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June 2011

Vol 55

Chief Editor : Neeta Prasad Joint Director (Prod) : J.K. Chandra


Editor : Manogyan R. Pal Cover Design : Sadhana Saxena
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Let noble thoughts come to us from every side


Rig Veda

CONTENTS
The possibilities of the Aadhaar number Broadening Base of E-governance in India
Nandan Nilekani................................................................................5 H K Singh, Amit Manglani .............................................................33

UID Technology System Identification Numbers Around the World


B B Nanawati.....................................................................................9 Jomon Mathew.................................................................................36

Financial Inclusion, Financial The Emergence of Hydroponics


Deepening and Economic Growth Lalita Maharana, Divy Ninad Koul.................................................39
Deepali Pant Joshi............................................................................13
do you know?
Financial Committees of the
Providing Identity Solutions to Migrant Parliament of India..............................................................42
Workers: Experiences of Ajeevika Bureau
Divya Varma, Zaineb Ali ................................................................18 Ensuring Service-Quality
In Government Sector
ShodhYatra Sujata Hira.......................................................................................45
Modified Jacquard Loom...................................................23
Best Practices
Green Rhapsody
Energy Consumption in India’s Household
Sujata Raghavan...............................................................................48
Sector: Social and Economic Dimensions
Rabinjyoti Khataniar........................................................................27 North east DIARY . .............................................................51

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YOJANA June 2011 1


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About the Issue

A
s the new century dawned in India, policy makers at various levels were surprised
by a new phenomenon. Till the end of the last century, the biggest obstacle for any
development work was the funds the government could bring to bear upon the
projects. Thus it was often found that despite expectations many projects could not reach
the remotest interiors or touch the lowest income groups to the extent it was needed.
But in the new century, as the growth rate of the economy took off to seven per cent and
even more to eight per cent, year after year, this constraint disappeared. The government
could pump in far more hundreds of crores of rupees into projects and make them become
bigger than was thought possible earlier. Yet, in the middle of all this expenditure the same
problem arose, viz the sections of the population who really needed the support were again
missing out. This was therefore a new problem for which policy planners seemed to have no answer.
This is the question to which the Unique Identification Project has developed as an answer. The government
has realised that the problem of reaching the benefit of various programmes to the poorest of Indians will not
come about just by providing more money in the schemes. Instead it is an issue of identifying who are those
poorest. Put another way, the problem emerges because these people are often the last to stand up to ask for
their share of anything. Their biggest problem is lack of an identity. They are not identified in any government
records, nor do they have any identification to prove their status. So taking advantage of the situation, corrupt
administrators are often able to bypass them, to reach others.
This is where the UIDAI project comes in handy. It is a national endeavour to count all the Indians of the
country and provide them an identity document or a card, essentially a number. Of course at present it is in a
voluntary form.
The planners of the project hope that once a sufficient number of Indians are enrolled in the programme,
several of the government schemes can be delivered on this platform. Can it be used, for instance to identify the
poor correctly to include them in the banking system, deliver grain accurately to them or deliver the benefits
rightly due to them under various government programmes ? How that can be made possible is the subject
matter of the present issue, as the experts from the project write in this edition to explain the method and how
easy or difficult they are finding the project.
This sort of number based identification plan has been used only by some of the developed countries that too
for a literate population. No one has ever had the nerve to suggest it can be done in a continental country like
India with a population that is just becoming literate. The scope of the UIDAI plan is therefore immense and
the potential is mind boggling. It has just begun and is therefore a right time to do some quick analysis of the
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4 YOJANA June 2011


AadhAar
Overview

The possibilities of the Aadhaar number

Nandan Nilekani

conomic accessing social benefits and

E growth is not an
end in itself; its power
lies in the ability it
gives us, thefinancial
wherewithal to address the many
employment, especially if they
are not part of a household; most
benefits and programs, as well as
identity mechanisms are linked to
households, and single women or
problems that a developing widows are excluded as a result.
country faces. Governments in Backward communities and tribal
The Aadhaar India have accordingly, with groups similarly find themselves
number is a economic growth, implemented caught in a cycle of exclusion,
new social programs and safety
powerful tool nets that tackle our poverty, health
where the lack of one service
cuts off identification documents
as governments and education challenges. The
and consequently access to
move to more ambitions of these programs
other services, such as when the
however, have been marred by
individual-oriented challenges in execution, and a
inability to get a ration card also
means difficulty in opening a bank
programs. It is significant one has been the lack of
account.
an identification clear identification and targeting of
individual beneficiaries. The urgency of the challenge
infrastructure
The problems of identification Addressing fundamental
available to every bog down millions of people in problems of exclusion has become
resident in India, India across communities and in especially urgent for us today.
including infants different situations. Rural women Thanks to development, millions
for example, face difficulties in of Indians today are getting a
The author is Chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India and former Co-Chairman of the Board of Directors
of Infosys Technologies Limited.

YOJANA June 2011 5


realistic shot at improving their A n i n d i v i d u a l , re c o g n i z e d Shiksha Abhiyan program focuses
incomes, and having a life much identity strongly on keeping children in
better than the one their parents school; the Rashtriya Swasthya
We ’ v e m a d e s u b s t a n t i a l
had. But access to economic Bima Yojana provides health
progress in India over the last
opportunity in India so far has insurance for adults and children;
few years, in how we approach
been highly inequitable – India’s the National Rural Employment
and tackle poverty. For one, we
urban, middle-class and elite Guarantee Scheme guarantees
view poverty less as a monolithic
residents have seen the most hundred days of work for the rural
experience; we have acknowledged
significant gains from growth, unemployed, and is a cushion for
thatdisadvantaged individuals
thanks to the easy access they lean, hard times.
face different kinds of shortages,
have to our infrastructure and
and need varied interventions at Even as we tailor our approach
institutions, such as in education,
different points in their life to to welfare and social protections
health and finance. For these
residents, the fruits of growth move out of poverty, and access the however, fundamental issues
have been tangible: employment opportunities India’s growth offers. of identification remain. Our
opportunities on completion A child of a Below Poverty Line programs for instance, have
of college, or from training in (BPL) family for instance, requires remained focused on household-
IT skills and English; access to effective investments in school based identification, and the
finance instruments that enable education, and immunizations, coverage of such identification is
entrepreneurship, savings and which will give him the skills program-based and not universal.
investment; access to infrastructure and ability to be employable as
The Aadhaar number is a
such as telecom, internet, roads, an adult. Adults who are in the
powerful tool as governments
rail and air connectivity that have BPL category need investments in
move to more individual-oriented
helped improve productivity and re-skilling programs, safety nets
programs. It is an identification
incomes. Such opportunity on to protect them during periods
infrastructure available to every
the other hand, has been harder to of unemployment, and financial
resident in India, including
come by for the poor in rural India access that will enable them to
infants.
and in our cities and towns. save and invest. And finally, the
impoverished elderly require A technology based
The objective of the UIDAI, infrastructure
protections such as a regular,
to issue a unique identity number
reliable pension.
for every resident in the country, The Aadhaar number represents
goes to the heart of ensuring This recognition means that the a sharp transition from paper-
greater opportunity. The role of individual is the real target of social based to IT-enabled identity
the Aadhaar number is that of programs, and not the household. systems. These numbers, which
an enabler – a number that helps The government has accordingly will be linked to biometric and
governments design better welfare launched a gamut of programs demographic information to
programs, enables residents in both aimed at addressing the varied ensure their uniqueness, will be
urban and rural India to access requirements of people in poverty: stored in a secure central database.
resources more easily, and allows the Janani Suraksha Yojana effort The database can be contacted
agencies to deliver services more is targeted to the health of pregnant for identity authentication
effectively and transparently. women and their infants; the Sarva from anywhere in the country.

6 YOJANA June 2011


The resident could verify their Accountability through clear their circumstances. This divide
identity online and in real-time, identification was not merely one of perception
by providing his/her demographic – there were real, vast economic
The biometric aspect of Aadhaar
or biometric information or other distances between the urban and
information. Such an IT-enabled is in my view, a particularly
rural country in the absence of
infrastructure would also support powerful feature of the number,
effective infrastructure linkages,
the remote verification of identity, and will play a significant role
and markets largely limited to urban
creating possibilities for the remote in increasing accountability cities and towns. In governance as
delivery of services across the for service providers and to well, we approached these regions
country. It provides a plug and broaden access. Biometric-linked differently, with separate ministries
play identification mechanism authentication to access benefits for urban and rural development,
for public authorities and service would make it easy for service and separate regulatory institutions
providers across the country, providers to limit leakages of in banking, insurance and other
which can use the Aadhaar number resources and benefits to those who services. Welfare programs have
rather than building their own
are not entitled to it. also been tailored individually – the
identification mechanisms from
National Rural Health Mission for
scratch. Biometric authentication along
example, targets health services in
with other factors of authentication
Technology-enabled identity rural India while the Urban Health
also makes it easier to deliver
systems like the Aadhaar number Mission was planned for India’s
are critical when the country’s public resources and services
cities and towns; the JNNURM
through a variety of agencies –
banking systems, trading markets, is focused specifically on urban
and service delivery are ramping public, private, and non-profit. The renewal, while the BRGF funds
up their technology capabilities two-way approach in delivering infrastructure in backward, rural
and enabling remote delivery of entitlements and services – delivery regions.
services. The public investment followed by confirmation through
in the Aadhaar infrastructure The Aadhaar infrastructure
authentication – increases the
is necessary to ensure that would enable us to incorporate
accountability of public and private
impoverished and disadvantaged these changes into our policies
service providers to the resident,
groups in the population are not and our economic approach,
since the resident’s relationship
excluded from such technology by powering up applications
with the agency is far more direct,
infrastructure, and are able to that address the infrastructure
and confirmation bypasses all
access and leverage them for challenges in rural regions, and
intermediaries.
their benefit. For example, while deliver services seamlessly to
mobile telephony has become Seamlessness in service both urban and rural India. Service
widely available, only a small delivery providers can for example, verify
segment of the population can identity remotely through Aadhaar-
use such phones to buy products In India, a narrative has long linked technology systems and
and services remotely, due to existed on the divide between then deliver services, reducing the
the difficulties in remote identity urban and rural India.While urban investments required to provide
authentication. Aadhaar-linked India survived and even prospered, services in rural and sparsely
remote authentication would the rural country, ‘Bharat’, was populated regions, increasing
enable poor residents to access left behind, history’s victims, to competition, and providing choice
such services easily. be provided for and rescued from to the consumer.

YOJANA June 2011 7


For instance today urban since credit and other history recognition by the government
residents are able to use ATMs of residents become mobile. makes possible public programs
to access their bank accounts and Agencies would no longer have to that take into account a resident’s
withdraw money – such access is carry out their own KYC (Know unique needs, aspirations, and
rarely more than a short distance Your Customer) procedures before circumstances. It paves the way
away. For the rural community they service customers – Aadhaar for a formal acknowledgement of
however, banking services are KYR (Know Your Resident) the resident which is independent
difficult to access; bank branches could be used before an insurance of the household and community
are some distance away... company issues a new policy, he/she belongs to.
or before a bank opens a new
An Aadhaar-linked banking Capturing the spirit
account.
solution however, could create
In the last few years, we have
local networks ofbusiness This clarity and ease in identity
correspondents who enable verification represents a significant witnessed a widespread rethinking
residents in both rural and urban growth opportunity for public on how we view the mechanisms
India to verify themselves using and private agencies in India. It through which people can access
the Aadhaar number, and make would lower organizational risk, development and opportunities
transactions, remotely, through a and empower agencies in banking, for growth. From thinking purely
mobile device. This would pave insurance and other consumer in terms of the funding of welfare
the way for the equalization of industries to offer more services, schemes and public services, we
access, and cheaper services. expand their modes of delivery, have begun to consider how these
and include larger numbers of efforts can empower and provide
It would also give rural India
impoverished residents within individuals with effective tools to
the opportunity of self-service.
their ambit. come out of poverty.
Just as remote connectivity to
markets through mobile phones Such seamlessness in service The Aadhaar number
have helped eliminate middlemen delivery will become possible strengthens our ability to respond
and allowed farmers in some areas not only between urban and rural to these calls, and imbue our
to negotiate crop prices directly India, but also within markets. policies with the principles of
with the mandis, remote Aadhaar The resident would also be able to empowerment for the resident.
authentication allows the rural switch service providers with less We have the opportunity to move
customer to employ the same self- information loss. to an environment where residents
service models urban residents in India are given choice and
The Aadhaar number would
now access, in not just banking power in exercising benefits, and
be the first time the government
transactions but also in buying in interacting with responsive,
is implementing a universal
stocks, retail goods, and accessing accessible governments and
infrastructure solely for establishing
a multitude of information services service providers. These gains
the identity of the individual. We
through their mobile phone. could go down to the last person in
shouldn’t underestimate the effect
A reliable identity infrastructure of such identity recognition by the line: to the most impoverished,
like the Aadhaar number can the state. Identities of people are the marginalized and the
destitute. q
help establish widespread trust inevitably in part social and political
relationships with poor residents constructions, and individual (E-mail : Nandan.nilekani@nic.in)

8 YOJANA June 2011


AadhAar
Overview

UID Technology System

B B Nanawati

ni q ue model. The UIDAI will be the

U Identification
Authority of India
(UIDAI) has been
created by the
Government of India as an as an
attached office under the Planning
regulatory authority managing a
Central ID Repository (CIDR),
which will issue UID numbers,
update resident information and
authenticate the identity of the
residents as required.
Commission. Its role is to develop
Technology systems will have
and implement the necessary
Besides the social institutional, technical and legal
a major role across the UDIAI
benefits, the infrastructure to issue Unique
infrastructure. The UID database
will be stored on a central server.
technology benefits Identity numbers to Indian residents.
Enrolment of the resident will be
UIDAI has adopted the name
to the Government Aadhaar for the 12-digit unique
computerized, and information
exchange between Registrars and
sector could be number which it will issue for all
the CIDR will be over a network.
residents. The number will be stored
manifold. The UID in a centralized database and will
Authentication of the residents will
be online. The Authority will put
Technology would be linked to the basic demographics
systems in place for the security
and biometric information –
enable creation of photograph, ten fingerprints and
and safety of information.

an e-governance iris – of each individual. The The UID Technology Solution


features of the Aadhaar will be encompasses application software,
cloud platform that this number will only provide system software, infrastructure,
to be shared by identity and prove identity not including IT systems, Private
citizenship, and facilitate enrolment Cloud of Data Centres. It also
central and state of residents with proper verification encompasses all the processes
governments and adoption of a partnership required to architect, design,

The author is Deputy Director General, UIDAI, Planning Commission, Government of India

YOJANA June 2011 9


Figure 1 : High Level System Overview authentication request types such
demographic, biometric, simple
or advanced authentications are
supported. The UID number
submitted is used for 1:1 match for
the resident’s record. The inputs
would be then matched against
the resident information stored in
CIDR databases to authenticate the
resident.
The Fraud Detection
Application is deployed to detect
and reduce identity fraud. For
example identify fraud scenarios
develop, release, deploy and supporting applications. In the that the application needs to
manage the solution and manage core category are the enrolment handle are: misrepresentation of
the cloud & data center operations. and authentication applications information, multiple registrations
The UID Software system consists services, while the supporting by same resident, registration
of the enrolment client application, category consists of applications for non-existent residents, or
enrolment and authentication server required for administration, authentication as someone
applications, and AADHAAR analytics, reporting, fraud detection else. Multiple approaches are
Unified portal, Business Intelligence interfaces to Logistics Provider and used for detecting fraud. The
Module, Fraud Detection Module Contact Center and the portal. The Administrative Application takes
and the entire supporting software Enrolment Application services care of user management, roles and
platform. The CIDR refers to the comprises of the client enrolment access control, business process
infrastructure including NOC, request for providing a UID. The automation, and status reporting. It
Cloud of Data Centres, Network, enrolment application orchestrates ensures a trust network across both
Servers and Storage, for production, the enrolment workflow by internal and external entities. The
staging and testing. The CIDR integrating various sub-systems external entities could be registrars,
operations refer to the managed such as demographic data validation, enrolment agencies, field agencies,
services required to operate the biometric de-duplication, and UID introducers, authentication user
cloud of data centers and associated generation. Lifecycle updates (not agencies, and other partners within
infrastructure (Network, Servers, only initial enrolment) such as the eco system.
Storage, Power, and HVAC). correction, on-going updates, child
re-enrolments, death reporting, UIDAI has selected biometrics
UID Technology solution has etc. are also possible through the as the primary method to check for
three main parts, namely UID application. Manual Exception duplicate identity records, in order
Technology Solution (UID-TS) , Workflow is required to resolve to ensure that an individual can
Partner Systems interacting with the Enrolment requests that cannot be establish their identity uniquely
UID-TS and the UID Stakeholder resolved automatically. Basic Letter in an easy and cost-effective
Ecosystem . The three components Printing and Delivery functionality manner. Hence, one of the key
are described briefly as below. is also available. component of the UID Technology
The application hosted by The Authentication is the Biometric Solution. Three
CIDR can be broadly categorized Application provides the identity biometric Solution Providers have
under the core applications and authentication services. Various been selected by UIDAI to operate

10 YOJANA June 2011


simultaneously in CIDR. The technology and ecosystem the skills , provide a boost to relevant
biometric solution is intended to residents who enroll for Aadhaar technology, including biometrics.
perform the following functions: will no longer face the problem
It is thus seen that the UID
of performing repeated Know
a. Biometric image capture, Technology Solution (UID-TS)
Your Customer (KYC) checks.
segmentation & quality check will be the core technology solution
Residents would also be spared
during the enrolment process enabling Unique ID implementation.
the trouble of repeatedly proving
This technology solution will have
b. Matching of biometrics to identity through documents each
three key roles to play:
enable provision of identity time they wish to access services
verification by UIDAI such as obtaining a bank account, l Capture and store biographic,
c. 1:N biometric de-duplication passport, or driving license etc. By photographic and biometric
to enable issuance of Unique providing a clear proof of identity, information of residents of
ID to every resident of India Aadhaar is expected to empower India
poor and underprivileged residents l
Generate and assign a Unique,
Biometric Enrollment : the in accessing services such as the 12-digit ID number for each
Biometric Solution is able to formal banking system and give resident
provide components to capture, them the opportunity to easily avail l
Act as a means for identity and
segment and perform quality check various other services provided by address verification for various
of biometric images as part of the Government. user agencies with a certain
enrollment client software. These
The centralized technology level of assurance
components are capture device
independent and provide consistent infrastructure of the UIDAI will The core technology challenges
and compliant images for the enable ‘anytime, anywhere’ related to the UID Technology
enrollment server. The biometric
authentication. Aadhaar will thus Solution flow from the biometric
give migrants mobility of identity. matching system. At the heart of
data captured is as per data formats
Aadhaar authentication can be done the challenge is the enrollment
laid out in Biometric Design
both offline and online. Online process that would require the UID
Standards for UID Applications,
authentication through a cell Technology Solution to perform
Biometric Committee Report.
phone or land line connection the biometric de-duplication on
Biometric De-duplication will allow residents to verify their a population of India’s size with
(multi-modal de-duplication identity remotely. Remotely, online acceptable degrees of accuracy
solution) : The other core Aadhaar-linked identity verification and turnaround time. Surrounding
component of UID enrolment is will give poor and rural residents the the challenge are issues of ‘nearly
biometric duplicate check. The same flexibility that urban non-poor difficult to predict’ workloads on
duplicate check function of the residents presently have in verifying the system and security.
proposed Biometric Solution their identity and accessing services
These translate into challenges
receives incoming multi-modal such as banking and retail. Besides
for designing the computing system
biometric data and performs the social benefits, the technology
that would be required to perform
biometric duplicate check against benefits to the Government
reliable 1:N de-duplication within
the gallery. UIDAI at present sector could be manifold. The
a definite period of time to issue
captures multi-modal biometric UID Technology would enable
a Unique ID to a resident. This
features (Fingerprints, Face and creation of an e-governance cloud
is surrounded by considerations
Iris) of every resident for 1:N platform to be shared by central
pertaining to scalability, information
biometric de-duplication. and state governments, ready to use
security, disaster recovery and
platforms, easy to build applications
It is expected that with the business continuity. q
with reusable technology elements
implementation of Aadhaar and components, processes and (E-mail:ddguidai@gmail.com)

YOJANA June 2011 11


YE-42/2011

12 YOJANA June 2011


AadhAar
Overview

Financial Inclusion, Financial Deepening


and Economic Growth
Deepali Pant Joshi

e are justifiably Further, the divide across

W proud of our robust


and resilient financial
system that has over
the years, grown in
size and complexity.
The financial system today
various geographical regions
too is significant in terms of
access to banking services. The
western, southern and northern
regions have been far ahead of
the north-eastern, eastern and
encompasses a host of institutions central regions not only in terms
including 75,170 branches of
of branch intensity but also in
commercial, mainly public sector
As the UID banks across the country; 15,612
terms of per capita deposit/credit
(Table 2).
branches of 82 Regional Rural
numbers would be Banks; 14,000 or so cooperative Thus moving towards universal
acceptable for Know bank branches;  95, 626 outlets financial inclusion is our national
of Primary Agricultural Credit  commitment and RBI’s policy
Your Customer Cooperative societies, NBFCs priority. Financial access is
mutual fund companies et al,yet the necessary as it enables access to
compliance, UIDAI problem of exclusion from access to
financial services like savings,
formal financial services is so acute
credit, remittance, insurance,
can act as a major that despite the penetrative outreach
pensions from formal financial
of the financial system 50% of the
facilitator for country is unbanked.   (Source: institutions at cheaper cost.
Taken together this enables
financial inclusion Report on Trend and Progress
of Banking in India, 2010.) movement from the margin to
With the access of banking services the mainstream. It allows a paper
through opening of being limited in rural areas, the trail of transactions effected
through the banking system and
bank accounts reliance on informal sources
thus curbs illegal transactions.
of finance is considerably high
(Table 1).  The inhibitors to this process
The author is Chief General Manager in Charge, Rural Planning & Credit Department, Reserve Bank of India. The
views expressed are personal.

YOJANA June 2011 13


Table 1: Percentage share of debt of households from various sources
banking services, inhibitions
arise on account of the transaction
Source Rural Urban costs, risk perceptions, inadequate
Formal sources 57.1 75.1 infrastructure, information
barriers, and other factors.
Of which, Cooperatives  27.3  
Financial inclusion is the
Commercial banks 24.5 29.7
delivery of financial services,
Informal sources 42.9 24.9 a t a ff o r d a b l e c o s t , t o v a s t
Of which, Professional Moneylenders  19.6   sections of disadvantaged/low-
income groups excluded from
Professional moneylenders 19.6 13.2 the formal financial system.
Traders 2.6 1.0 The Reserve Bank provides
overall macropolicy direction
All sources 100.0 100.0
and supports new products and
Source: All India Debt and Investment Survey – 2002-03.
services such as the No Frills
Accounts ,GCC and KCC,relaxed
Table 2: Indicators of banking outreach across
regulatory dispensation on
geographical regions
branch authorisation& KYC
Region Population Amount Amount of norms, besides providing
per bank of deposits credit per
branch per capita capita (Rs.)
financial support through the two
(‘000) (Rs.) funds operationalized through
NABARD namely Financial
North-eastern region 19.8 17,775 6,119
Inclusion Technology Fund and
Central region 18.0 17,183 8,028 the Financial Inclusion Fund.
Eastern region 18.5 20,413 10,267
Opening of no-frills accounts
Southern region 10.3 39,870 36,778
Basic banking ‘no-frills’
Northern region 10.7 63,766 47,554 account with ‘nil’ or very low
Western region 12.9 86,393 67,171 minimum balances as well as
All-India 13.9 38,833 28,232 charges that make such accounts
accessible to vast sections of the
Source: Report on Trend and Progress of Banking India
population  were introduced as
are the small ticket character of systems significantly raise growth, per RBI directive in 2005. As on
loans .Low value, high volume alleviate poverty, and expand March 2011, 7.44 crore ‘no frills
nature of transactions in the penny economic opportunity. This is accounts’ have been opened by
economy  make administration  secured through the process of banks with outstanding balance
of loans and recoveries costly. building robust sustainable and of Rs.6565.68 crore.
Once appropriate technological scalable solutions through greater
solutions are in place technology financial deepening. Access is Small Overdrafts in No-frills
can be leveraged effectively to inversely proportional to income. accounts
leapfrog the barriers of geography. In the a b s e n c e o f f i n a n c i a l
deepening it is not easy to access Banks have also been advised
RBI emphasises a bank led model to provide small ODs in no frill
of financial inclusion relying on the full range of goods and services
from mainstream institutional accounts. Up to March 2011,
ICT solutions.
providers. Poorer households banks had provided 41.77lakh
It is axiomatic that well diversified and smaller enterprises face ODs amounting to Rs.198.73
broad-based and inclusive financial difficulties in obtaining basic crore.

14 YOJANA June 2011


General Credit Cards population of less than 50,000 individual including those
under general permission, subject operating Common Service
Banks have been asked
to reporting. In the North Eastern Centres (CSCs);
to consider introduction of a
States and Sikkim, domestic
General Purpose Credit Card ii) NGOs/ MFIs set up under
scheduled commercial banks can
(GCC) facility up to Rs. 25,000/- Societies/ Trust Acts and
now open branches in rural, semi
at their rural and semi-urban Section 25 Companies ;
urban and urban centres without
braches. The credit facility is
the need to take permission from iii) C o o p e r a t i v e S o c i e t i e s
in the nature of revolving credit
Reserve Bank in each case, subject registered under Mutually
entitling the holder to withdraw
to reporting. Aided Cooperative Societies
up to the limit sanctioned. Based
on assessment of household Business Correspondent/ Acts/ Cooperative Societies
cash flows, the limits are Business Facilitator Model Acts of States/Multi State
sanctioned without insistence Cooperative Societies Act;
In January 2006, the Reserve
on security or purpose. Interest
Bank permitted banks to utilise iv) Post Offices; and
rate on the facility is completely
the services of non-governmental v) Companies registered under
deregulated.  As on March
organizations (NGOs), micro- the Indian Companies
2011, banks had provided credit
finance institutions (other Act, 1956 with large and
aggregating Rs.1287.66 crore in
than Non-Banking Financial widespread retail outlets,
8.83 lakh General Credit Card
Companies) and other civil society excludingNon Banking
(GCC) accounts.   organisations as intermediaries in Financial Companies
Relaxed  regulatory dispensation providing financial and banking (NBFCs). Banks have
on KYC norms services through the use of reported employing 40942
business facilitator and business BCs which covered 78078
Know Your Customer (KYC) correspondent (BC) models. The
requirements for opening bank villages.
BC model allows banks to do
accounts have been relaxed since ‘cash in - cash out’ transactions   As on March 2011, 281.33
August 2005 and simplified at a location much closer to the lakh smart cards have been
for accounts with balances not rural population, thus addressing issued by banks as part of their
exceeding Rs. 50,000/- and the last mile problem. From efforts to drive Information and
aggregate credits in the accounts September 2010 banks have been Communication Technology (ICT)
not exceeding Rs. one lakh a permitted to engage the following - based financial inclusion. 
year.  Introduction by an account individuals/entities as BC. FIF and FITF
holder who has been subjected
to full KYC drill would suffice i) Retired bank employees, Based on the recommendations
for opening such accounts or the retired teachers, retired of the “Committee on Financial
bank can take any evidence as to government employees and Inclusion” set up by the
the identity and address of the ex-servicemen, individual Government of India under
customer to the satisfaction of owners of kirana/ medical /Fair Dr. C. Rangarajan, two Funds,
the bank. Price shops, individual Public the “Financial Inclusion Fund
Call Office (PCO) operators, (FIF)” for meeting the cost of
Simplified branch agents of Small Savings developmental and promotional
authorisation schemes of Government of interventions for ensuring
To address the issue of uneven India/Insurance Companies, financial inclusion, and the
spread of Bank branches, since individuals who own “Financial Inclusion Technology
December 2009, domestic Petrol Pumps, authorized Fund (FITF)”, to meet the cost of
scheduled commercial banks are functionaries of well run Self technology adoption has been set
permitted to freely open branches Help Groups (SHGs) which up at NABARD with an overall
in Tier 3 to Tier 6 centres with are linked to banks, any other corpus of Rs. 500 crore each

YOJANA June 2011 15


Special package for North scale up IT initiatives for indicators with a view to rolling
Eastern States financial inclusion speedily them out over the next three
while ensuring that solutions years. Such Board-approved
To i m p r o v e b a n k i n g
are highly secure, amenable FIPs are an integral part of their
penetration in the North-East,
to audit, and follow widely- business plans and include criteria
the Reserve Bank asked the
accepted open standards to on financial inclusion in the
State Governments and banks
ensure eventual inter-operability performance evaluation of their
to identify centres where there
among the different systems. field staff.
is a need for setting up either
full-fledged branches or those Mobile Banking: Mobile Can ICT and government macro
offering forex facilities, handling banking guidelines for banks were policies support the expansion
government business or for issued in October 2008. Since of financial access so as to build
meeting currency requirements.  December 2009, banks have been an inclusive Financial Sector?
It has also offered to fund the permitted to offer this service to
UID Project and Financial
capital and running costs for their customers subject to a daily
Inclusion
five years provided the State cap of Rs 50,000/- per customer
Government concerned is willing for both funds transfer and The Unique Identification
to make available the premises and transactions involving purchase Authority proposes to furnish
put in place appropriate security of goods/services. an identity card that will satisfy
arrangements. Meghalaya has the Know Your Customer (KYC)
Roadmap for Banking
been the first off the block, and norms of banks, thereby giving
Services:In November 2009,
eight centres have been allotted a fillip to financial inclusion.
banks were advised to draw up
to three public sector banks, Aadhaar aims to provide a Unique
a roadmap to provide banking
following a bidding process. Identification in the form of
services through a banking outlet
Branches at two of the agreed 12-digit unique number with
in every village with population
centres in Meghalaya have been some basic demographic and
over 2,000, extending financial
opened in Januaryat Gamberge biometrics information to every
inclusion to more than one lakh
and in Nongshillong  in February Indian citizen. As the UID
villages.  Banking services may
2011 and the third such branch is numbers would be acceptable
not necessarily be extended
expected to be openedshortly.  for KYC compliance, UIDAI
through a brick and mortar branch
can act as a major facilitator
A lot of Stress is also being laid but provided through any of the
for financial inclusion through
on spreading financial literacy and ICT- based models, including
opening of bank accounts. While
financial education. through Business Correspondents
UID would provide a strict check
(BCs).  A total of 72,814 such
Policy Interventions to on customer’s identity through
unbanked villages were identified
strengthen financial inclusion  biometric authentication, the costs
and as on March 2011, 24,710
and time required by the customer
CBS in RRBs: Given the banking outlets have been opened
for opening accounts would be
strategic positioning of Regional in various villages across the
reduced substantially. Further,
Rural Banks (RRBs), the Reserve country.
online authentication system will
Bank has directed all RRBs to be Financial Inclusion Plan for save the cost of issuing smart
CBS- compliant and by September Banks: All domestic commercial cards for the banking sector while
2011, this is expected to give a banks- public and private sector increasing security.It would also
further fillip to financial Inclusion were advised in January 2010 to help new generation service
efforts given the penetrative draw up specific Board approved providers, such as BCs and other
outreach of the RRBs in the rural Financial Inclusion Plans (FIP) technology service providers
areas.  by March 2010 incorporating (UIDAI, 2010).Banks can be
Scaling up IT: Banks had some basic minimum qualitative registrars to the UID and through
been urged in May 2007 to features, and quantitative this collaborative process are

16 YOJANA June 2011


moving to rapidly extend financial UID would also help in Public policy and technology
inclusion in the hitherto unserved widening the scope of financial changes, can now fundamentally
and under-served geographies. inclusion by bringing those alter banking . Banks need to
employed in the unorganised mobilize resources from a wide
The issuance of a unique
segments into the ambit of formal deposit base and extend credit
identification number that can
finance. This would be possible to the unbanked and unreached
be verified and authenticated
by linking pension, provident ,hitherto not financed by banks.
online,in a cost effective manner
fund and medical insurance plans Amartya emphasizes that
and is robust enough to eliminate 
provided to employees to their capability and freedom
duplicate and fake identities is
accounts through the UID. It enhancing   social policies
expected to provide a further
would thus open up a whole new generate stable civil societies.
fillip to financial inclusion efforts.
vista. Thus financial inclusion which
NREGA payments and payments
enables attainment of equity
under other government benefit The scale and magnitude of this
with growth is a a global
programmes as also all state programme is unprecedented and
public good.Universal financial
benefit transfers are expected requires effective coordination
inclusion by 2012 is our policy
to be routed through UID cards between different tiers of the
commitment. We have promises
to eliminate all leakages and Government and between
to keep and miles to go before
malpractices and ensure that the regulators. It also seeks effective
we slee. q
right beneficiary receives timely support from various public
and adequate recompense. and private sector agencies.  (E-mail : deepalipantjoshi@rbi.org.in)

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YOJANA June 2011 17


AadhAar
Field Experience

Providing Identity Solutions to Migrant


Workers: Experiences of Ajeevika Bureau
Divya Varma
Zaineb Ali

igration – A Gogunda tehsil in Udaipur

M Pervasive Reality
Mangilal belongs to the
Mogiya community of
Southern Rajasthan. A
community of sculptors who make
district of Southern Rajasthan
from where Mangilal hails, sends
thousands of such seasonal migrants
to major urban destinations in
India, who spend most part of
statues of deities from Plaster of their year outside their village in
Paris, they migrate seasonally with a quest to earn their livelihood.
their families to different cities Panchayat-level studies on seasonal
Even as the throughout the country and make migration in Gogunda (Panchayat-
community of a living by selling them. Mangilal level studies by Aajeevika Bureau),
and his family sleep on the streets, reveal that 65% households in the
migration service buy kerosene from the black market tehsil have at least one member
at exorbitant rates and are often
providers and robbed of their belongings for lack
migrating seasonally; in some
GPs, the incidence is as high as
policy advocates of a proper shelter. 85%. Left with no viable economic
grows rapidly, it is They frequently fall victims opportunity in their villages,
to ad hoc security drives by the migration has emerged as the most
clear the scale of police, extortion from municipality prominent livelihood strategy for
migration reality officials and are callously swept such poor households.
away from one part of the city
This is not an isolated picture
demands a much to another. Mangilal himself has
from a remote part of rural
been picked up by the police twice
larger, state driven on charges of theft, both the times Rajasthan. States like Orissa,
Bihar and Uttar Pradesh send out
response to solve because he was not able to provide a
migrants in even greater numbers
valid proof of his identity and prove
this identity crisis where he came from. to work in low-value, bottom-end

The authors work with the Ajeevika Bureau.

18 YOJANA June 2011


unable to vote during elections and take place with them with great
cannot access basic public services regularity, in which case it becomes
such as ration, subsidized health highly difficult to trace/identify
and education for lack of a portable the bodies and return them to
identity. their families in a dignified way.
Without an identity, even access
This article delves into the new
to basic legal recourse at an inter-
age development challenge thrown
state destination becomes a highly
up by large scale internal migration,
jobs to the more prosperous parts complicated process.
tries to answer the question of why
of the country. Unable to fend for access to a portable identity is In the absence of an identity
themselves, they end up leading important and shares the experience proof, access to basic services and
highly precarious lives in such far- of Aajeevika Bureau in offering entitlements is a major challenge.
off destinations. identity solutions to this vast yet For instance, getting a SIM card
Rural to urban migration, though marginalized community. for mobile phone service requires
not a new phenomenon, has become them to produce a proof of identity.
Why is Proof of Identity Important
pervasive in the last two decades. To rent a house in the city it is
for Migrant Workers
There is an increasing trend imperative to produce an identity
towards long distance movements Proof of identity is central proof. Opening a bank account
( Karan, A. (2003) and a growing to the livelihood, entitlements is almost impossible as migrants
centrality of migration income and political agency of the many are unable to produce the required
to the livelihoods basket of rural millions of seasonal migrants who proof of identity and residence.
households (An analysis of NSS travel vast distances to make both Lack of a portable identity denies
64th round data shows that 41 % ends meet. Despite the fact that them access to state subsidies at the
of the consumption in migrant HHs rights to mobility and livelihood are destination- they are not eligible
is financed by remittances – Tumbe, enshrined as Fundamental Rights in for the PDS system, their children
Chinmay (2010). While there are no our Constitution, possessing a valid cannot be enrolled in schools and
formal estimates, as per Deshingkar proof of identity is a pre-requisite they struggle to get treatment in
and Akhtar (2009), more than 100 to asserting citizenship rights public hospitals. Not an official
million workers migrate seasonally and ensuring state accountability, resident of the city, they are out
in search of livelihood, a number especially in the case of long- of the purview of several pro-poor
that makes for almost one-tenth of distance, inter-state migration of schemes of the state.
the country’s population. workers.
Absence of an identity has
However, stuck in a time warp in Inability to produce a document implications on migrants’ livelihood
trying to control movement, India’s to establish identity greatly as well. There are certain sectors
development policies have failed accentuates their vulnerability such as hospitality, domestic work,
to service the mobile populations to abuse by Police and local driving, shops and establishments,
– citizens lose access to their basic Municipal Authorities. Getting which demand a high degree of
entitlements as they change their randomly picked for questioning, trust and reliability in the employee.
place of residence. While this is false implications in case of thefts Unable to meet the need for
true for all, it is the low-income and forcible evictions are very establishment or verification of
groups which are hit the most due frequent occurrences in the lives credentials, the migrant workers
to the acute sedentary bias of Indian of seasonal migrants. Secondly, are unable to ensure security of
public policy – they are left out of being such a mobile community, employment for themselves in these
Census, NSS and BPL surveys, are accidents and man-missing cases sectors.

YOJANA June 2011 19


Aajeevika Bureau: Providing opportunities for collectivisation unique number against each entry.
Services and Security to Migrant to migrant workers and their Following this, an identity card
Workers communities. The Bureau has also that contains all relevant details
started working with the families including his domicile, trade,
Aajeevika Bureau is a specialised
of migrant workers with the aim of education and contact details are
institutional initiative for providing
empowering them to manage long issued to the migrant worker. The
services, support and security to
periods of male absence. The menu data thus captured contributes to
rural, seasonal migrant workers. The
of services has grown in response a larger initiative of the Bureau,
Bureau is premised on the notion
to the growing diversity in Bureau’s of compiling a comprehensive
that rural to urban migration is an
work and an increasing clarity on database of such migrants. This
inevitable socio-economic reality,
what will improve labour market record is then sent every quarter to
especially for those for whom rural
conditions, livelihoods, social the Rajasthan Labour Department
resources are no longer able to
and economic outcomes for the so that the government has a
generate a meaningful livelihood.
workers. definite record of the massive
With the idea of transforming
volumes of labour that support this
migration into a more positive The flagship service of the
phenomenon. Given the absolute
opportunity, the Bureau aims to migration program is the registration
lack of policies in this realm,
provide relevant services to large and issue of an identity card to
establishing numbers is expected
numbers of this vulnerable working migrants who move out of their
to give impetus to the process
population. Also the Bureau aims to respective tehsils (block) for
of enacting legislations around
change the policy and knowledge employment, the emphasis on
migration.
paradigm around migration and the targeting those who move to inter-
marginalized migrant workers. state destinations is very strong. The Started in 2005, registration
worker applies for the identity card and identity service achieved a
The Bureau was formed
by filling out a simple registration significant milestone in December
in 2005 and it has, since then,
form that captures all the relevant 2007. After two years of advocacy
grown from being a small, local
demographic information of the efforts the card was recognized as a
organisation to one that functions
migrant including the duration of valid identity proof by the Ministry
in several source and destination
his migration cycle, his destination, of Labour and Employment of
areas of Western India, working
trade and income etc. Further they the Rajasthan State. With the
with large numbers of migrants
get this information verified by government authorisation, the
in a range of occupations and
the Sarpanch of his Panchayat. card has found greater acceptability
locations. The source areas include
Alternatively, it can be verified as a credible proof of identity
blocks in three districts of Southern
by the union/
Rajasthan- Udaipur, Dungarpur
collective of
and Rajsamand. The major urban
workers who
destination centres are Ahmedabad,
are ready to
Jaipur and Udaipur. It also runs
vouch for the
a centre in Idar of Sabarkhanta
applicant. Post
District, which is a major hub of
verification the
rural-rural migration.
information is
Through a large network of entered into
Shramik Sahayata Evam Sandarbh the migrant
Kendras (3SKs) it offers registration, registration
photo ID, skill training, placement, software that
legal aid, financial services and generates a Photo ID issued by Aajeevika Bureau

20 YOJANA June 2011


otherwise struggling to assert their it is clear the scale of migration
Naresh Singh hails from
citizenship rights in the urban reality demands a much larger,
Gogunda, Udaipur and works in
space. Away from their homes and state driven response to solve this
a jewelry shop in Mumbai. One
local community support systems, identity crisis. The civil society
evening, on his way to deliver
some jewelry to a customer, he the identity card gives them a sense organizations have demonstrated
was picked up by the police under of security and entitlement through how migrants can be counted,
suspicion of theft. When he was affiliation to an entity whose reach registered and offered a verifiable
rigorously questioned about his is not limited to the border of their identity proof. The government
identity, he produced the ID card State alone. now needs to take this on as a
issued by Aajeevika Bureau. The nationally available service for
In the past two years, this
police officer was still doubtful the millions who are on the move
approach and model of migration
about his credentials. Using and for whom asserting identity
services got noticed and appreciated
the phone number given on the remains a fundamental problem.
by organizations working in high
back of the card, he called up the It is in this context that “Aadhaar”
migration states, who wanted
Gogunda office of the Bureau provides a potential solution for
to start a similar programme
from where the card was issued. establishing a portable, nationally
in their operational areas. Sir
He cited the unique registration accepted identity proof.
Dorabji Tata Trust stepped in with
number on the card and asked timely funding of this expansion Aadhar promises to be a
for the name under which it had across the country and today 32 comprehensive and inclusive
been registered. Naresh’s name organizations across 36 districts technology platform which will
showed up in the database, of states like Orissa, Bihar, Uttar be able to verify and establish
along with his occupation of Pradesh, MP, Rajasthan, Andhra the identities of the seasonal
working as an assistant in a Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka migrant workers. There is also
jewelry shop. This convinced the and Gujarat are implementing much hope that Aadhar will be the
police officer that Naresh was fulcrum for converging services
migration services with technical
indeed speaking the truth. He such as PDS, banking inclusion,
support from the Bureau. The
was released and even escorted remittances, health and education
organizations cover the source areas
home by the police. and make them more accessible
of high out-migration states as well
as key destinations like Mumbai, for the migrant community. Indeed
among employers, police and local Bangalore and Hyderabad; jointly Aadhaar will become powerful
administration. It has facilitated providing services to migrant only if its applications for migrants
a range of services from getting workers and their families. They become activated and established.
a SIM card to opening of bank collectively form a strong advocacy Several sections of civil society
accounts. It has made linkages to organizations and groups working
group, called the National Coalition
the social security schemes, like with migrant workers are keenly
of Organisations for Security of
insurance and pension, possible. observing the roll out of Aadhaar
Migrant Workers (NCOSMW).
In a span of five years, Aajeevika in its early days and hopeful
Bureau has been able to register a Identity Proof and Access to for a partnership to reduce the
total of about 55,000 migrants. Services for Migrants – A Long hardships of those struggling to
Way to Go assert their identity in their home
This simple yet powerful tool of
the Bureau has resulted in securing Even as the community of country! q
the identities of a mobile and migration service providers and (E-mail : divya@aajeevika.org,
vulnerable population who were policy advocates grows rapidly, zaineb@aajeevika.org)

YOJANA June 2011 21


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ShodhYatra

Modified Jacquard Loom

onventionally banks of the river Brahmaputra.

C the task of insertion


of weft threads to make
a variety of designs is
done manually by tying
knots. It is tedious, cumbersome
The economy of the area is mainly
dependent on weaving of muga silk
using traditional looms. Deepak’s
family also makes a living by
producing and selling muga silk
and time consuming. The thread using his looms.
is also wasted in the connection
Even as a young child, Deepak
between one motif and another.
was innovativel. One day, while
Deepak from Sualkuchi in Assam
pulling out an old cycle tyre from
has come up with a device
a ditch, he observed that the inner
consisting of three components;
sides of the tyre were lined with
base frame, magnet-bearing shaft
The innovation different types of small fish. As an
and specially designed bobbin.
experiment, he put another tyre into
facilitates a These components can be fitted to
the ditch and noticed that after few
productivity boost any handloom Jacquard machine.
hours, this tyre too was filled with
The innovation reduces the time
of over 60% while required for making designs to
lots of fish. Since then, this had
eliminating drudgery. one third of what is required in the
become his unique technique for
catching fish. Continuing further,
This attachment to traditional way of doing it.
he noticed that he could also use
the Jacquard loom Background a bamboo cylinder to catch fish.
allows unskilled Deepak Bharali (33 years) hails
Using every available object, even
workers to enter from Napara in Sualkuchi in Kamrup
discarded bearings, he has built
model cars.
the industry and district of Assam. The village, also
produce elaborately locally known as the “Manchester Deepak started with his first
of the East”, is situated at a distance loom in 1998, for weaving plain
designed fabrics of 35 kms from Guwahati along the cloth shorn of any design or

YOJANA June 2011 23


ornamentation. Using the looms find itdifficult to slide their finger
himself, he wove the cloth and learnt in to handle the wefts. To increase
about various aspects of production. productionspeeds, automate and
After nine months, he installed his cut down the repetitive process
second loom and diversified into in routine tasks,Deepak decided
producing silk with designs. Here to create a dedicated fixture style
he ran into heavy weather as he tried attachment that can befitted into the
to increase production by adding standard Jacquard loom.
more looms, and hiring skilled
Product Details
but expensive workers. The slow
speed and limitations of traditional The design making device
silk producing methods added to is an attachment which can be
his troubles. He circumvented this fitted into anyJacquard loom. The
fixture style attachment can be fitted into
by innovating and developing a device has three components; a the standard Jacquard loom.
new accessory for the Jacquard base frame whichacts as a shaft
loom which could ensure nine fold holder, the magnet bearing shaft lifted warp threads.As the magnet
reduction in time, simplify work, and the specially designedbobbin. fitted shaft moves from one side
lead to better utilization of looms The uniqueness lies in using the to the other, it also dragsalong the
per day. And also make it possible magnetic clamping systems and bobbins attached to it from one
for unskilled workers to run the specially designed bobbin to side to other. In the process, the
looms. achieve its efficacy.The attachment simultaneous crossing of all weft
facilitates the Jacquard loom to do threads for design making takes
Genesis of innovation place.Once the weft-thread bobbins
automatic selection and lifting of
Over the years, the weavers warp threads for design making. are crossed, the whole device is
faced common problems while The magnet fitted shaft isfitted lifted tocontinue with the normal
working withthe Jacquard looms. into the base frame.The number of loom weaving process. The same
Firstly, the handling of weft threads magnets willvary according to the process iscontinued for all the weft
at various intervalsand the tying number ofdesigns that one has in thread configurations till the design
of knots caused drudgery and each line. Unlike normal design- making iscompleted.
required a lot of time and effort. making loom whereeach weft The prior art search in both the
An average fabric, consisting of 30 thread is connected to a bobbin, patent and non-patent databases
rows of lines with 14 designs in a these bobbins areplaced on the shows theexistence of a number
row,would have at least 3 knots per lower surfaceof the base frame, of handlooms which require the
design. This would mean a total of just ontop of the corresponding design to be threadedmanually,
1260knots and that would require magnets fixed on the shaft.Once the which is extremely time consuming
almost 10 hours, assuming the magnet sensitive bobbins are glued and requires a lot of effort aswell
weaver takes30 seconds to make to the surface, the frame istaken as skill. US patent 4581905
each knot. Secondly, working on on top of the warp threads. As the (15/04/1986) reveals a process
designs that need simultaneous Jacquard machine selects andlifts and aknitting machine to produce
handling of five or more threads the warp threads, the device is figured fabrics. WO/2006/027240
requires great skill that onlya few placed on top of the warp threads. (Pub. Date16/03/2006) discloses a
skilled weavers possess. Thirdly, The device is placed in such a gripper device for weft threads for
while handling broad designs way that the bobbin’s attached a loom in whichthe gripping force
orwhen the gap between the weft surface facesdownwards and each can be changed during weaving
threads is too small, the weavers bobbin falls in between two sets of according to the patternof the

24 YOJANA June 2011


material to be produced. However, and low cost, this attachment properly.Deepak also has a dream
prior art search does not indicatea could deliver a lifetime value for to make modifications in the power
similar device in handloom fabric thousands of handloom units by looms.
weaving. achieving betterutilization of loom
and time spent by workers. Generally, in power looms
Product application and the insertion of extra weft is
dispersion Till now, Deepak has set up done by using shuttleand then
the preliminary device in his
The attachment of this fixture cutting the unused portion. Such
to the Jacquard loom achieves ten looms. In thenext step, he cloth normallylooses its demand
increasedproductivity, ease of wishes to extend it to another nine
in the market.He wants to study
use and better fabric quality. It looms with the refinedmodel. If he
the working ofpower loom
also facilitates automaticselection becomes successful he will start
so that his device canbe
and lifting of warp threads to the business by selling thedevice
installed there. The innovatorhas
handle elaborate fabric designs. first in his village, then in Assam,
been extended venturefinance
The innovation facilitates a India and aboard.IIT Guwahati, has
from MVIF at NIF andalso
productivity boost of over 60% been guiding the design process
product developmentsupport
while eliminatingthe drudgery. lately. Despite numerousiterations,
for technicalimprovements in
This attachment to the Jacquard the final design has not yet been
fabricated successfully inGuwahati. his innovationfitted into the base
loom allows unskilled workersto
A firm has been contacted in Delhi frame. q
enter the industry and produce
elaborately designed fabrics.Using to get casing for magneticbobbins (E-mail : campaign@nifindia.org,
locally available components, designed and fabricated in plastic www.nifindia.org)

Call for Papers

The Centre for Good Governance (CGG) was conceived of as an Institution of excellence in
governance reforms, to assist the Central and State Governments, to modernize and transform
governance in the country. Towards this end the Centre undertakes research, consultancy and
advice to them, civil society and political leadership and assists them in implementing good
governance measures .
CGG networks with international and national institutes on governance work in close
collaboration with International development institutions like The World Bank, ADB, UNDP,
WHO, ILO etc and work for them as well.
In furtherance of the objectives of CGG , we propose to bring out a quarterly journal on good
governance .It is our earnest desire to make it a scholarly publication. The first issue is
proposed to be brought out on ‘Transparency in Governance”.
Papers are invited on one of the subjects listed overleaf or a related subject of your choice and
make it a memorable issue. For further details please visit http://www.cgg.gov.in/
All published articles will be paid an honorarium .
Important dates
Deadline for submission of abstract/papers May 15th ,2011
Announcement of accepted June 15th ,2011
Authors are advised to submit abstract ( 500 - 700 ) paper (6000 – 8000 ) words per paper
YE-38/2011

through e-mail shanthi@cgg.gov.in.or Manager – KR – Centre for Good Governance, Road N0:
25, Jubilee – Hills , Hyderabad - 500033 Andhra – Pradesh

YOJANA June 2011 25


YE-39/2011

26 YOJANA June 2011


Energy
Analysis

Energy Consumption in India’s Household


Sector: Social and Economic Dimensions
Rabinjyoti Khataniar

n I ndia a r o u n d deregulation in the petroleum sector

I half of the total non-


commercial energy
consumption is
accounted for by the
household sector (GoI, 1979, CMIE,
which has encouraged the entry of
private sector into the market and
thus improved the availability of
LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas) and
kerosene. However, the market is
2001). The non-commercial energy not fully liberalized. The factors
sources include fuel-wood, crop- like lack of mobility of commercial
residues, cow-dung and charcoal, fuels, high cost of connection and
among which fuel-wood is the refill, high transaction cost, and the
Improved wood most popular and predominantly availability of cheaper alternative
used in the consumption of fuels in the form of fire-wood
stoves not only household energy. Even today and other biomass fuels appear
with the advancement of science
raise energy and technology, more than 60 per
as obstacles to quick diffusion of
these fuels in the domestic sector
efficiency typically cent of Indian households depend of India.
on the traditional sources of energy
by 30-50 per cent for meeting their energy needs. In So far as pattern of household
spite of the various Government energy is concerned, it represents
but also reduce efforts towards promoting cleaner not only the status of welfare but also
the stage of economic development.
indoor pollution by fuels, the approach has not been
As the economy develops cleaner
very successful in bringing
a factor of 20 to 100, changes in the type of energy used, fuel is consumed. Consumption
specifically for the lower income of household energy is expected
to levels well within groups. In the recent past there to increase in future along with
WHO guidelines has been a change in approaches. economic growth and rise in per
One of the notable changes is the capita incomes. Household energy

The author is Asst Professor, Deptt. of Economics, B.H.College, Howly, Assam.

YOJANA June 2011 27


consumption is also expected to
Table 1: Type of Energy Consumption by Indian
vary significantly between rural Households (1950-2000)
and urban areas. As such, this paper
Type of 1950 Percentage 1970 1990 2000 Percentage Growth
aims at analyzing the energy use Fuels of Total of Total Rate
pattern as well as to analyse the Per
factors that determine changes in Annum
energy use in the household sector (%)
of India. The specific research Fuel-wood 54.08 82.65 67.1 88.1 114 75.60 3.7
questions to be dealt in the study Coal/ 0.77 1.18 1.08 2.12 2.5 1.66 6.7
are as follows: (i) what is the type Charcoal
of household energy consumption? Kerosene 1.12 1.71 2.76 5.24 12.5 8.29 11.5
(ii) What type of dichotomy exists
LPG - 0.00 - 1.2 6.4 4.24 35.8
in household energy consumption?
(iii) What is the nature of fuel Electricity 0.06 0.09 0.13 0.79 9.2 6.10 23.8
selection? Others 9.4 14.37 8.2 6.9 6.2 4.11 -2.3

Household Energy Use Pattern Total 65.43 100 79.27 104.35 151.8 100 3.9
in India Source: CMIE, 2001
fuel was accounting for 98 per cent these substitutions are, increasing
The energy use pattern in the
of the total energy consumption level of urbanization, economic
domestic sector in India shows
and it declined to about 81 per development and living standard
that non- commercial fuels are
cent in 2000. The data shows an (Reddy, 2003). Probably, this is the
predominantly used in the household
increasing trend in the share of cause of lower growth rate of fuel-
sector. As per the data shown
LPG and electricity from 0.06 per wood (3.7 percent per annum)
by the United Nations Statistics
cent in 1950 to 10.34 per cent in
Division, biomass provided 77 per Figure-1 also shows a historical
2000. The decreasing share of non-
cent of the total household energy trend in the consumption of
commercial fuels can be attributed
consumption. Liquid fuels, and commercial and non-commercial
to the growing demand for clean
electricity accounted for 18 per energy in India during 1953-54 up
energy like LPG and electricity.
cent and 5 per cent respectively to 2011-12.
Major factors contributing to
for the year 1995. Within the time
period of 1976 to 1995 per capita
energy consumption had increased
modestly, mostly due to increase in
electricity and liquid fuels, while
biomass consumption has almost
remained constant(United Nations
Statistics Division, quoted from
Dzioubinski et.al.,1999)).
A trend in household energy
consumption is presented in Table-1
for the period 1950- 2000.
Table-1 shows a decline in the Supply Estimated Demand
share of non-commercial fuels. In
Source: Tenth Five Year Plan, 2007, Chapter 7.3 [1], Planning Commission, Government of India,
1950, the share of non -commercial Note: 1MTOE = 4.2 x 10 4 Tera Joules

28 YOJANA June 2011


It is very much clear from Figure-2: Changes in Fuel Mix for Cooking in
the figure that the share of non- Rural and Urban Households.
commercial fuels like fuel-wood
charcoal and others are declining
whereas the share of clean and
commercial energy like LPG
are improving during the time
period of 1953-54 to 2000-01. The
consumption of non-commercial
energy is estimated to further
decline in 2006-07 to 2011-12. The
decreasing share of non-commercial
energy indicates increasing
urbanization or industrialization.
Changes in Energy Use
NSSO Reports of different
rounds exhibits varying dependence
of households on various sources of
energy for cooking and lighting in Source: NSSO Rounds

the rural as well as urban sectors. households are observed to switch major source of energy for lighting
over to energy sources like LPG. by NSS rounds at the national level.
Figure 2(I, II, III, and IV)
A marginal variation is noticed The use of electricity for lighting
shows percentage distribution of is observed to rise by about 22 per
with regard to Kerosene use and
households using different source of cent in rural sector as against about
the use of electrify has decreased
energy for cooking by NSS rounds 19 per cent in urban sector during
substantially in 2001-02 in the
at national level. It is observed that the decade 1983 to 1993-94. In
urban sector.
in the rural sector dependence of 2001-02 electricity consumption
households on bio-fuels has been Figure- 3 (chart-I & II) shows for lighting is found to be about
observed to fall marginally over distribution of households using 50 per cent in the rural area where
successive NSS rounds, whereas
the use of LPG and Kerosene by the Figure-3: Changes in Fuel Mix for Lighting in Rural
rural households is on the rise. As and Urban Households
noticed from the three consecutive
surveys dependence on electricity
for cooking in the rural sector has
increased by 1.18 per cent during
the decade 1983-84 to 1993-94.
However it has fallen drastically in
the year 2001-02 to 0.10 per cent
from 2.30 per cent in 1993-94.
In the urban sector, dependence
of households on bio-fuels has
decreased to different extents.
H o w e v e r, m o r e a n d m o r e Source: NSSO Rounds

YOJANA June 2011 29


as for urban area the figure stands
at about 91 per cent. On the other
hand the number of households
using kerosene for lighting in both
the sectors is seen to be on the
decline perhaps due to switching
over to the source of electricity as
the facility becomes available to
more and more households during
the decade.
Income Energy Use Linkages
Source :NSSO 56th Round
T h e h o u s e h o l d ’s i n c o m e
household expenditure levels among Conclusion
influences the pattern of energy
urban households. In urban Indian
consumption in many ways. For The study reveals that non-
households, the quantity of biomass
example it results in the increasing commercial fuels constitute more
energy consumed decreases with
use of energy, shifting to clean than half of the total energy use
rising affluence. Its share decreases
and convenient form of energy, in India’s household sector. It is
from over 72.8 per cent among the
such as LPG, etc. As such, it is also observed that in the rural
poorest to less than 2 per cent for
informative to analyse variations the richest deciles. However, the sector dependence of households
by household income while quantity of kerosene at first rises for on bio-fuels has been observed to
analysing the linkages between the lower deciles, but then decreases be falling marginally, whereas the
economic affluence and household for higher deciles, suggesting that use of LPG and Kerosene by the
energy use. However, as the Indian these are used as transitional fuels. rural households is on the rise. In
household survey data does not LPG and electricity consumption the urban sector, more and more
collect any information on income, increase consistently across all households are observed to switch
total household expenditures are urban deciles (Figure 5). over to energy sources like LPG.
used as a proxy. We find that These are the low and middle
A clear transition is evident
energy choices and consumption income groups’ people that use
from Figure-5 with those in the top
levels vary significantly by bio-fuels mostly. As such the study
deciles clearly shifting away from
affluence level across rural and recommends the following policy
biomass towards more electricity
urban households. Among rural measures.
and LPG use.
households, the quantity of biomass
energy consumed decreases with
rising affluence. Use of LPG and
Kerosene is found to be more
among the higher expenditure
deciles in rural areas. Electricity
consumption remains more or
less constant for all rural deciles
(Figure 4).

However, energy substitution


(transition to modern energy type)
is more striking with increase in Source: NSSO 56th Round

30 YOJANA June 2011


l In the rural areas people are be adopted with special care. management for the villages
reluctant to pay for commercial For example, the households and blocks to maintain the plant
fuels as the fuel-wood can be often find difficulties with after setting up the project.
gathered free at cost. As a Once the villagers particularly
this type of stove because
result, the Government policies
certain foods cannot be cooked in high altitude areas get used to
of subsidizing commercial
on it. Thus, it implies that electricity it will go a long way
fuels sufficiently so as to make
it attractive will hardly yield the technology dissemination in preventing indiscriminate
good result. Instead forest programes need to pay careful felling of tree.
policies might seek to induce attention to local food and l
Considering the topography of
substitution of forest fuel- cooking habits. Hence, it is the sate, it may be worthwhile
wood. Such policy could aim suggested that steps may be to explore other decentralized
at promoting agro-forestry and taken to renovate the scientific options to meet the energy
tree growing in private land. Chullhas to meet the local requirement . This becomes
Policy intervention to this needs and popularize it among more important taking into
end include the provision of the rural households in order to account that large hydro
subsidized seedling, selection
save energy. projects generally have a large
of fuel-wood generated tree
l
The provision of stand-alone gestation period and involve
species, monetary incentive
for planting and maintaining isolated small generation large investment. Solar energy
trees, sharing knowledge and facilities (50 KW to 4 has the potential for meeting
information with the villagers, MW) allowing for limited energy requirement related to
creating awareness etc. distribution in the habitation lighting, heating, cooking, etc.
l The dependency of rural areas, would perhaps be more Though intermittent in nature
households on fuel-wood can useful for capacity addition, this system could be installed
be reduced by popularizing economy and to contain huge in varying capacities depending
scientific Chullhas. Improved transmission and distribution upon the requirement and
wood stoves not only raise losses. Thus, micro-hydel potential of the region. Hence
energy efficiency, typically by power stations are ideally towards a sustainable energy
30-50 per cent but also reduce suited to areas where power policy, the alternative options
indoor pollution by a factor of demand is relatively low and as suggested above may be
population is scattered. Thus, implemented seriously by the
20 to 100, to levels well within
the State Governments are Government. q
WHO guidelines. However,
this type of techniques should required to develop a suitable (E-mail : rabinkhataniar@gmail.com)

Yojana July 2011


Forthcoming &
August 2011
Issues
July 2011
Census 2011
August 2011
Entertainment Industry

YOJANA June 2011 31


YE-48/2011

32 YOJANA June 2011


AadhAar
View Point

Broadening Base of E-governance in India

H K Singh
Amit Manglani

echnological basic amenities and facilities

T cha nges h a v e
certainly improved
the living status of
Indians. Broadened
base of television and telephony
electronically. In this way, they
want to reach closer to every
citizen, provide easy access to
government programmes and
make it easy for citizens to pay
services has filled the gap between their taxes etc. In e-governance,
the rich and poor in way of various facilities and functions of
access and use of technological government are available to the
innovations. This technological public through web portals with
advancement is, however, a little the help of internet. Here, a citizen
Thus, with its slow in the area of computer-aided can access the services with the
investment on the services. It is because of two basic use of computer and internet and
difficulties of this sector – first is is saved the long waits in tedious
UID project, the the ready availability of computer queues. For example the filing of
government is system, which is still a costly income-tax returns, registration
affair for an average-income of companies, applications for
already expanding earning Indian and the second is new or renewal of passports,
its infrastructural ignorance and lack of information and other similar services
of available computer-aided available through electronic
base for facilities and their huge benefits system. In the sense of customer
e-governance over the conventional system. to customer (C2C) electronic
Governments today are business module, e-governance
also taking initiatives to provide is Government to resident
The authors are respectively, Professor in Commerce, Banaras Hindu University and Assistant Professor at Rajiv Gandhi
South Campus ,a South Campus of Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in Barkachha, Mirzapur.

YOJANA June 2011 33


(G2R) module, electronically based application like ration card, another step forward to provide
connecting administrators with passport etc. can use. UIDAI will a system for better e-governance
the remotest citizen for welfare only provide a confirmatory ‘Yes’ in coming future. Thus, with its
of the society and ‘ease in use’ or a nugatory ‘No’ response to investment on the UID project, the
p u r p o s e s . H o w e v e r, i n o u r any identification authentication government is already expanding
country, e-governance services query to any other governmental its infrastructural base for
are, as of now, largely benefitting authority. It will not provide its e-governance.
the urban and computer-savvy full data relating to the individual The project also addresses
peoples, while their reach among for such queries. the lack of access to computer
the poor and rural people needs to systems. A beneficiary/ citizen
Making E-governance affordable
be enhanced. need not have any direct access
with Aadhaar
to a system, he simply has to
In a country like India where take his UID card whenever he/
As has already been
internet penetration and usage are she visits a government office.
discussed the biggest hurdle in
low, and there are a huge number His/her information and other
implementation of e-governance
of people who do not have any details can be retrieved by the
in India is less number of personal
access to computers, e-services
computers, and less penetration officials there with their official
can expand only at the initiative of computer system. With this idea,
of broadband services. It would
the government- the government even an illiterate person or a
be important to discuss that
has to reach each beneficiary person living below poverty-
affordability can be measured
even if the beneficiary himself line, can access the e-governance
from (i) government side and, (ii)
finds it difficult to reach for and services. By providing the card, he
User/cardholder side. will get ration for the month from
demand the service. It is only this
approach that can ensure that the From government side, the computerised UID readable devices
government has had to broad base at Ration Shops, direct money can
services are affordable and easily
its internet services for rolling be sent to his bank account which
accessible, and hence feasible.
out the UID project. It has also is linked with his card and he
It is in this context that the new
can collect the cash by simply
‘Aadhar’ project is important for undertaken the development of
showing the card and fulfilling
us - it can facilitate the inclusion error-free, hack-proof and reliable
other formalities. So, the problem
of maximum possible population system on which UID system and
of affordability of computer system
under e-governed state. its database can work smoothly
and prior knowledge of computer
and significantly. Government operations will not be required at
About Aadhaar
has already taken a lead in cardholder’s end. Here we need
The UID project aims to establishing network of optical to train government officials for
provide a unique identity to fibres which are essential for rendering computer-aided services
every Indian resident including broadband connectivity and is also effectively and efficiently.
infants, through a 12 digit unique trying to connect more villages
Making E-governance accessible
identification number. It would be with optical fibre networks by
through Aadhaar
voluntary in nature. Aadhaar will extending this work through
collect demographic and biometric National Rural Employment As the access point of services
information for the uniqueness of Guarantee scheme (NREGS). (simply an internet connected
individual; and enable a universal Again, with the constitution of computer system) will be available
identity infrastructure that any ID UIDAI, government has taken at some specific centres, a poor and/

34 YOJANA June 2011


or illiterate citizen can access such work as birth-certificate, address the government. This will be a
services from there. Accessibility and photo ID proof for applying multi-purpose card which will
problem can be removed with – (i) to various courses and colleges; help in accessing services not only
Access by government itself not for an unemployed, it can work offered by government but also
by the cardholder, and (ii) Proper as employment exchange number from private sector as well. If
Advertisement. As Table-1 shows, to get the benefits of job offerings a magnetic strip can be included
India’s readiness in e-governance and unemployment allowance (as in the Aadhaar card, it will help
is dismal. was offered in U.P. in the previous the cardholder to link his bank
state government’s regime); an account with his card to use it for
UIDs can change this scenario
employed person can link his petty expenses and like an ATM
by helping the government to
reach every citizen with its PAN number, tax-filing options, card. However, there should be a
pension details and other facilities cap on the maximum limit of such
services, even if he belongs to the
with this card and a businessman linked account to avoid any kind
remotest area.
will have linked TAN, PAN and of fraud or misappropriation of
E-governance through Aadhaar: other legalities with this card. cash by the use of that card.
Beneficial for All
The most benefitted class will There are however, some
It is suggested that a highly be the rural population. It will odds in implementing the unique
technical card having built-in help them to get their quota of ID project. India has never
microchip and a magnetic strip can fertilisers, seed from agriculture implemented any ID related
have all the necessary information ministry, monthly quota of ration project with complete accuracy,
related to the cardholder and through public distribution system be it ration card or voter ID card.
hence, even if a cardholder is (PDS), remuneration of work done Even today we get many voter ID
illiterate, he may be benefitted with under National Rural Employment card as ‘Not fully correct’ or with
e-governed services. This facility Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), incorrect entries in name, address
will have something for everyone. and loan waiver or other kind of or even in photo. Problems of
For example, for a student, it will financial assistance directly from securing the database, making
the whole system hack-proof and
Table-1 – E-Government Readiness for Southern Asia1
of privacy of data are some other
Country 2008 Ranking 2005 Ranking concerns in implementation of
Maldives 95 77 e-governance through UIDs. Yet,
despite these concerns ‘Aadhaar’
Sri Lanka 101 94
is going to change the way India
Iran (Islamic Republic of) 108 98 works. q
India 113 87
(E-mail : hksinghmeera@yahoo.co.in
Pakistan 131 136 amit.manglani@gmail.com)
Bhutan 134 130 Corrigendum
The Introduction of Ms B. Syama Sundari,
Bangladesh 142 162 author of the article "Stopping migration
from villages: Challenges for the Handloom
Nepal 150 126 Sector" that appeared in the May 2011 issue
of Yojana was inadvertently printed as
Afghanistan 167 168 Treasurer, Dastkar, Andhra Pradesh. This
may please be read as follows:
Source: UN E-government Survey 2008: From E-government to connected Governance, The author is Co-ordinator, Policy Research
United Nations Publication, New York, 2008; pg. 53 and Advocacy, Dastkar, Andhra Pradesh.

YOJANA June 2011 35


AadhAar
Focus

Identification Numbers Around the World

Jomon Mathew

ndia has t a k e n created for BPL families, it was felt

I up the huge task of


providing Unique
Identification Number
known as Aadhar to
all citizens of the country. As the
word connotes foundation, the 12
that the number could be highly
beneficial if issued to all citizens
of the country. Consequently, the
Unique Identification Authority
was constituted in 2008 and Mr.
Nandan Nilkeni was appointed as
digit identification number aims to its chairman from 2nd July 2009
be the foundation of our rights and onwards for five years initial
claims to a wide range of facilities. period.
It also stands to be the very basis
With Aadhar of one’s identity. The responsibility
The project aims to collect the
biometrics of all ten fingers, face
therefore, India of issuing the number rests on the and also the iris image of both eyes
Unique Identification Authority of of an individual. Then the number
joins a club of more India (UIDAI). The very purpose will be stored in a centralized
than fifty nations
of the UID project is to give every database and linked to the basic
Indian resident a unique number demographics and biometric
thereby preventing all kinds of
around the world information such as the already
duplication that currently exist. collected photograph, fingerprints
that already have The targeted time for completing and iris of the individual. All
this Himalayan task will be the end these ensure the uniqueness of
some form of of 2015. the number and thereby reduce
the chances of errors. The most
national identity Understanding Aadhar
important advantage of Aadhar
cards The requirement of a unique is that the card will provide a
identification number was felt even simple solution to various kinds of
before. Though such a number was documentary proof. As it contains
The author is Asst. Professor in Economics, E. K. Nayanar Memorial Govt. College Elerithattu, Kasaragod District,
Kerala

36 YOJANA June 2011


all kinds of personal details, it Registration System which was Brazil. The Card contains the
will check efforts to create fake established in 1968. CPR is in the name, the birth date, the names of
identity for individual benefits so format of DDMMYY-SSSS where parents, the signature and the thumb
that various types of duplication of DDMMYY is the date of birth and print of the citizens. Argentina’s
data can be easily and effectively SSSS is a sequence of number. The national identity number is known
blocked. The card will ensure wide first digit shows the century of birth as National Identity Document –
usage such as income tax purposes, and the last digit is odd for males DNI - assigned at the time of birth
banking transactions, checking and even for females. In Ireland, of individuals. It is noted that most
black money transfer, using the there exists the Personal Public of the poor people in Argentina do
card as license, credit cum debit Service Number (PPS No) which is not have DNI card.
cum ATM card and the like. Aadhar widely used for a widening variety
will also enable mobility of people of public services. The basic format Sri Lanka also provides a
across different parts of the country of PPS No is 1234567A and it is National Identity Card (NIC) to all
for search of job and so on. Thus, unique to each individual. citizens above 16 years of age. NIC
Aadhar will be highly beneficial for is a 10 digit number in the format of
both the individuals as well as the The United States right from 00000000A where 0 is a digit and
government for carrying out a lot of 1936 with the establishment of A is a letter. NIC is strictly required
day to day activities smoothly and Social Security Administration in Sri Lanka for identity proof and
transparently. was issuing a Social Security is used while applying for passport,
Number (SSN) to its citizens.
driving license and appearing to
Unique Identification Numbers Though SSN was used for social
vote. In Indonesia, all citizens
around the world security purposes initially, it is now
are provided a 16 digit unique
Of course India is not the being used widely for a number
identification number known as
first country to link identity with of non-social security needs and
Nomor Induk Kependudukan.
biometrics on a national scale. for services such as child support
Attempts have been made before collections, low enforcement etc. The number is in the format
by several countries around the In Canada, a Social Insurance of PPRRSSDDMMYY where, PP
world and many of them are using Number (SIN) is used for various stands for province, RR stands for
biometrics as basis for identification government programmes. SIN is a regency or city, SS stands for sub
of citizens in some form. With nine digit number created in 1964 district code, DDMMYY denote
Aadhar therefore, India joins a club to serve as an account number for the date of birth and finally XXXX
of more than fifty nations around pension and employment insurance is the computerized number. A
the world that already have some programmes. Later, the number was Hong Kong Identity Card (HKID)
form of national identity cards. The used for tax reporting and many mandatory for all citizens above
list includes most of the European other administrative purposes 11 years of age and its long term
Union countries, United States, Chile’s National Identification residents is being used in Hong
Brazil, Indonesia, Israel, Hong Number is called RUN. This Kong.
Kong, Chile, Sri Lanka and many number is used as multi-purpose While we recognize the attempts
more. We shall now try to identify number such as tax payer number, made by countries around the world
those identification numbers of passport number, social insurance
countries around the world. in providing a unique identification
number, driving license number number to their citizens, we would
Denmark has a ten digit Personal etc. Brazil, another Latin American be fully justified in feeling proud of
Identification Number called ‘CPR’ country had been providing unique
our own project, which is perhaps the
used widely for several purposes ID cards to its citizens since the
largest of its kind given India’s huge
like health care, tax payments, beginning of 20 th century. The
population and her demographic
banking and insurance etc. This card called the National Identity/
complexities. q
number is a part of the personal Insurance Card Number is the
information stored in the Civil national identity document in (E-mail:jomonmathew.k@rediffmail.com)

YOJANA June 2011 37


YE-44/2011

38 YOJANA June 2011


SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
INNOVATION

The Emergence of Hydroponics

Lalita Maharana
Divy Ninad Koul

ver wondered, heavy pollution. We can however,

E living in an urban
landscape comprising
of only concrete
platform, where sight
of a clean open land for cultivation
is a far fetched dream, is there
have a plant cultivated not in field
but on desk, let’s say it’s called
Desktop Cultivation.
Hydroponics
Hydroponics (from the Greek
any possibility of growing your words hydro, water and ponos,
choicest plants and tasting your labor) is a technology for growing
favorite vegetables grown in your plants in nutrient elements needed
Especially for own “farm”? In the first instance, for optimum plant growth with or
people living in most may just laugh over it. One without the use of an inert medium
would wonder how it is possible such as gravel, vermiculite,
urban areas where for a plant to grow without soil & rockwool, peat moss, saw dust,
there is massive without access to nutrients. Well coir dust, coconut fiber. The
it’s no longeran impossibility. term Hydroponics was coined
space constraint, Basically, plants needs light, by Professor William Frederick
this technique can oxygen, carbon dioxide, water and Gericke of the University of
nutrients (17 essential nutrients). California at Berkeley in the year
help to realize your Soil is the medium for water and 1937 (‘Hydroponics’, an Italian
dream of having nutrient. In a city, it is difficult to term that connotes water working
expect enough land and soil to and was coined in the 1930s).
your next meal grow plants because it is almost Gericke created a sensation by
from your own fully covered by concrete and growing tomato vines twenty-
in other areas, soil is exposed to five feet high in his back yard in
farm produce
The authors are respectively Programme Associate (ENVIS) in Environment Management and Policy Research Institute
(EMPRI), Department of Ecology and Environment (GoK), Bangalore and student of MBA (Agribusiness) in Symbiosis
Institute of International Business (SIIB), Pune.

YOJANA June 2011 39


mineral nutrient solutions rather come from their direct contact type of plant can be grown
than soil. It is used to overcome the with the soil are also absent. year after year.
limitations of traditional agriculture l
Saved time Since the
l
No crop rotation: with
- inadequate water, poor soils, short hydroponics system uses a
hydroponic gardening there
growing seasons, excessive heat or sterile environment, weeds
is no need to practice crop
cold or inadequate light. are generally absent and thus
rotation. The reason for crop
Scale of Operation rotation is because certain there is efficient use of time
plants “leach” certain element and labor.
The smallest unit measures 20
out of the soil, rendering the l
Better control: Hydroponic
sq m and costs approximately Rs
soil useless for extended use systems allow better control
9,000 to build a garden and another
by the same crop. With a over such things like pH
Rs 9,000 to maintain it. As far as
hydroponic system, the same conditions. This is something
the recurring costs go, it comes up
to Rs 10,000. The garden produces Table 1. List of crops grown in Hydroponics
2 kg of pesticide-free produce
Type of crops Names of the crops
every day. A simplified garden can
be as small as one bed grower of 1. Cereals Rice, Maize
1sq m and even up to 1000 sq m 2. Fruits Strawberry
which is a full-scale commercial 3. Vegetables Tomato, Egg Plant, Green bean, Beet, Winged bean,
operation. Researches carried in Capsicum, Bell pepper, Cabbage, Cauliflower,
Defence Agricultural Research cucumbers, melons, radish
Laboratory (DARL), Uttaranchal 4. Leafy vegetables Lettuce, Head lettuce, Kang Kong, Gotukola
showed that quality, taste and 5. Condiments Parsley, Mint, Oregano, Sweet basil
color were good in hydroponically 6. Flower/ Anthurium, Merrygold, Coleus, roses, carnations,
grown vegetables. ornamental crops orchids, chrysanthemums,

Benefits: 7. Medicinal crops Alovera


8. Fodder crops Sorghum, Alphalfa, Barley, Bermuda grass, Carpet
l Utilization of space: one
grass
of the main advantages of
hydroponics is the possibility
Table2. Vegetable production in Hydroponics
of using urban spaces
which hitherto had not been Vegetables Area in m2 Grams per Day
considered adequate for Carrot 2 113
growing food i.e. balconies, Cucumber 1 226
small gardens, party walls, Garlic 1 57
rooftops.
Ginger 1 57
l
Optimum water consumption: Leek 1 57
water is recycled and does not
Lettuce 1 226
pollute the environment. : It’s
a “3R” technology. Where Green Bean 1 113
water is reduced, reused and Onion 2 113
recycled in the process of Peapod 1 113
cultivation of crops. Potato 4 226
l
Hydroponic products are Salad greens 1 226
healthier: Pesticides are rarely Greens 2 226
used in hydroponics and pests Tomato 2 226
and diseases that affect crops Total: 20 1979

40 YOJANA June 2011


that can be difficult to regulate tubs, pumps, timer, pipes, pH each day, there is no option but
with traditional growing and EC meter. to innovate to help improve
methods. production and produce healthier
l
Requires specialized plants. Though the initial cost is
l
Intangible benefits:
knowledge: It is necessary high, there are many advantages of
Hydroponics can be a
for solution preparation, growing plants using hydroponics.
recreational and enjoyable
maintenance of pH and EC, Not only does it need less space
pastime. Elderly people,
nutrient deficiency judgment and time for growth, but it also
children, stressed-out
and correction, ensuring helps in water conservation and
executives, individuals with
aeration, maintenance of nutrients recycling. Especially
various degrees of disability,
favorable condition inside for people living in urban areas
and even busy housewives can
protected structures, etc. where there is massive space
find a source of permanent
satisfaction in hydroponics. constraint, this technique can
Conclusion
help to realize your dream of having
Disadvantage/Draw Backs: Hydroponics has taken plant your next meal from your own
l
Initial cost is more: Here cultivation to the next level. In a farm produce. q
the basic cost is more due to country like India, where urban
requirement of plastic or wood concrete conglomerate is growing (E-mail : lalita.maharana@gmail.com)

YE-36/2011

YOJANA June 2011 41


do you know?
Financial Committees of the Parliament of India
How many committees on cannot be elected as a member of of Lok Sabha or by the
Financial issues are there in the Committee and if a member Speaker.
Parliament ? after his election to the Committee What is the Committee on
is appointed a Minister, he ceases to Public Accounts?
In a parliamentary democracy
be a member of the Committee from The Committee on Public
like ours, the Committee system
assumes great importance. By the date of such appointment. Accounts was first set up
its very nature, Parliament, as a in 1921 in the wake of the
What are the functions of this
body cannot have an effective Montague-Chelmsford
committee? Reforms. The Public
control over the government and
(a) to report what economies, Accounts Committee
the whole gamut of its activities.
is now constituted every
Administrative accountability improvements in
year under Rule 308 of the
to the legislature through organisation, efficiency
Rules of Procedure and
Committees has been the hallmark or administrative reform, Conduct of Business in Lok
of our political system. There are consistent with the policy Sabha. The Public Accounts
three financial committees in the underlying the estimates Committee consists of not
Parliament and they are appointed may be effected. more than 22 members
and elected by the House or comprising of 15 members
(b) to suggest alternative elected by Lok Sabha every
nominated by the Speaker and
policies in order to year from amongst its
which works under the direction
bring about efficiency members according to the
of the Speaker. These Committees
and economy in principle of proportional
can be classified into the following
administration representation by means of
categories; single transferable vote and
(1) Estimates Committee (c) to examine whether the not more than 7 members of
money is well laid out Rajya Sabha elected by that
(2) Public Account Committee
within the limits of the House in like manner.
(3) C o m m i t t e e o n P u b l i c policy implied in the
Undertakings What are the functions of this
estimates; and committee?
What is the Estimates The functions of the
(d) to suggest the form in
Committee ? Committee, include
which the estimates shall
examination of accounts
The Estimates Committee be presented to Parliament.
showing the appropriation of
consists of 30 Members, elected The Committee does not
sums granted by Parliament
every year by the Lok Sabha from exercise its functions in for the expenditure of the
amongst its Members and the term relation to such Public Government of India, the
of this committee is one year. The Undertakings as are annual finance accounts of
Chairman of the Committee is allotted to the Committee the Government and such
appointed by the Speaker from on Public Undertakings other accounts laid before the
amongst its members. A Minister by the Rules of Procedure House as the Committee may

42 YOJANA June 2011


think fit. In scrutinising the trading or manufacturing is appointed by the Speaker
Appropriation Accounts of scheme or concern or from amongst the Members
the Government of India and project and the report of the Committee. A Minister
the Report of the Comptroller of the Comptroller and is not eligible to become a
& Auditor General of India Auditor General thereon. Member of the Committee.
thereon, the Committee has (b) to examine the statement If a Member after his
to satisfy: of accounts showing the election to the Committee
income and expenditure is appointed a Minister, he
(a) that the moneys shown of autonomous and semi ceases to be a Member of the
in the accounts as having autonomous bodies, Committee from the date of
been disbursed were the audit of which may such appointment.
legally available for, and be conducted by the What are the functions of this
applicable to, the service Comptroller and Auditor committee?
or purpose to which they General of India either
under the directions of the (a) to examine the reports
have been applied or
President or by a statute of and accounts of Public
charged;
Parliament; and Undertakings specified
(b) that the expenditure in the Fourth Schedule to
conforms to the authority (c) to consider the report of the
the Rules of Procedure
Comptroller and Auditor
which governs it; and and Conduct of Business
General in cases where
(c) t h a t e v e r y r e - in Lok Sabha ; (b) to
the President may have
appropriation has been examine the reports, if
required him to conduct
made in accordance with an audit of any receipts or any, of the Comptroller
the provisions made in to examine the accounts of and Auditor General
stores and stocks. of India on the Public
this behalf under rules
Undertakings ; (c) to
framed by competent If any money has been spent on
examine, in the context
authority. any service during a financial
of the autonomy and
year in excess of the amount
It shall also be the duty of the efficiency of the Public
granted by the House for that
Committee – Undertakings whether
purpose the Committee shall
(a) to examine the statement examine with reference to the affairs of the Public
of accounts showing the facts of each case the Undertakings are being
the `income and circumstances leading to such managed in accordance
expenditure of state an excess and make such with sound business
corporations, trading recommendation as it may principles and prudent
and manufacturing deem fit. commercial practices ;
and (d) to exercise such
schemes, concerns and What is the Committee on Public other functions vested
projects together with Undertakings? in the Public Accounts
the balance sheets and The Committee on Public Committee and the
statements of profit and Undertakings consisting of 22 Estimates Committee
loss accounts which Members, fifteen elected by in relation to the Public
the President may have the Lok Sabha and seven by Undertakings as are not
required to be prepared the Rajya Sabha, from amongst covered by clauses (a),
or are prepared under their Members according to (b) and (c) above and
the provisions of the the principle of proportional as may be allotted to
statutory rules regulating representation by means of a the Committee by the
the financing of a single transferable vote for a Speaker from time to
particular corporation, term of one year. The Chairman time. q

YOJANA June 2011 43


YE-49/2011

44 YOJANA June 2011


Management Mantras
Suggestions

Ensuring Service-Quality
In Government Sector
Sujata Hira

ne of t h e m o s t market oriented. As in corporate

O important functions
of government is to
provide public services
which are mainly non-
market in nature for
the collective consumption of the
sector, the citizen is now the
‘king’ who wants true standard
for judging service quality. The
Berry –Parasuraman checklist
(Parasuraman & Berry 1991:
72-73) for the corporate marketing
community. Services involve may be used, in a modified way, by
transfer or redistribution of income the intermediate level government
or are financed mainly through officials to manage their service
Researchers have taxes and other compulsory standard.

identified five levies. Government, with all its


employment services, health care
The following questions they
should ask themselves:
measures, judicial system, law and
determinants of order maintenance is intothe service
l Is there a regular communication
between government officials
service quality. In ’business’ which no other private/
who serve the people directly
corporate institution can even think and those who frame public
order of importance, of matching . policy?
We are in the age of New l Are employees trained enough
these determinants public Management (NPM) which for delivering error-free
are: reliability, calls for a change in the role of service? Do we regularly
government in society and also in evaluate our service designs to
responsiveness, government –citizen relationship. identify and correct potential
The entrepreneurial government flaws?
assurance, empathy is viewed as a multi-faceted one l Do we train and require
– catalytic, community oriented, employees to demonstrate to
and tangibles mission driven, result oriented, people that we care about and
customer driven, decentralized and value them?
The author is a member of West Bengal Civil Service , currently posted as Block Development Officer in
Bishnupur I Development Block , South 24 Parganas, West Bengal

YOJANA June 2011 45


l Do
we take specific steps to
peoples’ need but fail to set a of the dead but they may feel
encourage excellence in public performance standard. In our that he is hiding his inefficiency
relation? example, the clerk may have in maintaining public safety.
l
Do we prepare and encourage been instructed to give ‘quick’
service so that no long queue Researchers have identified
employees to excel in the five determinants of service
service recovery process e.g. forms, without specifying that
twenty or more people in a quality based on the above stated
spelling mistake in the EPIC? model. In order of importance,
queue will be called a long
l
Do we perform consistently these determinants are: reliability,
one.
above the adequate service responsiveness, assurance,
level? 3. Gap between service quality empathy and tangibles (officials,
specifications and service physical equipments etc.). A
Today’s governments want delivery- proper evaluative method based
to deliver high quality services
on them could help government
that citizens value. Citizens’ Even if there exists a
authorities find the real service
charter is one example which performance standard,
quality provided at public offices.
shows the good intention of the poor training, incapability,
top level administrators .Whether unwillingness to meet the As the government is also
the intention is translated into specification or being subject paying high attention to online
performance is difficult to measure to conflicting commands service, it can build and enhance
in the absence of a close supervision from the superior officer may communication with employees,
by the policy makers from the hamper service quality . media and common people
top level. A suitable measuring through online channels, social
4. G a p b e t w e e n s e r v i c e
scale is also not available. In networking sites and twitters. This
delivery and external
this matter , we can refer the relationship becomes even more
communication-
service –quality model formulated crucial during a crisis like flood
by Parasuraman, Zeithaml and P e o p l e ’s e x p e c t a t i o n i s when situation changes every
Berry (Parasuraman,Zaithaml created by advertisements in moment and people need proper ,
and Berry 1985:44). This model mass media broadcast by the uninterrupted , correct information.
identifies five gaps that cause government at the highest Therefore, a minimum service
unsuccessful delivery of services. level. If common people are quality is required there. Online
told to get information on service quality can be measured
1. G a p b e t w e e n s e r v i c e - a particularissue through a on a scale of four dimensions.
consumer’s expectation and toll-free number which works They are reliability/fulfillment,
officials’ perception- 24X7 and they find that their website design, security/privacy
calls are not picked up, then and ‘customer’ service. Excellent
Officials do not always
it is said that the external website functionality in terms of
correctly perceive what people
communication is distorted. time savings, easy transactions,
want. A Panchayat pradhan
This is one issue our governing in-depth information and reliability
may think that common people authorities should be careful are important.
coming to the office need sitting of.
arrangement for them , but they Keeping all these in mind,
may be more concerned with 5. Gap between perceived we need to anlyse our service-
the clerk’s responsiveness, service and expected system’s strengths and weaknesses.
efficiency and integrity. service- If need be, there is no harm in
borrowing some techniques from the
2. G a p b e t w e e n o f f i c i a l s ’ When service-consumer marketing management textbooks
perception and service misperceives the service to improve the way our government
quality specification – –quality , this gap is said to sector officials deal with public in
exist. After a bus accident, the general. q
In this case, government local political representative
officials may correctly perceive may decide to visit the relatives (E-mail : sujatahira@yahoo.co.in)

46 YOJANA June 2011


YE-46/2011

YOJANA June 2011 47


Best Practices

Green Rhapsody

Sujata Raghavan

astar in s o u t h nature, preserves it for the present

B Chhattisgarh is
increasingly being
associated with bloody
violence and strife,
a political conflict that throws
up disturbing questions of policy
generation of course, but really
speaking for posterity.
Perhaps it is this philosophy
embedded in the region for centuries
that has led Virender Singh to take
priorities that this tribal region has on the mantle of environment
received in the decades following protection in the region. Even as a
India’s Independence. Indeed as it child growing up in Durg district in
is being increasingly acknowledged, a family of agricultural workers, he
it has been the singular lack of would revel in the bounty of nature;
One of the development that has led to birth the joy of seeing new leaves, crops
significant of political groups that question waiting to be harvested and water
gushing in the streams. As he
the framework of parliamentary
campaigns this democracy in this country. grew, he realized that this bounty
is the basis for human civilization
team undertook Somewhere lost in this high- and indeed its continuance. Yet it
intensity conflict and debate around is finite, and if we do not nurture
was to protect the it, is the question of Bastar’s own it, it may disappear altogether.
standing wheat identity. What is the area like, In later years, as a schoolteacher,
how do the people live and what he saw the immense potential of
crop from ‘gajar in a sense defines it, in terms of its opening young minds to both the
terrain, its natural resources, and
ghaans’ which its cultural and social patterns?
joy and the threat to Nature. From
this realization, began his journey
caused flowering What strikes one are the luxuriant
forests that stretch for miles and
and over the last 13 years earned
him the pseudonym of “ Green
of the crop well miles from any one point. The
Commando”.
adivasis who have inhabited the
before the harvest region for centuries have evolved a So what was the trigger that
way of life, a culture that worships set off this incredible journey,

48 YOJANA June 2011


Virender is as much of a strategist company, Godavari River Ispat Ltd
as a spontaneous environmental which pays him a princely sum of
activist. School principals are Rs.5000/ and allows him that luxury.
only too glad to give their children In his earlier job as a schoolteacher,
this kind of exposure to a relevant he used to earn Rs.500/- and yet
issue. Asked how he keeps himself somehow manage to do something
abreast of what is happening in the constructive for his pet project!
environmental field and new ideas He is also blessed with family
to translate that into activities, and friends who are supportive.
now a mission of his life? Says Virender smiles knowingly “ I A mother who is proud of her son
Virender with a sparkle in his eyes don’t need to read books about the doing such fine work, artist friends
“ Chhattisgarh is a rice-producing environment to understand it. I like Ankush Dewangan, Vidyarthi
state and the paddy crop from which know it instinctively, what is going who lend their talent to the shows
it is derived is dependent heavily on wrong, what needs to be highlighted and exhibitions in the area.
water sources.” Beginning in 1997, and how to make it exciting for the
he could see the diminishing of Virender however stays close
children and youth”. to his original cause of water
traditional water sources, the wells,
ponds, and small streams. All of For Virender’s campaign, which conservation. “Water is the key,
this depended on rainfall and yet involves both boys and girls, it the most precious resource for the
much of the water would run off. is girls who really lead the way, earth”, he believes. And to promote
What if this could be stored and enthused about the message as the idea, he evolved the concept of
saved? This really was the germ of much as the activities that it entails. ‘Tilak Holi’. This revolved around
an idea of ‘Water Harvesting’ in his And there is plenty to get involved playing Holi, a joyous festival
mind. And he began a campaign to in. Nukkad Nataks, Poster Making, of colours in Chhattisgarh as in
save the traditional water sources. Exhibitions, Issue-based Marches, many parts of the country not by
Field Visits, Tree-Planting drives splashing water on each other but
Also pollutants from Bhilai Steel applying a ‘tilak’ on each other thus
and of course doing door to door
Plant (BSP) in Durg district were
campaigns, One of the significant sending out a powerful message of
affecting the area around Tandula water conservation.
campaigns this team undertook
Dam, which many communities
was to protect the standing wheat Recognising the immense
were dependent on for their water
sources. Not to mention the birds crop from ‘gajar ghaans’ (literally contribution to an issue, which
and animals in the area. He took carrot grass) which caused a strange concerns not only Bastar or
up the issue with the block and flowering of the crop well before Chattisgarh but the entire country,
district authorities, Nagar Palikas the harvest. one of the leading media houses,
and the Jal Board but the response Most of the activities involving ‘Dainik Bhaskar ’ selected
was tepid, typical of authority sadly. school children are done in and Virender Singh from amongst 146
Yet this is what sparked the idea of around the vicinity and all in a nominations in the country for the “
involving school children. Under his day trip. It is mostly walking and Dainik Jal Star Award” on April 13,
guidance, groups of students from observing, eating what they all this year. However , it is not awards,
local schools across Kanker district carry from home. For material which drive Virender. A greener
and now increasingly colleges like posters, paints and brushes, Bastar, a cleaner environment in
move from house to house to talk Virender contributes this from Chhattisgarh and above all, a bunch
about environmental protection, the his salary. But local people chip of young people raring to go and
need to save trees, save water, keep in with food and other items and take the message far and wide,
the surroundings clean of filth and these are the real achievements of
in that sense; it has become a
garbage. this change-maker, a lasting legacy
community initiative Virender is
Co-opting the school system glad that he has found a job as a to be sure.
into this campaign showed that Communication Officer in a private Charkha Features

YOJANA June 2011 49


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50 YOJANA June 2011


North east diary
Pobitora emerging as major tourist spot

I
t used to be just a petite piece of wilderness, but now it is among the most popular haunts for nature
lovers. Pobitora, the natural refuge of the Indian rhino, has emerged as a major draw for Indian and
foreign tourists alike. The number of visitors to Pobitora has swelled in recent times, the reason being
its close proximity to Guwahati. Tourists who are hard pressed for time find it much more convenient to
visit Pobitora than Kaziranga.

According to forest personnel, the proximity of Pobitora to Guwahati is a help, but its birdlife is an
undeniable advantage. A large number of bird lovers have been visiting the sanctuary in recent times.
In winter it is a paradise for bird lovers…many varieties of migratory water fowl arrive from far away
places. Photographers based in Guwahati find it an attractive destination, and some have become regular
visitors.

Another reason for Pobitora's popularity is the easy viewing of wildlife. In the morning and in the
afternoon, rhinos and wild buffaloes can be viewed from close quarters. The elephant rides are an additional
advantage, as visitors get a good view of wildlife in their natural habitat.

Foreigners have taken a liking for the natural landscape, as revealed by many travellers who find its
rich biodiversity interesting.

Visitors from different parts of India have also praised the way the sanctuary spread over 38.81 sq km has been
managed. It is worth mentioning that the sanctuary has also found space in international television programming
helping increase tourist interest. q

Centre releases Rs 5 crore for road projects in Mizoram

T
he Ministry of Rural Development has released a grant-in-aid of Rs 5.59crore for rural road
connectivity under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). The sum is from the special
window created in National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) under RIDF
as grants in aid to the Mizoram Rural Roads Development Agency (MRRDA). The amount is a part payment
of second installment of phase VI.

About 45 villages will be connected by constructing 220 km of road during 2010-11 and another 35
villages will be connected during 2011-12, covering 300 km of road, MRRDA is the agency executing the
works taken up under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) in the State.

Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana is a 100 per cent Centrally sponsored scheme to provide road
connectivity in the rural areas of the country. PMGSY envisages connectivity to all habitations with a
population of 500 people and above in the rural areas and about 250 people and above in respect of the
hilly states, tribal areas and desert areas through good and all weather roads. q

YOJANA June 2011 51


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52 YOJANA June 2011

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