The bureaucracy in India has its own problems and it is not confined to the Lower Level Police Force. Even the Central State Secretariat boasts of bureaucracy in its functioning. At all levels, be it the Delhi Secretariat or the Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association, bureaucracy has a way of ruling over the administrative system. There is no difference between civil servants and the lower level police or military personnel when it comes to bureaucracy in India. It is so ingrained in the Indian society that many people ignore it. This is a huge mistake as it will harm the country’s growth.
The larger bureaucracy exists in all government sectors and its size and scope is immense. At the federal level, the bureaucracy has dominated decision-making although the cabinets have attempted to counter this at some points. In smaller bodies like the states, the bureaucracy has very little control on policy decisions. The ministries are responsible for delivering better service delivery and this is largely dependent on the ability of their ministers to communicate effectively with the bureaucrats. Policy implementation depends very much on the capability of the ministry to perform its functions. Since the bureaucracy is a very difficult concept to understand, it is impossible to assess how well the policy implemented by the ministry actually works.
The bureaucracy plays an important role in determining the direction taken by the government in implementing its policies. A bureaucracy that is blindly following the policy without any effective supervision at every level is not likely to deliver desired results. Policy muddle is one outcome of this failure. Another major drawback in the functioning of the government departments and bodies is the inefficient handling of sensitive information. The mishandling of such information is a cause for suspicion amongst citizens and it is this that lead to political executives being hauled into court.
There are many instances in which ministries have been found to have directly handled confidential or personal information of citizens. This was done in violation of the Right of Information Act and the Freedom of Information Act. The bureaucracy in India is an extremely politically weak system and has no control over the leakage of sensitive information. It is for this reason that the bureaucracy is very careful not to be caught red handed in its misdeeds.
The bureaucracy in India is in fact very efficient but their efficiency is dependent on the selection process followed at each level. At the local level too there is lack of control over the functioning of the public administration. Even the top officials at the level of the district and state are appointed by the elected government and so they too have their personal biases and loyalties. At the regional and national levels also the bureaucracy has a lot of autonomy and if the selected civil servant does not follow the guidelines, then he can be removed from office. At the national level, the bureaucracy is also susceptible to external pressures from the agencies that conduct business in the country.
The bureaucracy in India is also susceptible to pressure from the external agencies and is forced to implement policy decisions against its will. The bureaucracy has also become more responsive towards the policy of the ruling parties in the recent years. A lot of time is given to consultations and forums before policy decisions are taken. If there is a consensus of the cabinet and the elected government at the level of the district and state, then the decision is implemented. However, if the decision is not supported by a majority in the assembly or the consultative meeting, then the bureaucracy will have to wait till the policy is approved in a general meeting of the parliament or the central leadership. Sometimes the bureaucracy pressures the government to adopt a policy on which it considers the majority opinion, but the government refrains from adopting such policies and thus paralyzes the bureaucracy.
At the national level, the bureaucracy has a very important role to play in the development of the country. They have to ensure that the infrastructures in the country are developed to the standards and capacity necessary for the rapid growth of the country. They also have a great role to play in the efficient utilization of the resources of the state. However, at the state level too, the bureaucracy has to play an important role in the smooth functioning of the government machinery. There are instances where the bureaucracy actually blocks the smooth progress of the government at the state level and the implementation of the policy becomes all the more difficult. This is one of the reasons why the bureaucracy needs to be managed by a properly appointed system of managers at all levels.
The bureaucracy in India has become an inevitable part of our polity and therefore it is necessary to control and contain it. Control over the bureaucracy requires a well structured system of managers at all levels of the hierarchy. This system should be developed by the elected government as well as by the political executive of the country. This system needs to include the different aspects of the bureaucracy such as collecting the data, analyzing the data, formulating the policy and finally implementing the policy. Without the presence of bureaucracy in the Indian polity, the country would not be able to realize its economic, social and developmental dreams.