Article Review: Governance Innovation and the Citizen: The Janus Face of Governance-beyond-the-State

This presentation and subsequent paper is made as a part of my Urban Governance module. (Sorry for the lack of citations, all hail Swyngedouw, Foucault, Harvey and Wikipedia)

Article Review

Governance Innovation and the Citizen: The Janus Face of Governance-beyond-the-State

Erik Swyngedouw[1]

Introduction

Swyngedouw in this paper focuses on political governance and the new developments around it. The author argues that over the past two decades there have been many innovations in governance leading to reformed (and in many cases new) institutional arrangements have emerged, but these new changes have created a scenario of governance beyond the control of the State or public sector. The author calls this form of governance beyond the state as Janus-faced.

Understanding key ideas discussed in paper

The title of the paper is in itself very interesting where the author describes the scenario of governance beyond the state as Janus faced. Janus is the God of beginnings and transitions in ancient Roman mythology. The month January is named after Janus. Janus presided over the beginning and ending of conflict, and hence war and peace. Comparison of transition from a State led governance model to a market/ capitalist induced changes in institutional arrangement with the symbolic of Janus marking a stage in time where the old, i.e., the State is now seen upon as redundant and the new market model as the way for the future. The author firmly criticizes the new model and states that such a shift leads to eroding the democratic character of the state led by market forces that set the ‘rules of the game’.

Firstly it needs to be understood what the author means by ‘Governance-beyond-the-state’. It refers to the emergence, proliferation and active encouragement (by the state and international bodies like the European Union or the World Bank) of institutional arrangements of ‘governing’ which give a much greater role in policy-making, administration and implementation to private economic actors on the one hand and to parts of civil society on the other in self-managing what until recently was provided or organised by the national or local state.

The author also draws fundamentally from Foucault’s notion of governmentality where these modes of governance have been depicted, that is ‘the conduct of conduct’[2] in which a particular rationality of governing is combined with new technologies, instruments and tactics of conducting the process of collective rule-setting, implementation and often including policing as well. At this juncture, Foucault’s idea of conduct-of-conduct shall also be made clear. In simple terms, it means that even though the government propagates free practice and liberty to all its citizens but at the same time they expect each citizen to follow some guidelines and sets some deliverables from each individual. So, in a way, they conduct the lives of these individuals in a manner that their power is not challenged.

Structure of the paper

The paper has been divided into five parts. In the first part, the concept of governance-beyond-the-state is explained in accordance with the present scenario. In the subsequent part, the contradiction of state–civil society relationship in the context of the emergence of the new governmentality associated with governance-beyond-the-state is explored. In the third part, the contradictory way in which new arrangements of governance have created new institutions and empowered new actors, while disempowering other is detailed out. The author concludes by suggesting that governance-beyond-the-state are fundamentally Janus-faced, particularly under conditions in which the democratic character is reduced by the over involvement of market forces which have become the new power.

Key points highlighted in the paper

The author points out how neoliberal forces have crept into policy and decision making and the emerging policies and trends are a resultant of that. New agencies and bodies are formed at piece-meal basis to suit short term accumulation motives. There are strong processes at work pointing in the direction of a greater autocratic governmentality. These socially innovative forms of governance are both actively encouraged and supported by agencies pursuing a neo-liberal agenda (like the IMF or the World Bank). This analysis is particularly pertinent as the inclusion of civil society organisations (like NGOs) in systems of (urban) governance, combined with a greater political and economic role of ‘local’ political and economic arrangements which is particularly seen as diluting the State’s stature.

The author highlights the emergence of new state like agencies like EU, and increasing role of agencies promoting the neoliberal agenda like IMF, World Bank and the boundary between organisations and public and private sectors has become permeable. The particular role of stakeholders is also highlighted and argued that the new form of governance lays emphasis on stakeholder led initiatives while ignoring the fact that all stakeholders are not equal and under such skewed power relationship, whose voice is going to be heard remains questioned. In the name of promoting stakeholders, there is scope for further marginalization induced by these new socially innovative measures of governance.

The emergence of ‘civil society’ into the political governance domain is also discussed. Antonio Gramsci, writing at the early days of the liberal-democratic Keynesian-welfarist state[3], civil society became viewed as one of the three components (the others being the state and the market) that define the content and structure of society. For him, civil society is the sum total of private actors (outside state and market) and constitutes the terrain of social struggle for hegemony. These civil society agents increasingly got involved in delivery of health, education, disciplining, socioeconomic well-being, etc. which are essentially State functions.

The ‘conduct of conduct’ shall be sustained, maintained and further improved and the changing nature of governance is a resultant of that, i.e., to keep the power relations intact and accumulation process continues and remains focussed in certain hands.

The reduced stature of democracy led by governance beyond the state is also highlighted in the paper under various parameters such as Entitlement and Status, the Structure of Representation, Accountability, Legitimacy, Scales of Governance and Order of Governance. The central argument here is that the shift from ‘government’ to ‘governance’ is associated with the consolidation of new technologies of government, on the one hand, and with profound restructuring of the parameters discussed of political democracy on the other, leading to a substantial democratic deficit.

Conclusion

The concluding section of the article sums up that in the scenario of governance-beyond-the-state, particularly within a market economy, the key decisions over resource allocation, use and transformation, are taken by private actors who operate within the constraining or enabling regulatory framework of systems of government. To the extent that over the past few decades there has been a tendency towards deregulation and re-regulation, and towards the devolution of state functions, the new forms of governance were either instrumental in shaping this transformation or else they became established as the regulatory framework for managing a beyond-the-state polity. This shift or “game” is essentially harmful for a democracy in the long run.

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[1] Erik Swyngedouw is Professor of Geography at the University of Manchester in its School of Environment and Development. Swyngedouw is committed to political economic analysis of contemporary capitalism, producing several major works on economic globalization, regional development, finance, and urbanization. completed a PhD entitled "The production of new spaces of production" under the supervision of the renowned Marxist geographer David Harvey.

For further details:

http://staffprofiles.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/Profile.aspx?Id=Erik.Swyngedouw&curTab=2

[2] Pam Christie, an Australian scholar at the University of Queensland wrote that Foucault refers to government as ‘the conduct of conduct’, or the power to act on the actions of others.  Conduct of conduct is the central problem of modern government. The very idea of liberal government involves a paradox: liberalism asserts the sovereignty of the free individual, yet government requires that individual behaviour be regulated and modified.

For further details: http://foucaultblog.wordpress.com/2007/05/15/key-term-conduct-of-conduct/

[3] Of or relating to the economic theories of John Maynard Keynes, especially those theories advocating government monetary and fiscal programs designed to increase employment and stimulate business activity.

For further details: http://www.ie.ufrj.br/eventos/seminarios/pesquisa/texto_02_12.pdf

Wish wisely. It may just come true.

Ever felt I shouldn't have wished for it?

I am sure you do.

I sometimes play Three card poker (Teenpatti). Not that I am good player but I feel that is one game which is closest to real life. Sometimes while you play, you are holding up 'Three Fat Ladies', a term for having three 8s. Instead of going 'All In' with those cards, mind starts to wander whether the other players have bigger combinations. Just think of how many higher combinations are there. Just 6 combinations bigger than that. Just the thought of the other person having Three Queens or Three Kings fucks your mind so much that you 'fold' rather than going all the way with what you have. In the hope of getting better.

On the contrary, sometimes you go 'All In' with a pair in your hand, hoping against all odds. Praying that what you have is the best and you can't get any better. Eventually, you lose unless you are that lucky to win with that which in my case can never be true. While God was putting luck in men's kitty, I was taking a shower. At this juncture you could either commend yourself for being brave and going with your conviction or wonder why you are so stupid not to have 'folded'.

Either ways. I chose that. If you are in misery, you chose it. No one put you there. There is absolutely no way someone else is responsible for it. You chose it that way.

Viva la fellows!

Morning - New Experience

Me and mornings have never been close. From my childhood I have never been a morning person. From my earliest memories, I have always despised morning and everything related to it - getting out of bed, bathing, drinking milk before rushing to school, catching a bus, everything. Somehow, today is different. A full day of sleep has left no sleep in me anymore, I have tried reading, chatting, watching a movie but no sleep. So I decided to step out into the balcony and have some fresh air.

The scene of dawn is spell bounding. The changing colors of the sky. From dark to slowly red and getting brighter each minute. Birds chirping (cliched but you should just see to believe this one). Not just I heard and saw the usual birds like pigeons, crows and mynas but there were so many other species as well. Even sparrows which were very common in Delhi when I used to be a kid but over the years have just vanished could be seen in large numbers today. There is one particular lemon tree near my house where these sparrows always flock. I wonder why. I love sparrows. Somehow I feel they are the native birds of Delhi. There was this one time when a sparrow had laid 3 eggs in my balcony slab and all the three eggs were either taken away or broken by two crows. I remember my sister crying a lot over that. I guess I have drifted from the morning stuff. More birds, parrots, doves. There is this particular tree which has a very peculiar green colour, the parrot colour green where these parrots flock in. I saw a row of migratory birds flying in perfect V formation. A weird kind of dove sitting still on a branch as if it were still sleeping. I wish there were some peacocks too.

There is a very nice stillness and calmness. The kind of calm you feel when a musician plucks the first string of sarod or sitar. The kind of peace that settles you down. Soon, all this calmness will be shattered by the hustle bustle of the city and all these birds will vanish into oblivion and rat race shall resume.

Emerging trends in delivery of water and sanitation facilities in Post liberalization Indian Society

We know that there is a deep impact and deep relationship between water supply and sanitation and the overall development of people living in a city or village, hence, it is imperative to look at the emerging trends in the supply and access of water in the post liberalization Indian society that we are part of at present. The state of water and sanitation in Indian cities is abysmal. Market driven approach in delivery of basic services such as water supply and sanitation has its advantages but more often than not we hear about its adverse effects than its positives. At present most of the water supply and sanitation schemes run in the state are Mission led initiatives like the JNNURM. Also, we shall look at the contrasting difference in the supply of water in cities and rural areas. This shall be done with the help of critically evaluating two newspaper articles which focus on water supply and allocation in the state of Maharashtra.

The first article is a recent piece from The Indian Express titled ‘Making urbanisation potable’ by Isher Judge Ahluwalia. Dr. Isher Judge Ahluwalia is a prominent Indian economist and former chairperson of the high-powered expert committee on urban infrastructure services. She is also the wife of Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission, India. The article is roughly an evaluation of JNNURM initiative in provision of water supply in Maharashtra. The mission used project-oriented fund transfers as a driver of change for reforms at the state and the urban local body (ULB) level, to improve the condition of Indian cities. Maharashtra Sujal Nirmal Abhiyan (MSNA) is a good example of a state-led programme of integrated management of water and sanitation in the era of JNNURM. It covers all ULBs (a total of 250 cities), except Mumbai, for delivering water (24x7) and sanitation in a sustainable manner. Three sets of reforms in three sequential phases have been identified as ULBs prepare for the sustainable provision of water and sanitation in the cities and towns of Maharashtra. Phase I focusses on water audits, energy audits and provisions for operation and maintenance. The requirement of a water audit is a major reform for the success of the programme. The reduction of non-revenue water is the core part of the strategy as distribution leaks are plugged and a system for effective billing and collection with differentiated tariff is put in place. Financial protection is provided by ensuring that separate accounts are maintained for water and sanitation in ULBs. Once the building blocks are in place in Phase I, the ULBs can move to Phase II, with pilot experiments for delivery of water 24x7. The Phase II reforms include benchmarks for individual metering and collection at 80 per cent each, tariff framing, provision for sewerage and solid waste management. Phase III is the culmination of the reforms with 24x7 systems of water delivery, 100 per cent efficiency in metering and collection, and a sewerage system which includes sewage treatment plants.

I beg to differ from the rosy picture of modernity and success of the scheme in these cities. If we look at overall development of the country then such mission led initiatives in which grants from the Centre shall only be provided to those ULBs that fulfill certain criteria is in itself flawed. The ULBs that will be equipped to have enough capacity to fulfill these criteria would most likely be the richer ULBs catering to the richer population on the whole. In such a scenario the neglected small towns shall further remain neglected and the big towns that have more manpower and skill shall further prosper. In such a scenario there shall be more pull towards these towns leading to more polarity and regional imbalance in terms of infrastructure provision. Secondly, if we carefully read at the mandates of the Phase I reform we can observe that more than the provision of water and sanitation to all persons in the society, the mission seems to be more concerned about the amounts of water lost, effective billing and petty opportunity to cash upon that water which is most often than not being used by the unorganized sectors. This is being done by using tools like water auditing and provision of bulk meters. A positive outcome coming out from this kind of water auditing shall be the identification of loss of water in the organized sector but there also we must note what implications it would finally have. Charging additional money from them will still not be the right solution to it as it would still mean inequitable distribution. Hence, the first prerogative of the Govt. shall be to provide water to each and every household before retorting to accounting for water thefts and cashing in on that water.

The second article is another recent piece from The Hindu titled ‘How the other half dries’ by P. Sainath. P. Sainath is the Rural Affairs Editor for The Hindu and has done extensive work on social problems, rural affairs, poverty and the aftermaths of globalization in India. The article focusses on the equitable supply of water in Maharashtra and highlights some of the illogical market driven decisions in the drought hit state of Maharashtra. The author highlights how the developers were now selling king size apartments with private swimming pools whereas several villages in the same state are depending upon water tankers since they have no other water source. And one must consider them lucky if you get to see the face of these tankers twice a week. Furthermore, there are dozens of water theme parks that are proposed in the same area. There have been huge diversions of water in the last 15 years to industrial projects and to private companies also in the lifestyle business leading to wide protests and blood sheds.

“The trends in diversion for lifestyle-entertainment though, are not new. In 2005, a huge “Fun & Food Village Water & Amusement Park” popped up in Nagpur (Rural) district. That, in a period of real water stress. The Fun “Village” had 18 kinds of water slides. It also had “India’s first snowdrome” along with an ice rink. It is not easy to maintain snow and ice in 47° heat. That took huge amounts of electricity in a region seeing 15-hour power cuts. It also guzzled massive amounts of water.” (Sainath, 2013)

Such is the catastrophe in the country with regard to distribution of water. He also elaborates on the cropping choices and provision of irrigation facilities. He argues how two – third of the sugarcane is being grown in the drought prone areas which require high amount of water and similarly the emerging trend of rose gardens which requires an even higher amount of water. If this is not enough, there are 22 golf courses in the pipeline, Golf courses use huge amounts of water and also use vast amounts of pesticide that can seep into and affect the water of others as well.

He closes his article with a brilliant line, “For the rich, there is never a scarcity. For so many of the rest, their hopes evaporate by the day”. As urban polarity increases it is the duty of the planner to bridge this gap. The first step towards bridging this gap can be provision of water and sanitation service to all the people equitably by adopting suitable technology and strategy keeping in mind the peculiarity of the site.

References

Ahluwalia I. J. (2012) “Making urbanisation potable”, The Indian Express, Published on December 27 2012.

Sainath P. (2013) “How the other half dries”, The Hindu, Published on February 27, 2013.

Mobility of women in Metropolitan areas

In metropolitan cities, people move around for various reasons like work, shopping, leisure etc. The mode of transportation they choose for these trips depends on the income group they fall in. These people comprise of both men and women who travel in buses, metro, auto rickshaws, etc. to reach their destination. Increasingly, we find that there have been many instances of crime against women in the cities and we observe that most of these crimes have taken place during travelling or moving in the city. Such an insecure environment for women in moving from one place to the other shall hamper the overall concept of urban mobility which envisages free movement for all sections and groups of the society.This section of the paper shall be written from a feminist stand point and shall try to address the key concerns of movement of women in cities. 

Women commuters in Delhi Metro
  
Source: Gulf News (Dated 21st November, 2010. Accessed on http://gulfnews.com/news/world/india/delhi-to-get-tough-with-men-travelling-in-women-s-coach-1.714940)

In a strict patriarchal society that we live in, cases of women being harassed and molested in buses and trains have become common news items. The notion of women as a category, holding a systematically inferior position on all spheres of life, is disturbing. The recent Nirbhaya case in New Delhi rocked up the whole nation by the sheer brutality of men against a fellow human being. Women are being treated as mere objects.

A recent news excerpt from The Hindu stated that there has been an increase in the crimes against women in trains. The article further states that more than 200 cases, including rape, molestation and misbehavior were reported last year. A total 210 such cases were registered in 2012 against 127 cases in 2011. The numbers have gone up in the last three years in all forms of crime like rape, molestation and misbehavior against women (Source: The Hindu, Crimes against women on the rise in trains, Accessed on http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/crimes-against-women-on-the-rise-in-trains/article4520556.ece, 18th March, 2013). This trend is similar in other modes of vehicles as well. There have been several reports of rapes in moving cars with tinted windows, molestation and eve teasing cases on streets by persons on motor – cycles and cases or misbehavior, eve teasing and molestation are equally common in buses and metros. All the women folk, teenagers, youth, middle aged and even the elderly are equally harassed while commuting from one part to the other in a metropolis.

The reasons for such atrocities can be very briefly identified as the following (this is not exhaustive but a starting point):

• Lack of reporting of rape and assault cases: There is a severe stigma attached with coming out of the family or society and filing a case as the process is cumbersome and harassing. Women do not feel secure in confiding with the police. 
• Gaps within law enforcement agencies: Delay in swift action against crime and severe lack of sensitivity towards the issue. Gaps in the policing system. 
• Punishment: Lack of fast track courts. The punishment given to the offenders shall be strict and exemplary so that others think hundred times before committing such an hideous act. 
• Improper planning of the city: Spaces gets created in cities which breed crime and insecurity. Pockets of crime gets created in unmanaged and under – developed areas. 
• To increase reporting of rape and assault cases: To increase the reporting of such cases at first we need to empower the women and children. They must be educate on their rights and encourage them to come forward to register the cases. There are many violent cases but due to stigma in the society very few are reported. 

Having said so, the crux of the matter lies within the mindset and how the person behaves. In case of a rape or molestation, even though people call for zillions of measures that could have been taken but the fact of the matter is that one person forcibly imposed himself on the other, which in the first case is wrong. So instead of asking the women to be careful or upgrading police structure, the main thought must be to NOT RAPE or MOLEST!

The role of the planner in addressing this issue is confined to creating more lively spaces in the city and creating a planned environment with reduction in slums and squatter settlements which do not have proper access to basic infrastructure which breeds a lot of negativity. This in no way shall imply that all the crimes against women are committed by persons living in slums and squatter settlements. These spaces in the city do not have proper lighting or development and creates zones of seclusion which ill – minded people use for their malpractices.

Chandigarh which has been boasted as one of the finest planning examples, if we look at the administrative area of Chandigarh, it becomes absolutely haunted during nights which may become a potential area of crime at night. Similarly, the transit corridors of Greater Noida where there are long stretches of roads with nothing on both sides for a very long time. These become potential sites for crime. Arranging land uses in such a manner that there are people at call and walking around at all times. Going for a compact development model can also be helpful where commercial, residential and work places are integrated in the same area. 

Some design features like adequate street lighting and having kiosks (small shops) near bus stops can be a small initiative towards enhancing safety. Kiosks shall ensure that there are people around the bus stop at all times. Reservation of seats in buses and metros shall be provided and shall be strictly enforced. People occupying those spaces shall be penalized. GPS devices shall be placed within auto – rickshaws and buses for tracing those vehicles in a speedy manner.

Graphic Illustration of empowering women in buses/ metro
Source: Times of India (Dated 4th October, 2010. Accessed on (http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-10-04/people/34239880_1_rajiv-chowk-mein-diya ) 

Finally, a nationwide campaign is needed to reignite India's core values and traditions that respect and nurture women and children. This can only be borne out of consensus in society. Awareness amongst men of the scope of this issue is critical. Men who turn a blind eye to such brutal acts in their own neighborhoods, communities and families are just as culpable as those that perpetrate these acts. Action from courts and police will not suffice if the community remains defiantly opposed to change.