of the members Therefore even though the committee is

supposed to be a form of decentralization the power and authority is still very

much centralised with respect to decision making

These observations (not exhaustive) reflect the fact that the existing ward committee

functioning is not really a success for advocating decentralisation for various reasons

But there is definitely scope to increase the functioning of the existing structures and

extend the level of participation in urban governance There are structures in place but

participation still is lacking the reasons for which needs to be looked at

238 New Spaces and Alternate Avenues of Participation

(Informal Structures)

Something that came across unexpectedly during the field engagement was the

successful participation of people through informal structures The informal group of

friends which calls itself ldquoFriends of Lakesrdquo (FoL) has managed to create a space for

participation where the issue forms the centre and there is no formal structure like the

RWAs to manage the group Rather they function in such a way that anybody who

wishes to attend can attend the meetings and their votersquos are the onersquos that count But

the outreach of this informal structure to even the Corporators shows that they can

function informally yet engage with the formal governance structures and provide a

space for people to participate to facilitate better governance The informal

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 29: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

22

neighbourhood groups also stood by the sides of the marginalised ldquoPourakarmikardquo

workers when they were fighting for their wage rights

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 30: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

23

Chapter 3

Participation through Structures ndash As seen in

Vidyaranyapura

The study throws light on many importance aspects regarding the avenues available for

participation of the citizens in ward 9 (Vidyaranyapura) in the city of Bangalore

While these findings are extremely important with respect to the locality of

Vidyaranyapura it also becomes essential to understand the concept of participation

which can be taken ahead beyond just the ward and even the city of Bangalore if some

similar models of participation are to be analysed The key findings are discussed in

this chapter Majorly the structures available for participation can be divided into two

categories ndash Formal and Informal

31 Modes of Participation

There are two modes of participation that were identified during the study These are

the structures which enable a citizen to engage with the governance process They can

be classified as Formal Structures and Informal Structures Each of which are discussed

in detail ahead

311 Formal Structures

The formal structures comprise the following associations and organisations One need

to be elected or be a member under these structures to be able to participate These have

been in existence since long and have changed in terms of composition of members as

the ward has evolved and new organisations have come in to play the role of a mediator

between the residents and the elected members and take the voices of the citizensrsquo

demands to the representatives The traditional associations have also been acting as

bulk vote bank for multiple political parties which forms one of its limitations The

associations decide that voting for a certain party will help their agenda of meeting their

respective demands So they guide their members accordingly The composition of the

area and the various associations mainly the RWAs play a role and incline towards one

of the three major parties depending on the ideology ndash The Indian National Congress

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 31: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

24

(INC) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Janta Dal Secular JD(S) However the recent

party like the Aam Aadmi Party have started questioning this traditional approach as

some of the respondents indicated Looking at the associationsorganisations

individually one can identify certain characteristics and the same are discussed below

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs)

The RWAs can be categorised into two groups for our convenience depending on when

they were formed The Old and the New While the Old RWAs are found to be

politically inclined to one party or the other thereby restricting their demands to be

heard only if the party they are inclined comes into power the New RWAs are formed

by the working youth and look at issues that exists in and around their areas The New

RWAs are formed as the new members of the existing RWAs found the working of the

RWAs to be dissatisfactory Some of the respondents from the newly formed RWAs

had the following to say why they thought of making away from the traditional oneshellip

ldquohellipEven I used to blame the councillor as I did not know that there

were people who were directly accountable to the telephone

connections the quality of roads that were built the garbage that

were collected or any other civic issue Once I got to know there were

separate departments in charge within the BBMP and there were

mechanisms in place to address complaints about specific issues I

understood and rightly so that the elected members like the

councillors were just peoplersquos representatives Unless people

themselves demanded accountability no one would bother to be

accountable It is important to complain Who is going to complain is

a bigger problem The problem in todayrsquos world is that in our country

people are not aware If a lizard dies in their home they clean their

home by throwing it outside But if a dog has died in their street no

one bothers to complain about it to the concerned authorities They

are not even aware of the provision for such issues that exist So

awareness is a key aspecthelliprdquo

- RWA Member

The above narrative talks about how the RWA has by experience learnt the process of

grievance redressal that exists in the municipality within the ward Various aspects are

highlighted about the empathy towards the elected representatives which is not

acknowledged by many The fact that they are in a better situation to understand the

working of structures has in all likelihood played a role in them taking up

responsibilities instead of just involving in blame gaming

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 32: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

25

ldquohellipWe are answerable to the next generation So we have to be

responsible Again it is about civic sense Youngsters have zero civic

sense today When we think why this happens we might say may be it

is because the people they look up to the older generation have been

bad role models The elders donrsquot practice this We need to set

examples I am someone who preaches what she practices My 5 year

old granddaughter today tells older kids not to play in parks meant

for kids This is something she has learnt by watching me telling older

kids As long as she is learning the right things I am ok with it But if

I do something I am not supposed to be doing I am setting a bad

example We at least need to give back what we received from our

older generation gave us I doubt if we are doing ithelliprdquo

- RWA Member and Ward Committee Member

This respondent who is a RWA member as well as a Ward Committee member talks

about setting example to the next generation For example if the kids see their parents

are throwing garbage on the streets they will assume that there is nothing wrong in

doing so The parents are the biggest role models and hence have a huge responsibility

While the above responses mention the need for individuals to act responsibly the

following narrative talks about how to resolve the problem of garbage segregation

ldquohellipI have spent around 9 months on how to effectively solve the

problems of solid waste management It ends up that the best way to

implement it is have decentralised units starting from households In

our area I have installed a demo bio gas plant in the temple premises

to create awareness regarding the issuehelliprdquo

- RWA Member and FoL Member

These responses from different respondents indicate that the current RWAs have had a

focus on creating awareness among the residents about issues and the solutions that are

available They have also self-determined and self-moderated solutions for many

issues Thus the new RWAs are focusing on creating a model where awareness drives

the issues focussing on the solutions to be brought by each individual thus fostering

citizen participation in the governance However the discussions portrayed that there

is a long way to go before achieving the desired objectives However the important

aspect is that there has been a shift in focus from reliance on political parties for problem

solving to try and be self-reliant

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 33: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

26

Non-governmental Organization (NGO)

There were number of NGOs which could be found online but while on the field only

one was found to be working in the ward under study The NGO works on the issue of

Solid Waste Management and also advocates for the issues with respect to the

community of waste segregators (Pourakarmikas) The participation of this NGO is

strongly associated with the formation of the Ward Committees and it acts as a

mediating agency between the Pourakarmikas and the employees while also keeping

the elected representatives from the government connected with the issues concerning

the citizens

ldquohellipWe work on garbage issues and people definitely lack awareness

about simple things like the importance of segregation We get all kind

of garbage here when we open plastic covers People are not even

sensitive to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in newspapers We

repeatedly tell them to wrap sanitary napkins and diapers in a

newspaper and mark them with a red cross but hardly anyone cares

for these guidelines We open plastic covers and find all sort of stuff

I canrsquot blame these Paurakarmikas for that They are anyways

targeted by BBMP and Citizens If I too start blaming them they would

have nowhere to gohelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Garbage Segregation

Once can clearly see the operational difficulties that exist in the issue of solid waste

management within the ward The NGO which has been outsourced this work also

mentions the plight of the garbage segregators due to lack of awareness among residents

It is evident that the kind of sensitivity and empathy that exists in this NGO may or may

not be seen if it was any other profit making company which had been hired as a process

of outsourcing the issue of garbage management

ldquohellipFirstly Awareness through door-to-door campaigns Secondly

we identify lsquoblack spotsrsquo What happens is the point where garbage is

loaded to transport vehicles from tipping vehicles has some garbage

fallout Then this place starts attracting garbage from in and around

area So we try to identify such spots through RWAs and volunteers

We have identified 18 so far in Vidyaranyapura alone Through

awareness we have managed to remove 3 of them so far in last 2

months But it is a slow process Children are very enthusiastic in

these issues and school awareness program generally yield best

resultshelliprdquo

- NGO Member on Issues Addressed

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 34: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

27

The above responses indicate the focus being again on creating awareness and how by

experience they had to shift the target audience from the parents to teachers to bring

effective change These measures combined with the experiences that the new RWAs

are undergoing are bound to yield results in the future

Other Civil Society Organisations (Association for the elderly and

others)

The other neighbourhood organisations that are present are for specific groups like the

elderly The senior citizens find a space for themselves here and also act as an advisory

body for many other organisations (both formal and informal) with their experience

coming from diverse backgrounds They act as a much needed lot of experience from

diverse fields

ldquohellipsince we have a diverse background of senior citizens like army

men government officials members who have served on various

panels we act as advisory body to a lot of voluntary associations

RWAs also informal groups wherever people seek our advice on

governance environment or any other issue Some of us have

knowledge about lakes so we are overlooking the attempt by residents

to revamp the lakes Some of us are working on pavement and footpath

issues etc The advice is given mainly on issues like providing

information on whom to approach for a particular issue devising the

plan of action procedures to follow etc If people seek our guidance

we are more than willing to contribute but we avoid direct

involvement (formally) as it involves lot of travelling (to meetings

visiting officials etc) So we stick to the advisory part of ithelliprdquo

- Member from Association for Elderly (Hiriya Nagarikara Vedike)

They provide necessary guidance where required and also keep themselves

meaningfully occupied by being part of the association All the members in this

organisation being elderly it helps them to find space to spend some time together

keeping them active and busyThis is very essential for them individually while helping

the other civil society organisations at the same time making use of their experience

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 35: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

28

Ward Committee

The structure of each ward committee is that it consists of 10 members including the

ward Corporator It is the Corporator who lsquonominatesrsquo the other 9 representatives who

are chosen from various sections comprising of Women Representatives RWA

members SC and members apart from other residents

People are largely unaware of the provisions of ward committee but structurally there

is a provision for citizens to participate and engage directly with the elected

representatives of their wards and voice their concerns

ldquohellipThey do not happen on a regular basis or as per any timetable

They happen like once in two months or once in three months when

members are informed and issues discussedhelliprdquo

ldquohellipWe meet every month and the Chief Engineer and other BBMP

members are also present Sometimes ward number 9 10 11 have

combined meeting and sometimes we have independent meetingshelliprdquo

ldquohellipThe Ward Committee meets once a month generally And if there

is a necessity and any urgent issue to be addressed we even can have

meetings once in 15 dayshelliprdquo

ldquohellipI think we are supposed to have a meeting every month but we just

had 3 or 4 meetings till nowhelliprdquo

As we can see the responses given by various ward committee members are

contradicting Some claim that meetings happen every month and some claim they have

barely met more than 4 or 5 times This raises some serious questions on how

effectively the ward committee is able to function

The guidelines to function are given in a Gazette which can be found below

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 36: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

29

Fig 31 Ward Committee Gazette

Source BBMP Website

312 Participation through Informal Groups

In both the forms the participation happens majorly by the middle class section of the

society while the issues addressed can be varied from lakes to foot paths to non-

payment of salary for the lsquopourakarmikasrsquo The informal group that exist was Friends

of Lakes (FoL) chose to remain anonymous thus creating a space for informal

participation

The success of FoL is the key focus of this section

Why the need to go informal

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

Can this model work on a large scale

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 37: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

30

Why go Informal

The formal groups mainly the RWAs are inclined towards a particular political party

which makes them dependent on favourable party to come to power On the other hand

they are used as a vote bank by the political parties Thus the conscious decision by

some members who were part of RWAs to form an informal participatory group with

initial focus to clean up lakes The group meets on Sundays and holidays engages with

cleaning up of lakes and acts as an entry point of engagement Anyone is free to

participate Further other micro as well as macro issues are identified and efforts are

made to engage with the concerned authorities While this form acts as a

complementary mode to that of formal structures it has yielded results as far as lakes

are considered in the ward and now finding its feet across the wards of Bangalore by

forming similar groups in other wards as well like FoL Singapura FoL Attur etc which

can be found active on Facebook

How is informal participation able to sustain itself

It forms an entry point to engage with the problem for citizens Once they engage they

get to know the complexities that exist This is the philosophy of the group It is

important to understand that the informal structure does not substitute the formal

structure but rather complements it The demand taken forward by a group of say 70

odd people to the Corporator on a relevant issue backed by formal organisation

representatives has till now managed to attract the eyes of the elected representatives

Firstly it is a group which is informal so political affiliation plays little role Secondly

if problem is solved the representative can talk about it as their involvement Sometimes

inputs by experts come as useful suggestions which the Corporator can put forth to the

municipality Also the instances when the agenda moves ahead than just lakes the

other section of people who may otherwise not find it feasible to participate in the

activities of the group come to know about the group As in the case of garbage

segregators when the informal group sent its representatives to support the garbage

segregators and also ran an online campaign to bring the plight of the unpaid workers

to the limelight it got the workers support as well

Can this model work on a large scale

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 38: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

31

While there has been a similar model of participation which is involved in cleaning up

the vital parts of the city and also outside (The Ugly Indians) and managed quite a stir

on social media their main objective of creating cleaner public spaces is quite rigid

Thus the people who participate there are only a section of middle class and the lesser

powerful marginalised do not find a say or cannot relate to the objective of the group

However the decentralised informal groups if they wish to have successfully taken

stances on various issues

If the two forms of groups formal and informal are imagined to act as a facilitating

process for people to participate it can be distinguished that the formal structures act

as a means of providing information and accessibility (be it through political

engagement or via tools like RTI) to find ways to solve local problems On the other

hand the informal structures are acting in the ward as pressure groups which is creating

a peoples demand Both of these complement each other and have managed to address

the issue of lakes in the ward as of now

On the other hand decentralisation through ward committees have not been totally

effective due to various factors like anomaly over how the ward committee is appointed

Currently it functions as a nomination procedure which means the Corporator

nominates 9 other representatives This is not seen as a very effective way of

appointment as there is always the question of favouritism The lack of knowledge

about the powers of the ward committee amongst the ward committee members

themselves which was visible during data collection raised doubts about the functioning

of the committee

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 39: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

32

Chapter 4

Understanding Informality and its Contribution to

Participation

ldquohellipInformality has certain power and the power is of nebulousness which is good

because it is a power of the idea and not the power of a lead grouphelliprdquo

- One of the founding member of Friends of Lakes

(FoL)

The idea of participating informally which was visible in Vidyaranyapura was

something which made me very curious as a researcher Though some aspects of

informal participation has already been discussed about in the previous chapter this

chapter will look at understanding the informal mode from its origin and the macro

level factors (be it the Aam Aadmi Party or The Ugly Indian) which acted as a push

factor for something like the Friends of Lakes to originate The contribution this form

of participation is making in this ward to ensure good governance needs to be

understood and at the same time a theoretical lens will give a deeper understanding of

the same

41 Origin of the Idea of Friends of Lakes (FoL)

The origin of FoL is dated back to 1988 when many of the existing members were in

schools It was the enthusiasm of these school going kids to plant saplings and take care

of them that first invoked a feeling of common community space or a meeting point for

the young residents of Vidyaranyapura

ldquoldquohellipIt might not be possible to believe but the first meeting of FoL

took place in 1988 when I a couple of existing members along with

many others who are still active in the group met as school children

and worked on planting around 1000 saplings around the lake and all

across Vidyaranyapura (many trees that you see now) We were in 6th

standard and 8th standard and used our free time to plant these

saplings and made sure we provided adequate amount of water

required for them It was much easier to water them then as we had

the lake as a source But those were school days and we all got busy

with our lives after thathelliprdquo

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 40: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

33

- Member FoL

The above narrative by one of the members of the group who has been associated with

the group since the planting of saplings explains their initial engagement with the lake

as kids who used to water the saplings using the lake water As stated above all of

them became busy with their academic life and careers after their schooling But this

initial idea of collective effort probably had a huge influence on them now coming

together to work for the same lake which was on the verge of dying It was recently that

the friends just met as a get together and decided to do something about the state of the

lake The first activity that the group took up is described in the following narrative by

the same member

ldquohellipWe had a friend then called Rashmi6 who had planted saplings all

around the Canara Bank Bus Stop I think the bus stop even today has

her name mentioned She unfortunately passed away after she came

under a BMTC bus We had named some trees in her memory

Recently when a restaurant came up named lsquoAdigasrsquo right next to the

lake they chopped off some trees to increase visibility But then since

the group is re-established now around two months back we decided

to act and not see things around us stay in status quo It just took us 3

weeks (Sundays) to clean this lake (Narasipura ndash 2) Now we will

move to next lake Narasipura ndash 1 in next few weeks before heading to

Doddabommasandra lake which is the biggest These are the 3 lakes

in this area and we plan to connect them and revamp them We have

experts on water issues also as our lsquofriendsrsquo in FoLhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

This event acted as a trigger for the group of friends to regroup and lsquoactrsquo against the

existing status quo What is interesting to note is that their inherent childhood

attachment to the lake which was the source of water for the saplings they had planted

is what brought them together There by the belief of a ldquocommonrdquo property which is

owned by everyone in the area (every member who planted a sapling had a feeling that

he is a stakeholder) which then makes them think about how to take care of this resource

42 Factors that had an Influence

6 Name Changed to maintain confidentiality as per the request of the respondent

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 41: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

34

There are factors along with the ones mentioned above which had an influence on how

the group took shape as being one of the major voice of the people on local issues (with

initial focus on lakes)

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

- Member FoL

As explained in the above narrative the influence of happenings in the previous

monthsyears be it the Anna Hazare Movement against corruption or the evolution of

Aam Aadmi Party which was the resultant of the movement reinforced the essence of

peoples participation for better governance Also initiatives like The Ugly Indian (TUI)

have inspired the group Another aspect is the role of social media Like in the case of

India Against Corruption (IAC) Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) or The Ugly Indian (TUI)

social media played a huge role in the case of Friends of Lakes (FoL) Facebook forms

the major form of communication about their activities Be it the RWAs the local

Corporator or the local MLA all are added to the group The elected representatives are

also keen to show their active participation which cannot be ignored Vidyaranyapura

has a Facebook group of more than 7000 residents Something which is unique to this

ward and cannot be found for any other ward in Bangalore The group also acts as an

effective pressure groups and members from various political parties are active on the

group which discusses issues ranging from bad roads electricity lakes to non-payment

of wages to the garbage collectors by the contractors

ldquohellipAs I told earlier we just meet as any other friends and talk about

issues There needs to be a consensus and a majority of 34th obtained

if we have to work on any issue The fact that we are not a formal

organisation means that no one like the Councillor MLA or any

individual can target us If you are an RWA or any other organisation

you can be targeted and people may hamper your intent to work on

issues We are almost like an anonymous group now You might have

heard about lsquoThe Ugly Indianrsquo which are small an anonymous groups

cleaning up the city and now spread all across the country Very

similar idea ndash you cannot be targeted but the work gets done And

since we have experienced people as well as ex-bureaucrats we

cannot be set aside by telling us this cannot be done They guide us

on procedures to follow and the work no one can deny us We know

for a fact that the MLA and others are trying to find out who this

Friends of Lakes are but they will get 70 answers that ldquoWe are

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 42: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

35

Friends of Lakesrdquo and they cannot ignore such a number in a ward

And also when we go for negotiations we do not encourage individual

meetings There have to be at least 3 members even children who are

part of this group will do This is to eliminate any individual influence

that might arise and hamper the issue on handhelliprdquo

- Member FoL

The fact that the members from FoL have also been part of RWAs and have seen the

shortcomings in that structure has made them realise the role of anonymity that an

informal structure has to offer In addition there are experts from various fields who

reside in Vidyaranyapura and are active part of FoL makes it that much more effective

The group is very diverse in its constitution From children to experts in the field From

youth to the elderly Their common interest to get sustainable solutions through existing

mechanisms has what kept them going The understanding of the informal and

anonymous groups by one of the expert member of the FoL can be understood by the

following narrative

ldquohellipWhen community groups organise themselves one likes to see what

forms they take and how they can be guided People are not clear what

should be done So FoL came to us because we have been living here in

this area Both in the case of TUI with which I was associated in its initial

days and the FoL the idea was that we should not formally start a group

because formality has certain characteristics which is advantageous but

also disadvantageous Informality has certain power and the power is of

nebulousness which is good because it is a power of the idea and not the

power of a lead group When FoL started we decided it would be an

informal group which we see on facebook page It would engage the

citizens to participate as citizens that is the act of cleaning up of lakes

the act of planting trees the act of gathering together and discussing

what the key issues are But the primary focus would be to move the

government institutions responsible to hold up to their accountability So

that is the way it has been going on In this business you donrsquot take credit

You only nudge ideas perhaps A lot of people then take action Through

the ideas of FoL there are other groups formed at Jakkur Singapura

another one is being formed at Attur These ideas spread and people

champion them Informality therefore has this advantage of not

associating an idea or a project with an individual but the group You

have problems but that is the way it goes we need to find wayshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban

Planner)

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 43: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

36

The success of the group lies in its anonymity sense of ownership towards

ldquocommonrdquo resources outreach through social media accessibility to experts

access to elected representatives and their responsiveness

43 From lsquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrsquo to lsquoThe Comedy of Commonsrsquo

The concept of sustainable development is often critiqued based upon the argument of

ldquoThe Tragedy of Commonsrdquo (Hardin 1968) which is an economic concept put forth by

Garret Hardin In his paper Garret argues that in the individual interest of individuals

their actions act against the common interest of the group as a whole The overall

argument is against reliance on the mutually beneficial conscience The counter to this

argument is a model named ldquoComedy of the Commonsrdquo (Rose 1986) which state that

the community will contribute their varying knowledge to bring about a common good

for the society

In the case of Vidyaranyapura Ward the various interests from various groups like the

elected representatives RWAs FoL Social Network Groups etc have resulted in

bringing about a common good for all The residents are now having three lakes

revamped the elected representatives have a tick mark on their task the social

networking sites buzz with enthusiasm every week with a new activity being discussed

the group FoL acts as a voice of people who are marginalised by standing by the

ldquoPourakarmikasrdquo who are not being paid their salary by the contractor Though the last

issue is still going on the group FoL has managed to claim a active space in

participation for various section of people be it environmentalists like bird watchers

children who lack play ground or garbage segregators ndash The Pourakarmikas This model

of informal participation is at present ensuring that various stakeholders are kept in

consideration when any decision is taken by a Corporator Thus the tendency in this

case is found to be towards The Comedy of the Commons

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 44: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

37

44 Role of Informal and Formal Structures in the lsquoLadder of

Participationrsquo

Fig 41 Ladder of Participation and Structures

Source Arnstein 1969

The space created by groups (both formal and informal) in the ladder of participation

as mentioned by Sherry Arnstein in her work ldquoA Ladder of Citizen Participationrdquo

(Arnstein 1969) can be understood by the previous figure

The ladder has been edited to potray the role played by formal and informal structures

in ensuring participation which further enforces a move towards good governance in

the ward under study The blue borders indicate the role informal structures (FoL) is

providing in the ladder The orange borders indicate the role formal structures (Ward

Committee RWAs NGOs Etc) are able to provide While FoL has managed a sense

of providing partnership and consultation with the elected representatives who are the

lsquodecision makersrsquo in the current structure of governance the RWAs and other formal

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 45: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

38

structures act as a supporting structure by providind information and delegated power

(in case of Ward Committees)

Thus we can understand that the formal and informal structures are more of

complementing each other in ensuring that the practice of good governance takes place

effectively

45 The Inter-linkages of Formal Informal and Political Structures

We have discussed about the various stakeholders of governance which include

participants from elected sphere formal structures and informal structures The

importance of each of these avenues of participation cannot be undermined While they

may have individual goals for each of these structures their functioning cannot happen

in isolation This is because the individual goals somewhere tend to intersect with larger

goals of better governance for the people resulting in the stakeholderrsquos

interdependence

The Inter-linkage

The three set of people interviewed were ndash

The Ward Committee Members Elected Representatives

Neighbourhood Association Representatives (Formal Informal)

Marginalised Community Representatives

The Elected Representatives The ward committee members have their term and are

expected to show productivity to be re-elected Specially in todayrsquos world where a

representative and any individual for that matter is visible to the public sphere on such

a wide range of options (social media being the recent one) it becomes necessary for

them to act as per the demand by the people of their respective constituency

That is where the increased options of available structures in recent times play a crucial

role The neighbourhood associations (RWAs NGOs Informal Group of Peoples) act

as a medium to take the demand to the representatives They also perform the act of

monitoring and are the connecting thread between local residents and the elected

members

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 46: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

39

The marginalised communities be it the scrap dealer garbage segregator or the auto

driver are service providers to the local people Thus their voices more often than not

reach the elected representatives through the neighbourhood associations because any

disruption in the daily course of work of these communities affect all the residents of

the locality

Individual vs Collective

Fig 42 Map of Governance

The individual goals of these three communities may differ to a great extent For the

elected member it may be the question of retaining his position or moving up the ladder

of the political career Politics cannot be de-linked from the public There by the verdict

given by the public is what decides the future of this representative Hence the

representatives dependence on the other structures of participation The demands need

to be heard for representatives own good

For the neighbourhood associations it is more about taking the local concerns to the

concerned authorities so that the local issues can be resolved But knowingly or

unknowingly they also function as monitoring agencies of the representatives The

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 47: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

40

outreach of these groups are widespread and any displeasure about any representative

gets easily communicated to vast section of people They are the medium of voice for

the marginalised as well As the lives of marginalised directly affects the wellbeing of

the locality there arises the need to look after their voices as well

The marginalised communities may not have a direct voice but their voices are carried

forward by the neighbourhood associations The accessibility of neighbourhood

associations is much more easier than the elected representatives Also the fact that the

activities of these associations somewhere includes these communities as well The

meetings and the activity themselves (be it lake cleaning cleanliness drive or awareness

campaigns) connect the other residents with the marginalised communities Here is

where they can address their concerns Thus the neighbourhood associations (be it

formal or informal) have a vital role here because their absence or ineffective presence

may delink the marginalised section and the common man from the governance process

Interdependence ndash A boon or a bane

But is this interdependence necessarily a boon Well in areas where all the three units

are functioning to some extent it is a boon The Vidyaranyapura ward is an example of

this One stakeholderrsquos vigilance will make sure the others also function But in areas

where one or more of these structures are not functioning the interdependence means

that the inefficiency of one leads to the overall compromise on the issues of concern

Fig 43 Interdependence ndash A Linear Relationship

Local Residents including the Marginalised Communities

Neighbourhood Associations (Formal and Informal)

Elected representatives and Ward Commitee Members

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 48: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

41

As we see the interdependence is bridged by a linear relationship This is because the

neighbourhood organisation acts as information providerseeker which bridges the gap

between the other two Thus ineffectiveness of one or more of these break the linear

connection resulting in compromise of governance outcomes

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 49: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

42

Chapter 5

Conclusion

Citizen participation has been a much talked about concept in last couple of years From

the Anti-corruption Movement by Anna Hazare which garnered unanticipated public

support to the culmination of a political party which talks about Mohalla Sabharsquos to

engage citizens with governance issues Like trickledown effect these macro level

developments have played a role in increasing participatory avenues for citizens in

unimaginable ways

51 Redefining Citizen Partnership and its Contributors

The key components of this research was the informal mode of participation Be it the

FoL at the ward level or the TUI at the larger level one can clearly see the role that this

form of participation has to play One significant contributor to the development of FoL

in the ward is the Aam Aadmi Party The political movement has redefined politics for

many in the country The political ambitions which looked distant for a common man

now is far more accessible Be it the issue of transparency in fundingrsquos or talk of giving

space for people in governance (through Mohalla Sabhas which forms one of the key

aspects of Aam Aadmi Partyrsquos successs mantra for good governance) the party has gone

on to re-invent itself over the time between its poor performance at the National

Elections to the Clean Sweep it recently had in Delhi by sweeping 67 seats out of 70

and virtually knocking out both the Congress (which scored a zero) and the BJP (which

took the three remaining seats) The emphatic victory in many ways symbolises the

common manrsquos role in political arena From the symbolic lsquoAam Aadmirsquo being included

in the name of the party to the party symbol of lsquoJhadoorsquo one can clearly relate to the

party if they identify themselves with being the lsquocommon manrsquo The auto drivers to the

sweepers the young first time voters to the old loyal voters it was clearly visible that

the party had volunteers from all the spheres of the society

It is significant to note that apart from the direct role being played by the party now in

governance it has inspired many to actively participate in the democracy The

following narrative by one of the founding member of FoL in itself speaks about the

indirect contribution that the political movement of AAP is making in various

dimensions of governance

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 50: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

43

ldquohellipOff late the recent happenings like the Anna Hazare Anti

Corrruption Movement and the Aam Aadmi Party has brought this

aspect of participation to the forefront again Probably many of our

members are inspired by these eventshelliprdquo

52 Forms of Participation

The structures both existing and evolving are making way for participation of citizens

in unique forms These forms and spaces are accessed by citizens based on their

accessibility to these spaces The accessibility also determines what participation may

mean to each of these For example to a poor citizen who has to think about feeding

herhis family participation may mean going a d voting in any election For a citizen

who can afford to devote time there are spaces available like the formal and informal

structures

43 The Question ndash Who Should Participate and Who Can Participate

While we have discussed the role that these informal and formal structure are playing

to ensure peoples participation it is strikingly visible that the participation is

dominantly from a particular class of the people in the society People who have access

to social media people who can spend their weekends discussing issues about the lakes

and people who can negotiate with the elected representatives One question that as a

researcher I could not find answer during my study was whether these new models of

participation are restricting and further pushing a section of the society to the periphery

The marginalised communities be it the Garbage Segregators or the Scrap Dealers can

not afford to spend their weekends to clean the lake For them their concern is their day

to day chores

The following narratives indicate the stance of the marginalised communities that were

interviewed during the study

ldquohellipI work here all day and once I go home I have to work there too

There is not really a lot of free time to keep track of the MLAs

Corporators and all that I vote and do my part but I do not know

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 51: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

44

who our representatives are Never thought that was so important that

I should try to find out about themhelliprdquo

- A women worker at the garbage collection center

ldquohellipThe MLA is Mr Krishna Byregowda and the Councillor is Ms

Nandini Srinivas They come here during elections but as this time it

was MP elections the visits were not really essential They care for

people living in houses and flats Why would anyone worry about us

As long as they allow us to stay in the area we have no problemhelliprdquo

- Scrap Dealer Head of the Family (Male)

While the narrative from the women worker clearly indicate that the time and space

available for these citizens to participate is minimal the second narrative is a case of

an individual who is aware about the happenings around but whose participation is also

restricted In both the cases the individuals are concerned about their livelihoods shelter

and their survival Can they afford to think about nurturing the lake or raise a voice

about bad public transport system when they are not sure about their own shelter Well

let the question remain rhetoric

The views of one of the members of FoL when asked about Participation of the

Marginalised is as follows He also happens to be an Urban Planner

ldquohellipSo what is participation is what has to be defined Should you be

involved in day to day activities Should you be monitoring every

investment Should you oversee the functioning of every government

schools hospitals etc These are clearly different classes at different

times with different priorities There are limitations to democracy

Especially the way power structure is handled the way it is just a

representative So in that sense participation by every unit is very

difficult But it is things like public hearings area sabhas which

provide the space for the people But it then at the hands of the people

too to decide Whether they want to participate But there has to be

structures which enables them to if they want to Which is what we

need to work towardshelliprdquo

- Member FoL (Civil Engineer and Urban Planner)

Whether I agree to him or not is something I have been deliberating ever

since I took the interview

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 52: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

45

Appendix Research Questionnaire ndash Semi Structured

Interviews

Semi-structured interview for RWA

a Explain the organisation structure selection procedure of position

holders in the association

b Describe the last RWA meeting that took place and the issues

discussed

c How often do the members meet to discuss these issues Who can

attend these meetings

d How do you prioritize the issues on which the RWA will work on

e What actions have been taken on any of these issues Which of them

do you think have been successful Why Why Not

f How have various options like RTI Media Voluntary

Organisations elected representatives been accessed to address

these issues

g What are the formalinformal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

h What is the proportion of households in your area that are members

of the RWA

i What are the various activities taken up by the association during the

course of the year

j What are your experiences with the elected representatives ward

committee members

k What according to you are the strengths and weaknesses of your

RWA

l What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

m What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 53: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

46

Semi-structured interview for marginalised people

a Do you and other members of your family vote in the elections

b What are the major issues that are of concern to you

c What are the measures taken by local officials on these issues that

you are aware of

d What facilities are you currently availing from the government

e Are you aware of all the current government schemes that you are

eligible for

f Are there any organisations (NGOsCBOs) working in this area

g Do elected representatives ward committee membersany other

individuals visit the area to know about your issues

h Are you aware who your elected representatives are

i What are the attempts made by you to raise these issues to any of the

representatives (RWAsNGOsCBOsward committees) in this

area

j Explain a few things that you would want your representative to do

k What is your view on lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 54: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

47

Semi-structured interview for Ward Committee MembersElected

Representatives

a Describe the last ward committee meeting that took place

b How often do these meetings take place

c What are the issues generally discussed

d What are the roles and responsibilities distributed among members

e What are the key areas of concern in your area currently according

to you

f How do you see the effectiveness of the ward committee

g What are your experiences with the elected representatives other

ward committee members

h What are the formal informal ways for people in your locality to

address grievances

i Are any NGO CBO consulted involved in the meetings

j Do you think the ward committee successfully represents the

diversity of the residents and their various needs

k What are your views on further decentralising the functional powers

of wards

l What are your views of lsquoparticipationrsquo of people in a Democracy

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 55: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

48

References

74th CAA 1 (nd) urbanindianicin Retrieved from 74th Constitution Amendment Act

httpurbanindianicinprogrammelsg74th_CAApdf

Amitabh Kundu Soumen Bagchi amp Debolina Kundu (1999) Regional Distribution of

Infrastructure and Basic Amenities in Urban India Issues concerning empowerment

of local bodies Economic and Political Weekly 1893-1906

Arnstein S R (1969) A Ladder Of Citizen Participation Journal of the American Institute of

Planners 216-224

Bardhan P (2002) Decentralisation of Governance and Development Journa of Economic

Perspectives 185-205

BATPIC Network S (2012 July 17) ESG India (Environment Support Group) Retrieved Dec

20 2013 from wwwesgindiaorg httpesgindiaorgeducationcommunity-

outreachpressbangalore-road-widening-and-other-urban-html

Behar A (2003 May 17-23) Experiment with Direct Demcracy Time for Reappraisal

Economic and Political Weekly 1925-1927

Beher A (2001 March 10) Gram Swaraj Experiment in Direct Democracy Economic and

Political Weekly 823-826

Bovaird T amp Loumlffler E (2003) Evaluating the Quality of Public Governance Indicators

Models and Methodologies International Review of Administrative Sciences 313-

328

C Ramachandriah (2009) Maytas Hyderabad Metro and the Politics of Real Estate

Economic amp Political Weekly 36-40

censusindiagovin (2011) Census of India Retrieved January 08 2014 from

httpcensusindiagovin2011-prov-resultspaper2data_fileskarnataka4-

population-8-19pdf

Economic Times (2011 February 18) How much does India invest on infrastructure

Retrieved from httparticleseconomictimesindiatimescom2011-02-

18news28615645_1_infrastructure-investment-climate-gdp

Fukuyama F (2013 July) What Is Governance Governance An International Journal of

Policy Administration and Institutions 347-368 Retrieved from

httponlinelibrarywileycomdoi101111gove12035full

Hardin G (1968 December 13) The Tragedy of the Commons Science Magazine 1243-

1248 Retrieved from httpwwwsciencemagorgcontent16238591243fullpdf

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 56: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

49

Kamath L amp Vijayabaskar M (2009 June 27) Limits and Possibilities of Middle Class

Associations as Urban Collective Actors Economic amp Political Weekly 368-376

Lama-Rewal S T (2007) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy Delhi

Municipal Elections 2007 Economic amp Political Weekly 52-60

Lama-Rewal S T (2007 November 24) Neighbourhood Associations and Local Democracy

Delhi Municipal Elections 2007 Economic and Political Weekly 51-60

Lele U (1975) The Design of Rural Development Lessons from Africa Baltimore Johns

Hopkins University Press

Mahadevia D Joshi R amp Datey A (2013) Ahmedabadrsquos BRT System - A Sustainable Urban

Transport Panacea Economic amp Political Weekly 56-64

Mandros J (2005) Political Social and Legislative Action In M Weil The Handbook of

Community Practice (pp 276-286)

Morse R Rahman A amp Johnson K L (1995) Grassroot Horizons Connecting Participatory

Development Initiatives East and West Oxford amp IBH Publishing Co Pvt Ltd

Nanda V P (2006) The Good Governance Concept Revisited The ANNALS of the

American Academy of Political and Social Science 269-283 Retrieved from

httpannsagepubcomcontent6031269

Oakley P amp Marsden D (1984) Approaches to Participation in rural development Geneva

International Labour Office

Pranab Bardhan (2002) Decentralization of Governance and Development Journal of

Economic Perspectives 185-205

Rodrıguez-Pose A amp Ezcurra R (2010) Does decentralization matter for regional

disparities A cross-country analysis Journal of Economic Geography 619-644

Rose C M (1986 January 1) The Comedy of the Commons CommerceCustom and

Inherently Public Property Faculty Scholarship Series 53(3) 711-781 Retrieved

from httpdigitalcommonslawyaleedufss_papers1828

The Gettysburg Address (1863 November 19) abrahamlincolnonline Retrieved January 06

2014 from httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorg

httpwwwabrahamlincolnonlineorglincolnspeechesgettysburghtm

The Guardian (2012 April 6) The Guardian Retrieved January 8 2014 from

wwwtheguardiancom httpwwwtheguardiancomglobal-

developmentgallery2012apr06india-technology-not-helping-poor-in-

picturesindex=1

The Hindu (2009) Environmentalists oppose metro Bangalore The Hindu

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University

Page 57: Vijayendra K_MA Theses

50

The New York Times (2006 March 20) Is the Next Silicon Valley Taking Root in Bangalore

Retrieved January 08 2014 from wwwnytimescom

httpwwwnytimescom20060320businessworldbusiness20bangalorehtml_

r=0

United Nations (2008 February 26) UN News Cente Retrieved from

httpwwwunorgappsnewsstoryaspNewsID=25762

Uphoff N T amp Cohen J (1979) Feasibility and application of rural development

participation A state of the art paper Cornell University